Thread: Video card info

  1. #1

    Video card info

    I have an assignment for class that requires me to introduce people who are horrible with computers to video cards. the problem is im not sure how i should do it. it only needs to be around 2 pages so i cant go into very much detail but i have to give a basic outline of its functions, its evolution, and where it is today. i dont know how to condense that much information into 2 pages. can anyone give me a hand?

  2. #2
    Herald of the Titans Saithes's Avatar
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    Well, you'll want to define the two major brands (AMD & Nvidia). Then you'll want to discuss possibly minor specifics that make each brand different. I wouldn't really bother with its "evolution" simply because most people don't care about the history of it and simply want a reliable product.

    Here's a general outline of what I'd do:

    Introduction
    -AMD
    -Nvidia

    Characteristics
    -Stream Processors vs CUDA Cores (Talk about the reason AMD has more Stream Processors than Nvidia has CUDA Cores, which would be that AMD puts 5 ALU's -or simply arithmetic logic unit- per Core, and they list each ALU individually while Nvidia has a universal core.)
    -Graphics Card Memory Types & Memory bus(I'd talk about GDDR2, GDDR3, GDDR5 and ignore GDDR4 then talk about the memory capacity in respect to the memory bus (i.e. explain that a 1GB Card + 64 Bit Bus isn't actually that good))
    -Power Requirements (Talk briefly about the power supply, and that there is a gap in power consumption between different grades of cards.)

    Conclusion
    -I would explain pricings, and the needs for certain cards in either high end game or multi-monitor scenarios.
    Last edited by Saithes; 2012-03-15 at 07:32 PM.

  3. #3
    @saithes thanks a bunch
    Another point my professor asked me to put in was prices and when you need an high performance card. prices should be easy for specific cards but should i do ranges and then relate them to what you can do with that amount of money. like cheaper = movies, mid = some gaming, high = video editing?

  4. #4
    A good site for getting info on the technical aspects of video cards is Anandtech.com That should help you with comparison of card features, just look up the gpu reviews and the like.

  5. #5
    Deleted
    umm, if people are horrible with computers, then start by explaining what a pixel is, how it is rendered, what a GPU essentially does.. and then go on about the more technical stuff up here ^

  6. #6
    Ive tried to find decent information about the different types of video card memory (GDDR2 ect.) but i cant fidn and solid info. i cant only find little half blurbs on forums but no concrete facts that i could put in my essay.

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