What you should do after buying a brand new PC

Yeah so the day came when you finally bought a new PC, you know I mean you laid it on your bed all prepped for the road ahead. Taking pictures, showing it off before plugging your monitor in(provided you already got one) and rest of your peripherals. But yeah here's the tricky thing, I mean you've used a computer before or you're an Apple user and you bought a system to solely play games or do other things among that. Well am here to give you a few steps about how to setup your computer with all the necessary software, additional hardware or somewhere in-between.

P.S: If you haven't decided on what to buy for your PC, here's a guide from me

• Be sure that you own a key code of Microsoft Windows 10:

It's not that hard to install an operating system since there are many tutorials in YouTube, hardest part is getting a copy considering it's quite expensive. Ranging over 100 USD most of the time, that is if you're buying the Pro version. There is another option, the cheaper route by which most auction sites have been selling; OEM codes. compared to the retail version, OEM permanently registers itself to your motherboard and you can then henceforth just easily get your OS activated even after fresh reinstall. If you're really looking to still save on cash, there's Linux. But ah, don't let the tech enthusiasts get to your head, it's not as intuitive or very accessible as Windows, you'll have a very difficult time with it. Just pray you don't RMA your motherboard when the time comes.

• Install all the necessary drivers for both your Graphics Card and motherboard:

Either it's AMD or Nvidia, based on which brand your Graphics Card is from you'll need to update drivers. I mean sure your operation system can also do that, but they won't download the latest ones and install them in most cases. You'll have to do this on your own. Just go to their site and make selections of which versions you want (Just go for 64-bit, forget 32-bit) and for which GPU do you need it. Also a good word of advice, unless you're sort of tech savvy do not download beta versions. Always get the stable ones. As for your motherboard, I've not heard from multiple saying they should download drivers for their chipset boards. That's not a good stigma to have considering nowadays you're buying so newer gaming products even such as a motherboard. You'll need it for your CPU (especially Ryzen series), your Ethernet Port, your audio from integrated soundcard and of course update your motherboard's BIOS when possible, do it from BIOS setup during boot and not from Windows. Also make sure you have power backup, unless your motherboard has dual-BIOS it'll be bricked when power goes out mid update. 

• Get a Webcam and a headset with mic:

Because everybody is a streamer, you'll either stream on Facebook, YouTube or most part Twitch. Having a Webcam is essential, handing with both a camera and a built-in mic as always. But the reason why I also suggested headset with mic is cause it's better to record or have voice-chat with your friends from mic, noises from Webcam can get distracting and some Webcams aren't really as effective as headphone mics. 

• Install a Firewall software, either it's free or paid subscription

I don't care if your friend tells you having no Firewall is harmless, have you been keeping up with the news as of lately? people are losing their credit cards and social security numbers really fast. You can thank your credit company for that. Now my point being is, at any given moment you could accidentally stumble on a misleading site and have trackers inside your computer planted before somebody hijacks and insert Ransomware. Good luck getting rid of that. Firewall's are good countermeasure against the parasites of the internet, you can't always depend on Google to help you out even with their anti-phishing protections. Antivirus from Windows is a given, although my personal opinion would be to check out Malwarebytes.

• Get a Gaming Keyboard and Mouse:

You can use regular KB/Mouse combo no problem, but at this day and age if you want to pawn other players easily you get the best gear for that, both have various options for your needs and within various budgets. For the tightly budget picks, go for membrane keyboards even though they're not mechanical, they're great alternatives, mechanical keyboards on the other hand, oh boy they are godsend. Most people within USA opt for Cherry-MX but other brands like Kailh release key switches from Asian market, where as pure keys cost a lot, these Asian counterparts are affordable, in fact am using a Rapoo V510 Kailh Blue while writing this and it's phenomenal for the budget I got it for. As for gaming mouse, go for something to your niche. Best brands to pick for are: Logitech, Razer, Corsair, Steel Series etc. Here's a full comprehensive list of companies providing them(even Microsoft is in the top 5 list).

• Install softwares for streaming and recording, managing your Graphics Card and CPU:

Now for streaming, you can easily use Nvidia ShadowPlay which is readily available for both streaming and recording gameplay footage provided you're only using Nvidia GPUs. AMD has ReLive and I heard it's quite competitive against the other one. There are third party options however and you're going to have to google on that. But as for both your GPU and CPU, here are couple of software you need to download. MSI Afterburner: Yes, this. Allows you to set a manual fan profile for your GPU only if you live in a place with higher ambient room temperature or your PC's ventilation isn't very effective. Even helping you overclock your GPU. Rivatuner will be provided with Afterburner and will be always monitoring what's going on in your hardware, including CPU temperatures or how much resource from both is being consumed. Except you can't control the fan of the CPU cooler however. AMD has Wattman but don't always get your hopes up about that. ASUS with GPUTweak and EVGA Precision.

• Download benchmark sofwares:

Yes, you just bought your new rig. It's time to figure out how great it is in comparison to other specifications anybody made. For gaming, I would suggest download both Unigine Superposition or 3DMark with FireStrike and TimeSpy. For CPU; go for Cinebench, Blender and PCMark(check 3DMark link).

Well that's about it, again do let me know what you think. I was suppose to do part 2 for build guides especially for enthusiasts out there with all the money in their pockets. In due time, I'll shortly catch up. Till then, thanks for reading :)