Drivers
Sound card, and graphic card drivers are very important, they allow systems to communicate with different parts of hardware within a computer. I will be talking about them below, as well as the network interface controller.
Sound card Driver:
Drivers take information from the hardware input and output, which enables them to be understood bu software which requires it. This is completed by translating the information into a language the software can understand. This is what allows game consoles to play and understand games specific to their console, as each console has a different driver with different translations. Each device has its own special commands which only the driver knows, and the driver accepts generic commands from a program and then translates them into specialized command for that specific device to understand. A sound card driver is exactly as described above, only it specializes in telling software exactly how to translate data into audio signals.. This is so the card can then output to a set of speakers. Obviously this is a must when it comes to video games, as without a sound card driver, no audio would be able to be heard as the audio is not being processes. It would be like skipping the blood flow in the heart, as the data will not reach the driver, so the information cannot be converted and carried on to the rest of the software. |
Graphics Card Driver:
The driver specified for the graphics card essentially works in the same way, but instead of focusing on audio, it focuses on translating the data for video. This includes such aspects as lighting within a video game, or textures. The better the drivers, the faster the data will translate when needing to load. This gives players more of an advantage if their drivers are better, as it means the game will load faster, allowing them to see things clearer and better. This is why drivers are important to a gaming machine. Once again, without the driver, there would be no video, and this would mot likely crash the game, as the computer software wont be able to keep up with commands it is being told without a translator. Its like being yelled at in French with a GCSE level understanding of the language, it would go too fast and you'd only catch a few words of it. Network Interface Controller:
Also known as NIC for short, this is a form of driver which uses the internet in order to send and receive data. Using a connection such as WiFi or an Ethernet connection, the NIC allows a device to connect to the internet, and not only that, but also allows things to be dome such as update the systems software, download new games, and stream apps. As such, the newer generation of consoles like the Xbox One, PS4 and Wii U all depend ion this driver. Once again the importance of having a good driver is big, as gamers gain a much better tactical advantage if their connection is strong and are not lagging. It also means downloading games is a lot more time efficient, so they may get more games quicker if need be. All NICs feature a speed rating like 11 Mbps, 54, or 100 that suggest the general performance of the unit. |