Now that we've found the CPU socket, we need to tell the difference between AMD and Intel, which comes down to the pins. CPUs communicate with the rest of the system through electrical connections carried through sets of pins. Depending on the processor, those pins are either on the socket or on the underside of the CPU itself. For AMD, the pins ar...

Once you get to know the characteristics of both socket types, it's hard to confuse the two. However, there's more to sockets than just AMD vs. Intel. It also matters which generation of processor you use. Just because you have an Intel CPU, for example, doesn't guarantee that it will fit into any old Intel-compatible motherboard, and the same goes...

AMD and Intel have to walk a fine line, of course. Many people want to buy the latest and greatest CPUs for their computers, but they don't necessarily want to spring for a new motherboard every single time a new CPU comes out. The two companies do try to accommodate users when possible, but they also won't hesitate to move to a new socket type if ...