The CPU socket is a physical connection on your motherboard allowing the main board and all connected hardware to communicate with the processor. It's either a pin grid array (PGA) or land grid ...
Install the CPU onto the motherboard carefully to prevent bending pins and irreparable damage. Look for a triangle indicator on the CPU and socket to align them properly for a correct installation.
Super Socket 7 didn't arrive until 1998 and served as a stopgap for AMD, buying the company time to develop its own motherboard infrastructure (Slot A) after losing licensing of Intel's sockets ...