Housing/Chassis Input/Output Devices
AT Housing Keyboard, Mouse, Monitors
ATX Housing Printers, Camera, Micro Phone, Head
SFF Housing Phones/Speaker, Scanners, Printers, Plotters etc.
Power Supply:
Supplies power throughout the computer. Power supplies converts
potentially lethal 110-115 or 220-230 volt alternating current (AC) into a steady
low-voltage direct current (DC) usable by the computer. A power supply is
rated by the number of watts it generates.
Floppy Disk Drive:
Originally created in 1967 by IBM . The floppy reference is
derived from the floppy media that is encased within the
protective casing.
Optical Drives:
CD-ROM :
A CD-ROM (Compact Disk Read Only Memory) is a drive which reads
aluminum-coated round plastic discs however does not write to the discs
invented in the United States 1972
OTHER CD TECHNOLOGIES:
CD-R /- (CD Recordable) Drive which you are able to write to once. Once the
drive is written to it cannot be erased.
CD-RW - (CD ReWritable) drive which is a popular alternative to the CD-R
drive. CD-RW has the capability of being written to at least one thousand times.
CD/DVD Drives
CD/DVD Drives are another storage device in a computer. CD Drives are
used to read CD's with information on them such as an operating
system, programs or data files. Recently CD-RW and DVD-RW have
been included in computers meaning that it is possible to write data to
blank disks. CD Drives are measured by their read and write speeds.
Video Cards
A video card is another compulsory component in a computer. The
information goes into the video card and then is transmitted to the
monitor where the information is displayed. Motherboards have the
graphics card built in, but to get higher resolutions need a seperate
card that plugs into the motherboard.
Sound Card
A sound card translates signals into sounds that can be played back
through speakers. Many motherboards have a sound card incorporated
in the motherboard.
HARDWARE BASICS – INPUT/OUTPUT DEVICES
Output Devices: Monitor, Printer
Display Units: CRT: Cathode Ray Tube
Color monitors have 3 electron guns that control
the display of red, green and blue light. The
surface of the CRT is arranged to have these dots
placed adjacently in a specific pattern.
LCD: They are lighter, thinner, use less power and
do not flicker like their CRT counterparts.
LCD should be avoided to extreme light, heat and cold.
SERIAL PORT
PARALLEL PORT
Southbridge Southbridge
AT Housing Keyboard, Mouse, Monitors
ATX Housing Printers, Camera, Micro Phone, Head
SFF Housing Phones/Speaker, Scanners, Printers, Plotters etc.
Power Supply:
Supplies power throughout the computer. Power supplies converts
potentially lethal 110-115 or 220-230 volt alternating current (AC) into a steady
low-voltage direct current (DC) usable by the computer. A power supply is
rated by the number of watts it generates.
Floppy Disk Drive:
Originally created in 1967 by IBM . The floppy reference is
derived from the floppy media that is encased within the
protective casing.
Optical Drives:
CD-ROM :
A CD-ROM (Compact Disk Read Only Memory) is a drive which reads
aluminum-coated round plastic discs however does not write to the discs
invented in the United States 1972
OTHER CD TECHNOLOGIES:
CD-R /- (CD Recordable) Drive which you are able to write to once. Once the
drive is written to it cannot be erased.
CD-RW - (CD ReWritable) drive which is a popular alternative to the CD-R
drive. CD-RW has the capability of being written to at least one thousand times.
CD/DVD Drives
CD/DVD Drives are another storage device in a computer. CD Drives are
used to read CD's with information on them such as an operating
system, programs or data files. Recently CD-RW and DVD-RW have
been included in computers meaning that it is possible to write data to
blank disks. CD Drives are measured by their read and write speeds.
Video Cards
A video card is another compulsory component in a computer. The
information goes into the video card and then is transmitted to the
monitor where the information is displayed. Motherboards have the
graphics card built in, but to get higher resolutions need a seperate
card that plugs into the motherboard.
Sound Card
A sound card translates signals into sounds that can be played back
through speakers. Many motherboards have a sound card incorporated
in the motherboard.
HARDWARE BASICS – INPUT/OUTPUT DEVICES
Output Devices: Monitor, Printer
Display Units: CRT: Cathode Ray Tube
Color monitors have 3 electron guns that control
the display of red, green and blue light. The
surface of the CRT is arranged to have these dots
placed adjacently in a specific pattern.
LCD: They are lighter, thinner, use less power and
do not flicker like their CRT counterparts.
LCD should be avoided to extreme light, heat and cold.
HARDWARE BASICS - DESKTOP COMPONENTS
Monitors
Computer monitors are another compulsory unit of a computer system. It is
possible for the computer to function correctly without a monitor but there
would be very little point as you cannot see anything. The computer monitor
connects to the graphics card and it displays a picture on the screen.
Computer monitors come in two types: CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) which are
block monitors and LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) which are very thin.
Network Card
A Computer Network Card or a LAN (Local Area Network) card is increasingly
becoming more and more necessary in world of broadband internet and home
networking. LAN ports are often incorporated on the motherboard and it is
used for networking computers together or for connecting through a router to
the World Wide Web.
Other Components
There are many other computer hardware components that can be placed onto
the motherboard in the PCI-slots. These include, firewire cards, USB cards, TV
tuners, and many other components that are specific to their personal needs
HARDWARE BASICS – OLDER MOTHERBOARD
HARDWARE BASICS – INTEL CORE2 DUO BOARDS
LABEL COMPONENTS
1.LGA775 socket for Intel® Kensfield/
Yorkfield/Wolfdale/Core™ 2 Duo CPUs
2. CPU_FAN CPU cooling fan connector
3. DIMM1~4 240-pin DDR2 SDRAM slots
4. JP4 Reserve header
5. FDD Floppy disk drive connector
6. ATX_POWER1 Standard 24-pin ATX power connector
7. SATA1~6 Serial ATA connectors
8. PANEL1 Front panel switch/LED header
9. MFG UNLOCK ME BIOS protect header
10. USB2~4 Front panel USB headers
11. CHS1 Chassis detect header
12. CLR_CMOS Clear CMOS jumper
13. COM2 Onboard Serial port header
14. SPDIFO SPDIF out header
15. SPK Speaker header
16. AUDIO1 Front panel audio header
17. PCI1~2 32-bit add-on card slots
18. PCIEX1 PCI Express x1 slot
19. PCIEX16 PCI Express slot for graphics interface
20. ATX12V1 Auxiliary 4-pin power connector
21. SYS_FAN System cooling fan connector
Processor
The processor (CPU, for Central Processing Unit ) is the computer's brain. It allows the
processing of numeric data, meaning information entered in binary form, and the
execution of instructions stored in memory.
Hyper threading is the technology used in processors which enables one processor to act as
a multiple processor. In multi-core architecture, more than one processors are integrated
in one physical packaging.
Current Processors:
Dual Core & Core 2 Duo
§ Runs two independent processor cores in one physical package at the same frequency.
Quad Core:
§ Runs 4 independent processor cores in one physical package at the same frequency.
Dual Core v/s Core 2 Duo
Dual Core Core 2 Duo
Clock Speed Up to 2.33 GHz speed Greater clock speeds of upto 3.33 GHz is available now.
Power Consumption Extremely power efficient with max TDP of 15Watts. Power efficient processor with max TDP of 65Watts.
Cache Support Max 2MB L2 cache is available. Can get a max of 6MB L2 cache for Core 2 Duo.
FSB Speed Max of 667 MHz speed is available. It is available with front side bus speeds of upto 1333 MHz.
Cost
These processors are priced from $40 to $140 for
different versions of processors – Low cost
These processors are priced from $120 to $270 for different versions of
processors – Higher Cost
Over-locking
They can be easily overclocked up to 4.0 GHz with
suitable coolers. Even a overclocking at 6.0GHz was
made possible with Liquid Nitrogen cooling.
Can be overclocked upto 20-30% of its specified clock speed without
much problem.
HARDWARE BASICS – INPUT/OUTPUT DEVICES
Printers: Printer is an electro-mechanical device that receives data
from the PC in the form of binary coded characters and prints the
characters on the paper
Output Devices: Monitor, Printer
Display Units: CRT: Cathode Ray Tube
Color monitors have 3 electron guns that control
the display of red, green and blue light. The
surface of the CRT is arranged to have these dots
placed adjacently in a specific pattern.
LCD: They are lighter, thinner, use less power and
do not flicker like their CRT counterparts.
LCD should be avoided to extreme light, heat and cold
HARDWARE BASICS – SATA VS IDE
The SATA cable or Serial ATA cables are only 7 pins wide compared to the IDE
Ribbon Cable which is 40 pins. The SATA cables are also longer then the ribbon
cables (some up to 1m) which make them more useful in large cases. The PATA or
IDE cables are only 45cm long and can connect two hard drives to the M/B while
the SATA cable connects only one hard drive to the motherboard.
Speed
IDE (PATA) transfers data from the speeds of 5MB/sec up to 133MB/Sec
(ATA100/133). SATA however data transfer speeds range from 150MB/sec to SATA
II which doubles it to 300MB/sec.
Jumpers
With the IDE cable you need to always mess around with the jumpers since their
may be two hard drives or two CD drives or one of each on the one cable. With
SATA there is only the one cable so there are no jumpers to mess around with.
Summary
In summary of SATA vs IDE, the SATA cable is smaller, faster and therefore better.
It can reach further than a IDE cable and will also reduce the obstruction to air
cooling which IDE cables can contribute to. The cables also transfer data much
faster ( if you have two or more hard drives) and are easier to install since their
are no jumpers. The only LIMITATION of the SATA is that they easily fall out of
their positions and that you can only have one drive per cable
HARDWARE BASICS – USB
The Universal Serial Bus (USB) is a standard for peripheral devices. USB
was intended to make it fundamentally easier to connect external devices
to PCs by replacing the multitude of connectors at the back of PCs, Of
Late Can be connected in the Front side of the Housing. Simple
Connections as well as permitting greater bandwidths for external
devices.
The first silicon for USB was made available by Intel in 1995.[5]
The USB 1.0 specification was introduced in January 1996. The original
USB 1.0 specification had a data transfer rate of 12 Mbit/s.[5] The first
widely used version of USB was 1.1, which was released in September
1998. It allowed for a 12 Mbps data rate for higher-speed devices such
as disk drives, and a lower 1.5 Mbps rate for low bandwidth devices such
as joysticks.[6]
The USB 2.0 specification was released in April 2000 and was
standardized by the USB-IF at the end of 2001. Hewlett-Packard, Intel,
Lucent Technologies (now Alcatel-Lucent following its merger with Alcatel
in 2006), NEC and Philips jointly led the initiative to develop a higher data
transfer rate, with the resulting specification achieving 480 Mbit/s, a
fortyfold increase over 12 Mbit/s for the original USB 1.0. data.
Bluetooth is an open wireless technology standard for exchanging data
over short distances (using short length radio waves) from fixed and mobile devices,
creating personal area networks (PANs) with high levels of security.
transfers in or out one bit at a time. serial port" usually identifies hardware more or
less compliant to the RS-232 standard, intended to interface with a modem or with a
similar communication device.
for connecting various peripherals. In computing, a parallel port is a parallel
communication physical interface. It is also known as a printer port or Centronics port.
The IEEE 1394 interface is a serial bus interface standard for high-speed
communications (400 Mbps) and real-time data transfer, frequently used by personal
computers, as well as in digital audio/l video, automotive, and aeronautics
applications. The interface is also known by the brand names of FireWire (Apple),
i.LINK (Sony), and Lynx (Texas Instruments). IEEE 1394 replaced parallel SCSI in
many applications, because of lower implementation costs and a simplified, more
adaptable cabling system
MOTHERBOARD
Motherboard or main board is at the center of the PC computer system.
Effectively it is a board containing the central processing unit (CPU) and the
memory modules (SIMM’s/ DIMMs). It allows the CPU to interfaces with other
parts of the computer via a 'BUS' system, into which sockets /connectors are
fitted, for connection of various 'expansion' boards. Also on the motherboard is the
RAM memory, normally in the form of SIMM, or DIMM modules in the modern PC
computer, and cache memory in the form of integrated circuits (chips)..
Modern boards utilize a CPU with two PCI and three, PCIE expansion slots. Most
of the features like Video,Audio,LAN etc are on onboard itself. This ―free's up‖ a
couple of expansion slots for other devices
Motherboard and System Devices
The motherboard is, in many ways, the most important component in the computer
If the processor is the brain of the computer, then the motherboard and its major
components (the chipset, BIOS, cache, etc.) are the major systems that this brain
uses to control the rest of the computer.
Direct memory access (DMA) is a feature that allows certain hardware
subsystems within the computer to access system memory for reading and/or
writing independently of the central processing unit. Many hardware systems use
DMA including disk drive controllers, graphics cards, network cards and sound
Cards
Control: The motherboard contains the chipset and BIOS program, which
controls most of the data flow within the computer.
Communication: Almost all communication between the PC and its
peripherals, other PCs, and you, the user, goes through the motherboard.
Processor Support: Choice of processor for use in the system is based on
the Motherboard.. Second, the quality of the motherboard circuitry and
chipset themselves have an impact on performance.
Peripheral Support: The motherboard determines, in large part, what types
of peripherals you can use in your PC. For example, the type of video
card your system will use (ISA, VLB, PCI.PCIE) is dependent on what
system buses your motherboard uses.
Northbridge typically handles communications among the CPU, RAM, BIOS
ROM, and PCI Express (or AGP) video cards, and the south bridge.
Some north bridges also contain integrated video controllers, also known
as a Graphics and Memory Controller Hub (GMCH) in Intel systems.
(AMD, VIA, SiS and others usually use 'south bridge'), is a chip that
implements the "slower" capabilities of the motherboard in a Northbridge /
Performance: First and foremost, the motherboard determines what types of
processors, memory, system buses, and hard disk interface speed your
system can have, and these components dictate directly your system's
performance. Second, the quality of the motherboard circuitry and chipset
themselves have an impact on performance.
Upgradability: The capabilities of your motherboard dictate to what extent
you will be able to upgrade your machine. For example, there are some
motherboards that will accept regular Pentiums of up to 133 MHz speed
only, while others will go to 200 MHz. Obviously, the second one will give
you more room to upgrade if you are starting with a P133.
for a new motherboard, you need to open up your existing case and
determine whether or not the power supply will be compatible. Many new
motherboards require an additional 12V, 4-wire connector for the CPU,
which most power supplies older than two years will lack. The newest
motherboards for the Intel Socket 775 CPU's may also require a 24 pin
ATXe connector, or give you the option to use a third drive connector to
suppliment motherboard power.
Integrated PS/2 Mouse Connector: On most retail baby AT style
motherboards, there is either no PS/2 mouse port, or to get one you need to
use a cable from the PS/2 header on the motherboard, just like the serial
and parallel ports. (Of course most large OEMs have PS/2 ports built in to
their machines, since their boards are custom built in large quantities). ATX
motherboards have the PS/2 port built into the motherboard.
Reduced Drive Bay
degrees from the baby AT style, there is much less "overlap" between where
the board is and where the drives are. This means easier access to the
board, and fewer cooling problems.
Reduced Expansion Card Interference: The processor socket/slot and
memory sockets are moved from the front of the board to the back right
side, near the power supply. This eliminates the clearance problem with
baby AT style motherboards and allows full length cards to be used in most
(if not all) of the system bus slots.
Better Power Supply Connector: The ATX motherboard uses a single 20-pin
connector instead of the confusing pair of near-identical 6-pin connectors on
the baby AT form factor. You don't have the same risk of blowing up your
"Soft Power" Support: The ATX power supply is turned on and off using
signaling from the motherboard, not a physical toggle switch. This allows
the PC to be turned on and off under software control, allowing much
improved power management. For example, with an ATX system you can
configure Windows 95 so that it will actually turn the PC off when you tell it
to shut down.
3.3V Power Support: The ATX style motherboard has support for 3.3V power
from the ATX power supply. This voltage (or lower) is used on almost allnewer
processors, and this saves cost because the need for voltage
regulation to go from 5V to 3.3V is removed.
Better Air Flow: The ATX power supply is intended to blow air into the case
instead of out of it. This means that air is pushed out of all the small cracks
in the PC case instead of being drawn in through them, cutting down on
dust accumulation. Further, since the processor socket or slot is on the
motherboard right next to the power supply, the power supply fan can be
used to cool the processor's heat sink. In many cases, this eliminates the
need to use (notoriously unreliable) CPU fans, though the ATX
specification now allows for the fan to blow either into or out of the case.
Improved Design for Upgradability: Its design makes upgrading easier
because of more efficient access to the components on the motherboard.
motherboard by connecting the power cables backwards that most PC
homebuilders are familiar with.
Conventionally used in mass-produced "name brand" retail systems, the LPX
motherboard form factor goes into the small ―Slim line‖ or "low profile" cases typically
found on these sorts of desktop systems. The primary design goal behind the LPX form
factor is reducing space usage (and cost). This can be seen in its most distinguishing
feature: the riser card that is used to hold expansion slots. Instead of having the
expansion cards go into system bus slots on the motherboard, like on the AT or ATX
motherboards, LPX form factor motherboards put the system bus on a riser card that
plugs into the motherboard. Then, the expansion cards plug into the riser card; usually, a
maximum of just three. This means that the expansion cards are parallel to the plane of
the motherboard. This allows the height of the case to be greatly reduced, since the
height of the expansion cards is the main reason full-sized desktop cases are as tall as
they are. The problem is that you are limited to only two or three expansion slots!
LPX form factor motherboards also often come with on board video
display adapter cards built into the motherboard. If the card built in is of
good quality, this can save the manufacturer money and provide the
user with a good quality display However, if the user wants to upgrade to
a new video card, this can cause a problem unless the integrated video
can be disabled in the Bios setup. LPX motherboards also usually come
with serial, parallel and mouse connectors attached to them, like ATX.
While the LPX form factor can be used by a manufacturer to save
money and space in the construction of a custom product, these
systems suffer from non-standardization, poor expandability, poor
upgradability, poor cooling and difficulty of use for the do-it-yourselfer.
They are not recommended for the homebuilder, but if you are upgrading
one of these systems, you may not have many alternatives
Revised design to support larger memory modules and modern DIMM
memory packaging.
Support for the newest processor technologies
Support for AGP/PCIE video/add-on cards.
Better thermal characteristics, to support modern CPUs that run hotter than
old ones.
More optimal location of CPU on the board to allow easier access and better
cooling.
More flexibility in how the motherboard can be set up and configured.
Enhanced design features, such as the ability to mount the motherboard so it
can slide in or out of the system case easily.
Support for desktop and tower cases. The NLX form factor is, like the LPX,
designed primarily for commercial PC makers mass-producing machines for
the retail market. Many of the changes made to it are based on improving
flexibility to allow for various PC options and flavors, and to allow easier
assembly and reduced cost. For homebuilders and small PC shops, the ATX
form factor is the design of choice heading into the future.
Data Transfer between memory & peripherals is been controlled by DMA
Controllers which will not impact any processor performance.
System Boot Sequence
The system BIOS is what starts the computer running when you turn it on. The
following are the steps that a typical boot sequence involves. Of course this will vary
by the manufacturer of your hardware, BIOS, etc., and especially by what
peripherals you have in the PC. Here is what generally happens when you turn on
your system power:
The internal power supply turns on and initializes. The power supply takes some
time until it can generate reliable power for the rest of the computer, and having it
turn on prematurely could potentially lead to damage. Therefore, the chipset will
generate a reset signal to the processor (the same as if you held the reset button
down for a while on your case) until it receives the Power Good signal from the
power supply.
Wireless USB Technology
Overview:
Unwiring USB
Imagine if
all the devices in a home office -- such as printer, scanner, external hard
drive, and
digital
camera -- could be connected to your PC without any wires. Imagine if all the
components
for an entire home entertainment center could be set up and connected without a
single
wire. Imagine if digital pictures could be transferred to a photo print kiosk
for instant
printing
without the need for a cable. These are just some of the possible scenarios for
highspeed
wireless
USB (WUSB) connectivity, the latest technology developed to bring even
greater
convenience and mobility to devices.
Universal
serial bus (USB) technology has been a popular connection type for PCs and it's
migrating into
consumer electronic (CE) and mobile devices. Now this high-speed and effective
connection
interface is unwiring to provide the functionality of wired USB without the
burden of
cables.
This next iteration of USB technology is the focus of the new Wireless USB
Promoter
Group,
which will define the specifications that will eventually provide standards for
the
technology.
WUSB
Topology
The
fundamental relationship in WUSB is a hub and spoke topology, as shown in Figure
. In
this
topology, the host initiates all the data traffic among the devices connected
to it, allotting
time slots
and data bandwidth to each device connected. These relationships are referred
to
as
clusters. The connections are point-to-point and directed between the WU
The WUSB host can logically connect to a maximum of 127
WUSB devices, considered an
informal WUSB cluster. WUSB clusters coexist within an
overlapping spatial environment with
minimum interference, thus allowing a number of other WUSB
clusters to be present within the
same radio cell.
Topology will support a dual role model where a device can
also support limited host
capabilities. This model allows mobile devices to access
services with a central host
supporting the services (i.e., printers and viewers). This
model also allows a device to access
data outside an existing cluster it may currently be
connected to by creating a second cluster
as a limited host.
Additionally, high spatial capacity in small areas is
needed to enable multiple device access to
high bandwidth concurrently. Multiple channel activities
may take place within a given area.
The topology will support multiple clusters in the same
area. The number of clusters to be
supported is still being determined
Design Considerations
There are several architectural considerations in
developing WUSB. In addition to providing
wireless connectivity, WUSB must be backwards compatible
with wired USB and provide a
bridge to wired USB devices. Also, the host and solutions
will need to enable the exchange of
data between clusters or devices not related to the same
host.
Low-cost implementation of WUSB will also be important to
the successful integration of the
technology. Implementation will follow the wired USB
connectivity models as closely as
possible to reduce development time and to preserve the
low-cost, easy-to-use model, which
has become pervasive in the PC industry.
Performance
WUSB performance at launch will provide adequate bandwidth
to meet the requirements of a
typical user experience with wired connections. The 480
Mbps initial target bandwidth of
WUSB is comparable to the current wired USB 2.0 standard.
With 480 Mbps being the initial
target, WUSB specifications will allow for generation
steps of data throughput as the ultra
wideband radio evolves and with future process
technologies, exceeding limits of 1 Gbps.
The specification is intended for WUSB to operate as a
wire replacement with targeted usage
models for cluster connectivity to the host and
device-to-device connectivity at less than 10
meters. The interface will support quality delivery of
rich digital multimedia formats, including
audio and video, and will be capable of high rate
streaming (isochronous transfers).
Summary
As the latest iteration of USB technology, wireless USB
(WUSB) will offer the same
functionality as standard wired USB devices but without
the cabling. As the new Wireless USB
Promoter Group prepares to develop the specifications that
will help standardize the
technology, the industry is planning products that can
take advantage of the convenience and
mobility that this new device interconnect will offer.
