Buying a Computer for Dummies

289 Pages·2003·3.508 MB·English

by  Dan Gookin

Buying a
Computer
FOR
DUMmIES
‰
2004
EDITION
by Dan Gookin
Buying a Computer For Dummies®, 2004 Edition
Published by
Wiley Publishing, Inc.
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About the Author
Dan Gookin got started with computers back in the post-vacuum-
tube age of computing: 1982. His first intention was to buy a com-
puter to replace his aged and constantly breaking typewriter.
Working as slave labor in a restaurant, however, Gookin was unable
to afford the full “word processor” setup and settled on a computer
that had a monitor, keyboard, and little else. Soon, his writing
career was under way with several submissions to fiction maga-
zines and lots of rejections.
His big break came in 1984, when he began writing about comput-
ers. Applying his flair for fiction with a self-taught knowledge of
computers, Gookin was able to demystify the subject and explain
technology in a relaxed and understandable voice. He even dared to
add humor, which eventually won him a column in a local computer
magazine.
Eventually, Gookin’s talents came to roost as a ghostwriter at a
computer book publishing house. That was followed by an editing
position at a San Diego magazine. During this time, he also regularly
participated in a radio talk show about computers. In addition,
Gookin kept writing books about computers, some of which
became minor bestsellers.
In 1990, Gookin came to IDG Books Worldwide (now Wiley
Publishing, Inc.) with a book proposal. From that initial meeting
unfolded an idea for an outrageous book: a long overdue and origi-
nal idea for the computer book for the rest of us. What became DOS
For Dummies blossomed into an international bestseller with hun-
dreds of thousands of copies in print and in many translations.
Today, Gookin still considers himself a writer and a computer
“guru” whose job it is to remind everyone that computers are not to
be taken too seriously. His approach to computers is light and
humorous yet very informative. He knows that the complex beasts
are important and can help people become productive and success-
ful. Gookin mixes his knowledge of computers with a unique, dry
sense of humor that keeps readers informed — and awake. His
favorite quote is “Computers are a notoriously dull subject, but that
doesn’t mean that I have to write about them that way.”
Gookin’s titles for Wiley Publishing include the best-selling DOS For
Dummies, Word For Windows For Dummies,and the Illustrated
Computer Dictionary For Dummies.All told, he has written more
than 80 books about computers. Gookin holds a degree in commu-
nication from the University of California, San Diego.
You can e-mail Dan on the Internet: [email protected].
Publisher’s Acknowledgments
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Contents at a Glance
Introduction ......................................................1
Part I: Understanding the Whole Ordeal .............3
Chapter 1: Buying a Computer (Step-by-Step) .......................................5
Chapter 2: Basic Training .......................................................................15
Chapter 3: Computers from A to Z ........................................................23
Chapter 4: Introduction to Hardware and Software ............................35
Part II: Hardware and Software Overview .........41
Chapter 5: All about Mr. Microprocessor .............................................43
Chapter 6: Memory Stuff (Temporary Storage) ...................................53
Chapter 7: Disks of Every Type (Permanent Storage) ........................63
Chapter 8: Monitor and Graphics Stuff .................................................77
Chapter 9: Keyboard, Mouse, and Joystick ..........................................87
Chapter 10: Expansion Options .............................................................93
Chapter 11: Modems, Networking, and Sound ..................................101
Chapter 12: Special Issues for Notebook and
Laptop Computers ..........................................................................111
Chapter 13: Your Computer’s Operating System ..............................119
Chapter 14: Everything You Wanted to Know
about Software (But Were Afraid to Ask) .....................................129
Part III: Finding Your Perfect Computer ..........141
Chapter 15: Shopping for Software .....................................................143
Chapter 16: Matching Hardware to Your Software ............................157
Chapter 17: Surveying the Shopping Landscape ...............................167
Chapter 18: Tips for Online Shopping ................................................179
Chapter 19: Searching for Service and Support ................................185
Chapter 20: Buying the Computer .......................................................191
Chapter 21: Helpful Hints for Computer Setup ..................................197
Part IV: Living with Your Computer ................209
Chapter 22: Time to Get a Printer .......................................................211
Chapter 23: Moving to Your New Computer ......................................221
Part V: The Part of Tens .................................229
Chapter 24: When to Buy, When to Sell, When to Upgrade .............231
Chapter 25: Ten Common Mistakes Made By First-Time
Computer Buyers ............................................................................237
Chapter 26: Ten Warning Signs ............................................................241
Chapter 27: Ten Other Things You Should Buy .................................245
Chapter 28: Ten Tips and Suggestions ................................................251
Index.............................................................255

Table of Contents
Introduction ......................................................1
About This Book ........................................................................1
And Just Who Are You? .............................................................2
Icons Used in This Book ............................................................2
Where to Go from Here .............................................................2
Part I: Understanding the Whole Ordeal ..............3
Chapter 1: Buying a Computer (Step-by-Step) . . . . . . . . 5
The Five Steps to Buying a Computer .....................................6
Step 1: Figure out what you want to
do with your computer ...............................................7
Step 2: Look for software ................................................8
Step 3: Find hardware ....................................................10
Step 4: Shop for service and support ..........................11
Step 5: Buy your computer ...........................................13
Don’t Sit Around Waiting to Buy! ...........................................13
Chapter 2: Basic Training . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Basic Parts ................................................................................16
Console ...........................................................................16
Monitor ...........................................................................17
Keyboard ........................................................................18
Beyond the Basic Parts ...........................................................18
Mouse ..............................................................................18
Speakers ..........................................................................19
Modem ............................................................................20
Printer .............................................................................20
Scanner ...........................................................................21
Network options ............................................................22
Peripherals and other expansion options ..................22
Chapter 3: Computers from A to Z . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
What Is a Computer? ...............................................................23
The traditional desktop computer ..............................24
The Macintosh option ...................................................25
Laptops for every kind of lap .......................................28
Palmtop computers .......................................................30
Gaming consoles ............................................................30
Workstations and servers .............................................31
Mainframes .....................................................................33
“How Much Will This Cost?” ...................................................33
viii
Buying a Computer For Dummies, 2004 Edition
Chapter 4: Introduction to Hardware
and Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Hardware: The Hard Stuff ........................................................35
The microprocessor (the main piece
of hardware) ...............................................................36
Basic hardware ..............................................................37
Software, the Other Hard Stuff ...............................................38
The operating system ...................................................38
Applications and other programs ...............................39
Putting It All Together .............................................................40
Part II: Hardware and Software Overview ..........41
Chapter 5: All about Mr. Microprocessor . . . . . . . . . . . 43
The Microprocessor Rules ......................................................43
The name game ..............................................................43
Families, names, and flavors ........................................44
The measure of power ..................................................46
Zooooom! (Microprocessor speed) .............................46
Some Microprocessor Q&A ....................................................47
“What does ‘[blank] or greater’ mean when
talking about a microprocessor?” ............................47
“Are all Pentium processors the same?” ....................48
“Should I buy an upgradable microprocessor
option?” .......................................................................48
“What’s the cache?” .......................................................49
“Is the Celeron a good Pentium compatible?” ...........49
“Should I buy a non-Intel CPU if it saves
me money?” ................................................................49
“What is Socket 7?” ........................................................50
“What’s the ‘heat sink’?” ...............................................50
“What is ‘hyperthreading’?” .........................................50
“Do computers with dual processors run faster
than computers with single processors?” ..............50
Chapter 6: Memory Stuff (Temporary Storage) . . . . . . . 53
Say Hello to Mr. Byte ...............................................................53
Memory Madness ....................................................................55
Behold the chip! .............................................................55
The size of the thing (capacity) ...................................56
Fast memory and faster memory ................................56
Goodbye, Mr. Chips! ......................................................57
Some technical memory terms ....................................58
Main Memory versus Video Memory ....................................60
Banks o’ Memory (RAM) .........................................................61
How Much Memory Do You Need? ........................................62
ix
Table of Contents
Chapter 7: Disks of Every Type (Permanent
Storage) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Why Disk Storage? ...................................................................63
What is a disk, and what is a drive? ............................64
Types of drives ...............................................................65
Capacity ..........................................................................66
Hard drive speed ...........................................................67
CD-ROM drive speed .....................................................68
Cache or buffer memory ...............................................69
Fixed or removable? ......................................................69
The mystical drive controller ......................................70
Disk Driving Your Computer System .....................................71
Picking a hard drive .......................................................72
Your shiny, removable storage ....................................73
Gotta have a floppy drive too ......................................74
The Zip disk alternative ................................................75
Chapter 8: Monitor and Graphics Stuff . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
The Graphical System .............................................................77
The Monitor Part .....................................................................78
CRT or LCD? ...................................................................79
Judge me by my size, will you? ....................................81
I’ll take two, please ........................................................82
The Graphics Adapter Part .....................................................83
Video RAM ......................................................................84
The 3-D thing ..................................................................84
How it plugs in ...............................................................85
Read them labels! ...........................................................86
Chapter 9: Keyboard, Mouse, and Joystick . . . . . . . . . . 87
Keyboards .................................................................................88
Mice and Other Nonfurry Pointing Devices .........................89
Joysticks and Game Controllers ............................................91
Chapter 10: Expansion Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Connecting Stuff by Using Ports ............................................93
The USB port ..................................................................94
The Firewire port ...........................................................95
The printer port .............................................................95
The serial port ...............................................................96
Mouse and keyboard ports ..........................................97
The joystick/MIDI port ..................................................97
A Full House of Cards ..............................................................98
Why you may need expansion slots ............................98
Types of expansion slots ..............................................99