Peter Norton's New Inside the PC

640 Pages·2002·5.5 MB·English

by  Peter Norton

Peter Norton's® New Inside the PC
By Peter Norton, Scott H. A. Clark
Publisher: Sams Publishing
Pub Date: April 12, 2002
ISBN: 0-672-32289-7
Pages: 640
Slots: 1

Copyright
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Tell Us What You Think!
Introduction
My Approach
About This Book
Part I.
The Glass Box
Chapter 1.
The Desktop PC
The Three Main Parts
The System Unit
The Display
Input Devices
Inside the PC
Chapter 2.
Portable PCs
From Luggables to Laptops and Beyond
Hardware That Is Almost Unique to Mobile PCs
Lessons Learned from Portable PCs
Extending Your Battery's Life
Summary
Chapter 3.
PDAs and Handheld PCs
Put a PC in Your Pocket
Ancient History
The PalmPilot
Linux By the Handful—Agenda
Windows-Centered Devices
Comparisons
Chapter 4.
Understanding Bits and Bytes
What Are Information and Data?
How Bits and Bytes Cast a Hex on ASCII
Reducing Bits, Bytes, and Real Life
Summary and Looking Ahead
Part II.
Inside the PC: A Closer Look at Components
Chapter 5.
A First Look at Motherboards and Processors
Safe System Unit "Surgery"
A Platform to Build Upon: The Motherboard
Understanding PC Processors
Major and Minor Improvements
Summary
Chapter 6.
Video and Monitors
It's Just No Good if You Can't Get the Information Out
Basic Characteristics of Video
How Images Are Painted on the Screen (Overview)
Getting the Colors Right
How to Talk to a Video Display
Understanding Display Technologies
Summary
Chapter 7.
Disks and PC Data Storage
Traditional PC Disk Drives
The Origin of IDE, EIDE, ATA, ATAPI, and More
The Really Good Bus with the Really Bad Name (SCSI)
Mixing IDE and SCSI Disk Drives
Summary
Chapter 8.
Removable Storage
Variations on the Theme of PC Storage
The Multiple Dimensions of PC Storage Technologies
Removable Magnetic PC Data Storage Devices
Removable Optical PC Data Storage Devices
Magneto-Optical PC Data Storage Devices
Electronic PC Data Storage Devices
Summary
Chapter 9.
Serial Ports
Talking Through a Tiny Pipe: Serial Ports
A Series of Serial Ports
IEEE 1394 FireWire
What if You Need Lots of Serial Ports?
Summary
Chapter 10.
Parallel Ports
The Faster Path
"Printer" Ports Aren't Just for Printers
Printer Ports Aren't Even for Printers Anymore
Summary
Chapter 11.
Networking—Wired and Wireless
What Is Networking?
Why Network?
Types of Networks
The Parts of a Network
Ethernet—The Everywhere Network
Alternative Small Networks
Wireless Networking
Summary
Chapter 12.
Modems and Broadband
Reaching Out
"Yodeling" PCs
Cable Modems
Keeping It Purely Digital
Which Way Should You Go?
Summary
Chapter 13.
Input Devices
The Keyboard Is "Key"
Alternatives to Typing: Voice Recognition
The Point Is Pointing (Mousing Around)
Some Other PC Input Devices
Summary
Chapter 14.
Printers
The Purpose and Power of PC Printers
Page Description Languages
Printing Technologies
Getting the Color (Almost) Right
Summary
Part III.
Inside the Black Boxes Inside the Glass Box
Chapter 15.
Motherboard Magic
Processor Architecture
The "Intel-Compatible" Chips
The Architecture That Goes Around the CPU
Interrupts: The Driving Force
What Is a DMA Channel?
Keeping Up with the Clock
System Buses: ISA, PCI and AGP
Measuring Performance via Benchmarks
Summary
Chapter 16.
Kick Starting—The Boot Process
What Is the BIOS?
CMOS and Other Programs
POST (Power-On Self-Test)
Device Drivers and Firmware
BIOS Fault Tolerance
How Your PC Wakes Up and Prepares Itself for Work
Speeding Up Your PC's Boot Process
Common BIOS Tuning Options
CMOS Security
The Current BIOS Industry
Summary
Chapter 17.
Understanding PC Memory
The CPU's Essential Playground
Various Flavors of RAM
Various Flavors of ROM and NVRAM
Addressing Memory: Intel's Segments
Not All Memory Is Equal
Your PC's Memory Needs Managing
Understanding Windows Memory Use
Memory Management Software
So How Much RAM Do You Need, Really?
Summary
Chapter 18.
Storage: How Does Data Get There?
Hard Disks
Hard Disks are Different from Floppies
Making Sense out of Chaos
RAID Systems—Sense and Sensibility
Optical Discs
Learning About File Formats
Data Compression
Summary
Chapter 19.
Advanced Networking
Layers in the Network Strategy
The NIC Needs a NOS
TCP/IP: The Internet's Babelfish
What Is the Internet?
Assuring a Quality of Service—Tomorrow's Internet
Summary
Chapter 20.
Video Acceleration
Vector Versus Bitmapped Images: Rasterizing and Rendering
How PCs Create Compelling Visual Images
The RAMDAC
More About AGP: Is it Really Faster?
The World of 3D
Summary
Chapter 21.
Inside Tomorrow's PC
A Changed World
Sure Bets
Your Own Glass Box
Part IV.
Appendixes
Appendix A.
Operating Systems: The Middleman Between You and Your PC
What Is an Operating System and Why Do You Need One?
DOS Is Dead! Long Live Windows!
Understanding Your Choices for Your PC's Operating System
Summary
Appendix B.
Understanding How Humans Instruct PCs
Harnessing the PC's Power to Help Mere Humans
Dividing Up the Work
How Not to Keep On Reinventing the Wheel
Helping Ordinary People "Program" Their PCs Easily
Summary
Glossary
Index

Copyright
Copyright ©2002 by Sams Publishing
FIRST EDITION
All rights reserved. No part of this book shall be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted
by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission
from the publisher. No patent liability is assumed with respect to the use of the information contained
herein. Although every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, the publisher and
author assume no responsibility for errors or omissions. Nor is any liability assumed for damages
resulting from the use of the information contained herein.
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2001093561
Printed in the United States of America
First Printing: March 2002
04 03 02 4 3 2 1
Trademarks
All terms mentioned in this book that are known to be trademarks or service marks have been
appropriately capitalized. Sams Publishing cannot attest to the accuracy of this information. Use of a
term in this book should not be regarded as affecting the validity of any trademark or service mark.
Warning and Disclaimer
Every effort has been made to make this book as complete and as accurate as possible, but no
warranty or fitness is implied. The information provided is on an "as is" basis. The author and the
publisher shall have neither liability nor responsibility to any person or entity with respect to any loss or
damages arising from the information contained in this book.
Credits
Associate Publisher Michael Stephens

Acquisitions Editor Kim Spilker

Development Editor Steve Rowe
Managing Editor Charlotte Clapp

Project Editor
Matt Purcell

Copy Editor
Kezia Endsley

Indexer
Tina Trettin

Proofreader
Andrea Dugan

Technical Editor John Gosney

Team Coordinator Lynne Williams

Interior Designer Gary Adair

Cover Designer
Aren Howell

Page Layout
Rebecca Harmon
Dedication
Dedication
For My Parents, Whose Love Has Never Faltered.