Hardware of Computers

Everyone loves digital cameras and the ease of operating without film, but storing all the images can be an issue.  At home I like to store them on my laptop and back them up to CDs.

If you are going on vacation for a week and plan on taking lots of pictures, you should know how many images you can you store on your laptop.

Most consumer shoot in compressed JPEG mode, and the images are between 250k bytes and perhaps 1.4M bytes.  A 1 GB CF will hold as many as a thousand or more images.  If you are like me it is easy these days to shoot a lot of pictures in a very short time.  You could buy another CF or transfer the images to your laptop.

Laptops do not hold all that much data.  How many gigs of disk capacity do you have left on your personal laptop?  The newer ones will come with 40 or even 100 GB drives, but most people don’t have ones that new, and many also have a bunch of stuff loaded already. So, check out the size of your HD and see how much space is left for your photos.  If your laptop has a CD burner bring extra blank CDs so you can burn the photos.  A great little back tool is http://www.secondcopy.com.  You could also back them up to your ISPs server.

Another option might be to buy a portable hard drive.  You can find them the size of good-sized glasses case.  You stick your CF in a slot, turn the gadget on, and dump the CF into the gadget’s storage. These range from 20GB to 60GB+ and are $100+.

Stand-alone burners can burn CDs & DVDs, and some will also play DVD movies, audio CDs, etc as well so you can bring your movies and music along while traveling.

If you have a new laptop it might have a fast firewire connection, if not you will need to use the USB connection to transfer the photos.

So, taking a few precautions and planning ahead a little will insure that you get to keep all the photos that you took as a reminder of that wonderful, long ago vacation.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Review: FastMac External Slimline USB 2.0 BD-R 4X Optical Drive (macworld.com)
• 72 reviews of Dell Inspiron Series (rateitall.com)
• Sony busts out colorful VAIO E Series laptops (engadget.com)
• HP Envy 14, Envy 17, and new EliteBooks leak onto the scene (engadget.com)

A Pen Drive is a removable storage device that plugs into a computer’s USB port. Small enough to carry on a key ring, Pen Drives are great for transferring photos, music, documents and any other data from one computer to another. Different manufacturers over the years have named their Pen Drives with many different names causing constant confusion.
As a result of this the Pen Drive can also be known as Pocket Drive, Thumb Drive, Jump Drive, USB Flash Drive, USB Flash Memory Drive, USB Key Drive, USB Memory Key and USB Memory Stick among many others!

Although none of these names are either correct or incorrect, one of the names cause a huge amount of confusion for people, this is when someone referring to a Pen Drive, uses the term “Memory Stick”. This is because “Memory Stick” is a Sony trademark and refers to a type of memory card used in Sony’s electronic devices, it is therefore a completely different product, which will not plug directly into your computer’s USB port!

Pen Drives were invented by IBM in 1988 as a replacement to Floppy Disks but were never patented by them, M-Systems who were later contracted in by IBM to manufacture Pen Drives actually own the patent. So think of a Pen Drive as a modern day floppy disk. The main difference being that a floppy disk contains moving parts which can make the data stored on it vulnerable, a Pen Drive is solid state meaning there are no moving parts inside, making it resilient to dust and everyday magnetic fields and so a safer storage option. Also Pen Drives can hold much, much more data than the floppy disk.

Once connected to a computer’s USB port the Pen Drive appears in Windows as a “Removable Drive” alongside your C Drive, CD ROM Drive etc. You can simply drag and drop photos, music, documents and any other type of data on to the “Removable Drive” just as would with any other folder on your computer (no complex recording like CD or DVD is required). The Pen Drive can then be removed (see Safe Removal of Pen Drive below) from the computer and plugged into another computer’s USB port giving you access to the information you copied to the Pen Drive.

The compact size, robust nature and low cost of the Pen Drive has made it a big hit and an indispensible tool for many. It is ideal for transporting personal, or work data from one location to another, i.e. from home to school or office, or for carrying around data that someone may want to access in a variety of places. An insurance company in the US loads customer bio data and policy details on a tiny Pen Drive and advises policy holders to wear it with a neck strap in case of emergencies, another company is doing the same with policy holders who go Sking. Another company videos their conference and records it onto the Pen Drive so that the delegates can refer to it in future. Pen Drives can also be used to back up your important documents.

If you would like to know more about Pen Drives please visit our website or call us on 0845 257 2088 (9am-5pm Mon-Fri) and we will do our best to assist you. Mouse2House.co.uk supply thousands of Pen Drives to Schools, Hospitals, Businesses, Government agencies and of course private individuals. We are also able to personalise Pen Drives with logos and messages for commercial or fund raising events, minimum order quantity applies to the logo service.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Protect Your USB Drive With Mx One Antivirus 4.0 (sparksspace.blogspot.com)
• Files on Removable Media – Step 1 (trueg.wordpress.com)
• Flexing flash memory (robbiz1978.blogspot.com)
• Flexing the boundaries of flash memory (news.cnet.com)

Computers these days are becoming more than just an avenue to surf the web and do word processing.  They are becoming multimedia stations that allow us to watch movies and listen to the latest music.  Especially with new solutions such as renting DVD’s online and pay per download music downloading programs.  This is why having good sound on your computer is important for the best possible multimedia experience.

There are two ways you can increase the quality of sound coming from your computer.  I will discuss both.

The first would be to upgrade, or get a new, sound card for your computer.  The quality of the sound signal being sent from your computer is determined by the sound card.  Also the amount of channels that are being sent, and the number of connectivity options you have.  This is why having a good quality sound card is important.  There are several cards on the market that can deliver a great listening experience.

The second way to enhance your sound quality would be to get a quality set of speakers.  There are an infinite number of options you have in this regards.  You can get a standard 2 speaker system, a 2.1 speaker system (2 speakers and a subwoofer), a 4.1 system and the ultimated 5.1 system.  The most enhancing system would be the 5.1 system.

The 5.1 system consists of 5 speakers and a subwoofer.  The subwoofer will deliver the bass and the low frequency sounds.  The other speakers would be positioned strategically around the room to give the best array of sounds.

Computers today are not the simple machines they were years ago.  They have the capabilities to be a lot more.  With this in mind utilizing these capabilities will be very cost effective.  Now you do not need to buy a stereo system and a television.  A computer can fulfill both these duties.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Psyko 5.1 PC Gaming Headset (ubergizmo.com)
• Q-TV2 Speakers Tuck Stereo Speakers, Subwoofer Behind Your Flat Panel TV [Speakers] (gizmodo.com)
• Avantgarde Lives Up To Their Name With The G2 Speakers [Speakers] (gizmodo.com)
• Reviewing the Creative Gigaworks T20 Series II Speakers (cristianobetta.com)

Desktops have been long known to be upgrade-able in terms of memory and hard drive space but little is known about upgrading notebooks.

The first thing to consider is the notebook itself. It must have expansion slots for extra sticks of RAM if you wish to upgrade memory. This can also be done by replacing the current stick of RAM but this method is not cost effective.

To upgrade a notebook the bottom cover must be removed. When doing this any warranty the notebook has will become void so if you choose to upgrade your notebook, you must be prepared to forfeit the warranty.

Upgrading RAM on a notebook is no different to upgrading RAM on a desktop. If your notebook has additional RAM slots you simply need to purchase some more RAM and install it in the empty slots. If your notebook doesn’t have expansion slots you will need to replace the existing stick of RAM. If you had a 256mb stick of RAM, you would replace it with a 1GB or 512mb stick.

Replacing the hard drive is a lot easier but complicated at the same time. Replacing the actual drive is quite simple. You simply disconnect the existing drive and replace with the new one. The complicated part is recovering all your drivers and so forth from the drive. Without your drivers the hardware in your notebook will not function correctly. It is important to make sure you have all the original driver CD’s that came with the notebook.

In the case of data files you have on your notebook, you can simply back up to DVD’s and CD’s, but if you do not have a burner, you can simply buy an external case for a notebook drive and use that to store your files.

Upgrading a notebook, although not as easy as with a desktop, can still be done.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Alienware M11x now up for pre-order, reporting for duty March 1st (engadget.com)
• HP slips out stylish, Core i3-based G62t laptop (engadget.com)
• 5 reviews of Kingston Apple 4GB Kit 667MHz DDR2 SoDimm iMac and Macbook Memory (rateitall.com)
• Toshiba Satellite L355 for $348 – Netbook Not Required (jkontherun.com)

USB drive is one precious gift that mankind has received from technology. Universal Serial Bus or USB is famous with several different names such as Key Drive, USB Key Drive, USB Pen, Microdrive, Thumb Drive and Flash Drive.

Regardless of the name, these USB drives are an excellent and exceptionally handy tool. They are exclusively for the people who use computers at several different locations and need to take data along with them. The USB drivers are great-to-use, as they are small in size, can fit in your pocket or can act as your key chain. You can get about 32 MB to 4 GB of storage without any need of software. Just plug the drive in the USB port of computer to get instance storage and ready transfer.

Now let’s peep into the top 10 uses of USB drive.

USB Drive is multifunctional or say, support all-in-one in printer connectivity. It can typically combine the printer, copier, fax, scanner and the storage options in just one convenient device. It allows the companies, especially the small ones to save overall cost by offering about 4 or 5 devices in just one.

It gets you network scanning. You can utilize scanners to image the documents more frequently than you ever did before. The USB device server then allows the USB scanner to connect directly to the network.

You can change the conference room from a static to a dynamic one. Just attach all the USB devices of conference room to allow all the participants of meeting room to use the drive. Get the MFP, electronic whiteboard, laser printer and share storage drive networked together with a device server.

Believe it or not USB drives have blessed the sewing machines with best options and capabilities they had ever before. Most branded sewing machines such as Brother, Pfaff, Janome, Singer and Bernina have invented machines with USB connections. One can connect the machines to the PC or to USB pen drive to download software upgradation and patterns to sewing machine.

You can be benefited with wireless access of iPod. The iPod users can just connect the iPod to wireless device server. You can download all the music in a wireless way from computer to iPod. Your iPod is fully loaded to go out to the party.

It is a best way to get a camera networked. Connecting the USB enabled digital camera to the network can benefit the corporations and their consumers. With digital camera joined with wireless USB device, the operator can access digital images quickly.

It is the best help for the graphic designers. The graphic designers’ workplace has a digital camera, internal and external DVD or CD burner, scanner, photo printer and storage devices. The USB device is must for sharing the network workgroup.

USB drive helps in establishing the reliable backup plan for network surroundings.

The mobile worker can access the USB device and take with them whatever they want to data, music, images or just anything.

Workgroups generally utilize the USB peripherals beyond the keyboards and mouse. The scanners, multifunctional printers, laser printers and storage drives are the most employed USB enabled devices.

Related articles by Zemanta

• USB hard drive enclosure hooks up via DVD connector (ubergizmo.com)
• Protect Your USB Drive With Mx One Antivirus 4.0 (sparksspace.blogspot.com)
• Study Finds USB Flash Drives Frequently Get Left Behind (shoppingblog.com)

The performance, capabilities and performance of laptop computers have for many years been lagging behind the desktop, but all that is changing.

Today’s advanced laptop computers are noted as having equal capabilities as modern desktop PCs, although there is often a noticeable time delay for the top models. Over the past decade, the difference in processing power and performance between laptop computers and desktop PCs has narrowed considerably.

At the beginning of 1995, the difference was around three to six months. Customers today insist that their laptops have similar capabilities and specifications as their desktop and also demand more features and processing power. In other words they want the things that make mobile computing painless and hassle-free. As well as becoming a replacement for a desktop PC the advanced laptop computer should provide the same flexibility in configurations and expandability.

A fully featured laptop uses advanced technologies such as mobile Pentium, PCI, plug and play, lithium-ion batteries, and hot docking to give users the same capabilities as their desktop computers. As users became familiar with their laptops they demanded that their mobile computers have the same functionality as their desktops. Thus began the emergence of ever more faster processors, high resolution wide-screen displays, bigger hard drives and multiple external devices.

The advanced laptop computer of today features capabilities such as instant-on. Instant-on is a feature that allows users to put their laptop into a power-conserving state and later resume working exactly where they left off. Advanced laptop computers focus on size, power, compatibility and performance. Some of the main objectives of advanced laptop manufacturers are power management, performance and compatibility. These manufacturers are fully aware that their customers expect their products to not require frequent recharging. Power consumption must be managed wisely, otherwise the heat generated by the components could affect reliability, functionality and ultimately, customer satisfaction. Their products are also expected to achieve other goals, such as reliability, quality and user convenience.

The keyboard controller of an advanced laptop performs many tasks so that the Pentium CPU can remain focused on compatibility and performance. Some of the tasks performed by the keyboard controller are – keyboard scanning, support for three PS/2 ports, status panel control, battery charging and low-voltage monitoring, communication and tutoring, temperature sensing and thermal feedback control, docking station control and power on/off control.

Because of the highly complex jobs it has to undertake, the keyboard controller of a laptop computer is based on flash memory so that the programming can be altered in the field as well as the EEPROM and system BIOS.

The next decade could well see laptop development overtaking that of the desktop PC.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Desktop Computers Edge Out Laptops Among Lifehacker Readers [What You Said] (lifehacker.com)
• Toshiba Portege M780 highlights business laptop refresh to Core i-series CPUs (engadget.com)
• Benefits Of Investing In Toshiba Laptops (pro2sell.com)
• The Main Benefit Of Having A Laptop (pro2sell.com)
• Laptop or Desktop: What’s Your Main Computer? [Reader Poll] (lifehacker.com)

It may be amazing to current computer users who are used to small compact LCD monitors. Not only were initial computer monitors large and cumbersome but that the early monitors used by computer enthusiasts were Cathode Ray Monitors that were not color,

Initial vintage monitors were monochrome – one color only not the brilliant color displays that we take for granted today.

Some of these monochrome monitors were green or orange iridescent. Others were similar to a black and white television that is grey scale.

It is taken for granted now by young computer surfers and gamers that television was always “color”, not so.

Initially TV broadcasts were in “black and white “.

Color TV had been developed but the technology but the widespread use did not arise till the early 1970’s and even later in some areas.

The broadcasts were seen as black and white on those sets and color on color sets.
Color TVs could receive programs that were in the black and white mode as well. Sort of the backwards compatibility of the day.

What then would be the difference between the picture qualities of a television set a monitor has vastly greater resolution than standard TV sets.

The TV sets of that time (as opposed to current high end LCD and plasma high definition TVs) were basically 1950’s technology – even the newer color TV sets. .

A monitor’s screen display should be stable and of good quality, since the computer user may sit very close to the monitor and spend many hours reading the display.

If the images are fuzzy (low resolution) or waver constantly, you would have a throbbing headache and wavering eyes in no time.

Monitors have knobs to adjust for clarity. On vintage monochrome monitors these usually include a brightness knob which adjusts the illumination of the entire screen, and a contrast knob which makes the letters lighter or darker in relation to the background screen newer color monitors will have additional adjustments for color.

The question will arise – how did the vintage CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) monitors initially handle the color technology which came later and became the accepted standard.

A typical color monitor screen worked in much the same way as a standard CRT television.

The inside of the picture tube is coated with three different phosphors: red, green and blue.

Phosphors are special chemical compounds that glow with characteristic colors when bombarded a stream of electrons.

The phosphor gets “excited” and thanks to the additive properties of the color wheel the different colored lights resulting get mixed and that all types of combinations of the three primary colors result.

The end result is that virtually any color of the rainbow can be produced.

And as for the color white the eyes play a useful trick. When all three colors are mixed together in equal quantities, the eye sees this as “white light”.

Finally the sharpness of the CRT color monitor or a TV set’s image is determined by three factors: the monitor’s bandwidth, its dot pitch, and the accuracy of its convergence.

Although the bandwidth and dot pitch are important to determine a good monitor, convergence is the real measurement.

Indeed we have come a long way from the initial simple vintage monochrome monitors. What we now take for granted with LCD monitors and indeed our high definition TV sets all originated with simple CRT monochrome monitor technology which was merged with the technology and tricks gleaned from the color TV industry.

We should all be grateful. We owe much to “Uncle Miltie”.

Related articles by Zemanta

• A New Breed of Laser TV (dvorak.org)
• The Differences In Computer Monitors (pro2sell.com)
• New Laser-Driven Displays Use 75 Percent Less Power Than Today’s Screens [Lpd] (gizmodo.com)
• Advantages Of The LCD Monitor And LCD Monitor Repair (wealthyways4you.com)

How can a computer be such an amazing gadget? To many people they just can’t be so amazed on how computers have changed the way we live. Computers can now be found in many sizes and shapes. Almost every home appliance seems to have their own mini computer located somewhere. From cars to buildings to almost every gadget there is, most of the time each one has a computer working to make them run and change the very way we live life.

First and foremost, the most important component of the computer is its processor. It is considered the heart of the computer that does all the calculating and processing. But with all that calculating and processing, the computer won’t be such a remarkable gadget if not for its amazing memory. Computer memory makes it possible to retain important information on a computer. Such data can be used again and again and retrieved when a certain stored data is needed. Without the computer memory, the processor will have no facility where to store its important calculations and processes, thereby making them useless.

There are different types of computer memory tasked to store different types of data. They also have different capabilities and specialties when it comes to storing necessary data inside the computer. The best known computer memory is the RAM, otherwise known as Random Access Memory. It is called random access because any stored data can be accessed directly if you know the exact row and column that intersect a certain memory cell. In this type of computer memory, data can be accessed in any order. RAM’s exact opposite is called SAM or Serial Access Memory, which stores data in a series of memory cells that can only be accessed in order. It operates much like a cassette tape where you have to go through other memory cells before accessing the data that you are looking for.

Other types of computer memory include the ROM or Read Only Memory. ROM is an integrated circuit already programmed with specific data that cannot be modified or changed, hence the name “Read Only”. There is also another type of computer memory called Virtual Memory. This type of memory is a common component in most operating systems and desktops. It helps the computers RAM to be freed up with unused applications to make way for loading current applications being used. It works simply by checking for data stored in RAM not being used recently and have it stored in the computer’s hard disk, thereby freeing valuable space in RAM for loading other applications. A virtual memory will make a computer think that it has almost unlimited RAM inside it.

Another type of computer memory that has made computers process tasks faster is what is called cache memory. Cache memory works simply by having current applications, calculations and processes stored in its memory instead of directly to the main storage area. When a certain process is in need of data previously used, it first will try to access the cache memory if such data is stored there before accessing the central memory storage area. This frees up the computer from looking for the data in a larger and bigger memory storage area and makes data extraction faster. Computer memory is in a constant state of development as more and more technologies are being developed. Who knows, maybe in the near future computer memory might also be fit for human consumption.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Is It Possible To Update Your Laptop Memory On Your Own? (pro2sell.com)

Computer hardware is a physical part of a computer that executes within the hardware. It is unlike computer software or data that can be frequently changed, modified or erased on a computer. Computer hardware is not frequently changed and so is stored in hardware devices such as read only memory (ROM) where it is not readily changed.

Most computer hardware is embedded and so is not visible to normal users. Below are the different types of hardware’s found in a computer.

 Motherboard: It is the central or primary circuit board making up a complex electronic system such as a computer. A motherboard is also known as a main board, logic board or system board.
 Central processing Unit: A CPU is the main component of a digital computer that interprets instructions and process data in computer programs.
 Random Access Memory: A RAM allows the stored data to be accessed in any order. RAM is considered as the main memory of the computer where the working area is used for displaying and manipulating data.
 Basic Input Output System: BIOS prepares the software programs to load, execute and control the computer.
 Power Supply: Power Supply supplies electrical energy to an output load or group of loads.
 Video Display Controller: It converts the logical representation of visual information into a signal that can be used as input for a display medium.
 Computer Bus: It is used to transfer data or power between computer components inside a computer or between computers.
 CD-ROM drive: It contains data accessible by a computer
 Floppy disk: It is a data storage device
 Zip Drive: It is a medium capacity removable disk storage system.
 Hard Disk: It is a non-volatile data storage system that stores data on a magnetic surface layered unto hard disk platters.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Intel and Numonyx report a breakthrough in new kind of memory chip (venturebeat.com)
• Microsoft Looking Into False Bad Battery Reports By Windows 7 Users (lockergnome.com)
• Software To Diagnose Faulty PC Hardware? (hardware.slashdot.org)

Have you ever wondered what the names are of the devices connected to, and in, your computer? There are many people out there who have never owned a computer or who have a computer but do not know what the proper terms are for the things that come with it. This article explains what those names are and provides a little bit of information about how they function.

Generally, all computers come with a few basic devices. These usually include a Monitor, keyboard, mouse, printer, and the computer (also known as the tower or case).

Monitor – The monitor is the device that looks similar to a TV. There are many types of monitors but the most common is a 17 inch CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) monitor. A CRT monitor is very similar to your standard TV. There is a new type of monitor that is becoming very popular, it’s called an LCD monitor. An LCD monitor is quite a bit smaller and the quality is somewhat better.

Keyboard – The keyboard is one of the most basic input devices. This is the device that has all the numbers, letters, and symbols that you use to type words on the computer.

Mouse – This is the other most basic input device. It is a small mouse-like device connected to your computer that lets you move the pointer around the screen and click on icons.

Computer – This is the device that houses the “Guts” of your computer. Inside is where all of the magic happens. Generally, inside a computer case you will find a hard drive, system board, RAM, network card, and all the other devices that let you do all of the fun things that computers nowadays let you do.

Printer – This is the device that lets you turn what you see on your computer, into hard copies on paper. There are many types of printers, such as: ink jet, laser, and dot matrix. Some printers also come with built in scanners (to digitize paper documents), fax machines, and photocopiers.

This is just some basic information that has, hopefully, helped you better understand your computer. You may think that most people should already know this but you might be surprised at how many do not.

Related articles by Zemanta

• The Differences In Computer Monitors (pro2sell.com)
• Parts Of The Computer (slideshare.net)
• Advantages Of The LCD Monitor And LCD Monitor Repair (wealthyways4you.com)
• How To Clean Your Filthy Gadgets [How To] (gizmodo.com)