COURSE TITLE: COMPUTER HARDWARE I

COURSE CODE: EEC 117

COMPUTER HISTORY

Napier's Bones

Napier’iplying almost any multi-digit number by a single digit. While the tables were often

made of wood or paper, higher quality sets were fashioned from ivory or bone, giving the

tables their name.

Although John Napier invented them in the late 1500s, a description of the “bones” was only

published at the end of his life, in his book Rabdologiæ, because he was concerned that others

would take credit for his idea. While Napier also discovered logarithms, the bones are

unrelated to that mathematical concept.

J Lyons, Accounting office, c.1900

Devices to make calculation easier have existed for thousands of years. From the abacus to

the mechanical desktop calculator, from analog bombsights to the WW II Enigma encryption

machine, this section highlights some of these devices and the problems they were invented to

solve.

Hollerith Census Machine

Herman Hollerith invented the first automated tabulating system using punched cards. Initially

designed to process the 1890 US census, his system became the basis for punched card

accounting machines for most of the twentieth century. Hollerith became wealthy as his

Tabulating Machine Company expanded beyond government customers to include railroads,

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insurance companies, and manufacturers.

Hollerith sold his patent rights in 1911 to a holding company (C-T-R) that was renamed

International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) in 1924. Punched card machines grew

more sophisticated and bridged the gap between the paper and electronic ages.

Production Machines

The initial development of the electronic digital computer was by the military-funded

academic and research establishment. The main focus of innovation and production soon

moved to the commercial sector not only because of the large potential market but also because

of the money and resources required. Building computers started to be a money-making

business in the mid 1950’s. Shown here is a mercury memory delay line memory from the

Univac I, the first commercial electronic digital computer ever made. The Bendix G15 and

LGP-30 represent two other early and influential drum-based computers. The Electro data

arithmetic unit shows a small section of a large computer system of the time. With the

Cold War in full swing, the SAGE computer was developed to detect Russian manned

bombers armed with nuclear weapons. SAGE computers represented the state-of-the-art in late

1950s computer technology: each installation had over 50,000 vacuum tubes, weighed 250

tons, and consumed three million watts of power—enough to power 2,000 homes.

High Level Languages

The first computers had to be programmed in a numerical “machine language” that was

directly executed by the computer from its main memory. Writing big programs was a

tedious and error-prone task. In the early 1950s, “assembler language” programs were written

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using alphabetic symbols instead of numbers. The first “high-level” languages developed in

the late 1950s allowed programs to be written using more understandable mathematical

formulas or even English words. The most popular languages were FORTRAN, for scientific

programming, and COBOL, for business programming. Eventually dozens of different high-

level languages were created to ease the programming task for specific applications 1970s -

1990s.

During the 1970s, computers moved into the home in the form of microprocessor-based

personal computers and game systems. The introduction of the IBM PC in 1981 was the most

important event of that decade, creating a standard that is still in use today. More user-

friendly machines such as the Apple Macintosh (based on the Xerox Alto), combined with

more sophisticated software, resulted in computers that were inexpensive and powerful, yet

easy to use. Here you will see some of these machines, as well as robots, printers, and

computer graphics technologies of the time.

IBM Personal Computer

Although IBM’s first personal computer arrived nearly ten years after others were

available, the IBM Personal Computer (PC) instantly legitimized and expanded the market.

Unlike most other contemporary IBM products, the PC incorporated both hardware (the Intel

8088 microprocessor) and software made by other companies. IBM published design details

in their manuals that encouraged others to make copies or “clones” of the original machine,

often with improved functionality. The IBM PC architecture quickly became an industry

standard.

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COMPUTER TYPES DESKTOP

A desktop computer is an independent personal computer that is made especially for use on

a desk in an office or home. The term is used mainly to distinguish this type of personal

computer from portable computers and laptops, but also to distinguish other types of

computers like the PDA, server or mainframe.

Desktops are currently the more affordable and most common computers, and are frequently

used by businesses, schools, households and other organizations. Nearly all modern desktop

computers are modular, meaning that the components can easily be replaced or upgraded. A

desktop computer can also refer to a computer whose case is oriented horizontally (usually,

the monitor is placed on top of the case). Such cases are called Desktops as opposed to

Towers.

Computer Components

Computer Display (Monitor)

A computer display, monitor or screen is a computer peripheral device capable of showing

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still or moving images generated by a computer and processed by a graphics card. Monitors

generally conform to one or more display standards. Sometimes the name "display" is

preferred to the word "monitor", as the latter can be ambiguous alongside the other senses of

"mo itor" meaning "machine-level debugger" or "thread synchronization mechanism".

Computer displays are sometimes called heads, especially when talking about how many are

connected to a computer. Once an essential component of a computer terminal, computer

displays have long since become standardized peripherals in their own right.

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CRT

A modern CRT display has considerable flexibility: it can often handle all resolutions from 640

by 480 pixels (640×480) up to 2048 by 1536 pixels (2048×1536) with 32-bit colour and a

variety of refresh rates.

LCD

A liquid crystal display (LCD) is a thin, flat display device made up of any number of color

or monochrome pixels arrayed in front of a light source or reflector. It is prized by engineers

because it uses very small amounts of electric power, and is therefore suitable for use in

battery-powered electronic devices.

Keyboard

Keyboards are designed for the input of text and characters, and also to control the operation of

the computer. Physically, computer keyboards are an arrangement of rectangular or near-

rectangular buttons, or "keys". Keyboards typically have characters engraved or printed on

the keys; in most cases, each press of a key corresponds to a single written symbol. However,

to produce some symbols requires pressing and holding several keys

simultaneously, or in sequence; other keys do not http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/

1/19/QWERTY.png produce any symbol, but instead affect the operation of the computer, or

the keyboard itself.

Hard Drive

A magnetic disk on which you can store computer data. A hard disk uses rigid rotating platters

(disks). It stores and retrieves digital data from a planar magnetic surface.

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Information is written to the disk by transmitting an electromagnetic flux through an antenna

or write head that is very close to a magnetic material, which in turn changes its polarization

due to the flux. The information can be read back in a reverse manner, as the magnetic fields

cause electrical change in the coil or read head that passes over it.

CD-Rom/DVD Drive

The CD-ROM (an abbreviation for "Compact Disc Read-Only Memory") is a non-volatile

optical data storage medium using the same physical format as audio compact discs, readable

by a computer with a CD-ROM drive. A CD-ROM is a flat, metallized plastic disc with

digital information encoded on it in a spiral from the center to the outside edge

Floppy Drive

3.5" Disk - Created by IBM in 1987, which even today are still commonly used. Most 3 1/2"

newer disks have a capacity of up to 1.44MB.

3.5" Double Density - 720KB

3.5" High Density - 1.44MB

3.5" Extended Density (IBM ONLY) - 2.88MB

Below is a graphic of a floppy diskette. As can be seen by the below picture this particular

diskette is clear which enables you to see the inside of the diskette, you can notice that the

floppy has a circular cloth that is located on both sides of the floppy. This cloth helps clean and

protect the magnetic disk within the diskette.

RAM

Random access memory (sometimes random-access memory), commonly known by its

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acronym RAM, is a type of computer storage whose contents can be accessed in any (i.e.,

random) order. This is in contrast to sequential memory devices such as magnetic tapes, discs

and drums, in which the mechanical movement of the storage medium forces the computer to

access data.

Modem

A modem (a portmanteau word constructed from modulator and demodulator) is a device that

modulates an analog carrier signal (sound) to encode digital information, and also demodulates

such a carrier signal to decode the transmitted information. The goal is to produce a signal that

can be transmitted easily and decoded to reproduce the original digital data.

Video Card

A graphics card, video card, v card, video board, video display board, display adapter,

video adapter, or graphics adapter is a component of a computer which is designed to

convert a logical representation of an image stored in memory to a signal that can be used as

input for a display medium, most often a monitor utilizing a variety of display standards.

Typically, it also provides functionality to manipulate the logical image in memory. The

graphics card may be a stand-alone expansion card, hence the name, but is often also built into

the computer.

Sound Card

A sound card is a computer expansion card that can input and output sound under program

control.

A typical sound card includes a sound chip usually featuring a digital-to-analog converter that

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converts recorded or generated digital waveforms of sound into an analog format. This signal is

led to a (earphone-type) connector where a cable to an amplifier or similar sound destination

can be plugged in

CPU

Central processing unit (CPU) refers to part of a computer that interprets and carries out, or

processes, instructions contained in the software. The term processor can refer to a CPU as

well; see processor (disambiguation) for other uses of this term. A microprocessor is a

common type of CPUs that are manufactured on a single integrated circuit. Most, but not all,

modern CPUs are microprocessors.

Historically, a single-processor CPU was a set of refrigerator-sized racks of electronics very

similar to today's racks of processors in a server farm. One notable problem which continues to

the current day is cooling the electronics which had to run at high speeds, which requires the

dissipation of wasted energy, or heat.

Mother Board

A motherboard is a printed circuit board used in a personal computer. It is also known as the

mainboard and occasionally abbreviated to mobo or MB. The term mainboard is also used for

the main circuit board in this and other electronic devices.

A typical motherboard provides attachment points for one or more of the following: CPU,

graphics card, sound card, hard disk controller, memory (RAM), and external peripheral

devices.

All of the basic circuitry and components required for a computer to function sit either directly

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on the motherboard or in an expansion slot of the motherboard. The most important component

on a motherboard is the chipset which consists of two components or chips known as the

Northbridge and Southbridge. These chips determine, to an extent, the features and capabilities

of the motherboard.

There are different slots and sockets for CPUs, and it is necessary for a motherboard to have

the appropriate slot or socket for the CPU. Newer sockets, those with a three digit number, are

named after the number of pins they contain. Older ones are simply named in the order of their

invention, usually with a single digit.

There are usually a number of expansion card slots to allow peripheral devices and cards to be

inserted. Each slot is compatible with one or more industry bus standards. Commonly available

buses include: PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect), PCI-X, AGP (Accelerated Graphics

Port), and PCI Express.

ISA was the original bus for connecting cards to a PC. Despite significant performance

limitations, it was not superseded by the more advanced but incompatible MCA (Micro

Channel Architecture) (IBM's proprietary solution which appeared in their PS/2 series of

computers and a handful of other models) or the equally advanced and backward-compatible

EISA (Extended Industry Standard Architecture) bus. It endured as a standard feature in PCs

till the end of the 20th century, aided first by the brief dominance of the VESA (Video

Electronic Standards Association) extension during the reign of the 486 and later by the need to

accommodate the large number of existing ISA peripheral cards. The more recent PCI bus is

the current industry standard, which initially was a high-speed supplement to ISA for high-

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bandwidth peripherals (notably graphics cards, network cards, and SCSI host adaptors), and

gradually replaced ISA as a general-purpose bus. An AGP slot is a high speed, single-purpose

port designed solely for connecting high performance graphics cards (which produce video

output) to the monitor. Both AGP and PCI buses are marked for replacement by PCI Express,

although this is unlikely to happen prior to 2006 because of the large established base of

AGP/PCI motherboards and add-in cards.

A typical motherboard of 1999 might have had one AGP slot, four PCI slots, and one (or two)

ISA slots; since about 2002 the last ISA slots in new boards have been replaced with extra PCI

slots. Sometimes an Advanced Communications Riser slot is used instead on less expensive

motherboards

As of 2001, most PCs also support Universal Serial Bus (USB) connections, and the controller

and ports required for this are usually integrated onto the motherboard. An ethernet interface

and a basic audio processor are now almost universally integrated into current motherboards.

MOTHERBOARD FORM FACTOR

Form factor is the physical size and shape of a device. It is often used to describe the size of

circuit boards

The form factor of a motherboard determines the specifications for its general shape and size. It

also specifies what type of case and power supply will be supported, the placement of

mounting holes, and the physical layout and organization of the board. Form factor is

especially important if you build your own computer systems and need to ensure that you

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purchase the correct case and components.

The motherboard in a computer determines the type of form factor to be chosen. The same

form factor has to be chosen for the case and the power supply also.

Using a matching form factor for the power supply and case ensures the following:

The motherboard fits in the case

The power supply cords to the motherboard provide correct voltages and the connectors match

the connectors on the motherboard

The holes in the motherboard align with the holes in the case for anchoring the board to the

case.

Holes in the case align with the parts coming off the motherboard

There are several types of form factors, The most popular among them being used today are:

AT

Baby AT

ATX

Mini ATX

AT Form factor

The AT form factor is found in older computers (386 class or earlier).

Disadvantage of AT Form factor

AT motherboards can not be used with smaller AT cases or with ATX cases.

Dimensions make it difficult to install, upgrade or service.

The CPU is placed on the motherboard in front of the expansion slots, thus long cards can not

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be used as they bump into the CPU.

Baby AT Form factor

Following the AT form factor, the Baby AT form factor was introduced. With the Baby AT

form factor the width of the motherboard was decreased from 12" to 8.5", limiting problems

associated with overlapping on the drive bays' turf. Baby AT became popular and was designed

for peripheral devices — such as the keyboard, mouse, and video — to be contained on circuit

boards that were connected by way of expansion slots on the motherboard.

Disadvantage of Baby AT Form factor

Baby AT was not without problems however. Computer memory itself advanced, and the

Baby AT form factor had memory sockets at the front of the motherboard. As processors

became larger, the Baby AT form factor did not allow for space to use a combination of

processor, heatsink, and fan.

ATX Form factor

ATX is the most commonly used from factor today. An ATX motherboard measures 12" X

9.6" much smaller than that of AT motherboard. It is much easier to install, upgrade or

service an ATX than an AT. On an ATX motherboard the CPU and memory slots are rotated

through 90degrees from the position on the AT motherboard. This prevents interference with

full- length expansion slots.

Additional differences between ATX and AT are that the power supply fan blows air into the

case instead of out for better air flow, less overlap between the motherboard and drive bays,

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and integrated I/O Port connectors soldered directly onto the motherboard. The ATX form

factor was an overall better design for upgrading.

ATX Motherboard

Another important feature about ATX form factor is the Soft Switch which shuts down the

power to the system through the operating system. If the user switches off the power switch on

the front case of the computer when the computer is on, the operating system will go through

the normal shut down procedure.

Mini ATX Form factor

Mini ATX form factor has a motherboard size, which is slightly smaller than the full-sized

ATX specification. These boards use the same ATX form factor power supplies and cases. The

main difference is that full ATX motherboards have a maximum size of 12"x9.6", and Mini

ATX boards have maximum dimensions of 11.2"x8.2".

The different form factors in the ATX family are similar, and the main differences between

motherboards of different ATX-style form factors are dimensions, and the placement of

mounting holes. This means that most cases are "downward compatible" with the smaller ATX

variants, as long as they have provided appropriate sets of places to put mounting hardware.

SERIAL PORTS AND PARALLEL PORTS

Serial Port:

Serial ports are a type of computer interface that complies with the RS-232 standard. They are

9-pin connectors that relay information, incoming or outgoing, one byte at a time. Each byte is

broken up into a series of eight bits, hence the term serial port.

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Serial ports are one of the oldest types of interface standards. Before internal modems became

commonplace, external modems were connected to computers via serial ports, also known as

communication or “COM” ports. Computer mice and even keyboards also used serial ports.

The serial communications are used for transferring data over long distances, because parallel

communications requires too many wires. Serial data received from a modem or other devices

are converted to parallel

so that it can be transferred to the PC bus.

Parallel Port:

The Parallel port (shown in figure) is a standard designed to connect a printer to a computer. It

is used for the CPU to send data to a printer. This interface drives some input and output

signals.

When a PC sends data to a printer or other device using a parallel port, it sends 8 bits of data (1

byte) at a time. These 8 bits are transmitted parallel to each other, unlike the same eight bits

being transmitted serially (all in a single row) through a serial port. Since the data (1 byte) is

sent parallel at a time it is called a Parallel.

USB installation and Configuration

The Universal Serial Bus, or USB for short, is an external bus (a hardwired connection

linking two or more hardware components within a computer system) designed to provide a

fast and functional means for adding external components to a PC.

The Universal Serial Bus gives a single, standardized, easy-to- use way to connect up to 127

devices to a computer. Just about every peripheral made now comes in a USB version.

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The first and commonest USB PC peripherals are the standard human interface devices such as

the keyboard, mouse and joystick. Other high speed units like ISDN modems, scanners,

printers, external hard disks and CD ROM drives can also be connected. The high transmission

rate of 12 Mbit/s permits even MPEG-2 based video products to be connected.

Installing a USB Device

The following are the steps to be followed in installing a USB device.

The quickest way to find out if USB is supported by your motherboard is to check the BIOS.

Look under the menus for a USB option. If it's there, enable it before switching off your PC to

fit the connector.

If your motherboard has a USB connector, you'll need a USB port. Just open the casing and

find a spare slot in the back.

You may have to sacrifice a PCI slot for this. Secure the plate to the backing plate.

Locate the connector on your motherboard. If you're lucky, the connector will only fit one way

- if it doesn't you'll need to check your pin numbers carefully to establish the correct settings.

It's even easier to connect a PCI expansion card. Just plug it into an available slot. Push it down

gently, but firmly, into place, then secure it to the backing plate with a screw. Figure shows

insertion of a PCI expansion card.

Now restart your PC. When Windows loads, it should automatically detect your USB port and

let you know about it. Windows will actually detect two devices - the Host Controller and the

USB Hub.

Right-click on My Computer and select Properties. Switch to the Device Manager tab. If

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there's a warning sign on the Host Controller you need to free an IRQ. Click on Properties then

Hardware Troubleshooter.

Visual Display Unit (VDU)

VDU is a device, such as a television screen, which produces a visible display of data. The

VDU is also called Monitor. The computer monitor is an output device that is part of the

computer's display system. A cable connects the monitor to a video adapter (video card) that

is installed in an expansion slot on the computer’s motherboard. This system convert

signal into text and screen (the monitor). Picture and display them on a TV- like screen. The

computer sends a signal to the video adapter, telling it what character, image converts that signal

to or graphic to display. The video adapter a set of instructions that tell the display device

(monitor) how to draw the image on the screen.

Types of Monitors

There are many ways to classify monitors. The most basic is in terms of color capabilities,

which separates monitors into three classes:

Monochrome : Monochrome monitors actually display two colors, one for the background and

one for the foreground. The colors can be black and white, green and black, or amber and

black.

Gray-scale : A gray-scale monitor is a special type of monochrome monitor capable of

displaying different shades of gray.

Colour: Colour monitors can display anywhere from 16 to over 1 million different colors.

Color monitors are sometimes called RGB monitors because they accept three separate signals

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red, green, and blue.

There are mainly two types of monitors in use. They are:

 CRT monitor

 LCD Monitor

CRT MONITOR

Working principle

A CRT is a vacuumed sealed tube with no air inside. In a CRT, electron gun produces a

beam of electrons that travels through a focusing system, deflection coils, and then into the

screen to display a picture. The rest of this website is dedicated to explaining the details of the

system.

The above figure is the inside of a Cathode-ray tube. A beam of electrons (cathode rays) is

emitted by the electron gun, passes

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through various focusing and deflection systems, and specific areas on then hits

a phosphor-coated screen. Electron Gun

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The electron gun and various anodes consist of a metal cathode, control grid as labeled

above in the figure. It is important to remember that electrons are small negatively

particles, because their direction is controlled by the type of voltage. Negative charges

repel and other and attract opposites.

First, heat is generated by an electric current passing through a heating filament, and it

causes electrons to fly off the cathode.

Intensity of the electron beam is controlled by the voltage at the control grid. A high

negative voltage in the control grid with stop the electron beam.

Next, inside the vacuum of the CRT, the focusing anode concentrates the electrons into a

small beam so they can be accelerated.

Finally, the negatively charged electrons are accelerated towards the screen by a high

positive voltage at the accelerating anode.

Focusing System

After the electron beam leaves the electron gun, the electrons go through another focusing

system. The focusing system, a metal cylinder, uses a positive electric field that causes the

electrons to converge into a small point. This assures that the electron beam will only hit

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one spot on the monitor at a time. Improving the focusing system increases the sharpness of

the picture on the screen.

Deflection Coils

The magnetic deflection coils are used to hit the correct part of the screen. They are

mounted on all sides of the cathode-ray tube, and they control the horizontal and vertical

direction of the electron beam. Varying the electricity running through the coils aims the

beam at the proper screen location.

The Phosphor Coating

The light on the screen that a user sees is caused by electrons illuminating a phosphor

coating. Part of the energy from the electrons is converted to heat by friction, and the rest of

the energy causes the phosphor to become “excited.” The phosphor does not hold its excited

state for long, and the light quickly dwindles. Different phosphors hold the light for

different amounts of time. The amount of time it takes for the phosphor to lose 9/10ths of its

original intensity is called the persistence.

Color

A CRT monitor displays color by using the phosphor and the shadow-mask method. This is

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the same system that televisions use. It is based on the RGB model, which means there is a

red, green, and blue dot at each position on the screen. Three electron guns are

used to activate each color separately. Varying the intensity of each electron gun,

or shutting the beams off, determines the color. This is shown in the figure below. If

all beams are off, then the dot is black. If all beams are on, then the color of the dot is

white. Today the average monitor has the capability to display millions of different colors.

Raster Scanning

Since the phosphor dots lose their color and light very quickly, a system must be

incorporated to refresh, or redraw, the picture at a high rate. The picture is refreshed by

raster-scanning, which is based off television technology. The electron beams are

swept along each row activating each spot on the screen to display the proper colors.

The Color CRT Monitor

A CRT monitor is a system with many parts and methods, working in perfect unison. The

process starts with electrons being emitted by the electron gun. They are pushed into the

cathode-ray tube, and then the electrons light up phosphor pixels on the screen. So every

picture that a computer user sees is not solid at all; it is actually made up of tiny individual

pixels constantly be refreshed. This entire cycle is controlled behind the scenes by a

complex video card and computer.

LCD Monitor (Liquid Crystal Display)

A Liquid crystal display or LCD is a digital display technology that produces images on a

flat surface by shining light through liquid crystals and colored filters.

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Takes up less space, consumes less power, and produces less heat than traditional cathode-

ray tube monitors.

Lack of flicker and low glare reduce eyestrain.

Much more expensive than CRTs of comparable size.

Working principle

liquid crystals are liquid chemicals whose molecules can be aligned precisely when

subjected to electrical fields--much in the way metal shavings line up in the field of a

magnet. When properly aligned, the liquid crystals allow light to pass through.

Whether on a laptop or a desktop, an LCD screen is a multilayered, sideways sandwich. A

fluorescent light source, known as the backlight, makes up the rearmost slice of bread. This

light passes through the first of two polarizing filters. The polarized light then passes

through a layer that contains thousands of liquid crystal blobs arrayed in tiny containers

called cells. The cells are, in turn, arrayed in rows across the screen; one or more cells make

up one pixel (the smallest discernible dot on a display). Electric leads around the edge of the

LCD create an electric field that twists the crystal molecule, which lines the light up with the

second polarizing filter and allows it to pass through. Figure below shows the constructional

details of an LCD panel.

For a simple monochrome LCD, such as you'd find on a PalmPilot, that's it: The protective

cover goes on, and it's finished. But color LCDs, such as you'd find on a laptop PC, are

more complex.

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In a color LCD panel, each pixel is made up of three liquid crystal cells. Each of those three

cells is fronted by a red, green, or blue filter. Light passing through the filtered cells creates

the colors you see on the LCD. Occasionally the mechanism that sends the electrical current

to one or more pixels fails; in those instances you'll see a completely dark, "bad" pixel.

PRINTERS

Printer is a very common output device which prints information and data from the

computer on to paper. There are different types of printers.

The various types of printers are:

Dot matrix printer.

Inkjet printer.

Thermal printer.

Laser printer.

Dot Matrix printer

It is an impact printer that forms characters as a series of dots. The print head contains a

grid of pins which form a character.

This heads stamps on to the paper through an inked ribbon to produce a character (for

example, "H") that is made up of dots.

The illustration below shows the working of a Dot matrix The print heads can have

from 9 to 24 pins in them. The more pins the print head has, the better the quality of

the printed output. Printers with 24 pins

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produce letter quality output. Figure shows a print head.

The quality of the printed output is measured in dpi (dots per inch). The higher

the dpi, the better the quality of the printed output.

Dot Matrix printers come with a standard parallel interface. They can also use a

serial interface. Parallel interfaces are faster, but serial interfaces can be used over greater

distances.

Impact printers are the only printers that will make an impression on carbon paper. Any

printing that is done on paper with a carbon behind it or on self carbonated paper needs to

be done on an impact printer for the printing come through on the second layer of paper.

Ink Jet printer

An Inkjet printer prints characters by spraying very fine jets of ink on to the paper. It works

best with non-absorbent paper.

Figure below shows a typical Ink jet printer.

Operation

Inkjet printing, like laser printing, is a non-impact process. Ink is emitted from nozzles while

they pass over media. The operation of an inkjet printer is easy to visualize: liquid ink in

various colors being squirted onto paper and other media, like plastic film and canvas, to
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build an image. A print head scans the page in horizontal strips, using the printer's motor

assembly to move it from left to right and back again, while the paper is rolled up in vertical

steps, again by the printer. A strip (or row) of the image is printed, then the paper moves on,

ready for the next strip. To speed things up, the print head doesn’t print just a single row of

pixels in each pass, but a vertical row of pixels at a time.

Thermal printer

In a Thermal printer characters are formed by heated elements being placed in contact with

special heat sensitive paper forming darkened dots when the elements reach a critical

temperature.

Thermal printer paper tends to darken over time due to exposure to sunlight and heat. The

standard of print produced is poor.

Thermal printers are widely used in battery powered equipment such as portable calculators.

Figure shows a Thermal printer

Laser printer

A laser printer uses a laser beam to print. The laser creates an image on drum
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inside the printer. This picks up toner and prints the image to the paper like a

photocopier does.

A photoconductive drum is initially charged and then a high intensity laser beam is used to

discharge selected areas on the drum. These discharged areas correspond to the white areas

of the printed document.

Toner is attracted to parts f the drum with a high charge. The drum rotates and transfers the

toner to the paper which has

an even greater electrical charge. Finally a heater fixes onto the toner paper.

How Windows handles a Printing job

When windows receives a print job from an application, it places the job in the queue and

prints from the queue. This is to release the application from the printing job as soon as

possible. Several print jobs can accumulate in the queue and can be viewed in the

Printer window. The process of queue printing is called Spooling.

Spooling means simultaneous peripheral operations online. Most of the windows

printing jobs are done by spooling.

If the Printer port, printer cable and printer all support bidirectional (Two way)

communication, the printer can communicate with the Windows. For example, Windows XP

can ask the printer how much printer memory is available and what fonts are installed. The

printer can send messages like ‘Paper- jam’ or ‘Out-of-paper’ to the Windows XP.

MODEMS

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The word "modem" is a contraction of the words modulator-demodulator. A modem is

typically used to send digital data over a phone line.

The sending modem modulates the data into a signal that is compatible with the phone line,

and the receiving modem demodulates the signal back into digital data. Wireless modems

convert digital data into radio signals and back.

Modems came into existence in the 1960s as a way to allow terminals to connect to

computers over the phone lines. A typical arrangement is shown below:

Modem standards

Most modem standards are referred to by a code assigned by the Consultative Committee for

International Telephony and Telegraphy (CCITT).

The standards fall into three categories:

Modulation (speed)

Error correction

Data compression

There are two widely recognized standard methods for flow control. They are:

Software handshaking (using XON/XOFF)

Hardware handshaking (using RTS/CTS).

Installation of a Dial-up Modem Procedure Steps:

 Turn System Off and unplug it.

 If your modem is a conventional type that uses jumpers to set the COM port and

IRQ number, you need to configure the jumpers according to the instructions in your

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 modem manual. If your modem is plug and play (most newer ones are) then you

do not need to configure any jumpers on it.

 Select an open expansion slot, preferably away from as many other components as

possible.

 Unscrew and remove the metal insert on the back of the system case that corresponds

to this expansion slot.

 Insert the card into the expansion slot carefully. You may have to rock it back and

forth from front to back to get it to go in.

 Secure the card by screwing it into place.

 Connect one end of the phone cord to the back of the modem (in the "Wall" or "Line"

jack) and the other end to the wall socket.

Included with your new modem should be a CD (or perhaps a floppy diskette) that

contains the software the computer needs to recognize and work with the modem. This small

utility program is called a device driver. Most computers come with preinstalled device

drivers for a selection of the most common modems, but it's best to work with the software

the modem manufacturer provides, as it is specifically created to match your modem. (It

also may be more up-to-date than that supplied with your computer's operating system.)

 When your computer starts up after the new modem has been installed, you should see

the Found New Hardware Wizard. Follow the instructions on your screen, and the

wizard will configure the computer to work with the new modem.

 Insert the disc into the CD (or floppy) drive on your computer when the wizard

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 prompts you to do so. When the installation is complete, the wizard will ask you to

restart your computer.

 If the Found New Hardware Wizard doesn't start up, Follow the steps given below

(For Windows XP)

Note: By following the instructions above, you can install the majority of the modems that

can be found in the market. However, if for any reason the installation of your modem fails,

you will have to consult the manual that came with the modem for further instructions. There

is also a possibility that your modem gets installed automatically by your O/S, since

Windows XP uses the Plug and Play technology.

 Set Up Your Modem

a. Click Start, Settings, and Control Panel and select Dial- Up Networking.

b. Select the icon labeled Make New Connection. You will need to name the connection

(the ISP name, for instance) and supply the ISP's dial-up information, as well as the

username and password you use with the ISP.

c. You can set up the connection by opening the Internet Options Icon on the Control

Panel. When you select the Connections tab, you will see a button labeled Setup;

clicking the button will guide you through setting up your connection. You will need

some information from your ISP to do this, including the phone number to call, the

names of the ISP's email servers, the type of service, and your password for initial

login.

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