Components of a Personal Computer (PC) Adapted from Region IV TIFF Training

External Parts output input output Processing, memory & storage

Internal Parts CPU Motherboard that includes: RAM Processor Sound Card Video Graphics card Hard Drives (system boot drive and storage- C: V: E:)

Hard Drive Types SSD- Solid State  No moving parts  Expensive  Fastest

RAM – Computer Memory Random access memory Types:  Dynamic (DRAM)  Static (SRAM) Both types lose their contents when the power is turned off.

ROM - Memory Read Only Memory  Computer memory on which data has been prerecorded  Once written, it cannot be removed, only read  It retains itself after the computer is turned off  Example- BIOS

New Connections ® Universal Serial Bus (USB) ® Supports “plug and play” installations ® Version 3.0 fastest- not fully implemented IEEE 1394 (Firewire) Fastest on the market but more expensive Both are “hot swappable”

Video Adaptors Board/card that plugs into a PC to give it display capabilities Three Main Types:  VGA / SVGA (Video Graphics Array) 800x600  XGA / UXGA (eXtended graphics array) 1600x1200  Digital DVI (digital visual interface) HDTV quality compatible Monitor and video card must be compatible

Other Computer Additions CD-RW or ROM DVD player/burner (ROM)/ RW Speakers Zip drives / External Drives Capture cards/ game cards

Conversion Rates for Hardware 8 bits = 1 byte 1024 bytes = 1 Kilobyte 1000 KB = 1 Megabyte 1000 MB = 1 Gigabyte 1000 GB = 1 Terabyte  This is system size/ capacity for the computer hardware  Important for compatibility issues when upgrading computers.

Local Area Networks (LANs) Group of computers, servers, and printers connected by wiring and other hardware Allows users to share information and communicate. Uses CAT 5 or Cat6 cable, sometimes fiber TCP/IP protocol

Wide Area Network (WANs) Use of CAT 5/CAT6 cable or fiber optics to connect several LAN’s together to share and communicate information World Wide Web (www) PISD has LANS and WANS

Troubleshooting Basic Computer Issues Understand how to use it properly Don’t panic if something goes wrong What EXACTLY were you doing when the error occurred? WRITE IT DOWN What EXACTLY was the error message? WRITE IT DOWN What does work? What doesn’t work? What did you try? Check the physical cable connections Get someone to help.

Components of a Mac

iMacs, Mac Notebooks, storage tower, Apple tv, etc.

External Parts Monitor (output) Mouse (input )

Cables

FireWire High Speed Data cable Used to connect video cameras to computers Also used to connect other peripherals like external drives Hot – swappable

DV Cable New connector used to connect video cameras to computers Usually paired with FireWire

USB High speed data cable Used to connect keyboards and mice Connects other peripherals including printers and scanners and Cameras Hot – swappable

CAT 6 and CAT 5 Data cable used to connect computers together Called a phone line on steroids

RCA Used to connect legacy appliances such as DVD and CD players, to TV’s. Used in some audio systems

S-Video Used to connect video devices such as cameras, VCR’s, and DVD players Does NOT transmit audio

Phono Older type of connector that has either mono or stereo capabilities Used to connect microphones, headphones, and other audio products ¼ and 1/8

XLR Industry standard connection for audio products including microphones and some electronic equipment Provides more balance to alternating current- cleaner sound

Coaxial Industry standard for connecting cable tv signals to a TV or a cable modem Used to connect VCR’s to TV’s

Cable Gender and other Issues Cables can be male or female. You cannot connect male to male or female to female. Need adapters When connecting cables ALWAYS go OUT-to-IN or IN-to-OUT. NEVER THE SAME- damage may occur!

Vocabulary antivirus (AV) software —Programs that prevent infection or scan a system to find and remove viruses. brownouts — Temporary drop in voltage, which can sometimes cause data loss.

Vocabulary CD-R (CD-recordable) — A CD drive that can record or write data to a CD. The data cannot be erased once it is written. CD-RW (CD-rewritable) — A CD drive that can record or write data to a CD. The data can be erased and overwritten.

Vocabulary firewall — Hardware or software that protects a computer or network from unauthorized access. Green Standards — A computer or device that conforms to these standards can go into sleep mode when not in use, saving energy and helping the environment. Devices that carry the Green Star or Energy Star comply with these standards.

Vocabulary hot-swappable — A device that can be plugged into a computer while it is turned on and the computer will sense the device and configure it without rebooting, or the device can be removed without an error message.

Vocabulary LAN (local area network) — A computer network that covers only a small area, usually within one building. WAN (wide area network) — A network or group of networks that span a large geographical area.

Mac Vocabulary Lightning: This is the connector found on today’s most recent iPod touch, iPhone, iPad, and iPad mini models. It replaces the 30-pin dock connector found on earlier devices and iPods. The Lightning connector works regardless of which side is facing up. Like the 30-pin connector before it, the non-Lightning end of the cable sports a USB connector and lets you transfer data as well as power to an attached device.

Mac Vocabulary Thunderbolt: Thunderbolt is today’s faster transfer scheme. Unlike FireWire or USB, it can handle both data and video connections simultaneously. You can string a single Thunderbolt cable between your Mac and use that connection to view the Mac’s video on the display while using the USB, FireWire, Thunderbolt, and ethernet connectors on the back of the display to attach other devices to your Mac. Thunderbolt is up to 20 times faster than USB 2.0 and up to 12 times faster than FireWire 800.

Mac Vocabulary AirPort: This is Apple’s name for its Wi-Fi technology. When people talk about “turning AirPort off,” they mean that they’re turning off their Mac's Wi-Fi. Bluetooth: Another wireless data transfer standard, Bluetooth has a shorter range (about 30 feet) than Wi-Fi. Bluetooth is commonly used to connect keyboards, mice, trackpads, headphones, speakers, other nearby computers, and some portable devices to a Mac.

Mac Vocabulary Windows Terms versus Mac Terms WindowsMac OS X Control PanelSystem Preferences Ctrl+Alt+DeleteOption+Command+Esc Exit (Alt+FX)Quit (Command+Q) Internet ExplorerSafari My ComputerFinder My DocumentsDocuments folder My MusicMusic folder My PicturesPictures folder NotepadTextEdit Outlook ExpressMail Recycle BinTrash Can SettingsPreferences Shortcut iconAlias TaskbarDock Hourglass cursor (busy signal)Spinning beach ball (busy signal) Windows ExplorerFinder window Windows UpdateSoftware Update

Mac Desktop Mac programs on the Launchpad Dock is the Apple version of the Taskbar

Cables Cable name: How is it used in this class:

Cables Cable name: How is it used in this class:

Cables Cable name: How is it used in this class:

Cables Cable name: How is it used in this class:

Cables Cable name: How is it used in this class: