Tidbits

Compiled by Joshua Gulick

Anatomy Of A Computer FireWire/IEEE 1394 USB

H ports peeking out of the front and back of the PC are only a few
of the dozens of components that make up your computer. If
you are planning to upgrade your PC or replace a broken component,
CPU
The CPU is the brain that carries out your
Current FireWire ports transfer data as fast as
400Mbps (megabits per second). (The next genera-
tion of FireWire offers speeds as fast as 3,200 Mbps.)
You can use FireWire to connect many different
Many peripherals, such as MP3 players, modern printers,
and PDAs (personal digital assistants) require USB
(Universal Serial Bus) connections. Some devices are able
to draw power from the computer in addition to data
it won’t hurt to take a look at the descriptions below before you crack computer’s instructions. You won’t be able
open the case. to see your CPU when you open your case types of peripherals, including digital cameras and through the USB port. USB 1.1 ports transfer data at
because a heatsink covers it. Heatsinks are digital video cameras. Like USB ports, FireWire ports 12Mbps (megabits per second), while new USB 2.0 ports
metal blocks (often copper or aluminum) are hot-swappable, which means you can connect a can transfer data at up to 480Mbps. Keep in mind that if
Motherboard that cool the processor by dissipating the device to the FireWire port, unplug it, and connect you have a USB 1.1 peripheral and a USB 2.0 port, data will
The motherboard is a large PCB (printed circuit board) that heat. Many heatsinks use fans to augment another device without rebooting the computer. transfer at the USB 1.1 speed.
houses most of your computer’s components and directs data the cooling process.
traffic to and from the appropriate devices. The most popular
motherboard sizes are ATX and microATX. AGP PSU
The AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port) The PSU (power supply unit) isn’t the PS/2
PCI houses your graphics card, which supplies prettiest component by any means. It
Although some newer mice and keyboards include
the image to the monitor. Some mother- funnels power through the multicolored
PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) USB cables, most require PS/2 ports. Manufacturers
boards include an integrated graphics cables (many cables have more than one
slots let peripherals communicate quickly generally color the keyboard port purple and the
card. AGP graphics cards, which often connector) to each device.
with the processor. You can add devices, mouse port green.
include additional RAM, generally pro-
such as modems and sound cards, to the vide better quality images than generic
PCI slot. PCI device ports protrude from integrated chips.
the back of the computer.
Parallel Port
RAM If you have an older printer or scanner, you probably
connect the device to the parallel port. USB and
The CPU stores temporary information, FireWire connections are quickly replacing parallel ports
such as data relating to open programs, in on most peripherals, including scanners and printers.
RAM. When the RAM reaches its capacity, Keep that in mind the next time you buy a peripheral;
the processor redirects the excess data to you’ll want to be sure that you have an available USB
your hard drive. Because the hard drive isn’t port and you may need to buy a USB cable.
nearly as fast as RAM, this virtual memory
stores and releases data at a slower rate. If
your computer performs slowly when you
have multiple programs open, you can usu-
Serial Port
ally increase the performance by adding ad- Serial ports are much slower than new USB and
ditional RAM. FireWire ports. You can attach some older key-
boards, mice, and modems to the serial
port, but chances are your serial port is
free. The serial port is also known
BIOS as a COM (communications) port.
The motherboard manufacturer installs a basic OS (oper-
ating system) in the BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) chip. Sound Card
The BIOS activates when you turn on the computer and per-
Motherboards often have integrated sound chips. If
forms system checks before starting your main OS. It also lets the
your motherboard does not have a sound chip or if
processor communicate with the PC’s peripherals. Many BIOSes
you want better sound quality, you can buy a sound
let you configure some system activities, such as power-saving
card. Most sound cards attach to one of the mother-
functions. Newer BIOS chips store information in flash ROM,
board’s PCI slots.
which lets users upgrade the BIOS software.