Hardware

Before you start Objectives: learn the specifics about the computer Power Supply. Prerequisites: no prerequisites. Key terms: power, supply, current, volt, wattage, wire, connector, goodwire AC versus DC AC (Alternating Current) is the type of current distributed through wall sockets. With AC, the voltage alternates (at a quick rate) between a negative and a positive charge. This type … Read more

Before you start Objectives: learn why should you use UPS, when should you use it and which different types of UPSs exist. Prerequisites: no prerequisites. Key terms: power, ups, battery, power surge, current, protection Power Surge, Power Dip and Blackout Power surge means that instead of getting 110 or 120 volts (220 in Europe) we might get a … Read more

Before you start Objectives: learn about optimal air temperature and humidity, how to protect from EMI, RFI, magnetic fiels, and what to keep in mind when cleaning computer components. Prerequisites: no prerequisites. Key terms: protection, cleaning, temperature, humidity, EMI, RFI, interference, cabling, alcohol, vacuum Temperature and Humidity We should keep the air temperature between 70 and 74 degrees … Read more

Before you start Objectives: learn which computer components represent the greatest concern in caring for the environment. Prerequisites: no prerequisites. Key terms: protection, batteries, CRT monitor, PC system, cartridges, solutions, solvents, environment Batteries There are some general rules that we should consider. For example, the batteries that we find in most notebook PC systems are an issue. Those … Read more

Before you start Objectives: learn about sources of hazard in electronic devices. Prerequisites: no prerequisites Key terms: current, voltage, laser, heat, fire, protection Current We should never work on any device until we have powered it down and unplugged it from the wall. If we are working on a portable computer, we have to make sure the battery … Read more

Before you start Objectives: learn how to protect sensitive components from electrostatic discharge by using anti static mat, anti static wrist strap and how to behave around computer components in general. Prerequisites: no prerequisites. Key terms: static charge, discharge, components, static mat, static wrist strap, esd, damage, humidity, protection Discharge If we have one object that has a … Read more

Before you start Objectives: learn to visually identify each basic computer component. Prerequisites: no prerequisites Key terms: power supply, motherboard, cpu, ram, video card, expansion slot, long-term storage Power Supply The first component is power supply. It converts AC power from the wall into DC power that can be used by the components in the PC system. Image … Read more

Before you start Objectives: learn how common connectors look like, what do we call them and what are they used for. We have another article in which we discuss video ports and connectors in detail. Prerequisites: no prerequisites Key terms: connector, port, mouse, keyboard, serial, parallel, spdif, network, rj-45, rj-11, network, phone line, audio, vga, db-15, s-video, dvi, analog, … Read more

Before you start Objectives: learn about the common types of computer cases, names and sizes of usual motherboard form factors and which motherboard fits which computer case. Prerequisites: no prerequisites. Key terms: types of computer cases, case size, full tower, mid tower, mini tower, slim line, small form factor, motherboard form factors, atx, micro atx, mini atx, mini itx, btx, … Read more

Before you start Objectives: learn which devices are used to input data, to process data and to output processed data so we can use it. Learn what makes computers modular, how computers can communicate and what is the part of software. Prerequisites: no prerequisites. Key terms: hardware devices, internal hardware, internal components, software, internal components, processing, data … Read more