BACK TO BASICS PART I. Hardware & it s Associated Terminology

Transcription

1 BACK TO BASICS PART I Hardware & it s Associated Terminology

2 INTRODUCTION The purpose of this session is to review computer hardware & its associated terminology WHY? Everyone on the same page Better understanding helps get maximum benefit from Club meetings Also helps when things go wrong in everyday use We will be talking about Computers & Tablets some of this will also apply to Smart Phones & E-readers

3 CONFIGURATION OPTIONS Desktop: Original Desktop: All-In-One Laptop Notebook Notebook/Tablet hybrids Tablets

4 ON THE OUTSIDE Screen Size Regular, Touch Keyboard Separate, Built-in options, Virtual Mouse Buttons: Which, What, Where Programing

5 ON THE OUTSIDE [2] Touch Pad Switches Ports: CD/DVD Drive in one sense outside

6 THE SCREEN Screen size measured diagonally from corner to corner may be a deciding factor. Quality Now multiple technologies all latest & best. MUST see for yourself are small quality increases worth the extra costs? Resolution [Pixels] & Refresh Rate [Hz] for both more is better

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8 THE KEYBOARD Keyboards available in Canada may be English [Canada/U.S.], French or Dual Sometimes you must choose a permanent [single language] setting when the computer is first installed Some have alternate keys that provide extra characters over and above the standard ones usually French accents plus some others

9 KEYBOARD VARIATIONS

10 MOUSE-MICE-MOUSES-MEECE? Your Mouse can be wired or wireless It can have as little as two buttons left & right or, as in this picture, six or more The basic buttons always have the same function but the extras can vary by model

11 MOUSE-MICE-MOUSES-MEECE? 1 RIGHT BUTTON 2 SCROLL WHEEL/BUTTON 3 LEFT BUTTON 4 SIDE BUTTONS 5 CENTRE BUTTON

12 EVERYDAY MOUSE TERMINOLOGY CLICK: A single click on the LEFT button DOUBLE CLICK: Two clicks in quick succession [adjustable] on the LEFT button RIGHT CLICK: A single click on the RIGHT button SCROLL: Rotate the SCROLL WHEEL to scroll up or down The other functions will depend on the Mouse model

13 MORE ABOUT MOUSE BUTTONS On an older Mouse the SCROLL WHEEL is only that. However on newer ones it can also be clicked. The sets up AUTO-SCROLL. This feature lets you scroll through a longer document or web page at a reading speed convenient to you speed is adjusted by moving the Mouse up and down NOTE: does not work in every case SIDE BUTTONS: These buttons are usually programmable typical uses are to close [red X] or back [when browsing] but may be used for other functions. Depending on make/model the programming capability may be built in see the instruction that come with it. In other cases 3 rd party software such as Microsoft Intellipoint can be downloaded

14 MORE ABOUT MOUSE BUTTONS CENTRE BUTTON: In some cases this is the back function when browsing. In other cases it temporarily changes the speed at which the Mouse movement corresponds responds to movement on the screen. This may be identified as either DPI Dots Per Inch or CPI Characters Per Inch. Multiple clicks may give multiple changes. For most of us this will be irrelevant

15 THE TOUCHPAD The Touchpad is effectively a Built-in Mouse. It depends on model how much Mouse functionality is available. The following are a guide only:

16 THE TOUCHPAD - Click, Drag, or Scroll with the Touchpad To click, tap on the touchpad. To double-click, tap twice. To drag an item, double-tap but don t lift your finger after the second tap. Drag the item where you want it, then lift your finger to drop. If your touchpad supports multi-finger taps, right-click by tapping with two fingers at once. Otherwise, you still need to use hardware buttons to rightclick. When tapping or dragging with multiple fingers, make sure your fingers are spread far enough apart. If your fingers are too close, your computer may think they re a single finger.

17 THE TOUCHPAD - Click, Drag, or Scroll with the Touchpad You can scroll using your Touchpad using two fingers. Move your fingers between the top and bottom of your Touchpad to scroll up and down, or move your fingers across the Touchpad to scroll sideways. Be careful to space your fingers a bit apart. If your fingers are too close together, they just look like one big finger to your touchpad. REMINDER: Your Touchpad may still need the Right & Left Buttons for some functions

18 CUSTOMIZING YOUR MOUSE [and TOUCHPAD] Your Moue through the Control Panel can be customized through the Control Panel

19 CUSTOMIZING YOUR MOUSE [and TOUCHPAD]

20 CUSTOMIZING YOUR MOUSE [and TOUCHPAD]

21 SWITCHES The most obvious switch found on every computer is the Power Switch this will be easily located. This should NOT be used to shut the computer down on an everyday basis as it can cause data loss and/or other complications If the computer is frozen or will not shut down for any other reason, a proper shut down can be achieved by holding down the Power switch until the screen goes black Some computers have a physical switch for wireless connectivity. The location of this varies. On others this switch is a Function [F] key or a software switch via Settings The Function keys act as switches in some cases. For example, the Touchpad can be switched on or off usually with the F9 key. Hold down the Fn key usually lower left on the keyboard and click F9. Be aware that the the designation of F keys may vary between models

22 PORTS A computer port is a connection point or interface between a computer and an external or internal device. Internal ports may connect such devices as hard drives and CD ROM or DVD drives External ports may connect modems, printers, mice and other devices.

23 PORTS Unless you are changing a device such as a Hard Drive you need not worry about internal ports Typical external ports are: USB [Universal Serial Bus] usually more than one and different specifications possible HDMI [High Definition Media Interface] VGA Memory Cards [cameras etc.]

24 PORTS Headphone and/or microphone Jacks may also be for external speakers Ethernet cable looks like a phone jack used for non-wireless connection to the Internet Phone Jack may be used for internet connection [dial up] or Fax Which of these your computer has depends on model and age Location depends on the model. On Laptops/Notebooks normally found on the edges of the computer. On Hybrids some may be on the edges of the screen also

25 USB PORTS USB Ports can be used to connect many different devices to the computer including: Printers External Hard Drives Flash Drives CD/DVD Drives Microphones Speakers Cameras Your computer can handle up to 127 such devices using a Hub - a multiple connector. Likely neither needed or practical cable length can not exceed 16

26 USB PORT TYPES USB 1, USB 2, USB 3, USB 3.1, USB C Not many USB 1 around anymore! USB 1 3 have various connector sizes including mini for newer thinner devices USB C is a small USB 3 and is capable of handling a higher power load to charge heavier duty devices like Laptops

27 USB PORT TYPES IDENTIFICATION & SPECIFICATION WHITE = USB 1 BLACK = USB 2 BLUE = USB 3/3.1 YELLOW SOME USB 3.1 RED/ORANGE CAN BE 1, 2, 0R 3 NEED TO CHECK MANUAL. DOES NOT POWER OFF DURING SLEEP OR STANDBY MODES USEFUL FOR CHARGING NOT EVERY MANUFACTURER FOLLOWS THIS COLOUR CODING 100%

28 USB PORT TYPES IDENTIFICATION & SPECIFICATION The difference is how fast data can be transferred through the connection: USB 1: 12Mbps [Megabits per second] USB 2: 480Mbps USB 3: 5Gbps [Gigabits per second] USB 3.1: 10Gbps For most uses the speed is not an issue but makes a difference when, for example, doing a backup When buying a device know what you have. Most devices are backwards compatible. That is USB 3 device will run on a USB 2 Port AT USB 2 SPEEDS CHECK THE PACKAGING THE ABOVE IS NOT 100% TRUE!

29 HDMI PORT The HDMI port provides BOTH audio & video to a second screen. This might be: An actual second Monitor [screen] A TV A Projector normally video only but many newer [and thinner] devices do not have a VGA port Useful for streaming services such as Netflix if your TV has n HDMI port but is not a smart TV or does not have Apple TV/Roku etc. Connecting to a larger screen or TV can be helpful to those with vision issues

30 VGA PORT Typically both the Port and the cable are colour coded blue although black is not uncommon Used to connect to a second screen Monitor, TV, Projector BUT VIDEO ONLY NOTE: Both Male & Female connections may exist on different devices get the correct cable!

31 MEMORY CARDS Most Ports of this type will take various [physical sizes of cards sometimes a holder is needed. The smaller cards are often sold with the holder A useful way of transferring pictures from a camera the card is treated like a Flash drive An easy way to add memory to devices with less memory Notebooks & Tablets especially

32 HEADPHONE/MICROPHONE JACKS A low cost way to use Apps like Skype when built in speakers and microphones do not provide sufficient quality On Laptops often on the front edge of the machine. Often not in colour need to look closely to see the markings CARE: correct size for the plugs

33 ETHERNET & PHONE JACKS An Ethernet Port. Note the similarity to a Phone Jack This Port is slightly larger than the one for a phone

34 CD/DVD DRIVE Depending on the age of your computer the drive may be Read Only, Read/Write, CD Only, CD/DVD or CD/DVD/Blu-ray. Older drives do not necessarily support all DVD formats Many of today's machines have a real estate problem so cannot fit a drive If buying new may need an external drive [usually USB] to load old apps etc.

35 ON THE INSIDE The Mother Board which includes: The Processing Unit [Processor] RAM [Random Access Memory- used by YOU] ROM [Read Only Memory- used by the COMPUTER] Controllers for various functions May be separate or built into the Mother Board

36 THE MOTHERBOARD The Motherboard is the main electronic component of your computer It s main components that concern us are the CPU [Central Processing Unit], Video Controller [Screen] & Memory [RAM] This illustration is from a Desktop model

37 ON THE INSIDE ROM holds its information when power is switched off. You can not change ROM. You may receive pop-ups saying that an update is needed to ROM this will come from the manufacturer. BE SURE THAT THE MESSAGE IS GENUINE! Such an update may take some time & can NOT be interrupted. NOTE: This can occur with other devices such as Printers which also have ROM. This does not happen often Memory [RAM] holds it s information ONLY until the electricity is switched off then it is lost forever! Storage [ Hard Drives/Flash Drives/CD & DVD Drives] do NOT lose their information when the electricity is switched off.

38 UNDERSTANDING CAPACITIES The basic unit of both Memory & Storage is the BYTE It is somewhat of an oversimplification but for today 1 Byte = 1 Character 1000 Bytes = 1 Kilobyte [Kb] 1000 Kb = 1 Megabyte {Mb] 1000 Mb = 1 Gigabyte [Gb] 1000 Gb = 1 Terabyte [Tb]

39 IN REAL LIFE For most of us the relevant items are probably WORD documents & pictures A one page Word document like this one page is about 13Kb. Lots of room in a Gb! Pictures need more!

40 PICTURES AND PIXELS [This is JPEG other formats may be 4x more]

41 THREE KEY INSIDE FACTORS Processor may need to go on-line to see what this means Storage 1 Terabyte Hard Disc Drive 12 Gigabytes of memory

42 THE PROCESSOR Three factors affect speed Cores & Threads control how many computer operations can happen at the same time more is better Frequency in Gigahertz higher is better

43 MEMORY [RAM] Memory holds the programs that are in use including those that are part of the Operating System AND the work that is being done. Memory is measured in Gigabytes [Gb] More memory is always better BUT costs more For a new computer, make sure at least 4Gb Note: Although each version of Windows has its own limit on the amount of RAM it will support, so do the many CPU/motherboard combinations found in PCs both old and new. Therefore, just because your particular Windows version supports a certain amount of RAM, your computer s CPU/motherboard might support more or less than that amount.

44 MEMORY [RAM] BY OPERATING SYSTEM

45 MEMORY [RAM] BY OPERATING SYSTEM

46 STORAGE DRIVES Today s computers may contain a HDD [Hard Disc Drive] or an SSD Solid State Drive or in some cases both HDD s are cheap but have moving parts. SSD s have no moving parts reliability, less power & faster speeds - they are physically smaller but typically cost 4 or 5 times per Gigabyte compared to HDD s The use of both allows the Operating System to reside on SSD typically this can speed up operations by 30-40% Unless you are storing very large amounts of pictures or movies any HDD you buy today will have enough capacity for your needs

47 STORAGE DRIVES SSD s are more & mores essential in machines with smaller real estate Tablets, Notebooks etc.

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