Apple Mac mini Core 2 Duo 2 GHz

DTS - 1 x Core 2 Duo 2 GHz - RAM 1 GB - HDD 1 x 120 GB - DVD±RW (+R DL) - GF 9400M shared video memory (UMA) - Gigabit Ethernet - WLAN : 802.11 a/b/g/n (draft), Bluetooth 2.1 EDR - MacOS X 10.5 - Monitor : none
MFG #: MB463LL/A CDW #: 1693817
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Apple is a well known name in the world of computer what ever hardware and software

Shopping for Hardware

Shopping and computers may not seem like a good match. Fashion, however, says otherwise. With the world becoming more and more reliant on technology, the internet and connectivity, it is almost impossible to ignore that fact that almost everyone in this world has to have a mobile phone, pocket PC or even a WiFi internet device.Everyone means everyone, that means even people who have never fiddled around with a computer are now faced with a form of social isolation if they do not have access to hand held electronic gadgets. Realizing this demand, the manufacturers of consumer electronics have not only pushed forward with innovations in the field of technology but also created new stylized look for their products.Enter the World of Fashionable Hand held Electronics The mobile phone is the most essential gadget of all, and you most probably have owned more than one. After all, phones help keep people in touch and coordinate with their friends and family. Events become easier to handle and almost any form of social interaction can be organized by sending just a few well placed text messages. When you find yourself shopping for a mobile phone you will be balancing both style and function as you choose among the hundreds of devices out there on the market today. This choice is very dependent on your personal requirements. Most touch phones have sleek black glass or a shiny metallic finish; they are usually very thin and light, but with ample width for the screen.Another important electronic that you should shop for is the pocket PC, while some mobile phones may have the same capabilities as a pocket PC, you might want to have dedicated device for all your office and professional needs. When shopping for a pocket PC, you should first make a list of all the tasks that you do when you are on the go; then find a suitable device that would enable you to accomplish those needs. The pocket PCs may look similar to each other but they have very different looks. Choosing one with the right style and form to match your personality will take a little effort.Making Your Gear More Personalized You should do more than just shop for electronics. You should also keep an eye out for good deals on carry cases, protective covers, accessories and straps. These not only add an additional visual flair to your gadgets, but they also serve very functional purposes. Straps and laces allow you to hang your phone or gadget on your wrist, around your neck or even on your bag.Just be sure to get one that is as sturdy as it looks good so that your gadgets will not get damaged. Decals and stickers are also good for decorating your gadgets. Many stores carry these and you do not have to restrict yourself to electronics stores to find good decals.Sports stores, hobby shops and toy shops often have good stickers that would also look good on your gadgets. Remember, when it comes to shopping for electronics, getting excellent functionality for your money is easy if you invest enough time and effort to study what would make you happy.

How to Sell Used Computers

Many people sell their used computers for a variety of reasons. Some sell their used computer instead of throwing them as a trash get some money from them, while others sell their used computers to buy new computers with the latest features and technology. Not only individuals sell their used computers, but also large numbers of organizations or firms sell their used computers. They do so because the computer systems may require maintenance and repairs, after some time due to the decrease in performance seen in the computers after some years. Instead of spending more money on the maintenance and repairs they sell and gain money, as there is a great demand for used computers. Such companies easily sell their used computers online through auctions or exchange for new computers with less effort in no time.
Used computers are bought by either students who do not have good savings or earnings or they are bought by educational institutions like the schools and universities. Some parents buy used computers for their children just for browsing the Internet and to play games. For this purpose, a used computer is more than sufficient than spending huge amounts on a new computer. These target segments however require used computers in a good working condition as well as for a lesser price. Most of the used computers are sold in the online market, as it attracts all sorts of buyers. There are many numbers of online classifieds or auctions or online dealers who sell used computers. Selling used computers are a better option than throwing them as trash or keeping them in a corner occupying space and collecting dust.
The first and important step is to improve the appearance of the used computer by wiping it clean free of dust and dirt. Any buyer would get impressed by the way the computer looks, looks make the first impression. The selling price of a clean used computer is always better than the one, which is full of dirt and dust.
All the software manual, operating system and other supporting discs that came with the computer should be in tact. This will add more value, when selling the used computer and also will make the buyer consider the person who is selling the used computer as a trusted seller.
The most important thing to do before selling a used computer is to erase all the personal details or information from the hard disk or drive. Instead of just putting them in the trash folder it is very important to purge all the personal data from the computer’s memory, even invisible backup files can cause danger. A tech savvy person’s help can be got if the seller does not know how to do it. If not done it may lead to accessing the bank accounts, or emails by any unknown person leading to identity theft. For that when there is a remedy. Unused scanners, printers can also be bundled with the sale of the used computer. A buyer may sometime value it. The benefits or features of the computer can be highlighted for better sales.

Hard Drives- Choosing the Right One

Summary:
When buying or building a home computer, it is important to make sure your hard drive is the proper size. Without the proper hard drive, you'll find using your computer won't be as much fun as you want it to be.
Keywords:
hard drive, RAID, choosing, choose, new, buy, help, hard disk, GB
Article Body:
Hard drives come in many different sizes and configurations. How much data a hard drive can hold is measured in gigabytes (GB). The latest hard drives can hold anywhere from 80 GB to 1000 GB (1 TB)! When buying a hard drive, size isn't the only factor to look at, however. By choosing the right hard drive for your needs, you'll enjoy your computer more. Hard drives are inexpensive and you should never skimp on one to save money.
For business or basic home use, an 80 GB hard drive should suffice. If you plan on downloading music, movies, or installing a lot of games on your computer, your hard drive should be at least 160 GB. For laptop users, the same space requirements apply, however, many laptops come with small hard drives. Many laptop users choose to keep the small hard drive and buy an external hard drive for excess files to keep costs down.
You can have a huge hard drive, but it will be worthless if it doesn't move data fast enough for your computer! To find data, hard drives have platters on spindles that spin, similar to a CD. How fast a hard drive spins is measured in RPM (revolutions per minute). The higher a hard drive's RPM is, the faster it will perform. Desktop hard drives almost always have 7200 RPM hard drives. Laptop hard drives can range from 4200 RPM to 5400 RPM for budget and midrange uses and 7200 RPM for high end use. Hard drives with RPMs of 10,000 or more are available, but those are mainly for gamers, computer enthusiasts, and servers.
If you are computer user looking for performance, you should know about RAID. RAID lets you put 2 or more hard drives of the same brand and model together and run them at once, which results in faster performance. You can also use RAID so the second hard drives automatically backs up data from the first hard drive, so you always have a backup of your data. There are numerous possible RAID configurations out there, too many to mention in this article.
A hard drive's cache is also another important performance indicator. A hard drive's cache will hold frequently accessed data for faster access by the computer. A good hard drive will have at least 8 MB of cache. As with RPM, the more cache a hard drive has, the better.
Hard drives generally have either an SATA or IDE connection. Both connections are for attaching the hard drive to the motherboard via a cable so that data can be sent and received to and from the computer and drive. SATA is the newest connection and is better than IDE in that it can be faster and uses a much smaller cable. IDE, however, is just as fast as IDE in real world performance testa and hard drives that use IDE are cheaper than SATA hard drives. However, IDE hard drives use large cables that can restrict airflow. Fortunately, you can buy a rounded IDE cable that is not as big for $5-$10 at almost any computer supply store or online computer part retailer, such as Newegg.com or Fry's Electronics.

Apple Mac Pro Quad-Core Xeon 2.66 GHz

Tower - 1 x Quad-Core Xeon 2.66 GHz - RAM 3 GB - HDD 1 x 640 GB - DVD±RW (±R DL) - GF GT 120 - Gigabit Ethernet Bluetooth 2.1 EDR - MacOS X 10.5 - Monitor : none
MFG #: MB871LL/A CDW #: 1697411
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A Safer Way to Recover Damaged Partitions

Repairing damaged partitions on is a risky business. Even if you use the best toolkit and are absolutely sure in what you are doing, you are still risking your files shall something go wrong. Changes made to the damaged partition are irreversible; it is just too easy to overwrite an important system structure that holds vital information about your disk, files and data. Bottom line: it's good to backup before performing data recovery. But is this really the best way to do it?
There is a different approach to do data recovery that is even safer. No need to backup and restore during the recovery. Instead of making a backup copy of corrupted data, you can simply take a binary snapshot of the partition being repaired, and attempt the recovery with different settings as many times as you need on this snapshot instead of the actual disk.
SoftAmbulance Partition Doctor by http://softambulance.com/ is one of a few data recovery tools that allow recovering a virtual image of a damaged hard drive instead of repairing the hard drive directly. The data recovery tool lets you create a binary image of the damaged hard drive, and works with the binary image instead of the real thing. The binary image is a big file stored on another hard disk, CD, DVD or other media. The technology is similar to making an .iso image of a CD or DVD disc, only SoftAmbulance Partition Doctor extends it to partitions or even entire disks.
The hard drive copy may be virtual, but any data you save from it is for real. SoftAmbulance Partition Doctor can recover your files, documents and other data from the binary image and put it on a healthy media. After that, you can attempt fixing the damaged system structures of the corrupted hard drive without taking any risk at all. Any modifications will be performed on the virtual image.
Don't rush the recovery. Don't take the risk of losing or corrupting your data. Create a virtual snapshot of the hard drive being repaired, and work on that snapshot instead of accessing the corrupted hard drive. This procedure keeps your original data safe, and ensures the highest level of safety during the recovery process.
SoftAmbulance Partition Doctor recovers files from damaged and corrupted disks and partitions and fixes damaged hard drives. The disk recovery product supports all 32-bit versions of Windows, and recovers FAT and NTFS formatted hard disks, memory cards, CD and DVD media, and USB flash drives. The evaluation version is available for free at http://softambulance.com/

Data Recovery - What To Do When Your Hard Drive Fails

How many times have you experienced that sickening feeling when your hard drive suddenly fails? How many times have you experienced that your hard disk just does not boot and all the data may be gone forever? A hard drive failure is one of the most common problems and worst nightmares faced by computer operators all over the world. Precious data is lost either at home or in big corporate environments. What can be done in these situations? Well, there are certain solutions that can be performed by you in order to revive your hard drive. We will talk about the solution later. First, let us discuss why a hard drive fails.
Whether the data on the hard drive can be recovered or not depends on the extent of the problem. A hard drive can be damaged due to firmware corruption, electronic failure, mechanical failure or a logical failure. Many times your hard drive may lose data due to the combination of the above mentioned factors. A hard drive may also develop bad sectors due to which the data on those sectors is lost or becomes unreadable.
Firmware refers to the information used by the computer to interact correctly with the hard drive. If the firmware fails or becomes corrupted, then important data on the hard drive is lost. In case of an electronic failure there maybe occur an electrical surge that can knock out the controller board on the hard drive and make it unusable. However data can be recovered by data recovery experts who use special data recovery software. Swapping the controller board with another one can prove to be dangerous as the information on the controller board is unique to the hard drive on which it is fitted. In comparison to electronic failure a mechanical failure can turn out to be worst as data recovery can almost become impossible. Mechanical failure includes head crash and also read/write head failure. Head crash can occur due to physical shock, power surges and movement of the computer. Next come the logical errors. Logical errors have nothing to do with the hardware part. Logical errors can occur due to corruption of the file system on the hard drive or improper entries in the file allocation table.
In case of hard drive failure it is vital to call the data recovery experts. In most cases, the information on the hard drive is important and you cannot bear to lose it. The experts enhance the possibilities of hard drive recovery in the case of failure of hard drive due to software malfunction, virus attacks and other reasons mentioned above. Data can be recovered on any type of operating system including all versions of Windows as well as Apple Macintosh, Novell, Linux, Unix and also on all types of file systems like FAT, FAT32, NTFS, NTFS5, HFS, HFS+, NWFS, EXT2 and EXT3. The experts may take the hard drive to their workshop in order to recover the lost data and then return it to you in a few days. Most of the data recovery experts have their own laboratories that are involved in testing the hard drives and repairing them.
Loss of data is the last thing that you as the customer would ever want. This is where the data recovery experts come into the picture. They cannot extract only data from hard drives, but recover data also from tape drives, cds, dvds and other important storage media. You as the consumer can take up some preventive measures like backing up all your important data at least once a week. Windows has its own feature rich backup program. There are other backup software programs available in the market that can avert a possible disaster.
Besides the concern of recovering your data, another problem is the time it may take for an expert to help. This can be a slow and tedious process. I recommend having a second complete computer source such as a laptop (for portability) that you can continue your work. This way you are never completely down and you can share important data between the two.

Computer Speakers

Few people think too long and hard about their computer speakers, instead preferring to just use the ones that came with their computers. These speakers are often built-in and poor quality, especially on laptop systems, and do not do justice to the very good sound quality that most computers are capable of producing.
The price range in computer speakers is even greater than that in other electronic products – you can pay anywhere from the price of a pair of headphones to as much as the computer itself cost you. It is natural, therefore, to be unsure of exactly what your money is getting you, which is where this article can hopefully be of some help.
Perhaps the most important thing you should look for when choosing your speakers is their maximum output power, which is measured in watts. This number tells you how good the speakers will sound at different volumes – while almost all speakers can sound good at low volumes, only ones with very high maximum output power will sound good at higher volumes. The higher the volume you plan to use, the more power you need.
Another important consideration is whether the speakers can produce either 5-speaker or 7-speaker surround sound, which makes a big difference over traditional 2-speaker systems. You should also check whether the speakers come with a sub woofer, which is a special loudspeaker for bass, allowing you to better hear the beat of your music. However, many people actually consider sub woofers undesirable, as they are so large and don’t always fit in well with a computer setup.
It is only really worth splashing out on speakers if you often use your computer for gaming or for playing music. If you do, then you might consider that there’s nothing to say so-called ‘computer’ speakers are only for computers – with a little imaginative wiring, you can also hook them up to televisions, games consoles, mp3 players, and all sorts of other things besides. This works in reverse, too, so if you already have a good pair of speakers, it should be relatively simple to connect them up to your computer and get some very good sound that way.

How to Add Memory to your computer

A lot of people think they are ready for a new computer when their current one begins showing signs of old age. If you have already performed other steps to speed your pc performance to no avail, you may want to consider adding memory (RAM).This is a very effective way to save money by prolonging the life of your pc by a few years.There are so many types of memory like physical memory virtual memory random access memory etc.

Ultra mobile pc,s

Ultra Mobile PCs are a strange breed; some would say neither fish nor fowl. They aren't fully fledged laptop computers; no optical drive, not the same array of ports and connectors, small screen. They aren't handhelds; they run a ‘proper' operating system and are intended for ‘real' computing.
So where do they fit in the scheme of things, and can they find a place for themselves? Well, the jury is out, but while it ponders (which means while people decide whether they will buy the things in sufficient numbers to keep them being produced and updated), there does seem to be a steady flow of them, and OQO has done its fair share of producing new devices. We make the OQO model e2 the third we've seen.
It is similar to its predecessors in that it has a slide-out keyboard and a small format: 142mm wide, 84mm tall and 26mm thick, and weighing 450g. It looks stunning thanks to its shiny black casing.

What is Computer First sign of old age

A computer's first sign of old age can be either subtle or obvious. However, if the computer decides to let you know it's beginning to show some wear, you can look for some common signs.Computer making is started from very old ages we can say Abacus is a form of computer it is mostly used by chinese for calculations

Basic Computer classes

The computer classes have been started with the objective of offering basic computer education to senior citizens who are interested in learning computers at a nominal fee. Omashram Trust gratefully acknowledges the help given by Microsoft Corporation to make this activity possible by donating the computers to Omashram.

To build your own computer

When you have all component parts, you are ready to assemble the computer system. If you are a beginnner, assembling the entire system might be a little tricky. Some things you will want near you while doing this job is plenty of light, computer screws, all the manuals that came with the hardware you purchased, a screw driver and of course, a bottle of icy cold drink to keep yourself cool.

How to Assemble a system

In assembling a computer, the main points to consider are purpose, availability, compatibility, and cost. Before building a system, ask these questions: What is the computer needed for? Are the parts for this computer available? What is the compatibility of the parts? Is this computer within the budget? The answers to these would serve as a guide in assembling the right computer.

HP lcd

HP’s LE2201w 22-inch LCD monitor is pictured above.Nothing much to look at, but I like it that way: simple. There is also the 19-inch version: LE1901w. Both of these monitors are billed as “Eco-Friendly” by HP. But, before I get into the merits of how eco-friendly these monitors really are, let’s look at some basic specifications for the 22-incher:

Samurai sword flash drive

Real samurai must to have good weapon. And the most weapon is Katana (samurai sword)! But sword and modern suit not going together, therefore japanese tech designers released Shinsen-gumi USB flash drive. A USB flash “weapon” will save safety all data, but don’t worry - in the crisis time he will not do a harakiri.

Troubleshooting and repair

Where can I get my computer hardware repaired?
My PC won't start; what could be wrong with it?
Why is my Windows computer running slowly?
Is it safe to leave my computer on all the time?
On my Mac, what do I do when a disk icon with a question mark is blinking on my screen?
In Mac OS X, if a program locks up, do I have to restart?
In Mac OS or Mac OS X, why can't I eject removable media such as a CD-ROM or Zip disk?
Printer troubleshooting guide
What should I do if my monitor display flickers or wavers?
For more information, search the Knowledge Base.

PC-specific hardware

What is CMOS?

What is BIOS?
What's the difference between BIOS and CMOS?
How do I enter the Setup program in my BIOS?
In Windows, how do I install my printer?
For Microsoft products, where can I find descriptions and system requirements?
On a laptop, how do I type keys assigned to an extended keypad (number keypad) if my laptop doesn't have a keypad?
For more information, search the Knowledge Base on windows laptop, for example.

Control

Control units are in charge of the computer. Control units fetch and decode machine instructions. Control units may also control some external devices.
A bus is a set (group) of parallel lines that information (data, addresses, instructions, and other information) travels on inside a computer. Information travels on buses as a series of electrical pulses, each pulse representing a one bit or a zero bit (there are trinary, or three-state, buses, but they are rare). An internal bus is a bus inside the processor, moving data, addresses, instructions, and other information between registers and other internal components or units. An external bus is a bus outside of the processor (but inside the computer), moving data, addresses, and other information between major components (including cards) inside the computer. Some common kinds of buses are the system bus, a data bus, an address bus, a cache bus, a memory bus, and an I/O bus.

Computer defination

Computer is an automatic electronic device which can work under given instruction calculate the specific data process on it and make the result is called computer.
note:-the word computer has been derived from word compute which mean to calculate some thing.
note:-computer has got two parts.
hardware.
software.
hardware:-the touchable parts of the computer or the parts which have physical shape are called hardware.
note:-hardware has got three parts.
input devices .
output devices .
system box .
input devices:-when the user gives instructions to the system for any specific purpose it needs some devices. those debices by the help of which user gives instruction to the kind of input devices.
for examples keyboard . mouse . lightpen . joystick . micro phone . camera . scanner etc.
output devices:-when the system gives/provides result of given instruction to the user those devices by the help of which system gives instructions to the user are called output devices.
for examples:- monitor, printer, speaker,plotter, etc
system box:-system box contains the main part/devices of the system which are source to run the system perfectly.
for example mother board, cpu, ram, hdd, Cd rom, DVD rom etc.
software:-the untouchable parts of the computer the series of instruction which contains information and guideness which called software.
Note:-software has got two parts,1 system software, application software,
system software:-the software which full fill the requirement of the system and help to run the application software is called system software.
for example dos, windows, windows, linux, unix
Application software:- The software which can full fill the requirement of the user is called application software.
Kind of application software:- graphical, database, language, etc. or we can say it is a machine which gets data process it calculate it and show result.

Input/output overview

Most external devices are capable of both input and output (I/O). Some devices are inherently input-only (also called read-only) or inherently output-only (also called write-only). Regardless of whether a device is I/O, read-only, or write-only, external devices can be classified as block or character devices.
A character device is one that inputs or outputs data in a stream of characters, bytes, or bits. Character devices can further be classified as serial or parallel. Examples of character devices include printers, keyboards, and mice.
A serial device streams data as a series of bits, moving data one bit at a time. Examples of serial devices include printers and MODEMs.
A parallel device streams data in a small group of bits simultaneously. Usually the group is a single eight-bit byte (or possibly seven or nine bits, with the possibility of various control or parity bits included in the data stream). Each group usually corresponds to a single character of data. Rarely there will be a larger group of bits (word, longword, doubleword, etc.). The most common parallel device is a printer (although most modern printers have both a serial and a parallel connection, allowing greater connection flexibility).
A block device moves large blocks of data at once. This may be physically implemented as a serial or parallel stream of data, but the entire block gets transferred as single packet of data. Most block devices are random access (that is, information can be read or written from blocks anywhere on the device). Examples of random access block devices include hard disks, floppy disks, and drum drives. Examples of sequential access block devcies include magnetic tape drives and high speed paper tape readers.

External storage

External storage (also called auxillary storage) is any storage other than main memory. In modern times this is mostly hard drives and removeable media (such as floppy disks, Zip disks, optical media, etc.). With the advent of USB and FireWire hard drives, the line between permanent hard drives and removeable media is blurred. Other kinds of external storage include tape drives, drum drives, paper tape, and punched cards. Random access or indexed access devices (such as hard drives, removeable media, and drum drives) provide an extension of memory (although usually accessed through logical file systems). Sequential access devices (such as tape drives, paper tape punch/readers, or dumb terminals) provide for off-line storage of large amounts of information (or back ups of data) and are often called I/O devices (for input/output).

Main storage

Main storage is also called memory or internal memory (to distinguish from external memory, such as hard drives).
RAM is Random Access Memory, and is the basic kind of internal memory. RAM is called “random access” because the processor or computer can access any location in memory (as contrasted with sequential access devices, which must be accessed in order). RAM has been made from reed relays, transistors, integrated circuits, magnetic core, or anything that can hold and store binary values (one/zero, plus/minus, open/close, positive/negative, high/low, etc.). Most modern RAM is made from integrated circuits. At one time the most common kind of memory in mainframes was magnetic core, so many older programmers will refer to main memory as core memory even when the RAM is made from more modern technology. Static RAM is called static because it will continue to hold and store information even when power is removed. Magnetic core and reed relays are examples of static memory. Dynamic RAM is called dynamic because it loses all data when power is removed. Transistors and integrated circuits are examples of dynamic memory. It is possible to have battery back up for devices that are normally dynamic to turn them into static memory.
ROM is Read Only Memory (it is also random access, but only for reads). ROM is typically used to store thigns that will never change for the life of the computer, such as low level portions of an operating system. Some processors (or variations within processor families) might have RAM and/or ROM built into the same chip as the processor (normally used for processors used in standalone devices, such as arcade video games, ATMs, microwave ovens, car ignition systems, etc.). EPROM is Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory, a special kind of ROM that can be erased and reprogrammed with specialized equipment (but not by the processor it is connected to). EPROMs allow makers of industrial devices (and other similar equipment) to have the benefits of ROM, yet also allow for updating or upgrading the software without having to buy new ROM and throw out the old (the EPROMs are collected, erased and rewritten centrally, then placed back into the machines).
Registers and flags are a special kind of memory that exists inside a processor. Typically a processor will have several internal registers that are much faster than main memory. These registers usually have specialized capabilities for arithmetic, logic, and other operations. Registers are usually fairly small (8, 16, 32, or 64 bits for integer data, address, and control registers; 32, 64, 96, or 128 bits for floating point registers). Some processors separate integer data and address registers, while other processors have general purpose registers that can be used for both data and address purposes. A processor will typically have one to 32 data or general purpose registers (processors with separate data and address registers typically split the register set in half). Many processors have special floating point registers (and some processors have general purpose registers that can be used for either integer or floating point arithmetic). Flags are single bit memory used for testing, comparison, and conditional operations (especially conditional branching). For a much more advanced look at registers, see registers.
For more information on memory, see memory

control

Control units are in charge of the computer. Control units fetch and decode machine instructions. Control units may also control some external devices.
A bus is a set (group) of parallel lines that information (data, addresses, instructions, and other information) travels on inside a computer. Information travels on buses as a series of electrical pulses, each pulse representing a one bit or a zero bit (there are trinary, or three-state, buses, but they are rare). An internal bus is a bus inside the processor, moving data, addresses, instructions, and other information between registers and other internal components or units. An external bus is a bus outside of the processor (but inside the computer), moving data, addresses, and other information between major components (including cards) inside the computer. Some common kinds of buses are the system bus, a data bus, an address bus, a cache bus, a memory bus, and an I/O bus.
For more information, see buses.

Arithmetic and logic

An arithmetic/logic unit (ALU) performs integer arithmetic and logic operations. It also performs shift and rotate operations and other specialized operations. Usually floating point arithmetic is performed by a dedicated floating point unit (FPU), which may be implemented as a co-processor.
An arithmetic/logic unit (ALU) performs integer arithmetic and logic operations. It also performs shift and rotate operations and other specialized operations. Usually floating point arithmetic is performed by a dedicated floating point unit (FPU), which may be implemented as a co-processor.

processor

The processor is the part of the computer that actually does the computations. This is sometimes called an MPU (for main processor unit) or CPU (for central processing unit or central processor unit).
A processor typically contains an arithmetic/logic unit (ALU), control unit (including processor flags, flag register, or status register), internal buses, and sometimes special function units (the most common special function unit being a floating point unit for floating point arithmetic).
Some computers have more than one processor. This is called multi-processing.
The major kinds of digital processors are: CISC, RISC, DSP, and hybrid.
CISC stands for Complex Instruction Set Computer. Mainframe computers and minicomputers were CISC processors, with manufacturers competing to offer the most useful instruction sets. Many of the first two generations of microprocessors were also CISC.
RISC stands for Reduced Instruction Set Computer. RISC came about as a result of academic research that showed that a small well designed instruction set running compiled programs at high speed could perform more computing work than a CISC running the same programs (although very expensive hand optimized assembly language favored CISC).
DSP stands for Digital Signal Processing. DSP is used primarily in dedicated devices, such as MODEMs, digital cameras, graphics cards, and other specialty devices.
Hybrid processors combine elements of two or three of the major classes of processors.
For more detailed information on these classes of processors, see processors.

parts of a computer

The classic crude oversimplication of a computer is that it contains three elements: processor unit, memory, and I/O (input/output). The borders between those three terms are highly ambigious, non-contiguous, and erratically shifting.
A slightly less crude oversimplification divides a computer into five elements: arithmetic and logic subsystem, control subsystem, main storage, input subsystem, and output subsystem.
processor
arithmetic and logic
control
main storage
external storage
input/output overview
input
output

what are computers used for?

Computers are used for a wide variety of purposes.
Data processing is commercial and financial work. This includes such things as billing, shipping and receiving, inventory control, and similar business related functions, as well as the “electronic office”.
Scientific processing is using a computer to support science. This can be as simple as gathering and analyzing raw data and as complex as modelling natural phenomenon (weather and climate models, thermodynamics, nuclear engineering, etc.).
Multimedia includes content creation (composing music, performing music, recording music, editing film and video, special effects, animation, illustration, laying out print materials, etc.) and multimedia playback (games, DVDs, instructional materials, etc.).

Basics of computer hardware

A computer is a programmable machine (or more precisely, a programmable sequential state machine). There are two basic kinds of computers: analog and digital.
Analog computers are analog devices. That is, they have continuous states rather than discrete numbered states. An analog computer can represent fractional or irrational values exactly, with no round-off. Analog computers are almost never used outside of experimental settings.
A digital computer is a programmable clocked sequential state machine. A digital computer uses discrete states. A binary digital computer uses two discrete states, such as positive/negative, high/low, on/off, used to represent the binary digits zero and one.
The French word ordinateur, meaning that which puts things in order, is a good description of the most common functionality of computers.

Desktop management

Google desktop - A desktop search application that gives you easy access to information on your computer and from the web.
Yahoo Desktop - Yahoo Desktop enables you to search and instantly find information, preview it in its native format, and take action on it immediately.
TweakUI – This software reduces the Windows annoyance without having to meddle with the registry. It gives you access to system settings that are not exposed in the Windows XP default user interface, including mouse settings, Explorer settings, taskbar settings, and more.
Pretty run - A small program that can search your start menu, desktop or any other folder for shortcuts.
RoboForm - RoboForm memorizes and securely stores each user name and password the first time you log into a site, then automatically supplies them when you return.
AutoHotkey - This open-source utility can automate almost anything by sending keystrokes and mouse clicks. You can write macros by hand or use the macro recorder. You can also create hotkeys for keyboard, mouse, joystick, and handheld remote controls.
Keepass safe - A password manager which helps you to manage your passwords in a secure way. You can put all your passwords in one database, which is locked with one master key or a key-disk.
Clipomatic - A clipboard cache program that remembers what was copied to the clipboard and allows you to retrieve it, even after you’ve copied something else to the clipboard.

Graphics Editing

GIMP – A complete image editing software with capabilities not found in any other free software product. It can be used as a simple paint program, an expert-quality photo-retouching program, a mass production image renderer, or an image-format converter.
Paint.net - A free image and photo editing software that features an intuitive and innovative user interface with support for layers, unlimited undo, special effects, and a wide variety of useful and powerful tools.
Google sketchup - A powerful yet easy-to-learn 3D software tool that combines a simple, yet robust tool-set with an intelligent drawing system that streamlines and simplifies 3D design.
IrfanView - A fast and compact image viewer/converter that is simple for beginners and powerful for professionals.

Video and Audio

Audacity – A complete recording and sound editing software that is available for Mac OS X, Microsoft Windows, GNU/Linux, and other operating systems.
Media Monkey - A music manager and jukebox for serious music collectors and iPod users. It offers an intelligent tag editor which looks up missing Album Art and track information via Freedb and the Web.
CDex - An application that records audio tracks from CDs and saves them to a disk as regular WAV files or as encoded sound files.
iTunes - One of the highest downloaded digital-jukebox software. Comes with the iTunes Music Store that offers music at 99-cents-per-song.
Winamp - A multimedia player that supports numerous audio and video formats. It also plays streamed video and audio content, both live and recorded, authored worldwide.
VLC - A highly portable multimedia player for various audio and video formats (MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, DivX, mp3, ogg, …) as well as DVDs, VCDs, and various streaming protocols.
QuickTime Alternative - This application let you play QuickTime or Real videos without Apple or Real’s bloated, in-your-face proprietary players.

PDF creator

PrimoPDF - A free tool for high-quality PDF creation, comprising a user-friendly interface that enables printing to PDF from virtually any Windows application.
PDF creator - A simple PDF creation tool for those who just want to skip the technical steps and produce a PDF file. If you know how to print, then you know how to use this software.
doPDF - Using doPDF, you can create searchable PDF files from virtually any application. You can search for text within the created PDF file, and search engines will also index the text from the PDF.

Download manager dm

Download Accelerator Plus - A download manager that can enhance your download experience. Features include a search tab, security check for every site and application you download, more speed per connection, resume broken download and preview file when you download.
Internet download manager - A tool for increasing download speeds by up to 5 times, and for resuming, scheduling, and organizing downloads. The program will resume unfinished downloads due to network problems, or unexpected power outages.
Getright – As a download manager, GetRight supports BitTorrent downloads too. In addition, you can use GetRight to schedule your downloads for later; it can dial your modem (if needed), download the files you want, then hang up or even shut down your computer when it is done.
DownThemAll - A powerful yet easy-to-use Mozilla Firefox extension that adds new advanced download capabilities to your browser.
Flashgot - A Firefox extension that allows you to handle single and massive downloads using the external download managers of your choice.

File Management

Eraser - An advanced security tool for Windows that allows you to completely remove sensitive data from your hard drive by overwriting it several times with carefully selected patterns.
Restoration - An easy to use and straight forward tool to undelete files that were removed from the recycle bin or directly deleted from within Windows (we were able to recover photos from a Flash card that had been formatted).

System Optimization and Diagnostic Tool

CCleaner - A system optimization and privacy tool that removes unused files from your system and allowing Windows to run faster and freeing up valuable hard disk space.
Security Process Explorer - An enhanced task manager, that provides advanced information about programs and processes running on the computer. It displays all the standard information, including file name, directory path, description, CPU usage etc. as well as a unique security risk rating.
CPU-Z – This mini software allows you to find out everything about your computer. You can find information such as processor name and vendor, core stepping and process, processor package, internal and external clocks, clock multiplier, partial overclock detection, and processor features including supported instructions sets.
EULAlyzer - This takes your EULA agreement and analyze it in seconds, and provide a detailed listing of potentially interesting words and phrases. Discover if the software you’re about to install displays pop-up ads, transmits personally identifiable information, uses unique identifiers to track you, or more. It is great for picking out privacy issues.
Process Explorer - An advanced process management utility that picks up where Task Manager leaves off. It will show you detailed information about a process including its icon, command-line, full image path, memory statistics, user account, security attributes, and more.
Auslogics Disk Defrag – This software was designed to remedy system sluggishness and crashes caused by disk fragmentation. It is fast, simple to easy and what’s more, it is effective.
SmartDefrag - SmartDefrag boasts a system checker that continually defrags the files that you use the most, and does it without becoming a persistent drag on your system resources. The “Install It and Forget It” feature works automatically and quietly in the background on your computer and it only eats up 14MB of RAM, so it’s possible to run it smoothly on older machines.
Local Cooling - Fight global warming from your desktop! Local Cooling automatically optimizes your PC’s power consumption by using a more effective power save mode.
Belarc Advisor - Belarc Advisor builds a detailed profile of your installed software and hardware and analyzes elements such as whether antivirus software is up to date, or whether all the security flaws in Windows have been patched.

Email Client

Thundrebird - Thunderbird makes e-mailing safer, faster, and easier than ever before with the industry’s best implementations of features, such as intelligent spam filters, a built-in RSS reader, and quick search.
Eudora - A robust e-mail client whose features include multiple address-book-formatting options and the ability to filter, redirect, and forward mail. It supports QuickTime- and HTML-enriched e-mail, letting you include stylized, formatted text and in-line graphics in your messages.
Opera Mail - Opera Mail is integrated with the Opera browser, and lets you send, receive, sort and search your e-mails quicker and easier than with conventional e-mail programs.
Sylpheed - A surprisingly versatile email client. ‘Surprisingly’ because it has a friendly, easy to use interface to its many useful features.
PopTray - The premier pop-up mail checker for standard POP3 and IMAP mail accounts, including Gmail, and it can be coaxed to work with HTML-only mail such as Hotmail by following the instructions at the PopTray site.

How Motherboards Work

If you've ever taken the case off of a computer, you've seen the one piece of equipment that ties everything together -- the motherboard. A motherboard allows all the parts of your computer to receive power and communicate with one another.

More on Computers
Microprocessors
How RAM Works
TreeHugger.com: Intel's New Nehalem CPU
Motherboards have come a long way in the last twenty years. The first motherboards held very few actual components. The first IBM PC motherboard had only a processor and card slots. Users plugged components like floppy drive controllers and memory into the slots. Today, motherboards typically boast a wide variety of built-in features, and they directly affect a computer's capabilities and potential for upgrades.

In this article, we'll look at the general

ASRock A780GMH/128M Motherboard

ASRock is a company that was a less expensive alternative to their parent company Asus. Over the last 7 years ASRock has designed motherboards that have innovative and unique features like a board with AGP/PCI Express slots on the same board, an adapter for Socket AM2 CPUs on a Socket 939 board and other features that other motherboard manufacturers won't touch.

AMD launched their AM3 CPU platform a couple of months ago. The Socket AM3 replaces the Socket AM2+ CPUs that have been around over a year. One good thing about the new CPU Socket is that it can be used on existing AM2+ motherboards, meaning that the cost of owning the new platform is much less than if the memory, the motherboard, and the CPU need to be changed. Many existing AM2+ motherboards can use the AM3 CPU with a BIOS update. This leads to interesting combinations of motherboards like today's A780GMH/128M motherboard on the test bench.

ASUS M4N72-E Motherboard

While I've been concentrating on AMD chipsets for their new Phenom II CPUs, there is another chipset manufacturer that manufactures chipsets for their CPUs, NVIDIA. NVIDIA makes chipsets for video cards, motherboards, and handheld devices. Their latest chipset for the AMD platform is the NVIDIA nForce 750a chipset which is the basis for the M4N72-E motherboard I'm reviewing today.

ASUS motherboards tend to be best of the best in terms of performance, features, overclocking room and more. The general trend of the computer industry is that there are Tier-1 motherboard manufacturers like ASUS then there are lesser known manufacturers like ASRock who are a subsidiary of ASUS to make the mainstream versions of the boards ASUS makes.

MSI 790GX-G65 Motherboard

Micro Star International is a Tier-1 motherboard manufacturer based in Taiwan that manufactures hardware for computers and computer related equipment. Their boards are popular among the enthusiasts and they have been around since 1986. Their motto is Quality Products Create Faithful Customers.

AMD recently launched their AM3 CPUs including the Phenom II X4 810, Phenom II X3 720 and Phenom II 710. Their competition with Intel is currently at the mid-range of the market as their CPUs are not performance competitive with the latest fastest Core i7 CPUs. To go along with the AM3 launch there has been a launch of AM3 motherboards to support DDR3 memory. Today's review is of the new MSI 790GX-G65 board.

Gigabyte GA-MA790GP-UD4H Motherboard

AMD is in the middle of a transition to a new processor and motherboard chipset and that always is a hard transition especially when new memory types, new chipsets and a new CPU Socket. The Socket AM2+ has served AMD relatively well over the last few years. Today AMD is launching their first 45 nanometer process CPUs in the form of Phenom II which will have CPUs that use the older AM2+ and the new AM3 CPUs.

Gigabyte manufactures motherboards, video cards, and other computer related equipment. Over the last 22 years Gigabyte has been considered one of the Tier-1 Taiwanese motherboard manufacturers and is considered one of the best motherboard makers by many enthusiasts. Today they are launching their AM2+ based motherboard MA-790GP-UD4H which is their latest in a long line of motherboards with the AM2+ Socket.

Gigabyte EX58-UD4P Motherboard

The X58 chipset and Core i7 have proven to be a worthy one-two punch in the high-end CPU wars between Intel and AMD. Performance of the Core i7 processors outstrips that of the fastest Phenom IIs available today. Intel has announced the Core i7 975 which will sport a clock speed of 3.33GHz and a 25x multiplier. This will be the fastest Intel CPU for a while and should be compatible with X58 motherboards with a BIOS update.

Gigabyte manufactures motherboards, video cards and other computer related equipment including motherboards from virtually every chipset manufacturer including Intel, NVIDIA, and AMD and Via. Gigabyte has made several motherboards with the X58 chipset from Intel. Today I’m reviewing the Gigabyte EX58-UD4P motherboard which is the latest motherboard to come out of the Taiwanese company’s labs. It should be an interesting board.

ASUS P6T SE Motherboard

The X58 chipset and Core i7 CPU combination has proved to be a formidable one offering the highest performance for the consumer with 4 cores and HyperThreading. Motherboard manufacturers like ASUS and other Tier-1 manufacturers have outfitted their motherboard lineups with various motherboards using this chipset and CPU combination. Hardcore enthusiasts wanting the best of the best and the choice of SLI or Crossfire really have no choice to use the X58 chipset.

ASUS is the biggest manufacturer of motherboards in the world. They had revenues of 6.9 billion USD in 2007. They manufacture motherboards, video cards and other computer equipment and have a long history of solid products. In fact, Doc and I use ASUS motherboards in our primary computers and have for a long time. They have released many motherboards based upon the X58 chipset including the Rampage II motherboard, the P6T6 Deluxe and many others. Today's review is on the ASUS P6T SE motherboard that was just released recently.

ASUS Maximus II Gene Motherboard

While a lot of the focus on computer motherboards has legitimately been on the X58 chipset and the Core i7 CPUs due to the increased performance and new features of the combination, there is still a market for P45 based motherboards and Core 2 CPUs. After all, the platform cost for a X58+Core i7+ DDR3 memory is far less than buying a P45 based motherboard+ Core 2 CPU+ DDR2 memory. With the economy the way it is value is becoming more and more important.

ASUS manufactures video cards motherboards, and other computer related equipment for years now. They are the number one motherboard company in terms of sales and have a special place in both mine and Doc's hearts as every personal system we build has an ASUS motherboard as its base. They sold over 24 million motherboards in 2008. Today's review is on the ASUS Maximus II Gene motherboard which is based upon the P45 chipset. This board is a micro-ATX motherboard and can handle all the new Core 2 CPUs from Intel. This board is small enough to fit into most HTPC cases and seems to be a great board on paper for hat purpose.

ASUS P5Q Pro Turbo Motherboard

Intel rules the roost when it comes to pure performance on their CPUs and motherboard chipsets. The Core i7 CPUs along with the X58 chipset outpace the fastest AMD CPUs for that market space by quite a bit. One of the issues with the new platform is the Cost of Ownership. While a $200 Core i7 920 CPU by itself isn't that expensive, adding a $300 motherboard and a set of triple channel DDR3 memory can get expensive.

On the other hand, a good Core 2 Quad CPU with dual channel DDR2 memory and a decent P45 chipset motherboard can be had for much less than the $600-700 the Core i7 setup would entail. ASUS is a motherboard and computer component supplier that is the number one motherboard supplier in the world with one out of every three computers built today using their motherboards. They recognize the fact that the market has room for an inexpensive alternative to the Core i7 platform.

Today the P45 chipset is a mature mainstream chipset used in many of the motherboards of the previous generation. Rather than discard the chipset, ASUS has released several new motherboards using it such as the P5Q Pro Turbo, the Maximus II Gene and a few others. These offer a mainstream alternative to those not wanting to spend nearly $1000 on a new system as a Core i7 system might have. Performance of the Core 2 Quads and Duos on the market is still faster than the equivalent AMD platform, making this a good choice. Today's review is on the ASUS P5Q Pro Turbo motherboard.

ASUS M4A79 Deluxe Motherboard

AMD and Intel are in a heated battle for control of the CPU market. Intel has taken the lead as of late with the launch of their Core 2 platform which completely blew away the competition from AMD. The launch of the AM3 CPU has introduced some features into the AMD platform that have been missing like support for DDR3 memory and the transition into the 45nanometer process node.

ASUS manufactures a wide variety of computer related equipment including motherboards, video cards, and cell phones. They are a favorite of mine and Doc's who use ASUS computer equipment whenever possible in the main computers in the house. Today I'm reviewing the ASUS M4A79 Deluxe motherboard which supports the new AMD Phenom II processors and is based upon AMD's 790FX chipset.

Gigabyte MA-790FXT UD5P Motherboard

The AMD platform for motherboards has evolved into a split into the AM2+ market and the AM3 market, the former for those wanting to update the motherboard without updating the CPU and memory the latter for those wanting the latest and greatest without spending the extra money that a Core i7 platform would entail. AMD has released the full gamut of AM3 CPUs including a 3.2GHz Black Edition called the Phenom II X4 955 which is the best of the best from AMD.

Gigabyte has been around making video cards, motherboards, and many other computer accessories for over 23 years. They have over 7000 employees and aim to "Upgrade Your Life" as their motto. They have innovated in recent times with the launch of the M1022 Booktop, 2oz Copper PCB, the swivel screen mobile PC (M912) and many other innovations that are designed to bring new features to motherboards or video cards. Today's review is on the Gigabyte MA790FXT-UD5P motherboard based upon the AMD 790FX chipset with support for the AM3 CPUs.

EVGA X58 3X SLI Classified Motherboard

Intel has dominated the CPU space recently with the launch of the Core 2 series and the Core i7 series of CPUs last year. The performance of these CPUs outstrips that of the fastest AMD CPU. To go along with the launch of the Core i7 Intel introduced a new series of motherboard chipsets called X58. X58 allowed motherboard manufacturers to include up to six DIMM Sockets instead of the four found on the older X48 chipset.

EVGA has released a few motherboards based upon NVIDIA and Intel motherboard chipsets over the last few years. They recently launched their X58 board, the X58 3X SLI Classified which is the motherboard I'm reviewing today. This is the first EVGA motherboard to support both Crossfire and SLI on the same board, due to the use of the X58 chipset. It should be an interesting review as every previous motherboard from EVGA has been NVIDIA based.

ASUS Crosshair III Formula Motherboard

Buying a new motherboard has many advantages for the hardware enthusiast including updating the chipset, higher overclocks and a new warranty and support for new technologies. ASUS has traditionally targeted the hardcore enthusiast with their high-end motherboards. They have a whole lineup of motherboards targeted towards the gamer: The Republic of Gamers line. This lineup includes the CROSSHAIR, the Maximus, the Rampage, and the Striker series of motherboards. Some of the exciting features of these boards include CPU Level Up, MemOK and a copy of 3DMark06 to show off the power of the new motherboard. Today the board on the review bench is the ASUS CROSSHAIR III Formula, the latest motherboard from ASUS.

ASUS P6T7 WS Supercomputer Motherboard

The power of the modern computer really shines when compared to the power of a supercomputer from years ago. The Cray 2, the world's most powerful supercomputer from 1989 had a theoretical performance of 3.9 GigaFLOPS. The modern video card such as the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 280 has a theoretical computing performance of 933 GigaFLOPS, approaching the performance in computing power of the fastest supercomputer from 1996.

NVIDIA has released their Tesla supercomputer on a video card a year or so ago. With the use of CUDA and their TESLA video cards you can build a supercomputer with the right motherboard. A few months ago I reviewed the ASUS P6T6 Revolution motherboard with six PCI Express x16 slots. A short while ago I reviewed the ASRock X58 Supercomputer with four PCI Express slots that could take up to three Tesla video cards and a Quadro CX card so the idea of a supercomputer based on Intel Core i7 chipset is nothing new. Today marks the debut of ASUS's P6T7 WS Supercomputer motherboard which has no less than seven PCI Express x16 slots!

Acer B223W B bmzdr 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor

$230.99

The Acer 22" wide-screen B223W B bmzdr is ideal for a home office or business setting. Reliable performance, solid value and a look you'll be proud to disaply make this monitor agreat choice for any professional. It includes VGA and DVI (HDCP) signal connectors plus integrated speakers and easy height, tilt and swivel adjustments.