Build Your Own Computer
Before you begin make sure you have all the tools you need and a clean space to work. Make sure you have all required tools and materials. Unpack the materials once package at a time and inspect them to make sure they are not broke or defective. More ...
Digital Video Interface (DVI)
Today's computers use LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) displays. LCDs are a digital device. It makes little sense to convert the digital image data to analog just to convert it back to digital to display on the LCD. To avoid this double conversion, the DVI (Digital Video Interface) standard was developed. More ...
The RS-232 Serial Port
The RS-232 serial port was used to connect a mouse, modem, and/or printer. The RS-232 serial port is now totally obsolete. I would be very surprised if you ever run into a PC with an RS-232 serial port except possibly in a third-world country. However, I'll briefly describe the it in this article because you may run into a question about it in the CompTIA A+ Certification Exam. More ...
PC Sound Circuitry
Actual physical sound is an analog phenomenon while the computer is digital. To output a sound stored on a computer disk to a speaker the sound circuit uses a digital-to-analog converter. Sound input to the computer for recording uses an analog-to-digital converter. So PC sound circuitry is primarily an AD/DA-converter or a "coder/decoder", usually shortened to "codec". More ...
Understanding Your Motherboard
Understanding your motherboard is about pointing out what the bits of your motherboard actually do, if you are not used to building or upgrading your own machine you will want to know the ins and outs of the motherboard. More ...
Windows Registry Basics
The Windows Registry is a database that stores information about the system, including; installed hardware and its configuration, device drivers, network settings, installed applications and their configuration, and the configuration of each user's desktop. To maintain your own computer, you will need to become familiar with the Registry. More ...
MPEG4, H.264, MJPEG Compression for DVR Recording - What's the Difference?
The main objective of Video compression is to have the smallest file size possible while still preserving good video and audio quality. MPEG4, H.264, and MJPEG are three DVR CODECs that aim to compress the videos for transferring purposes. Each of these formats have their own strengths and weaknesses. More ...
Understanding PC Data Buses
Physically, a data bus is the connection between the CPU and other devices on the PCs motherboard. A data connection can be serial or parallel. The data bus used in first-generation PCs used 8-bit architecture. PCI Express uses switched serial connections. More ...
What You Need To Know About Server Memory
DDR is Double Data Rate which is what all memory is now. Since DDR came out it's gone through a few generations DDR, DDR2, DDR3 and now DDR4. These different generations of memory have different peak transfer rates. More ...
VIA Chipsets
Via was founded in 1997. Via introduced the VP1 chipset to compete with Intel's 430 series. The VP1 offered support for EDO, BEDO and SDRAM as well as UltraDMA ahead of Intel. Today Via is one of the worlds largest chipset manufacturers. More ...
SD (Secure Digital) Memory Card Basics
SD cards come in a variety of sizes, storage capacities, and transfer speeds. This makes it confusing for users to choose the correct memory card for their products. This article touches on the SD technologies to help you get the correct SD memory card. More ...
The Computers Back Connector Panel
So although the computer's back panel appears to be a complicated mess, each connector has a specific shape, number and pins, and polarity key that allows only the proper cable to be plugged in. If you get a nice comfortable feeling like your not smashing pins when you plug a cable in, then you can feel secure that nothing will blow up. More ...
Five Types of HDMI Cables
There are different types of HDMI cables, some are technologically more enhanced and some are designed for specific PCs and TVs, so it's important that you get to know about the various types. More ...
Intermediate PC Build-it-Yourself Guide
Before you get out your tool kit and put your anti-static mat on the floor, you have to consider a few factors before embarking on your computer-building odyssey? Now don't panic - it's not as complicated as it seems. More ...
