Glenn HymanGary Werner

Type the following URL into your web browser to take the 10 question preassessment.

◦http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/JV2HYDQ

Stands for Universal Serial Bus It is an industry standard to connect computers with many peripherals

Created in 1996 Multiple versions: 1.0 and 1.1 (referred to as 1.x), 2.0 (a.k.a. USB Hi-Speed), and most recently 3.0

Up to 127 different devices can function off of one USB host

USB Version Maximum Data Transfer Rate

1.X 12 Mbps

2.0 480 Mbps

3.0 4.8 Gbps

Firewire is similar to USB A.K.A. IEEE 1394 Typically used to connect digital video

cameras to computers Original FireWire provided 400 Mbps data

transfer rate Newer FireWire provides 800 Mbps data

transfer rate Not as widely used, or as common, as USB

Photo credit: http://gbennett.whsites.net/zencart/images/products/firewire400.jpg

Question: Which is faster Hi-Speed USB 2.0 or FireWire?

Answer: In sustained throughput FireWire is faster than USB 2.0.

Question: If Hi-Speed USB 2.0 is a 480 Mbps interface and FireWire is a 400 Mbps interface, how can FireWire be faster?

Answer: Differences in the architecture of the two interfaces have a huge impact on the sustained throughput.

FireWire vs. USB 2.0 Hard Drive Performance Comparison Read and write tests to the same IDE hard drive connected using

FireWire and then Hi-Speed USB 2.0 show:     Read Test: •5000 files (300 MB total) FireWire was 33% faster than USB 2.0•160 files (650MB total) FireWire was 70% faster than USB 2.0     Write Test: •5000 files (300 MB total) FireWire was 16% faster than USB 2.0•160 files (650MB total) FireWire was 48% faster than USB 2.0

First developed by IBM to connect printers to computers

Still found on a majority of motherboards today

Being phased out in favor of USB connections Data transfer rate of 50-100 Kbps Called parallel wire because data is

transmitted parallel to each other through the wire

Photo credit: http://www.lps2u.com/shop/images/HighPerformanceParallelCableForPrinter.jpg

Considered one of the most basic wires/connections that you can use

Been around over 20 years Is also being phased out in favor of USB Mainly used to connect to external modems, PDA’s and printers Have a maximum data data transfer rate of 115 Kbps

Photo credit: http://www.shopit.ie/images/MXT100FF_Alarge.jpg

Wire Name Maximum Data Transfer Rate

USB 2.0 480 Mbps

FireWire 400 Mbps

Serial 115 Kbps

Parallel 100 Kbps

Ethernet is not synonymous with Internet Ethernet wires are used in networking

applications Has been in use since the 1980’s Initially supported a 10 Mbps data transfer

speed “Fast Ethernet” increased the rate to 100

Mbps Gigabit Ethernet currently peaks at 1000

Mbps

Photo credit: http://kbserver.netgear.com/images/1561_straight_ethernet.jpg

Photo credit: http://img.alibaba.com/photo/50638622/Telephone_Line_Cords_with_UK_Telephone_Plugs.jpg

Phone lines are very versatile Most popular applications include:

◦ Sending faxes from computers◦ Making phone calls from computers◦ Connecting to the Internet via dial-up connection

As broadband connections become more affordable dial-up will continue to be phased out

Dial-up connection peaks at a speed of 56 Kbps 234,372,000 Internet users as of Nov 2009

◦ 73,123,400 Internet broadband connections as of June 2009 (source http://www.internetworldstats.com/america.htm)

◦ Leaving 160 million plus potentially still using dial-up

connections

No, not everything needs a power cord!! All computers, including laptops, need their own power cord Many peripherals need a separate power

cord, however some may run off of USB supplied power

Power cords are fairly uniform but proprietary power cords and power packs, especially for laptops, do exist

Photo credit: http://climate.sdstate.edu/howto/vrg101/black%20power%20cord.jpg

There are two main types◦ Molex◦ SATA

Molex was developed in the 1950s, first used in computers in the late 1970s

It is a 4 pin connector Standard on all PATA drives, and most motherboards SATA was developed in 2003 and is taking the place

of Molex SATA is more of a versatile power adapter, allowing

for hot-swapping and it can only be inserted in one specific way

Photo credit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molex_connector

Photo credit: http://www.addictivetips.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/imageview.jpghttp://www.microsoft.com/library/media/1033/windowsxp/images/using/mce/expert/sound_sound_card.jpg

Computer audio wires are essential for providing sound

Typically wires with green plugs are for speakers, wires with pink plugs are for microphones, and wires with blue plugs are for line-in

There are also wires that support 5.1, 6.1, and 7.1 surround sound

Newer audio wires include digital optical and coaxial cables, as well as HDMI which can transmit high definition video as well as

sound

Photo credit: http://en.dogeno.us/wp-content/uploads/vga2.jpg

Stands for “Video Graphics Array” or “Super Video Graphics Array” Transmits an analog video signal VGA maximum resolution is 800 x 600 VGA is considered the lowest common

denominator that all PC graphics hardware support

SVGA improves on VGA, and covers a large range of display standards

SVGA maximum resolution is 1027 x 768 Still widely used for a large number of monitors,

including flat screen monitors Has been surpassed by DVI connections

S-Video stands for Separate Video The wire transmits video data only, no sound S-Video can transmit a slightly higher analog

resolution picture than traditional composite video

Allows for a computer to be hooked up to a monitor/TV peripheral

Can not transmit high definition video signals Has been replaced with DVI and HDMI wires

Photo credit: http://www.zpluscable.com/images/products/prem-svideo-end.jpg

Stands for Digital Visual Interface Transmits a digital video signal First produced in 1999 Direct replacement of VGA/SVGA

connections Supports a maximum resolution of 3840 ×

2400 Already starting to be replaced by such

connections as HDMI and DisplayPort

Photo credit: http://www.cablek.com/client_file/upload/image/dvi-cable-pic.jpg

Originally designed in 1986 Superseded by SATA in 2003 Is an internal connection standard for hard

drives, floppy drives, and optical drives Maximum data transfer rate is 133 Mbps Looks like a ribbon cable Was commonly called ATA or IDE cables until

approximately 2003 when SATA was released and it was retroactively called PATA to

differentiate between the two cables

Photo credit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ata_20070127_002.jpg

SATA (Serial Advanced Technology Attachment) was created in 2003

Reduces amount of cables from 80 in PATA to just seven

Is used for:◦ Internal computer parts connection◦ External computer peripherals connection

(eSATA)◦ Power supply connection

SATA has a maximum data transfer rate of 1.5 Gbps, SATA II is 3 Gbps, SATA III is 6 Gbps

Another plus is that SATA connections are

hot-swappablePhoto credit: http://www.sierra-cables.com/Cables/Images/SATA-Signal-Cable-1.jpg

Photo credit: http://gallery.techarena.in/data/513/sata-ide_lg.jpg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Serial_Bus http://www.usb-ware.com/firewire-vs-usb.htm http://blog.makeitwork.com/audio-video-cables-explained/ http://computer.howstuffworks.com/parallel-port1.htm http://www.howstuffworks.com/serial-port.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S-Video http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_Graphics_Array http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Video_Graphics_Array http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Visual_Interface http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parallel_ATA http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serial_ATA http://computer.howstuffworks.com/ethernet.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molex_connector