PC Hardware: A Beginner’s Guide
Ideal for PC owners looking for an accessible, easy-to-follow reference, this beginner’s guide to PC hardware offers expert advice on every component–processors, motherboards, memory, BIOS, CD-ROM and DVD drives, video cards, and much more. You’ll a
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(out of 2 reviews)
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How Computers Work
This is the eBook version of the printed book. If the print book includes a CD-ROM, this content is not included within the eBook version.A classic is back in its 8th and best edition yet! How Computers Work, 8th Edition is a must-have for anyone in
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(out of 94 reviews)
List Price: $ 29.99
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Review by for PC Hardware: A Beginner’s Guide
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I do not consider myself a beginner to PCs, but I still found this to be a great book. The chapter on printers, a very under represented technology in books, makes it worth the price. It is really easy to read, but not so easy as to be talking down to you. This would be a good book to read if you are interested in how that box on your desk works or if, for once, you’d like to know what that techie at work is talking about. Good read!
Review by for PC Hardware: A Beginner’s Guide
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I am a newbie to computers, but I want to learn how they work. This book explains the details of how a PC works and much of what I should do when it doesn’t. Mr. Gilster explains things in a no-nonsense, clear way that doesn’t try to blow me away with all of the technical jargon. He obviously knows his stuff and how to explain it to someone like me. Great book for anyone who wants to move past the newbie level!
Review by for How Computers Work
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Ron White has written an expanded of edition How Computers Work. The Millennium Edition offers readers a totally updated and refreshing view of computer technology that will take them into the next century. Readers are treated to new graphics, new insight into computer operations, new developments in the computer industry, and new technology to incorporate into their personal and business computing! This new edition of How Computers Work is a beautifully illustrated and designed book that clearly and concisely explains the overall operation of computers. Readers will learn how individual computer components work, how the Windows operating system and a number of software applications work, how various audio, graphics, and video technologies work, and how a number of essential peripheral accessories work. Readers will also pick up on some helpful information about the Y2K phenomenon. Readers are taken on a breath-taking journey through the operation of the bios, cache, chips, memory, ports, hard drives, CD’s, diskettes, zip drives, graphics boards, sound boards, modems, monitors, mouses, joysticks, printers, surge protectors, back-up power supplies, digital cameras, scanners, and much more. White includes discussion of cutting-edge Pentium technologies and how Web browsers, e-mail, networks, virtual reality, multimedia, and data compression work. This book is perfect for company employees, for students who may be using computers for the first time, and beginners starting out with just an interest in computers. This book is great for classroom use and will also make a fine gift for the first-time computer buyer! It is must reading for anyone wanting to learn more about the computing scene. The CD included with the book offers a cool multimedia interactive tour no one should miss out on!
Review by Graham Douglas Lincoln for How Computers Work
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I work in the IT / Computer Repair industry, and I personally feel that this book is very helpful to most individuals, especially those who have little familiarity with computer systems, internal structures, gadgets and whatnots.
I found the detailed and heavily-illustrated sections regarding chipsets, processors, memory buffers, etc. to be very helpful. Most computer manuals are very technical and assume you know a computer inside and out, already (despite constant development in the industry and the fact that by the time a computer hits the shelves it is out-dated).
These “How Computers / Internet,” etc. books are wonderful manuals for those who just want to know “how the heck does this crazy thing work, anyway ?!?!”
You won’t be able to pass your A+ Certifications with this series of books, but you will understand much of the jargon people throw-around in the office, and you will see flow charts of “How Computers Work.”
I sincerely appreciated the diagrams of a Techtronix Printer!
Suffice to Say, if “a picture is worth a thousand words,” this book is pricesless for the novice and very helpful for the beginning (uncertified) Techs in the computer repair field. The usual Black & White Illustrations in computer manuals aren’t exactly condusive to really getting a feel for the stuff you might be yanking out and replacing. However, this book is full of numerous full-color, full-page illustrations.
Review by Shawn Weil for How Computers Work
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Some people are content to spend their lives not knowing or caring what is under the hood of their car, inside their watch, or in their TV sets. To them, the end product is all that matters. Other people are not content with that – they want to know how things work. What magic is taking place that allows them to watch events thousands of miles away or toast their bagel.There are few inventions as imposing as the personal computer to understand. Integrated Circuits, ISA connections, Hexadecimal code, and many other seemingly complex words float around in descriptions of hardware and software. This book demystifies the PC – with flare.Each component of the PC – CPU, drives, printers, mouse – is described with a down to earth, step by step description and exceptional illustrations. It is just technical enough to allow the power user to be satisfied, but easy enough to understand so us non-Computer Science majors can gain some knowledge.My only criticism involves the CD – the layout was good, but it only included some of the information in the book. Had it been more comprehensive, I would have enjoyed it more.This is similar in quality to “The Way Things Work” by David Macaulay. “How Computers Work” will answer the questions you’ve had about computers, and many that you haven’t thought of. It is the perfect mix of information and illustration. Highly recommended.
Review by calvinnme for How Computers Work
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Now in its eight edition, this is a standard textbook for the IT101 class most colleges and universities now have as a graduation requirement for computer literacy. I know for a fact George Mason University uses this textbook, and the students all have good things to say about it. However, these students are mainly 18 and 19 year old freshmen, with only their personal usage of a computer to draw upon for context. Thus, as a previous reviewer put it, it will make you aware of the computer buzzwords flying around the office, and it is a good first exposure to the inner workings of a computer, but don’t buy it expecting detailed information on personal and office computer repair and assembly. That is not this book’s purpose, for its contents are very basic. Also note that what little the book has to say on operating systems is limited to Windows. If what you want are start-to-finish instructions for repairing a PC that are accessible for beginners, try “Repairing and Upgrading Your Computer” by Thompson, which was just published this month, March 2006, so it is up-to-date. That book shows how to troubleshoot a PC, how to identify which components need upgrading, and how to tear a PC down and then put it all back together. You could also stick with an old reliable title “Upgrading and Repairing PC’s” by Mueller, to be released in its 17th edition at the end of March 2006.
I notice that Amazon shows the table of contents for the 6th edition, but not the current 8th edition. I do that here for the purpose of completeness:
Part 1: Boot-Up Process
Getting to Know the Hardware
How a Disk Boot Wakes Up Your PC
How an Operating System Controls Hardware
Part 2: Microchips
How Transistors Manipulate Data
How a Microprocessor Works
Part 3: How Software Works
How Programming Languages Work
How Windows Works
How Software Applications Do Your Work
Part 4: Data Storage
How a Computer’s Long-Term Memory Works
How Disk Drives Save Information
How the Little Things Make Disk Drives Faster and Store More
How PCs Use Light to Remember Data
How Removable Storage Works
Part 5: Input/Output Devices
How Energy Turns into Data
How Computer Ports Work
How a Computer Display Works
How Data Gets into Your PC
How Scanners Capture Images and Words
How Portable Computers Work
How Digital Cameras Work
Part 6: Games and Multimedia
How Multimedia Sound Works
How Multimedia Video Works
How Games Put You in the Action
Part 7: How the Internet Works
How Local Area Networks Work
How PCs Connect to the Internet
How Wireless Sets PCs Free
How the Internet Moves Data
How We Reach Each Other Through the Net
How Internet Video and Audio Work
How the World Wide Web Is A-Changing
How Internet Security Fights Off PC Invaders
Part 8: How Printers Work
How Black-and-White Printing Works
How Color Printing Works
Review by Midwest Book Review for How Computers Work
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Around the year 300 BCE a significant book appeared. It was titled Elements, and it contained everything the Greeks believed about geometry and mathematics. Euclid, the far-seeing author, could hardly have imagined that it would become the standard text in the field for the next two thousand years. In our time, information and technological advances move a little faster. Regretfully we acknowledge that the blazing fast desktop computer we buy at Christmas will be a tortoise by summertime, and ready for the scrapheap in two short years. To paraphrase Sam Goldwyn: Today’s state-of-the-art knowledge is tomorrow’s yesterday’s news. That’s why, every year, I treat myself to a new edition of How Computers Work. This beautiful-looking guide is one of the most compelling and information-packed computer books in print. The large and colorful illustrations (by Timothy Edward Downs and Stephen Adams) make the book a pure delight to study. Ron White’s explanations, simple and direct, rise to the challenge of matching pithy words with the best in illustrative art. In 45 chapters, each one taking on a specific system of the computer, we learn the inner workings of CPUs, storage, multimedia, modems, printers, and all the other important gizmos inside and connected to, what my mother calls, “that little box that hums.” Sorry, Mac users: this book is about what’s known as “Wintel” computers: PCs that run Microsoft Windows and use Intel-compatible processors. Written for beginners and intermediate level users, this Millennium edition is almost one hundred pages larger than its predecessor. And it’s been updated to include new technologies such as fingerprint and voice recognition, Pentium III and MMX processors, MP3 music and digital audio. Looking ahead, the book ventures to predict how the main computer components — software, multimedia, storage, microchips, printers — will work in the future near. If your PC has the minimum required 24 Mb RAM to run the accompanying CD-ROM, then you’ll be treated to a voice-and-picture interactive tour of the PC. Watching the CD and reading the paperback, it’s difficult to imagine anyone who wouldn’t be wooed, wowed, educated, amazed and entertained by this exciting book. Michael Pastore, Reviewer