Computer Hardware
Computer Hardware
Introduction to computer hardware and software
Article by Rey Mysterio
The earlier you understand how your computer works the better for you, so in this case, one needs to know the difference between the computer hardware and software. The hardware and the software works together to achieve a good result. With the help of hardware and software together in a computer system you can perform the wide variety of functions possible on your personal system.
The computer hardware are mainly the physical aspect of the computer, those things you can touch and feel, like the motherboard and all the things that are connected to it (cd-Rom, Ram, Hard disk, floppy disk, power unit ), keyboard, mouse etc.
The computer software are what puts the hardware to work. The operating system is one of the computer software. Example of the operating system is WIN98, WINME, WIN2000, WINXP etc
Easily visible hardware includes your central processing unit (CPU), speakers, monitor, mouse, screen, cords, and mouse pad. These make up the actual unit. Peripheral devices (hardware) would be your floppy disks, hard drive, floppy drive, CDs, CD drive, and random access memory (RAM) boards. Some of these are removable and/or can be shared and mailed. USB connectors, motherboards, routers and modems are also considered computer hardware.
We can now turn our attention to the software side of things. Some basic software you might want to consider installing is an office suite (MS Office for example or the free OpenOffice.org) which allows you to create professional word documents, power point presentations, and even keep track of financial information.
Of course another important software program is an Internet browser (allowing you to “surf” the web). If you have a Windows PC then you should have Internet Explorer (which comes pre-installed) or feel free to take a gander at FireFox – another free web browser (which works on the Mac too).
Xbox 360 4GB Console with Kinect
Computer Hardware – click on the image below for more information.
- Kinect sensor, Built-in Wi-Fi
- Xbox LIVE, Xbox 360 wireless controller
- Kinect Adventures game
Computer Hardware
Microsoft Xbox 360 S4G-00001 Gaming Console with Game Pad S4G-00001 Video Game Consoles
Xbox 360 4GB Console with Kinect
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Chrome 16 beta adds multiple account syncing
Computer Hardware
"Signing in to Chrome enables sync and brings your Chrome bookmarks and other personalized settings to all of your computers. Anything you update on one device instantly updates everywhere else," Miranda Callahan, a Chrome software engineer, …
Computer Hardware question by Jeffery: Is Mizzou or SLU good universities to seek out a career in computer hardware engineering?
My top two schools right now are Mizzou, and SLU (St. Louis University). Are either of those good schools to gain experience, so I can find a job in computer hardware engineering?
Computer Hardware best answer:
Answer by Embedded man
Well, for starters make sure that whatever program you go into is ABET accredited. I don’t know about the quality of either of those two schools in particular.
Best Motion Controller & Improved Xbox at a Great Price!,
The xbox 360 Kinect with 4 GB. is what the original arcade version should have been, and is definitely worth its $300 price tag.
10 new features of this model are:
1. New Valhalla chip – hopefully improved design to prevent RRoD issue, but tech. reviews noted that the Jasper chip in the older Elite model runs cooler
2. WiFi N – this is the newest wifi standard that is 12X faster (up to 600 Mbits/ sec) than wifi G; you’ll need a Wifi N router to get the max. speed
3. digital optical audio port (if your sound system is separate from your TV, then you’ll need this to get full 5.1 surround sound)
4. 4 GB of flash memory (although 1.1 GB is used by the game system, but 0.3 GB can be reclaimed by deleting 4 game demos)
5. 5 USB ports (2 in front & 3 in back)
6. slimmer design with side vents (to prevent overheating)
7. dedicated port for Kinect with demo game (also $50 cheaper than buying Kinect separately from Xbox)
8. only 1 year of warranty (the only negative; older Elite models had 3 yrs.)
9. USB flash drive support (this was a xbox software update released in April 2010)
10. ESPN video streaming (will be included if you are a Gold member, $50/ yr.; should be available about Nov. 2010)
Slim 4 GB vs. 250 GB hard drive:
I bought the 4 GB system over the model with 250 GB hard drive because the xbox now supports game saves/ installs/ downloads and pic/ audio/ video downloads to USB flash drives. It supports 1-2 USB flash drives with 1-16 GB memory (using a 16 GB drive, 1.6 GB is used for formatting). Saving games and media to the USB drives is recommended since loading games and media will be much faster (reading memory is faster than reading hard drive) and more reliable (flash memory rarely fails, unlike hard drives); even the xbox live director recommended using USB drives for storage. If you have such a huge appetite for videos downloads and game demos that 32 GB can not accomodate, then you can always upgrade later with the 250 GB hard drive that will be sold in November; note that the older xbox hard drives are NOT compatible with the slim models. Installing xbox 360 games and game demos on the flash drives is no problem; xbox will ask you which drive to install the game. However, I can not verify if you can install older xbox games like Halo on the flash drive. The only xbox game I have is Halo 2, which does not install on flash. This problem may be specific to Halo 2 because even xbox live does not have Halo 2 for sale, which means Halo 2 is not supported without a xbox hard drive. I’m suspecting that any older games listed on xbox live is enabled for flash installation, but if they’re not listed then you’ll need a xbox hard drive. This is annoying but not a big issue since there are only a few older xbox games that you may want to play.
While the concept of natural body movements translating into character’s actions sounds intuitive, the implementation of this idea in games has eluded many game developers. Too much motion will tire out the gamer, repetitive motion will bore the gamer, and complicated motions can not be successfully detected by the controllers. I’ll compare motion controllers for all 3 systems below.
Usage Comparison:
The Wii was wildly popular when it was released due to its novelty, however 4 years later, few Wii game innovations have appeared causing Nintendo to lose market share in the past year. The PS3 Move is more accurate than the Wii since the Move tracks motion in 3-D space while the Wii tracks motion in 2-D space (2 dimensional, like paper) and analyzes that data to interpret 3-D movements. The light globe on the PS3 Move looks cool initially, but the bright light becomes glaringly annoying soon, especially in a dark room. Both the Wii and PS3 motion controllers are less integrated to the console’s navigations and functions than the Xbox Kinect. The Kinect allows users to say commands and motion gestures to navigate menus, browse online, interact with avatars, and play media content. Winner: Xbox Kinect.
Price Comparison:
The Wii system ($200) includes the 3 controllers (Wiimote, nunchuk, & motionPlus) needed for 1 player, but costs another $40-80 per player, depending on the accessories that you buy. The PS3 Move retails for $100 for 1 player and the XBOX Kinect retails for $150 for 2 players, but both are accessories so they require the original game system. Also, the PS3 Move requires $50-100 more per player, depending on the accessories that you buy, while the XBOX initially supports 2 players but is capable of tracking 6 players for future games. All 3 motion systems include a game to showcase the controller’s features. For 2 players, the Wii is the cheapest system and the PS3 is the most expensive; but when the Xbox supports 4 players (probably via a software update in 1 year), it will be cheaper than getting a Wii. Winner: Xbox…
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|Kinect better then Wii and old 360,
We have all the systems, Xbox, Xbox 360, playstation 2, playstation 3, PSP, DSL, Wii, Itouch and now new Xbox 360 Kinect (video games are my addiction)
Positives about the new 360 with Kinect:
-Supper easy to install (even if you never own an xbox before)
-Has built in memory (old 360 didn’t)
-You can add flash drives for even More memory (not xbox 360 memory card that cost $60, normal flash drive you can pick up for $20)
-Has built in Wi-Fi nothing to install to connect xbox live (old 360 you had buy an antenna)
-You can control the xbox main menu with your VOICE, say xbox, say game, voice command soo Neat and Easy, so if your controller battiers die no biggy just tell it what to do!! No controller needed.
-Kinect games are way More Fun then Wii, my 65 yr old mother (grandma) was playing with the kids everyone was laughing, jumping and enjoyed it!!
-Kinect games are easier then Wii for little kids but Fun for adults too.
With Wii you have to hold the controllers just right for them to work, if you don’t flip your writs a certain way you’ll lose. My littlies one Never held the controller right on the Wii and had hard time scoring in games and would always lose. With Kinect there is NO controller, you use your body & voice to play, my littlies one had no problems and score more then his older brothers!!
And my kids LOVE how Kinect takes pictures (Wii can’t) of them jumping during the game and then shows them the pictures, they were rolling on the floor laughing at themselves, mine never laughed that much playing Wii!!
Negatives about 360 with Kinect
You can NOT connect your old hard drive (not memory card) hard drive to the new 360 so you can’t carry your old stuff over to the new one
I can’t think of any other negatives, we really enjoy it and can’t wait to buy more kentic games to play with Grandma and I plan on selling our Wii.
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