There are three things that the CPU uses as communication lines to cards, etc. They are IRQs, DMAs, and base memory addresses. An IRQ is basically a "stop and do this" message given to the CPU–an interrupt request. For example, each time you hit a key on your keyboard, the keyboard controller sends an IRQ...

In order to install an expansion card, you must stick it into one of those slots on your motherboard. There are different types of slots, although only a few are still used today. Let’s look them over.Industry Standard Architecture (ISA):This type of slot is the oldest still in use today. If you open up an old 286, you’ll see a few of these. An...

Circuit design is based on the mathematical branch of Boolean Logic, dealing with various manipulations of the values of TRUE and FALSE. You can see that these values can easily be represented by 0′s and 1′s inside the computer. Boolean logic uses the basic statements AND, OR, and...

As mentioned in the introduction, the BIOS is the core to the operation of your PC. It is the framework for your computer to be able to run the rest of its software. It performs the POST, or Power On Self Test. This is the sequence of system checks the BIOS goes through every time your turn on your system.The BIOS is what underlies the operating system. In a...

This section of the BIOS is used to control the various ports of the computer, including parallel, serial, and IDE ports. Since a PC only has 15 IRQs, some of these settings can be used to free some up if you don’t need them.Lets go through the settings. Of course, the names, etc. do vary depending on the BIOS version you have.IDE HDD Block ModeSpeeds...

This section varies quite a bit on your BIOS version and brand. The avialable optiosn also depends alot on technology, as newer boards using newer chipsets have mostly different options than boards using older chipsets. This is just one of those things that have to be dealt with. I will try to list as many options as I can for all BIOS. they may apply to...

This is the most commonly changed section of the CMOS setup. It controls the basic things such as system time, hard drive settings, floppy drive settings, etc.When you first go into your CMOS setup, this is usually the first option available to you. Hit Enter to go into “Standard CMOS Setup”.Here’s a rundown of the options: Date...

PC’s having the “Green PC” specification offer a power management section in the BIOS. This is used to control the various power saving features of the PC. The idea is that, as longer periods of time go by without any user activity, the system is gradually put to sleep. This is done in such a way that when user activity is detected, it all must...

This section of the BIOS looks like Greek to most people. It controls more of the nitty gritty of the system. Below we will look at the settings in this area. Keep in mind that the wording, placement and even the existance of these settings in your particular BIOS depends on the BIOS you are using. Sometimes, a few of these settings are placed in other sections...

Today’s software is increasing in graphics intensity. Even “mundane” business software uses icons, charts, animations, etc. When you add 3D games and educational software to the equation, one can see that there is a crunch in bandwidth for graphical information. With newer software and games getting much more graphics intensive, the PCI...

When I recently built a new Pentium II based PC for myself, I found myself needing to get a new ATX case. I had a nice Enlight 6680 AT case, but, for a good Pentium II motherboard, I thought I needed to go the ATX route. I picked up a Enlight 7237, and it lives up to my expectations from Enlight. The Good The 7237 is solid as a rock,...

Enlight Corporation has long been known for some of the highest quality cases on the market. The AT-style Enlight 6680 is no exception. The Good Let’s see: the good. That’s not too hard to find with this case. This case is designed for those who find themselves tinkering around with the insides of the computer quite...

AMD 5×86 The AMD5x86 is the chip that put AMD onto the map as official Intel competition. While I am mentioning it here on the 486 page of the history lesson, it was actually AMD’s competitive response to Intel’s Pentium-class processor. Users of the Intel 486 processor, in order to get Pentium-class performance, had to make use of an...

I’m sure everyone has heard that a computer runs on binary code. But, what is this? Well, basically, it is a number system. Let’s look at it: Most people use a number system based on 10. We use the digits 0,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 and 9 to form our numbers. All numbers can be...

Beep codes are the beeps you hear from the PC speaker when you turn on your computer. They are your computer’s way of letting you know what’s going on when there is no video signal. These codes are programmed into the BIOS of the PC. There is no official standard for these codes due to the many brands of BIOS...