How Computers Work

by Ron White and Timothy Edward Downs

Book Overview

The Evolution of Technology Having sold more than 2 million copies over its lifetime, How Computers Work is the definitive illustrated guide to the world of PCs and technology. In this new edition,... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0789734249
• ISBN13: 9780789734242
• Release Date: January 2005
• Publisher: Que
• Length: 452 Pages
• Weight: 2.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 7.9" x 10.0"

Customer Reviews

Learn EVERYTHING you ever wanted to know about computers.

We used this as one of our textbooks for a computer repair class I took and I must say, it is VERY comprehensive about various computer technologies. It explains in great detail, with great illustrations, on how various technologies work and were developed.Among what it talks about include: - internal hardware like the motherboard, RAM chips, hard drives, floppy drives, CD-ROM/DVD drives, - software, - networking, e-mail, the Internet, - printers, - peripherals like printers, scanners, OCR, digital cameras, etc. You will learn EXACTLY how each of these devices and technologies work. It explains very clearly and you will understand how all this works. It makes this most technical of contents understandable in plain English.If you're into computers or want to learn more about computers, this is great place to start reading about them. If you are slightly, or even advanced, in knowledge of computers, this book is a great supplement to your knowledge base.This book lives up to its name. It definitely tells you how computers work, and then some.Recommended reading.

Highly Recommended . . . A+++

If you want to learn to use a computer, this is not the book for you. But, if you have that burning curiosity about what make a PC tick, you could not have chosen a better book. The pictures help to visualize what is going on inside the components. I am an instructor of computers in San Diego, and I have used this book and its previous releases to help me structure my courses. They have been a magnificent supplement. You probably won't get A+ certified with just this book, but as a general handbook on the operation of all the parts that make a comuter tick, this is the ideal book to have.

Overall, the best computer book I've ever read.

Ron White's best-selling and award-winning book How Computers Work Millennium Edition is nothing short of brilliant. He explains how all of this "pokerfaced" hardware works clearly and often even humorously. The book falls into the category of when something is great, or when someone is really talented, they make it look easy. It conveys how computers work in an extremely effective way with both its illustrations and text. The illustrations make one feel that they can practically understand how the component in question works at a glance, and the text seamlessly and lucidly ensures that the reader knows what's going on in the illustration. One of the best parts of the book, however, are the sections at the beginning of each chapter where Ron White introduces the next part of the computer he is going to cover. In these pages White's writings are not the sidebar explanations that accompany the illustrations -- although, as mentioned, those explanations are very good, too, and left me feeling I really did know what was going on in the illustration -- rather, at the beginning of each chapter, Ron White shows his immense talent as a writer/essayist/humorist. Not only are these sections very enjoyable to read, they also reveal how the illustrations and explanations to follow fit into the big picture of how it all works. The Millennium Edition also has a really interesting part following each section of the book where he predicts how a particular type of computer component might work in the future -- i.e., how printers, multimedia, the Internet, software, storage, microchips, input/output devices, and computers in general will work. Don't know if the predictions will be right, but they're still interesting to think about. There are also timelines in the Millennium Edition which show the evolution of the computer and many of its essential parts, such as the transistor, and there is also a good amount devoted to how software, networks, the Internet, and MP3 works in this 400+ page book, which also comes with an equally absorbing, interactive CD-ROM. After reading the book, I found that knowing how computers work has helped me in my everyday use of computers, too. Somehow, knowing how they work seems to help when dealing with them in general -- there's more of an insidious power in knowing how something works than I thought... How Computers Work has also come in handy -- too many times to recount -- as a good reference book for randomly looking up computer related items and topics in the index, so not only can I find it and know how it works, but I can find out what it is in the first place, and get a sense of how it all fits together. With all of this useful and educational information presented so well and effectively, I would even say that this book is an important contribution to society!

This book woos, wows, educates, amazes and entertains!

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

A Completely Updated and Expanded Edition!

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!