Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

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, you'll find detailed information not just about every last component of hardware found inside your PC, but also in-depth explanations about home networking, the Internet, PC security, and even how cell phone networks operate. Whether you're interested in how the latest graphics cards power today's most demanding games or how a digital camera turns light into data, you'll find your answers right here.

Ron White is a former executive editor and columnist for PC Computing , where he developed the visual concept behind How Computers Work. Founder of one of the

earliest PC user groups, he has been writing about computers for 25 years and is known for building wildly extreme computers.

Timothy Edward Downs is an award-winning magazine designer, illustrator, and photographer. He has directed and designed several national consumer, business, technology, and

lifestyle magazines, always infusing a sense of "how it works" into every project.

A full-color, illustrated adventure into the wonders of TECHNOLOOGY

This full-color, fully illustrated guide to the world of technology assumes nothing and explains everything. Only the accomplished Ron White and award-winning Tim Downs have the unique ability to meld descriptive text with one-of-a-kind visuals to fully explain how the electronic gear we depend on every day is made possible. In addition to all the content you've come to expect from prior editions, this newly revised edition includes all-new coverage of topics such as:

* How tablet PCs put the power of a PC quite literally in your hands

* How Windows Vista makes your Windows desktop translucent and makes your PC more secure

* How advances in optical disc technology such as dual-layer DVD, HD-DVD, and Blu-Ray discs continue to push the envelope

* How Apple's new iPhone is revolutionizing what cell phones can do

* How BitTorrent technology enables anyone to share information with everyone

For a decade, How Computers Work has helped newbies understand new technology, while at the same time hackers and IT pros have treasured it for the depth of knowledge it contains. This is the perfect book about computing to capture your imagination, delight your eyes, and expand your mind, no matter what your technical level!

Category: General Computing

Covers: PCs/Hardware

User Level: Beginning-Intermediate

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Introduction (p. xii)
• Part 1 Boot-Up Process (p. 2)
• Chapter 1 Getting to Know the Hardware (p. 10)
• Chapter 2 How Circuits Juggle Data (p. 20)
• Chapter 3 How a PC Comes Alive (p. 30)
• Chapter 4 How an Operating System Controls Hardware (p. 36)
• Part 2 How Microchips are the PC's Brain (p. 46)
• Chapter 5 How Transistors Manipulate Data (p. 52)
• Chapter 6 How a Microprocessor Works (p. 62)
• Part 3 How Software Works (p. 80)
• Chapter 7 How Programming Languages Work (p. 94)
• Chapter 8 How Windows Works (p. 104)
• Chapter 9 How Software Applications Do Your Work (p. 118)
• Part 4 Data Storage (p. 146)
• Chapter 10 How a Computer's Long-Term Memory Works (p. 154)
• Chapter 11 How Disk Drives Save Information (p. 166)
• Chapter 12 How Little Things Make Drives Faster and Bigger (p. 176)
• Chapter 13 How PCs Use Light to Remember Data (p. 184)
• Part 5 Input/Output Devices (p. 194)
• Chapter 14 How Data Gets Into Your PC (p. 202)
• Chapter 15 How Scanners Capture Words and Images (p. 212)
• Chapter 16 How Computers Use Power (p. 220)
• Chapter 17 How Serial Ports Triumph (p. 228)
• Chapter 18 How a Computer Display Works (p. 242)
• Chapter 19 How Digital Photography Works (p. 252)
• Part 6 Games and Multimedia (p. 260)
• Chapter 20 How Multimedia Sound Works (p. 266)
• Chapter 21 How Multimedia Video Works (p. 278)
• Chapter 22 How Game Hardware Puts You In the Action (p. 286)
• Chapter 23 How Games Create 3D Worlds (p. 296)
• Part 7 How the Internet Works (p. 306)
• Chapter 24 How Local Area Networks Work (p. 314)
• Chapter 25 How PCs Connect to the Internet (p. 324)
• Chapter 26 How the Internet Moves Data (p. 332)
• Chapter 27 How We Reach Each Other Through the Net (p. 338)
• Chapter 28 How Wireless Sets PCs Free (p. 350)
• Chapter 29 How the Net Provides Video and Audio on Demand (p. 360)
• Chapter 30 How the World Wide Web Works (p. 366)
• Chapter 31 How Internet Security Fights Off PC Invaders (p. 378)
• Part 8 How Printers Work (p. 398)
• Chapter 32 How Black-and-White Printing Works (p. 404)
• Chapter 33 How Color Printing Works (p. 414)
• Index (p. 426)

Excerpt provided by Syndetics

ml version="1.0" encoding="iso-8859-1"?> Introduction "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." --Arthur C. Clarke SORCERERS have their magic wands--powerful, potentially dangerous tools with lives of their own. Witches have their familiars--creatures disguised as household beasts that could, if they choose, wreak the witches' havoc. Mystics have their golems--beings built of wood and tin brought to life to do their masters' bidding. We have our personal computers. PCs, too, are powerful creations that often seem to have a life of their own. Usually, they respond to a wave of a mouse or a spoken incantation by performing tasks we couldn't imagine doing ourselves without some sort of preternatural help. But even as computers successfully carry out our commands, it's often difficult to quell the feeling that there's some wizardry at work here. And then there are the times when our PCs, like malevolent spirits, rebel and open the gates of chaos onto our neatly ordered columns of numbers, our carefully wrought sentences, and our beautifully crafted graphics. When that happens, we're often convinced that we are, indeed, playing with power not entirely under our control. We become sorcerers' apprentices, whose every attempt to right things leads to deeper trouble. Whether our personal computers are faithful servants or imps, most of us soon realize there's much more going on inside those silent boxes than we really understand. PCs are secretive. Open their tightly sealed cases and you're confronted with poker-faced components. Few give any clues as to what they're about. Most of them consist of sphinx-like microchips that offer no more information about themselves than some obscure code printed on their impenetrable surfaces. The maze of circuit tracings etched on the boards is fascinating, but meaningless, hieroglyphics. Some crucial parts, such as the hard drive and power supply, are sealed with printed omens about the dangers of peeking inside--omens that put to shame the warnings on a pharaoh's tomb. This book is based on two ideas. One is that the magic we understand is safer and more powerful than the magic we don't. This is not a hands-on how-to book. Don't look for any instructions for taking a screwdriver to this part or the other. But perhaps your knowing more about what's going on inside all those stoic components makes them a little less formidable when something does go awry. The second idea behind this book is that knowledge, in itself, is a worthwhile and enjoyable goal. This book is written to respond to your random musings about the goings-on inside that box you sit in front of several hours a day. If this book puts your questions to rest--or raises new ones--it will have done its job. At the same time, however, I'm trusting that knowing the secrets behind the magician's legerdemain won't spoil the show. This is a real danger. Mystery is often as compelling as knowledge. I'd hate to think that anything you read in this book takes away that sense of wonder you have when you manage to make your PC do some grand, new trick. I hope that, instead, this book makes you a more confident sorcerer. © Copyright Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Excerpted from How Computers Work by Ron White, Timothy Edward Downs All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Booklist Review

Ever wonder what the guts of those familiar PCs look like? If you're curious but fear computerese might get in the way, this book's the answer. Although not entirely without technical terminology, it's an accessible, informative introduction that spreads everything out for logical inspection. Carefully sequenced captioned diagrams do most of the work. Scattered throughout the book, they conduct readers on a visual tour of PC terrain that begins with the bootstrap--the permanent coding that launches PC operations--and ends with explanations of how different kinds of printers handle the information PCs send. In between comes information about such things as RAM, a mouse, CD-ROM, and tape backup. To make everything even clearer, White introduces the explanatory diagrams with a few concise, lucid paragraphs of text. Readers will come away knowing not only what everything looks like but also what it does. ~--Stephanie Zvirin

Author notes provided by Syndetics

About the Author

RON WHITE

is the former executive editor of PC Computing magazine, where he developed the popular How It Works illustration to explain the new technologies that were emerging in computing at a prodigious rate. He is also the author of the best-selling How Digital Photography Works , and books on software, MP3, and digital cameras. His writing and photography have appeared in some of the leading magazines in the nation. He can be reached at ron@ronwhite.com .

About the Illustrator

TIMOTHY EDWARD DOWNS is the national award-winning illustrator of How Computers Work and How Digital Photography Works . Tim has been involved in all facets of graphic design in his illustrious career. From illustrator to creative director, Tim has led teams of artists and designers in advertising agencies, marketing communications firms, and consumer magazines to better tell their stories through illustration, photography, typography, and design. "Our job doesn't start when the writer hits Save. In order to effectively communicate the tone or the concept of the piece, we need to know and understand the story from the original brainstorm all the way through final execution," reminds Tim. Examples of Tim's design, illustration, and photographic work can be seen at http://www.timothyedwarddowns.com.