SYSTEM UNIT...

Expansion Card

A circuit board that can be installed to enhance a computer's capabilities, as by increasing memory or improving graphics. Also called expansion board.Computer component,a printed circuit board adding features or capability to a computer.

Network Interface Card (NIC)

A network interface card (NIC) is a computer circuit board or card that is installed in a computer so that it can be connected to a network. Personal computers and workstations on a local area network (LAN) typically contain a network interface card specifically designed for the LAN transmission technology, such as Ethernet or Token Ring. Network interface cards provide a dedicated, full-time connection to a network. Most home and portable computers connect to the Internet through as-needed dial-up connection. The modem provides the connection interface to the Internet service provider.


Plug and Play
Plug and Play, sometimes, abbreviated PnP, is a catchy phrase used to describe devices that work with a computer system as soon as they are connected. The user does not have to manually install drivers for the device or even tell the computer that a new device has been added. Instead the computer automatically recognizes the device, loads new drivers for the hardware if needed, and begins to work with the newly connected device.For example, if you connect a Plug-and-Play mouse to the USB port on your computer, it will begin to work within a few seconds of being plugged in. A non plug-and-play device would require you to go through several steps of installing drivers and setting up the device before it would work.

Sockets

Sockets is a method for communication between a client program and a server program in a network. A socket is defined as "the endpoint in a connection." Sockets are created and used with a set of programming requests or "function calls" sometimes called the sockets application programming interface (API). The most common sockets API is the Berkeley Unix interface for sockets. Sockets can also be used for communication between processes within the same computer.

Chips

Chips is the Clearing House Interbank Payments Systems.Electronic funds transfer system that handles over 95 percent of all international dollar payments.

Slots

An opening in a computer where a circuit board can be inserted to add new capabilities to the computer. Nearly all personal computers except portables contain expansion slots for adding more memory, graphics capabilities, and support for special devices. The boards inserted into the expansion slots are called expansion boards, expansion cards , cards , add-in , and add-ons.
Expansion slots for PC come in two basic sizes: half- and full-size. Half-size slots are also called 8-bit slots because they can transfer 8 bits at a time. Full-size slots are sometimes called 16-bit slots. In addition, modern PCs include PCI slots for expansion boards that connect directly to the PCI bus.

Bus lines

They are a set of parallel wires in a computer to which the central processing unit and all input-output units are connected. Each separate wire carries the electric current representing 1 bit. Buses interconnect the parts of the computer that communicate with each other, such as a video card or modem.
mosbyMD()

Serial Port

A port, or interface, that can be used for serial communication, in which only 1 bit is transmitted at a time. Most serial ports on personal computers conform to the RS-232C or RS-422 standards. A serial port is a general-purpose interface that can be used for almost any type of device, including modems, mice, and printers (although most printers are connected to a parallel port).

Parrallel Port

This interface is found on the back of older PCs and is used for connecting external devices such as printers or a scanners. It uses a 25-pin connector (DB-25) and is rather large compared to most new interfaces. The parallel port is sometimes called a Centronics interface, since Centronics was the company that designed the original parallel port standard. It is sometimes also referred to as a printer port because the printer is the device most commonly attached to the parallel port. The latest parallel port standard, which supports the same connectors as the Centronics interface, is called the Enhanced Parallel Port (EPP). This standard supports bi-directional communication and can transfer data up to ten times faster than the original Centronics port. However, since the parallel port is a rather dated technology, don't be surprised to see USB or Firewire interfaces completely replace parallel ports in the future.

Universal Serial Bus

USB (Universal Serial Bus) is a way of setting up communication between a computer and peripheral devices. USB is intended to replace many varieties of serial and parallel ports. USB can connect computer peripherals such as mice, keyboards, PDAs, gamepads and joysticks, scanners, digitao cameras, printers, personal media players, flash drives, and external hard drives. For many of those devices, USB has become the standard connection method. USB was designed for personal computer, but it has become commonplace on other devices such as PDAs and video game consoles , and as a power cord between a device and an AC adapter plugged into a wall plug for charging.

Firewire Port

This high-speed interface has become a hot new standard for connecting peripherals (no pun intended). Created by Apple Computer in the mid-1990's, Firewire can be used to connect devices such as digital video cameras, hard drives, audio interfaces, and MP3 players, such as the Apple iPod, to your computer. A standard Firewire connection can transfer data at 400 Mbps, which is roughly 30 times faster than USB 1.1. This blazing speed allows for quick transfers of large video files, which is great for video-editing professionals.

Careers in IT

Webmaster

Webmaster also called a web architet, web developer, site author, website administrator, or (informally) webmeister, is a person responsible for maintaining a website(s). The duties of the webmaster may include ensuring that the web servers, hardware and software are operating accurately, designing the website, generating and revising web pages, replying to user comment, and examining traffic through the site.Webmasters may be generalists who manage most or all aspects of the Web operations.

Computer Support
Computer support specialist are people wo help the public to use the computer.Computer support specialists provide technical assistance, support, and advice to customers and other users. This occupational group includes technical support specialists and help-desk technicians. These troubleshooters interpret problems and provide technical support for hardware, software, and systems. They answer telephone calls, analyze problems by using automated diagnostic programs, and resolve recurring difficulties. Support specialists work either within a company that uses computer systems or directly for a computer hardware or software vendor. Increasingly, these specialists work for help-desk or support services firms, for which they provide computer support to clients on a contract basis.
Technical support specialists respond to inquiries from their organizations’ computer users and may run automatic diagnostics programs to resolve problems. They also install, modify, clean, and repair computer hardware and software. In addition, they may write training manuals and train computer users in how to use new computer hardware and software. These workers also oversee the daily performance of their company’s computer systems and evaluate how useful software programs are.

Technical Writer
Technical writer is a professional writer who designs, writes, creates, maintains, and updates technical documentation including online help, user guides, white papers, design specifications, system manuals, and other documents. Engineers, scientists, and other professionals may also produce technical writing, sometimes handing their work to a professional technical writer for editing and formatting. A technical writer produces technical documentation for technical, business, and consumer audiences.Technical writers normally possess a mix of technical and language abilities. They may have a degree or certification in technical communications. Many technical writers switch from another technical field such as engineering or science, often after taking classes in technical communications.

Software Engineer

Software engineering is the application of a systematic, disciplined, quantifiable approach to the development, operation, and maintenance of software, and the study of these approaches; that is, the application of engineering to software.
The term software engineering first appeared in the 1968 NATO Software Engineering Conference and was meant to provoke thought regarding the current "software crisis" at the time.Since then, it has continued as a profession and field of study dedicated to creating software that is of higher quality, more affordable, maintainable, and quicker to build. Since the field is still relatively young compared to its sister fields of engineering, there is still much debate around what software engineering actually is, and if it conforms to the classical definition of engineering. It has grown organically out of the limitations of viewing software as just programming.

Network administrator

Network administrator is a modern profession responsible for the maintenance of computer hardware and software that comprises a computer network. This normally includes the deployment, configuration, maintenance and monitoring of active network equipment. A related role is that of the network specialist, or network analyst, who concentrates on network design and security.
The Network Administrator is usually the highest level of technical/network staff in an organization and will rarely be involved with direct user support. The Network Administrator will concentrate on the overall health of the network, server deployment, security, and ensuring that the network connectivity throughout a company's LAN/WAN infrastructure is on par with technical considerations at the network level of an organization's hierarchy. Network Administrators are considered Tier 3 support personnel that only work on break/fix issues that could

Database administrator

The database administrator is the person who protectacts or is respondsible for the database. This includes backup systems for emergencies and to protect it. The duties pf the database administrator is vary and depandent on the job discription it self.Some of the roles of the DA is for data analysis, installing new software, and the design of the database.

System analyst

Systems analysis is the interdisciplinary part of Science,and has to deal with analysis of sets of interacting entities, systems, automation as computer systems, and the interactions within those systems. This field is closely related to operations research. It is also "an explicit formal inquiry carried out to help someone, referred to as the decision maker, identify a better course of action and make a better decision than he might have otherwise made".

Programer

A computer program is a set of instructions for a computer to perform a specific task. Programs generally fall into these categories applications, utilities or services.
Programs are written in a programming languagethen translated into machine code by a compiler and linker so that the computer can execute it directly or run it line by line (interpreted) by an interpreter program.