The magazine of the Melbourne PC User Group About Hardware - For the Bookshelf Major Keary |
Books on repairing and upgrading PCs, and hardware issues in general, are not as common as they used to be. It seems that A+ Certification texts have taken over the field, which leaves sparse pickings for readers who want a reference that is not cast in the 'exam-prep' style. Leaving the 'certification' texts aside, hardware books range from introductions for novices through to those suitable for technicians and users with a technical background (whether by way of formal training or simply experience).
A recent Wiley release, PC Repair Bench Book, is an good resource for general readers who want something with clear-language technical detail that is comprehensive, but which does not devote a lot of space to specification data. It focuses on the hardware that is installed -or available for machines used by ordinary people, especially those who want to replace or upgrade components. Illustrations and diagrams provide good support to the text. Both hobbyist, and SOHO users should find this a valuable reference.
Even if you are not keen to rummage about inside your computer, PC Repair Bench Book is a good resource to consult before placing a machine in the hands of a technician, or as a check on the veracity of what a dealer might claim to be features of a machine he wants to sell.
As well as technical information there is plenty of useful advice, such as what to do when one has forgotten the password (or, even worse, both user and supervisor passwords). The troubleshooting information is quite comprehensive and doesn't assume the reader has a computer science degree.
The book covers motherboard and components (BIOS, memory, cache memory, chip sets, and so on); the case and power supply (there are many 'form' variants); storage devices (hard disks, CDs, DVDs, etc.); video and audio; expansion cards; printers; input devices (keyboard, mouse, .); comms and networking; configuration issues; and maintenance. Throughout there are discussions of hardware and system problems, how to resolve them, and preventive measures.
A chapter on dial-up networking includes a detailed discussion of error codes, information that is not easy to find when one wants it. There are also sections on connecting with DSL and to ISDN. In another chapter there is an extensive listing of BIOS beep codes.
Thinking of SCSI? Want to know more about the IDE/ATA hard drive interface and ATA DMA modes? Need to determine how much video memory you need? Those are topics typical of the book's content.
There is a companion CD that contains the full content of the book and additional content in the form of appendices, one of which is an extensive glossary. There are also some demo versions of software tools; my advice is to proceed with caution if you decide to try them out.
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Ron Gilster: PC Repair Bench Book ISBN 0-7645-2578-6 Published by Wiley, 756 pp. + CD, RRP $99.95 incl. GST |
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Reprinted from the August 2003 issue of PC Update, the magazine of Melbourne PC User Group, Australia
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