Book description
Your vacuum comes with one. Even your blender comes with one. But your PC--something that costs a whole lot more and is likely to be used daily and for tasks of far greater importance and complexity--doesn't come with a printed manual. Thankfully, that's not a problem any longer: PCs: The Missing Manual explains everything you need to know about PCs, both inside and out, and how to keep them running smoothly and working the way you want them to work.
A complete PC manual for both beginners and power users, PCs: The Missing Manual has something for everyone. PC novices will appreciate the unassuming, straightforward tutorials on PC basics, such as hooking up a monitor, keyboard, mouse, printer, and scanner. Families will enjoy sections on networking several computers to share an Internet connection, sharing one monitor between two PCs, connecting portable media players, and creating a home theater system. Adventurous PC users will like the clear photos explaining how to take your PC apart and replace or upgrade any failing parts; IT professionals will be grateful to have something to hand to their coworkers who need solid, trusted information about using their PC.
In PCs: The Missing Manual, bestselling computer author Andy Rathbone delivers simple, reliable advice on the kinds of things PC users confront every day. He shows you how to connect and configure today's must-have devices (including digital cameras, portable music players, digital camcorders, and keychain drives); burn CDs and DVDs; scan and fax documents, and more. His section on the Internet explains how to choose the best Internet Service Provider and web browser for your needs; send email; find information quickly on the Web; share photos online; set up a blog; set up a webcam; access TV and radio through the Internet; and shop safely online. And Rathbone delivers plenty of guidance on keep your privacy and your PC safe by installing firewalls, creating safe passwords, running antivirus software, removing spyware and adware, and backing up important files.
Publisher resources
Table of contents
- PCs: The Missing Manual
- A Note Regarding Supplemental Files
- The Missing Credits
- Introduction
-
I. Your PC’s Main Parts
-
1. Inside Your PC
- 1.1. Finding Out Your PC’s Horsepower
- 1.2. The PC’s Case
- 1.3. Opening Your PC’s Case
- 1.4. Motherboard
- 1.5. CPU (Central Processing Unit)
- 1.6. Adding Memory (aka RAM)
- 1.7. Installing Expansion Cards
- 1.8. Ports
- 1.9. Power Supply and Battery
-
2. Keyboards and Mice
-
2.1. Keyboard Basics
- 2.1.1. Types of Keyboards
- 2.1.2. The Mystery Keys
- 2.1.3. The Windows Keys
- 2.1.4. The Ctrl+Alt+Del Cure for Frozen Programs
- 2.1.5. Controlling Windows with only a Keyboard
- 2.1.6. Typing Symbols
- 2.1.7. Using Keyboards in Foreign Countries
- 2.1.8. Installing a Keyboard
- 2.1.9. Adjusting the Keyboard’s Sensitivity
- 2.1.10. Troubleshooting Keyboards
- 2.2. Mouse Basics
- 2.3. Game Controllers
-
2.1. Keyboard Basics
- 3. Monitors and Video
-
4. Printers
- 4.1. Printer Basics
- 4.2. Installing a Printer
- 4.3. Choosing Printer Paper
- 4.4. Adjusting Printer Settings
- 4.5. Printing Envelopes
- 4.6. Printing Specialized Items
- 4.7. Printing Digital Photos Professionally
- 4.8. Digital Photos on an Inkjet Printer
- 4.9. Printing Web Pages
- 4.10. Printer Troubleshooting
-
1. Inside Your PC
-
II. Multimedia
-
5. Digital Cameras, Camcorders, and Webcams
- 5.1. Digital Camera Basics
- 5.2. Moving Pictures from Camera to Computer
- 5.3. Moving Pictures from a Card Reader to a PC
- 5.4. Viewing and Editing Photos
- 5.5. Sharing Photos with Friends
- 5.6. Troubleshooting Digital Cameras
- 5.7. Camcorder Basics
- 5.8. Connect the Camcorder to Your PC
- 5.9. Editing Video
- 5.10. Editing with Movie Maker
- 5.11. Webcams
- 6. Scanners
- 7. Sound
-
8. Digital Music Players
- 8.1. Choosing a Digital Music Player
- 8.2. Your Digital Player and Your PC
- 8.3. iPod and iTunes
- 8.4. Windows XP’s Media Player
- 8.5. Troubleshooting Digital Music Players
-
5. Digital Cameras, Camcorders, and Webcams
-
III. Storing Information
-
9. Hard Drives and Floppy Drives
- 9.1. Your PC’s Drives: An Overview
- 9.2. Hard Drives: An Introduction
- 9.3. Your Hard Drive’s Available Space
- 9.4. Removing Unused Programs and Files
- 9.5. Speeding Up a Hard Drive
- 9.6. Installing a Hard Drive
- 9.7. Troubleshooting Hard Drives
- 9.8. Floppy Drives: An Introduction
- 9.9. Formatting a Floppy Disk
- 9.10. Installing a Floppy Drive
-
10. CD and DVD Drives
- 10.1. CDs: An Introduction
- 10.2. Playing CDs
- 10.3. Buying the Right Type of Blank CD
- 10.4. Ripping CDs
- 10.5. Burning CDs
- 10.6. Duplicating CDs
- 10.7. Erasing CDs
- 10.8. DVDs: An Introduction
- 10.9. Playing DVD Movies
- 10.10. Buying the Right Type of Blank DVD
- 10.11. Specialty Disc Formats
- 10.12. Ripping DVDs
- 10.13. Burning DVDs
- 10.14. Buying a CD or DVD Drive
- 10.15. Installing a CD or DVD Drive
- 10.16. Troubleshooting CD and DVD Drives
-
9. Hard Drives and Floppy Drives
-
IV. Talking to the World
- 11. Getting Online
- 12. Email
- 13. Surfing the Web
-
14. Networking
- 14.1. Choosing a Network
- 14.2. Networking Hardware: What You Need
- 14.3. Setting Up a Simple Home Network
- 14.4. The Network Setup Wizard
- 14.5. Securing Your Network
- 14.6. Sharing an Internet Connection
- 14.7. Sharing Printers
- 14.8. Exchanging Files Between PCs
- 14.9. Sharing Monitors
- 14.10. Networking Two PCs
- 14.11. Troubleshooting Network Problems
-
V. Maintenance, Security, and Troubleshooting
-
15. Security
- 15.1. Backing Up Your Computer
- 15.2. Creating Passwords
- 15.3. Activating Windows Update
- 15.4. Preventing Theft
- 15.5. Phishing
- 15.6. Adware, Spyware, and Other Threats
- 15.7. Installing a Firewall
- 16. Fixing Common Problems
-
17. Advanced Troubleshooting
- 17.1. Watching Your PC Start
-
17.2. Editing the BIOS Settings
- 17.2.1. Entering the BIOS Settings
- 17.2.2. Navigating the BIOS Menu Screens
- 17.2.3. Disabling “Silent Boot”
- 17.2.4. Changing the Power-On Password
- 17.2.5. Upgrading BIOS Firmware
- 17.2.6. Disabling Onboard Motherboard Circuits
- 17.2.7. Changing the Boot Drive Order
- 17.2.8. Numeric Keypad
- 17.2.9. Exit the BIOS
- 17.3. Replacing Firmware
- 17.4. Searching for Clues with Google
- 17.5. Reverting to Old Programs
- 17.6. Swapping Parts
- 17.7. Microsoft’s Knowledge Base
- 17.8. Last Resort: Data Grabs with Knoppix
-
15. Security
-
VI. Appendices
- A. Setting Up a PC
- B. Memory Cards and USB Drives
- C. Other Cool Things You Can Do Online
- D. Dealing with Technical Support
- E. Packing a Laptop Bag
- Index
- About the Authors
- Colophon
- Copyright
Product information
- Title: PCs: The Missing Manual
- Author(s):
- Release date: December 2005
- Publisher(s): O'Reilly Media, Inc.
- ISBN: 9780596100933
You might also like
book
EXAM CRAM™ 2 Windows XP Professional
The MCSE 70-270 Exam Cram 2: Windows XP Professional, Second Edition is an efficient, effective and …
book
Office 2008 for Macintosh: The Missing Manual
Still the top-selling software suite for Mac users, Microsoft Office has been improved and enhanced to …
book
THE PHOTOSHOP CS2 HELP DESK BOOK
After years of fielding questions at seminars from Photoshop users, Dave Cross realized there was a …
book
Easy Computer Basics
Your new PC just arrived. You open the box, excited to hook it up, start surfing …