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WHAT'S INSIDE: COMPUTER HARDWARE

From USB connectors to motherboards, the HowStuffWorks Computer Hardware Channel will help you find explanations, reviews, videos and prices for the parts you need.

Hardware Basics
Buses
CPU
Hard Drives & Disks
Memory
Networking
Power Supplies
Desktops
Mac Computers
Tablet PCs

Hardware Basics
Wondering what's inside your computer or some of the basics of how various types of computers and parts work? Get informed here.
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Explore These Topics:
- Will the $100 laptop help save the developing world?
- How Sound Cards Work
- What are system resources, and why do I run out of them?
- Is it better to turn my computer off or leave it on all the time?
- How Laptops Work
- How Motherboards Work
- What happens to your discarded old computer?
- How Graphics Cards Work
- What does Alt+F4 do?
- How can a totally logical machine like a computer generate a random number?
Buses
A bus, or computer universal switch, is essential for data transfer within a computer or between more than one. We'll take a look at topics like PCI, SCSI, USB Ports and serial ports.
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Explore These Topics:
- How Light Peak Works
- How Parallel Ports Work
- How IDE Controllers Work
- How PCI Works
- How PCI Express Works
- How AGP Works
- How SCSI Works
- How USB Ports Work
- How Serial Ports Work
- How FireWire Works
CPU
CPU is a well-known acronym in the computing world, but what is in them? Learn more about CPUs, including the newest processors and the technology behind CPU speed.
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Explore These Topics:
- Why are there limits on CPU speed?
- Can computer chips be air-conditioned?
- How Utility Computing Works
- How Moore's Law Works
- How Microprocessors Work
- What is the difference between a Pentium and a Celeron processor?
- How EUVL Chipmaking Works
- Tech Talk: CPU Quiz
- How Shared Computing Works
- Is it true that the Mac G4 processor is twice as fast as a Pentium III?
Hard Drives & Disks
Nearly every desktop computer and server in use today contains one or more hard-disk drives. See how hard drives work and get troubleshooting and maintenance tips.
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Explore These Topics:
- How to Add a Hard Drive to Your Computer in 8 Steps
- How to Deaden Sound on a Computer
- What is the churning sound I hear from my hard drive whenever it is retrieving data?
- How Hard Disks Work
- What does it mean when a hard disk has a head crash?
- How can I recover a deleted file from my computer recycling bin?
- How Floppy Disk Drives Work
- How does a Zip drive store so much more data than a floppy drive?
- How does disk defrag work?
- Why does my PC try to access my floppy disk drive when there is no diskette in it?
Memory
Memory refers to the amount of storage you have in your computer. We'll explore topics like RAM, caching and virtual memory.
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Explore These Topics:
- How RAM Works
- How Flash Memory Works
- Does adding more RAM to your computer make it faster?
- How ROM Works
- What is the difference between static RAM and dynamic RAM?
- How Holographic Memory Will Work
- How BIOS Works
- How Virtual Memory Works
- How Removable Storage Works
- How Computer Memory Works
Networking
Computer networking is the engineering that creates communication between computers and other devices. Learn about the different types of networking and the systems that make networking possible.
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Explore These Topics:
- How Home Networking Works
- How Intranets Works
- How Ethernet Works
- How Network Address Translation Works
- How Web Servers Work
- What is a packet?
- How LAN Switches Work
- How Routers Work
- How hard is it to set up a network between two computers in my home?
- How does a FireWire IEEE-1394 connection work?
Power Supplies
The performance of your computer relates to its supply of power. Learn how PC power supplies and computer batteries work.
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Explore These Topics:
- Choose an Energy-Efficient Power Supply
- How to Know when Your Computer Battery is Dead
- How to Keep Your Dell Laptop From Overheating
- How does a computers uninterruptible power supply work?
- How PC Power Supplies Work
- 7 Downloads That Turn Your PC From Energy Sucker to Energy Sipper
- Can your laptop battery be overcharged?
- What causes laptop batteries to overheat?
- Why does my computer need a battery?
- 6 Easy Ways to Keep Your Computer Cool Without Using Electricity
Desktops
There are many different types of desktop computers. Learn about PCs, supercomputers, printable computers and more.
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WHAT'S INSIDE: COMPUTER HARDWARE

Hardware Basics

Explore These Topics:

Buses

Explore These Topics:

CPU

Explore These Topics:

Hard Drives & Disks

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Memory

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Networking

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Power Supplies

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Desktops

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