Buying A Computer For Dummies, 2006 Edition (2005)

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Adding a microphone

All computer sound circuitry comes with the ability for input, which is provided in the form of a microphone. This item allows you to record your own voice or enjoy such diversions as Internet Phone.

Whether or not a microphone is included with a computer is anyone’s guess. Sometimes they come; sometimes they don’t. When they do come with the computer, the microphone is usually of marginal quality or built into the monitor or console somehow — not the best possible place for a microphone.

If you’re into computer recording, you can always add a nice, trusty mic later. Computers use a standard mini-din connector (a teensy plug-in thing) for mic input.

If you plan to experiment with computer dictation, get a combination headset microphone. Often, an inexpensive model is bundled with the computer dictation software.

Talking to your computer

Yes, you can talk to your computer. To do so, you need the hardware, which is merely a microphone plugged into the computer’s microphone jack, and software that helps the computer to make sense of what you say.

Go ahead and dash those dreams of your talking with the computer à la Mr. Spock of Star Trek. All computer talking (if any) is now in the form of dictation; special software translates your voice into text that’s “typed” on the screen. For slow typists, this type of software can be invaluable. For fast typists, the keyboard beats the microphone, hands down.

The best microphone setup to get for dictation is a headset microphone. It allows you to keep the mic close to your mouth and keep your hands free to use the keyboard when necessary.

The best software for computer dictation is Dragon’s Naturally Speaking. Dictation software is also in the current version of Microsoft Office. IBM has speech-recognition software named ViaVoice.

Here’s the part they never tell you about computer dictation: To get it to work best, you have to train the computer to understand your voice. This process requires many hours of your time, between 3 to 15 hours of your sitting and reading aloud to the computer as it learns your voice. That’s a big investment in time, but the payoff is that the more time you spend training the computer, the better it takes dictation.

Chapter 12

Networking Your Computer

In This Chapter

Understanding computer networking

Getting a NIC for your computer

Going wireless

Connecting computers

Using a hub, switch, or router

Adding software to make the network work

At one time, networking was the holy grail of computing. The ability to get several computers in the office to easily share data, as well as resources such as hard drives and printers, was a dream to behold. Sadly, competing networking standards, confusing software installation, incompatibilities, and really bad-tasting coffee made the whole undertaking seem futile.

Computer networking isn’t only common now, it’s almost a necessity — specifically, for high-speed Internet connections. As an individual, you may have no thought about adding networking hardware to your computer. But, if you do plan to use a high-speed modem (DSL, cable, or satellite), or if you have more than one computer in your home or small office, I recommend that you look into networking hardware. This chapter explains the ropes.

Networking Overview

Like kindergarten, computer networking is about sharing. What’s shared are resources. These include disk drives and the files and programs that live on them, printers, and modems. The networking hardware provides the connection between each computer. The networking software ensures that communication takes place and that no one shouts or pushes in line.

Networking makes sense for a large — or even small — office. The computers can be connected so that everyone in the office shares a single printer. Customer files and other important data can be shared between several computers. And, the process of maintaining and updating computers is

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easier when the computers have a line of communications between them. Yes, that all makes sense.

For an individual computer owner, surprisingly, networks can also make sense. Specifically, a network can help you when you have more than one computer in the house and you have a fast, or broadband, Internet connection. Networking in either or both situations is a handy way to tackle potential problems.

St. NIC (Networking Hardware)

If you decide to buy a computer and put it on a network, whether at home or in an office, you must ensure that it comes with the proper network hardware. That hardware is the network interface card, or NIC (“nick”), also known as a network adapter.

Most desktop computers sold now, and nearly all laptops, come with a NIC included; typically, as part of the chipset on the motherboard. The NIC is featured prominently in the advertising, or you can easily confirm that the computer has a NIC by checking for the telltale RJ-45 port on its rump.

The computer doesn’t come with a NIC, but you can easily add one. NIC expansion cards are cheap! On a laptop computer, you can get a USB NIC adapter or a NIC on a PCMCIA card — cheap!

Beyond the NIC itself are two other things to look for: whether you want wireless networking and the NIC’s speed.

My advice is to buy the NIC when you order the computer. That way, it’s installed and properly configured for you.

Generally speaking, networking hardware is the same for all desktop and laptop computers, whether they’re Macs, PCs with Windows, or even PCs running Linux.

Refer to Chapter 10 for more information on the RJ-45 port.

The RJ-45 is merely the connector. The port itself is referred to as 10BaseT, 100BaseTX, or 1000BaseTX, depending on the NIC’s speed. It’s all nerdy stuff.

Going wireless

Everything is going wireless! It’s a craze! At the center of the wireless dust storm is computer networking. By going wireless, you avoid having to attach another wire to your computer and having to snake cables through attics, elevators, and crawl spaces. Most folks figure anything that reduces the wire count by one must be a good thing.

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A wireless NIC works just like a wired NIC, though it has no wire. Instead, it uses an antenna. The antenna connects to a base station. The base station acts as a wireless hub or router, and it can connect the wireless network to a broadband modem, a wire-based network, a shared printer, or even another wireless base station.

To keep all your wireless networking devices happy, they must support the same networking standard. The standard is known by a famous number: in this case, 802.11. That number is followed by a letter, either a little A, B, or G. If you go wireless, ensure that all your gizmos match the same standard, such as 802.11b or 802.11g. You can also pay more for wireless devices that match multiple standards, such as a wireless 802.11a/b/g NIC.

The setup for wireless networks is much more involved than setting up a wired network. Wireless networks are also more expensive and not as secure.

Apple is known to advertise its Macintosh computers as AirPort-ready, which means that they’re capable of accessing the Apple AirPort network. Note that you still need to buy the AirPort card (or NIC) to make your Macintosh wireless.

Ensure that your version of Linux supports whatever wireless networking standard you choose, which will most likely be 802.11b. Again, hardware is needed for this software dictating; you don’t want to be stuck having to write your own Linux wireless networking drivers!

Networking speed

NICs are rated by their speed in Mbps, or megabits per second. Common speeds are 10 Mbps, 100 Mbps, and 1,000 Mbps, or 1 Gbps. Faster is better. Faster is more expensive — you know the drill if you’re reading this book sequentially.

Most NICs support a variety of speeds. You see them advertised as 10/100 or even 10/100/1000. This label means that the NIC is capable of keeping up with speeds that fast. And, the network runs as fast as it can, unless a computer with a slower NIC or another networking gizmo runs at a slower speed, in which case connections to that NIC or gizmo run at the slower speed. Otherwise, things go as fast as they can on the network.

For wireless networking, the speed is measured in megabits per second (Mbps), just like with wired NICs. The actual speed of the wireless network depends on many things, so consider the advertised speed as an ideal used

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for comparison only. Most wireless NICs talk at between 11 Mbps and upward of 50 Mbps.

Gb means gigabit, or 1 billion bits. You may see it used when describing networking speed; 1,000 Mb = 1 Gb.

Fast Ethernet is another term for a NIC that communicates at 100 Mbps, also known as 100BaseTX.

Other Networking Hardware

After computers have NICs, the next step is to connect them. This process requires more hardware, which can be purchased at a computer store or any office supply store. You do this after you buy the computer, though some dealers may offer network setup as part of your computer purchase agreement.

Networking cable

To connect the computers, you need special networking cable — unless everything is wireless, in which case you still need cable, but not as much.

Today’s computer networks need CAT 5 cable, also known as “twisted pair,” though four sets of twisted pairs are usually inside the cable, for a total of eight wires. (The network uses only two).

The length of cable you need depends on how far each computer is from a central location. That’s the place where you find the hub, switch, or router, as described in the next section.

The CAT 5 cable has an RJ-45 connector at both ends. You can connect either end to the computer; the cable isn’t fussy about which way it’s pointing.

Unless you have been working with cables or wires most of your life, you’ll probably underestimate the cable lengths you need by at least half.

Special CAT 5 cable is required if you’re running the cable through crawl spaces, attics, or heating ducts. It’s called plenum cable.

You can find standard-length, ready-made CAT 5 cables at any computer or office supply store. They come in lengths from 1 foot to 30 feet or more.

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The hub, switch, or router

At the center of the network is the gizmo into which you plug all the network cables from all the computers. This gizmo is called a hub, switch, or router, depending on its powers and abilities, as well as how much you paid for it.

Hub: This is the cheapest way to connect computers on a network. It’s basically a box with several ports on it, one for each computer on the network. The hub helps transfer information from one computer to the other over the networking cables.

Switch: A switch is basically a better, faster version of a hub. You pay a little more for a switch, but the cost is worth it.

Router: The best way to connect your computers, especially if you plan add a high-speed modem to the network, is with a router. The router not only connects the computers but also helps wisely manage them. It also helps put up a firewall between your computer network and the vicious environment of the Internet.

Note that the wireless hub, switch, or router may require a wire to connect it to the high-speed modem, as well as to other wire-based computers on the network.

If you’re connecting a computer to a high-speed modem, get a router. Especially look for a router with built-in firewall protection.

Ensure that whatever hub, switch, or router you get matches the fastest speed of your network.

Placement of the wireless hub or router is vital. Despite the manufacturer’s boasts, wireless networking has an effective range of only several feet. The best way to set up a wireless network is with the hub or base station (router) in the same room as the wireless computers. Otherwise, something as innocent as a wall can effectively dampen the wireless signal to the point of being useless.

The Apple AirPort wireless base station is a type of router.

The AirPort can be used with both PCs and Macs, as long as the PCs have a compatible 802.11g NIC.

Wireless routers must be configured immediately after you set up your network. Right away, you need to set a new password for the router and limit access to only those computers on your wireless network. This is an area where a specialist comes in handy.

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What is Bluetooth?

Bluetooth is an odd yet memorable name for a wireless communications standard — specifically, one that connects a variety of smaller devices and gizmos. Each of the Bluetoothenabled gadgets is able to easily communicate with another, as well as with a personal computer. The goal of Bluetooth is to utterly eliminate wires.

The best way to use Bluetooth with your computer is to first ensure that your PC or Mac has Bluetooth hardware. Then you can use Bluetoothenabled devices on your computer after adding them, such as wireless keyboards, mice, printers, and MP3 music players. As long as the device is Bluetooth compatible, it should work well with your computer — and without wires!

Adding your high-speed modem

The final hardware goodie your network may need is a high-speed modem. This device is generally attached directly to the hub, switch, or router, as shown in Figure 12-1. In fact, most routers have a specially marked RJ-45 jack for the high-speed modem. The rest of the jacks are for plugging in

other computers or shared resources, such as a networked printer (as shown in Figure 12-1).

	Fancy color
	laser printer	Kid's computer
		Ethernet
		cable
		Router
Figure 12-1:
The basics
of how to
connect a	DSL modem
computer
network.		Computer in the
		den

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A wireless setup works the same as the wire-based setup. The difference is that in Figure 12-1, no wires would be between the switch and the two computers and printer.

Though the router isn’t visible in Figure 12-1, it has built-in firewall protection to insulate the two PCs from nasty things on the Internet. This item is very important! Without a router and firewall, those computers could be abused by various nasty things. A firewall helps protect your PCs, but you also need both antivirus software and anti-spyware software. (A software firewall isn’t necessary if the router has a built-in firewall.)

Networking Software

Like everything else in a computer, networking has a software side in addition to a hardware side. Fortunately, modern operating systems already sport all the networking software you need. That’s nice. On the other hand, configuring the networking software can be a royal pain in the butt. That’s a subject best left for after the purchase.

Windows XP comes with the smarts for doing both wireless and wirebased networking. A Windows XP system instantly recognizes other computers on the network, even resources such as shared hard drives and shared printers, which are instantly made available.

Macintosh OS X also comes with smarts to instantly and effectively set up networking. I feel that the Mac’s wireless abilities are far superior to Windows, especially if you go with the Apple AirPort technology.

Linux and other Unix variations are well geared toward networking. Refer to the SAMBA program for information on integrating Windows computers into your Linux network.

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Chapter 13

Scanners and Digital Cameras

In This Chapter

Choosing a scanner

Selecting the proper resolution

Connecting the scanner to the computer

Understanding digital photography

Finding the right features

Transferring the image into the computer

Scanners were once considered rather exotic things. They were available as peripherals, but not really considered necessary for anyone except

computer graphics professionals. Digital cameras began life as expensive toys that captured crummy low-resolution images, similar to the old Instamatic cameras of years gone by.

Thanks to advancing technology and dropping prices, having a scanner or digital camera as part of your computer now is considered as common as having a keyboard. Although the scanner or digital camera may not be part of your initial computer purchase, it’s still something to consider for your computer’s future. This chapter discusses the basic features to look for in both a scanner and a camera.

Scanning the Scanner Horizon

Scanners work like photocopiers, except that the material that’s scanned in appears as a graphical image on your computer screen instead of being duplicated on a sheet of paper. You can then edit that image, save it to a file, send it via e-mail on the Internet, or do any number of things with it.

An archetypal scanner is shown over in Chapter 2, though most scanners are skinnier than that model.