What Is FireWire (Apple Computer's High Performance Serial Bus)

FireWire is Apple Computer's version of a standard, IEEE 1394, High Performance Serial Bus, for connecting devices to your personal computer. FireWire provides a single plug-and-socket connection on which up to 63 devices can be attached with data transfer speeds up to 400 Mbps. The standard describes a serial bus or pathway between one or more peripheral devices and computer’s microprocessor. The first products to be introduced with Firewire include digital cameras, digital video disks (DVDs), digital video tapes, digital camcorders, and music systems.



Related Search Terms:
          What is FireWire
          Apple Computer FireWire
          IEEE 1394
          High Performance Serial Bus
          Single Plug and Socket Connection
          Data Transfer Speed 400Mbps

What is Computer USB (Universal Serial Bus)

USB is a serial bus standard to connect devices to a host computer. USB allows to connect and disconnect without rebooting the computer or turning off the device. USB is intended to replace many varieties of serial and parallel ports. USB can connect computer peripherals such as mice, keyboards, PDAs, game pads and joysticks, scanners, digital cameras, printers, personal media players, flash drives, and external hard drives.





Related Search Terms:
         What is USB
         How USB works
         USB 3.0
         High Speed USB
         Computer USB Ports

What Is Parallel Port in Computer

A parallel port is a type of interface found on computers for connecting various peripherals. On PCs, the parallel port uses a 25-pin connector (type DB-25) and is used to connect printers, computers and other devices that need relatively high bandwidth. It is often called a Centronics interface after the company that designed the original standard for parallel communication between a computer and printer. A newer type of parallel port, which supports the same connectors as the Centronics interface, is the EPP (Enhanced Parallel Port) or ECP (Extended Capabilities Port). Both of these parallel ports support bi-directional communication and transfer rates ten times as fast as the Centronics port.



Related Search Terms:
Parallel Port
25 pin Connector (type DB 25)
What is Centronics Interface
Enhanced Parallel Port (EPP)
Extended Capabilities Port (ECP)
Bi-Directional Communication and Transfer

What Is Serial Port in Computer

A serial port is a serial communication physical interface through which information transfers in or out one bit at a time. Ethernet, FireWire, and USB use serial port, compliant to the RS-232 standard. In modern personal computers the serial port has largely been replaced by USB and Firewire for connections to peripheral devices. Serial ports are commonly still used in applications such as industrial automation systems, scientific analysis, shop till systems and some industrial and consumer products. Server computers may use a serial port as a control console for diagnostics. Network equipment (such as routers and switches) often use serial console for configuration. A serial port requires very little supporting software from the host system.







Related Search Terms:
        Serial Communication Physical Interface
        Ethernet, FireWire, and USB
        RS-232 Standard
        Serial Console for Configuration

Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA)

Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA) is an organization consisting of some 500 companies that has developed a standard for small, credit card-sized devices, called PC Cards. Originally designed for adding memory to portable computers, the PCMCIA standard has been expanded several times and is now suitable for many types of devices. There are three types of PCMCIA cards -

•Type I cards can be up to 3.3 mm thick, and are used primarily for adding additional ROM or RAM to a computer.

•Type II cards can be up to 5.5 mm thick. These cards are often used for modem and fax modem cards.

•Type III cards can be up to 10.5 mm thick, which is sufficiently large for portable disk drives.

Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCI-E)

PCI Express is a Computer EXANSION CARD designed to replace the older PCI, PCI-X, and AGP standards. A PCIe card fits into a slot of its physical size or bigger, but may not fit into a smaller PCIe slot. Some slots use open-ended sockets to permit physically longer cards and will negotiate the best available electrical connection. The number of lanes actually connected to a slot may also be less than the number supported by the physical slot size. The advantage gained is that a larger range of PCIe cards can still be used without requiring the motherboard hardware to support the full transfer rate—in so doing keeping design and implementation costs down.

Peripheral Component Interconnect eXtended (PCI-X)

PCI-X (PCI eXtended) is a computer bus and expansion card standard that enhances the 32-bit PCI Local Bus for higher bandwidth demanded by servers. PCI-X was developed jointly by IBM, HP, and Compaq and submitted for approval in 1998.

PCI-X was needed as some devices, most notably Gigabit Ethernet cards, SCSI controllers (Fibre Channel and Ultra320), and cluster interconnects could, by themselves, saturate the full bandwidth (only 133 MB/s) of the PCI bus. The first solution was to run the 33-MHz PCI bus at double the speed, 66 MHz, effectively doubling the throughput to 266 MB/s. However, machines with multiple high-bandwidth devices still needed more headroom, so additional pins were added to the slot, going from 120 to 184, to form a 64-bit variety. This initially only ran at 33 MHz, basically giving the same maximum throughput of 266 MB/s. Though combined 64-bit, 66-MHz ports had also been implemented, these extensions had been only loosely supported as optional parts of the PCI 2.x standards. Device compatibility beyond the basic 133 MB/s continued to be difficult.