# By David Anfinson, Kenneth Quamme
# Published Jan 18, 2008 by Cisco Press. Part of the Companion Guide series.

The only Cisco authorized textbook that for the IT Essentials: PC Hardware and Software course from the Cisco Networking Academy Program

* New Companion Guide format complements the online curriculum with insight and instruction from Academy instructors
* A portable reference that supports all the topics in the new course, aligning 1:1 with course modules
* Features improved readability, enhanced topic explanations, real-world examples, and all new graphical presentations
* Alignment to A+ objectives

The IT Essentials: PC Hardware and Software Companion Guide supplements and complements the IT Essentials I: PC Hardware and Software v4.0 online curriculum offered by the Cisco Networking Academy Program.

The Companion Guide is designed as a supplemental textbook for the Networking Academy course, offering students a portable desk reference of the course content to use anytime anywhere as a study aid. The chapter content aligns 1:1 to the online course module topics, but does not merely mimic the content word-for-word. The authors present the course material in the Companion Guide in a comprehensive manner, providing their own examples where necessary to augment a student’s understanding of the course material.

* Chapter Objectives as stated as questions at beginning of each chapter
* Key terms listed in the Chapter openers
* Enhanced readability for younger student comprehension
* How To Feature provides step-by-step tasks for common activities
* Key concept recaps, Check Your Understanding Questions, and next chapter previews are in a concise summary at the end of each chapter

The Companion Guide serves as an additional instructional tool for the instructor to assign take-home reading or give vocabulary quizzes to better prepare the students for in-class lab assignments.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1 Introduction to the Personal Computer

Objectives

Key Terms

Explain IT Industry Certifications

Identify Education and Certifications

Describe the A+ Certification

Describe the EUCIP Certification

Describe a Computer System

Identify the Names, Purposes, and Characteristics of Cases and Power Supplies

Describe Cases

Describe Power Supplies

Identify the Names, Purposes, and Characteristics of Internal Components

Identify the Names, Purposes, and Characteristics of Motherboards

Identify the Names, Purposes, and Characteristics of CPUs

Identify the Names, Purposes, and Characteristics of Cooling Systems

Identify the Names, Purposes, and Characteristics of ROM and RAM

Identify the Names, Purposes, and Characteristics of Adapter Cards

Identify the Names, Purposes, and Characteristics of Storage Drives

Identify the Names, Purposes, and Characteristics of Internal Cables

Identify the Names, Purposes, and Characteristics of Ports and Cables

Serial Ports and Cables

USB Ports and Cables

FireWire Ports and Cables

Parallel Ports and Cables

SCSI Ports and Cables

Network Ports and Cables

PS/2 Ports

Audio Ports

Video Ports and Connectors

Identify the Names, Purposes, and Characteristics of Input Devices

Identify the Names, Purposes, and Characteristics of Output Devices

Monitors and Projectors

Printers, Scanners, and Fax Machines

Speakers and Headphones

Explain System Resources and Their Purposes

Interrupt Requests

Input/Output (I/O) Port Addresses

Direct Memory Access

Summary

Summary of Exercises

Check Your Understanding

Chapter 2 Safe Lab Procedures and Tool Use

Objectives

Key Terms

Identify Safe Working Conditions and Procedures

Identify Safety Procedures and Potential Hazards for Users and Technicians

Identify Safety Procedures to Protect Equipment from Damage and Data from Loss

Identify Safety Procedures to Protect the Environment from Contamination

Identify Tools and Software Used with Personal Computer Components and Know Their Purpose

Identify Hardware Tools and Their Purpose

Identify Software Tools and Their Purpose

Identify Organizational Tools and Their Purpose

Implement Proper Tool Use

Demonstrate Proper Use of an Antistatic Wrist Strap

Demonstrate Proper Use of an Antistatic Mat

Demonstrate Proper Use of Various Hand Tools

Demonstrate Proper Use of Cleaning Materials

Summary

Summary of Exercises

Check Your Understanding

Chapter 3 Computer Assembly