IT Essentials 5.

0
Planning Guide
Chapter 1: Introduction to the
Personal Computer

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Chapter 1: Objectives
Describe personal computer systems.
Identify the names, purposes, and characteristics of:
Cases and power supplies
Internal components
Ports and cables
Input and output devices
Describe situations requiring replacement of computer components.
Select a case and power supply based on customer needs.
Select the PC components based on customer needs.
Describe hardware configurations for task-specific computers.
Evaluate and select hardware for specialized computer systems.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Chapter 1: Overview
Chapter 1 identifies the various hardware components that are required to build a
desktop computer and explains the unique purpose of each component, including
how all components work together as a unit. This chapter also provides students
with the knowledge needed to select computer components based on hardware
compatibility requirements and the needs of a customer.
This chapter is important because it provides the foundational information that is
required to build, upgrade, design and repair personal computers.
Chapter 1 in IT Essentials 5.0 is an integration of concepts featured in Chapter 1
and Chapter 11 from version 4.1.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Chapter 1: Activities
What activities are associated with this chapter?
1.1.1.4 Worksheet Ohms Law
Worksheet is new to the curriculum.
Review the Ohms law example provided in page 1.1.1.3 with students
to check for understanding before assigning Worksheet Ohms Law.
Consider assigning the worksheet as homework.
1.2.1.11 Worksheet Research Computer Components
Conduct Internet research to pre-screen online resources for use in
completing the worksheet and create a list for students.
Prior to completing the assignment, ask students to create a graphic
organizer that helps them recognize what makes components
compatible.
1.3.1.6 Worksheet Build a Specialized Computer System
Worksheet is new to the curriculum.
Conduct Internet research to pre-screen online resources for use in
completing the worksheet and create a list for students.
Ask students to complete the worksheets in groups and present their
findings to class.
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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Chapter 1: Assessment
Students should complete the Chapter 1 Assessment after they have completed
Chapter 1.
Worksheets and labs can be used to informally assess student progress.
Skills Based Assessments can be used to assess student skill development at the
end of a chapter and/or at the end of the course.
SBA - PC Hardware can not be performed until Chapter 3 has been completed.
The skills required to complete SBA PC Hardware are acquired throughout
Chapters 1 to 3.

NOTE: SBAs provide little to no instruction of how to complete tasks. Students are
expected to be prepared to complete the labs on their own. Students completing the
SBA at the end of the chapter may require extra guidance.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Chapter 1: Important Terms

What terms are introduced in this chapter?

1.1.1.1

computer case
alternating-current (AC) power
direct-current (DC) power
motherboard
form factor
bay

1.1.1.2

uninterruptible power supply (UPS)

power inverter
Molex keyed connector
Berg keyed connector
SATA keyed connector
20-pin or 24-pin slotted connector
4-pin to 8-pin auxiliary (AUX) power connector
PCIe power connector

An asterisk (*) next to a term means that it is new to the course.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Cisco Confidential

Chapter 1: Important Terms

What terms are introduced in this chapter?

1.1.1.3

Voltage (V)
Current (I)
Power (P)
Resistance (R)
capacitors

1.1.2.1

central processing unit (CPU)

random access memory (RAM)
expansion slots
heat sink
fan
basic input/output system (BIOS) chip
chipset
circuitry
Advanced Technology Extended (ATX) form factor

An asterisk (*) next to a term means that it is new to the course.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Chapter 1: Important Terms

What terms are introduced in this chapter?

1.1.2.2

Input/Output (I/O) ports

ITX form factor*
Northbridge
Southbridge
pin grid array (PGA)
land grid array (LGA)
zero insertion force (ZIF)
Reduced Instruction Set Computer (RISC)
Complex Instruction Set Computer (CISC)
hyperthreading
hypertransport*
megahertz (MHz)
gigahertz (GHz)
front side bus (FSB)

An asterisk (*) next to a term means that it is new to the course.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Cisco Confidential

Chapter 1: Important Terms

What terms are introduced in this chapter?

1.1.2.2

bit
overclocking
throttling
single core CPU
dual core CPU
triple core CPU
quad core CPU
hexa-core CPU*
octa-core CPU*

1.1.2.3

video adapter cards

graphics processing unit (GPU)
water-cooling system

1.1.2.4

byte
read-only memory (ROM)

An asterisk (*) next to a term means that it is new to the course.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Chapter 1: Important Terms

What terms are introduced in this chapter?

1.1.2.4

programmable ROM (PROM)

erasable programmable ROM (EPROM)
electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM)
firmware

1.1.2.5

dynamic RAM (DRAM)

static RAM (SRAM)
fast page mode (FPM) DRAM
extended data out (EDO) RAM
synchronous dynamic RAM (SDRAM)
double data rate (DDR) SDRAM
DDR2 SDRAM
DDR3 SDRAM
RAM Bus DRAM (RDRAM)

1.1.2.6

memory module

An asterisk (*) next to a term means that it is new to the course.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Chapter 1: Important Terms

What terms are introduced in this chapter?

1.1.2.6

dual inline package (DIP)

single inline memory module (SIMM)
dual inline memory module (DIMM)
RAM Bus inline memory module (RIMM)
small outline DIMM (SODIMM)
cache
error checking

1.1.2.7

network interface card (NIC)

wireless NIC
sound adapter
video adapter
capture card
TV tuner card
modem adapter

An asterisk (*) next to a term means that it is new to the course.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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11

Chapter 1: Important Terms

What terms are introduced in this chapter?

1.1.2.7

small computer system interface (SCSI) adapter

redundant array of independent disks (RAID) adapter
universal serial bus (USB) port
parallel port
serial port

1.1.2.8

FireWire
advanced technology attachment (ATA)
serial ATA (SATA)
external SATA (eSATA)
floppy disk drive (FDD)
hard disk drive
gigabytes (GB)
terabytes (TB)
revolutions per minute (RPM)

An asterisk (*) next to a term means that it is new to the course.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Chapter 1: Important Terms

What terms are introduced in this chapter?

1.1.2.8

solid state drives (SSDs)

tape drive*
optical drive
compact disc (CD)
digital versatile disc (DVD)
Blu-ray disc (BD)
compact disc read-only media (CD-ROM)
compact disc recordable (CD-R)
compact disc rewriteable (CD-RW)
digital versatile disc read-only media (DVD-ROM)
digital versatile disc random access memory (DVD-RAM)
digital versatile disc +/- recordable (DVD+/-R)
digital versatile disc +/- rewriteable (DVD+/-RW)
Blu-ray disc read-only media (BD-ROM)
Blu-ray disc recordable (BD-R)

An asterisk (*) next to a term means that it is new to the course.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Chapter 1: Important Terms

What terms are introduced in this chapter?

1.1.2.8

Blu-ray disc rewriteable (BD-RE)

external flash drive
integrated drive electronics (IDE)
enhanced integrated drive electronics (EIDE)
direct memory access (DMA)
parallel ATA (PATA)
parity
striping
mirroring

1.1.3.1

digital visual interface (DVI)

displayport*
RCA connectors
DB-15*
BNC connectors*

An asterisk (*) next to a term means that it is new to the course.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Chapter 1: Important Terms

What terms are introduced in this chapter?

1.1.3.1

high definition multimedia interface (HDMI) cables*

miniHDMI*
Din-6*
video graphics array (VGA) cables
component/RGB cables
composite cables
s-video cables

1.1.3.2

coaxial cables
Ethernet cables
PS/2 cables
audio cables

1.1.4.1

mouse
keyboard
joysticks / gamepads

An asterisk (*) next to a term means that it is new to the course.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Chapter 1: Important Terms

What terms are introduced in this chapter?

1.1.4.1

digital cameras / digital video cameras

biometric authentication device
digitizer
scanner
graphical user interface (GUI)
keyboard, video, mouse (KVM) switch

1.1.4.2

monitors
projectors
cathode-ray tube (CRT)
liquid crystal display (LCD)
light emitting diode (LED)
organic LED (OLED)
plasma
digital light processing (DLP)*

An asterisk (*) next to a term means that it is new to the course.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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16

Chapter 1: Important Terms

What terms are introduced in this chapter?

1.1.4.2

printers
speakers / headphones

1.1.4.3

pixel
dot pitch
contrast ratio
refresh rate
interlace / non-interlace
aspect ratio
native resolution
brightness
contrast

1.2.1.2

data bus
address bus
clock speed

An asterisk (*) next to a term means that it is new to the course.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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17

Chapter 1: Important Terms

What terms are introduced in this chapter?

1.2.1.2

PCI expansion slots

PCIe expansion slots
serial bus

1.2.1.3

Voltage Regulator Module (VRM)*

jumpers
transistors

1.2.1.6

hot-swappable
media reader
Secure Digital (SD) cards
microSD*
CompactFlash*
Memory Stick*

1.2.1.9

IEEE 1394

An asterisk (*) next to a term means that it is new to the course.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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18

Chapter 1: Important Terms

What terms are introduced in this chapter?

1.3.1.1

computer-aided design (CAD)*

computer-aided manufacturing (CAM)*

1.3.1.3

virtualization*
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)*

1.3.1.5

Home Theater Personal Computer (HTPC)*

An asterisk (*) next to a term means that it is new to the course.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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19

Chapter 1: Best Practices

Prior to teaching Chapter 1, the instructor should take the Chapter 1 Assessment.
Ensure that students acquire as many hands-on experiences as possible.
Make different types of computers and computer parts available for students to
view during class.
If parts are unavailable, use pictures of components that display different makes
and models.
When handling components, set an example for students by modeling best
practices:
Always use an anti-static wrist strap and anti-static mat
Store the components properly
As students learn about each of the computer components, begin assembling a
computer part-by-part in order to demonstrate to students how the components fit
together.
Explain that each of the components have to be compatible with one another.
If possible, demonstrate how components can be incompatible by showing
students how form factors can prevent some components, such as RAM, from
physically fitting into others, such as a socket.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Chapter 1: Additional Help

For additional help with teaching strategies, including lesson plans, analogies for
difficult concepts, and discussion topics, visit the IT Essentials Community.
www.communities.netacad.net
If you have lesson plans or resources that you would like to share, upload them to
the IT Essentials Community in order to help other instructors.

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2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Cisco Confidential

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