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Types of printers

Laser printer:

This printer uses data sent from a computer to turn a laser beam on and off rapidly as it scans a charged drum. Then the drum then attracts toner powder to the areas not exposed to the light. Finally, the toner is fused to paper over a belt by heated rollers. Laser printers are expensive to buy but cheaper to run than some other types of printers, however laser printers are alot harder to maintenance.

Click here to see one in use

Click here to see how one works

Inkjet printer:

Inkjet printers are cheap and many people and small businesses use them. They work buy shooting little drops of ink onto the page before being pressed so they don’t run off. There are two types of inkjet printers thermal and piezoelectric. Inkjet printers are inexpensive to buy but cost alot to maintain. Inkjet printers though are easy to maintenance because most of the electrics are in the cartridge.    

Thermal inkjet printers use print cartridges with a series of tiny chambers each containing a heater, all of which are constructed by photolithography.  To eject a droplet from each chamber, a pulse of current is passed through the heating element causing a rapid vaporisation of the ink in the chamber to form a bubble, which causes a large pressure increase, propelling a droplet of ink onto the paper.

Piezoelectric printers use a piezoelectric material in an ink-filled chamber behind each nozzle instead of a heating element. When a voltage is applied, the piezoelectric material changes shape, which generates a pressure pulse in the fluid forcing a droplet of ink from the nozzle.  Piezoelectric inkjet allows a wider variety of inks than thermal inkjet as there is no requirement for a volatile component, but the print heads are more expensive to manufacture due to the use of the specialist piezoelectric material.

Dot matrix printers:

is a type of computer printer with a print head that runs back and forth, or in an up and down motion, on the page and prints by impact, striking an ink-soaked cloth ribbon against the paper. Each dot is produced by a tiny metal rod, also called a “wire” or “pin”, which is driven forward by the power of a tiny electromagnet or solenoid, either directly or through small levers. Dot matrix printers are still used today in things like atm machines and ticket vendors. The dot matrix is more durable than most printers and can endure the heat of the work place. Dot matrix are inexpensive to buy and run but the quality of printing is bad. Good things about the dot matrix are that they can produce carbon copies and use continuous paper. Bad things are the noise and how slow they are.

1- Open the start menu and click on devices and printers.

2- Then click on the tab that says add a printer.

3- Then select add a local printer.

4- Select the port you are using.

5- Choose the model of printer you are installing.

6- Check you have selected the right printer the click next.

7- Finally print a test page just to check if it works.

Questions and answers

1-       What features are important for a laptop to function as a portable device?

Portable lithium ion battery.

Wireless internet.

2-      Name some peripherals that will work with both laptops and desktops?

Mouse, keyboard, printer, scanner, USB, microphone, headphones, speakers.

3-      What is the difference between port replicator and a docking station?

A docking station recharges where as a port replicator allows you to plug in more peripherals.

4-      What are the 2 physical types of networking connectivity available to a laptop?

Ethernet.

Telephone cable.

5-      What is the difference between laptop motherboards and desktop motherboards?

Laptop motherboards are unique with different shapes and sizes.

6-      What is the benefit of CPU throttling?

Controls power input to components allowing a longer battery life.

7-      What is ACPI and what does it allow?

Advanced configuration and power interface allows the OS to control power management.

8-       What power-mode will allow power saving along with the ability to quickly resume a fully working state?

Hibernate

9-      What are power profiles and where are they accessed from?

Personal power settings.

10-   Name 2 devices that can be powered down when a laptop is turned on to conserve power?

HDD, Screen

11-     Name 5 USB devices?

USB stick, phone cable, camera cable, mouse, webcam

12-    What does hot swappable mean, and give an example of how it would be used?

Devices that can be removed while the computer is turned on.

13-    Which generation of mobiles allowed multimedia content to be sent and received?

3^rd generation

Also if you see that i have answered somthing wrong or i have missed anything please leave a comment and i will change it, thanks.

Laptop maintenance:

(1) Laptop Keyboard Cleaning Procedures

1. Turn off the laptop.
2. Disconnect all attached devices.
3. Disconnect laptop from the electrical outlet.
4. Remove all installed batteries.
5. Wipe laptop and keyboard with a soft, lint-free cloth that is lightly moistened with water or computer-screen cleaner.

(2) Ventilation Cleaning Procedures

1. Turn off the laptop.
2. Disconnect all attached devices.
3. Disconnect laptop from the electrical outlet.
4. Remove all installed batteries.
5. Use compressed air or a non-electrostatic vacuum to clean out the dust from the vents and the fan behind the vent.
6. Use tweezers to remove any debris.

(3) LCD Cleaning Procedures

1. Turn off the laptop.
2. Disconnect all attached devices.
3. Disconnect laptop from the electrical outlet.
4. Remove all installed batteries.

5. CAUTION: Do not spray cleaning solution directly onto the LCD display. Use products specifically designed for cleaning LCD displays.

   Wipe display with a soft, lint-free cloth that is lightly moistened with a mild cleaning solution.

Power management:

(1)    Laptops and other portable devices are often powered by rechargeable batteries that you can plug in and charge.

(2)    When the laptop is plugged in, laptop power management sends electricity from the AC power source to the laptop components.

(3)    When the laptop is unplugged, laptop power management takes electricity from the battery and sends it to the laptop components.  

(4)    Laptops can have 2 or more different settings for battery saving.

(5)    Laptops sometimes use lithium ion batteries which are lighter.

 Laptop components:

(1)    Laptop motherboards are proprietary which means that their all different!

(2)    Laptop screens are usually small enough that when folded to fit into a bag or suitcase.

(3)   

Laptops often come with a built in mouse pad and or analog stick.

Hey, I’m writing this post to explain stuff about laptops and other portable devices, like PDA’s and WAP phones. We will start with why use a laptop over a desktop computer.

Click here to view a video on why laptops are sometimes the way to go

My reasons to choose a laptop are:

(1)    You can carry it around easily

(2)    There light and sits on your lap comfortably

(3)    It’s more private

Portable devices include:

(1)    Laptops – portable computers

(2)    PDA’S  –  mobile internet device’s

(3)    WAP phones – phones that can access internet, play games and download music etc…

(4)    Tablets – tablets like the IPad a new portable devices that can do virtually everything a computer can and more

 Stuff you never knew:

(1)    The 1^st laptop was made in 1979 and used in spaceships in 1980.

(2)    Laptops actually use 90% less energy than desktops.

(3)    More than 12,000 laptops go missing at US airports a week!

(4)    Laptops are outselling desktops!

(5)    Laptops can weigh as little as 6 pounds!