DriverMax 3.4

DriverMax 3.4

BIOS & System Updates

Extract and Backup your Windows Drivers and Reinstall them Easily after a New Windows setup.

DriverMax is a new program which allows you to easily reinstall all your Windows drivers. No more searching for rare drivers on discs or on the web or inserting one installation CD after the other. Simply export all your current drivers (or just the ones that work ok) to a folder or a compressed file. After reinstalling Windows you will have everything in one place!

Most of the situations when Windows is running slower are caused by faulty driver installations. Windows stores all versions of older drivers just in case you want to go back; sometimes it messes up older versions with more recent ones. The Export Wizard will only export the drivers you select by copying the needed files to a folder or a compressed ZIP file.

After reinstalling Windows all drivers will be back in place in less than 5 minutes - sparing you of searching, inserting disc after disk and losing precious time. The Import Drivers wizard allows you to install all the drivers that you exported earlier. The entire operation might take up to 5-10 minutes.

Just one single computer restart will be required after all drivers are reinstalled!

DriverMax is able to display a complete report of all drivers (versions, release dates) installed on your system. This feature can also be very useful when you want to analyze the differences between the drivers installed on different machines.



What are the device drivers?

A device driver, or a software driver is a type of computer software, typically developed to make the hardware in your computer work. Typically this constitutes an interface for communicating with the device, through the specific computer bus or communications subsystem that the hardware is connected to, providing commands to and/or receiving data from the device, and on the other end, the requisite interfaces to the operating system and software applications. Often called a driver for short, it is a specialized hardware dependent computer program which is also operating system specific that enables another program, typically an operating system or applications software package or computer program running under the operating system kernel, to interact transparently with a hardware device, and usually provides the requisite interrupt handling necessary for any necessary asynchronous time-dependent hardware interfacing needs.

Device driver theory

The key design goal of device drivers is abstraction. Every model of hardware (even within the same class of device) is different. Newer models also are released by manufacturers that provide more reliable or better performance and these newer models are often controlled differently.

Computers and their operating systems cannot be expected to know how to control every device, both now and in the future. To solve this problem, operating systems essentially dictate how every type of device should be controlled. The function of the device driver is then to translate these OS mandated function calls into device specific calls. In theory a new device, which is controlled in a new manner, should function correctly if a suitable driver is available. This new driver will ensure that the device appears to operate as usual from the operating systems' point of view.

Depending on the specific computer architecture, drivers can be 8-bit, 16-bit, 32-bit, and more recently, 64-bit. This corresponds directly to the architecture of the operating system for which those drivers were developed. For example, in 16-bit Windows 3.11, most drivers were 16-bits, while most drivers for 32-bit Windows XP are 32-bit. More recently, specific 64-bit Linux and Windows versions have required hardware vendors to provide newer 64-bit drivers for their devices.

Device driver development

Writing a device driver is considered a challenge in most cases, as it requires an in-depth understanding of how a given platform functions, both at the hardware and the software level. Because many device drivers execute in kernel mode, software bugs often have much more damaging effects to the system. This is in contrast to most types of user-level software running under modern operating systems, which can be stopped without greatly affecting the rest of the system. Even drivers executing in user mode can crash a system if the device being controlled is erroneously programmed. These factors make it more difficult and dangerous to diagnose problems.

All of this means that the engineers most likely to write device drivers come from the companies that develop the hardware. This is because they have more complete access to information about the design of their hardware than most outsiders. Moreover, it was traditionally considered in the hardware manufacturer's interest to guarantee that their clients would be able to use their hardware in an optimum way. However, in recent years non-vendors too have written numerous device drivers, mainly for use under free operating systems. In such cases, co-operation on behalf of the vendor is still important, however, as reverse engineering is much more difficult with hardware than it is with software, meaning it may take a long time to learn to operate hardware that has an unknown interface.

In Windows, Microsoft is attempting to address the issues of system instability by poorly written device drivers by creating a new framework for driver development known as Windows Driver Foundation (WDF). This includes UMDF User Mode Driver Framework that encourages development of certain types of drivers - primarily those that implement a message-based protocol for communicating with their devices - as user mode drivers. If such drivers malfunction they will not cause system instability. The KMDF Kernel Mode Driver Framework model continues to allow development of kernel-mode device drivers, but attempts to provide standard implementations of functions that are well known to cause problems, including cancellation of I/O operations, power management, and plug and play device support.

Device driver applications

Because of the diversity of modern hardware and operating systems, many ways exist in which drivers can be used. Drivers are used for interfacing with:

* Printers
* Video adapters
* Network cards
* Sound cards
* Local buses of various sorts - in particular, for bus mastering on modern systems
* Low-bandwidth I/O buses of various sorts (for pointing devices such as mice, keyboards, USB, etc.)
* computer storage devices such as hard disk, CD-ROM and floppy disk buses (ATA, SATA, SCSI)
* Implementing support for different file systems
* Implementing support for image scanners and digital cameras

Choosing and installing the correct device drivers for given hardware is often a key component of computer system configuration.

Virtual device drivers

A particular variant of device drivers are virtual device drivers. They are used in virtualization environments, for example when an MS-DOS program is run on a Microsoft Windows computer or when a guest operating system is run inside e.g. VMware. Instead of enabling the guest operating system to dialog with hardware, virtual device drivers take the opposite role and emulate a piece of hardware, so that the guest operating system and its drivers running inside a virtual machine can have the illusion of accessing real hardware. Attempts by the guest operating system to access the hardware are routed to the virtual device driver in the host operating system as e.g. function calls.

The virtual device driver can also send simulated processor-level events like interrupts into the virtual machine.










Behind a slick interface, this program backs up all your PC's drivers in case you mess up something fierce. From registration to implementation, DriverMax works fast, runs smooth, and does even more than mere backing up.

When you run the app, it asks you if you'd like to run the trial version or apply for a registration key. The key is free, though, requiring only an e-mail address and your name. Once you've entered the key, the program interface appears, with slick button navigation: Driver Operations, Updates and Identification, and Popular Hardware. Mousing over one reveals more choices, so you can export your drivers, import drivers, or view an installed drivers report.

Updates lets you update both the DriverMax software and the drivers themselves, although as of this writing there is a warning label on the DriverMax Web site that downloads are not currently functioning. The program can also identify unknown hardware and point you in the direction of popular hardware options, pointing users to a compilation of statistics about different video cards and processors.

The strongest features, though, relate to driver backup and reinstalls. They function smoothly, offering users the option to back up all drivers or compile a customized list. Reinstalling an "accidentally" deleted driver was as pain-free as could be. This is a great utility tool that should appeal to newbies, advanced hackers, and everybody in between.

click on the here to go to download page

http://www.nidokidos.org/extract-n-backup-windows-drivers-and-reinstall-in-new-wind-t16525.html

Mouse

Mouse

Introduction of a mouse

Mice first broke onto the public stage with the introduction of the Apple Macintosh in 1984, and since then they have helped to completely redefine the way we use computers

The modern windows – based PC needs a pointing device to position the cursor on the screen and to issue commands. There are several possibilities, but by far the most common is a mouse

MICE

Ø Contains a micro controller and firmware
Ø The ‘Rolls Royce’ of mice is the optical mouse
Ø The most common is the opt-electronic
Ø It is used with GUI system to give graphical inputs.
Ø It is cheap and easy to use.
Ø It is a high precision input device

Type of Mouse

Scroll Mouse

Track ball mouse

Optical mouse

Wireless Ergonomic finger trackball mouse

Basic Mouse Operation

Ø As you move the mouse on a flat surface the ball turns the rollers inside and sends signals to the computer, the computer then translates these signals into the movement of the mouse pointer.

Ø When the disk rotates, it alternatively closes and opens a photo sensor assembly. The number of interruptions the sensor senses, gives the amount of mouse’s movement in X and Y direction

Ø The mouse has two or three buttons, which are used for various purposes.

How Computer Mouse Work
Inside a Mouse

· The main goal of any mouse is to translate the motion of your hand into signals that the computer can use. Almost all mice today do the translation using five components:

· A ball inside the mouse touches the desktop and rolls when the mouse moves*he underside of the mouse's logic board: The exposed portion of the ball touches the desktop

Two rollers inside the mouse touch the ball. One of the rollers is oriented so that it detects motion in the X direction, and the other is oriented 90 degrees to the first roller so it detects motion in the Y direction. When the ball rotates, one or both of these rollers rotate as well. The following image shows the two white rollers on this mouse:

The rollers that touch the ball and detect X and Y motion

The rollers each connect to a shaft, and the shaft spins a disk with holes in it. When a roller rolls, its shaft and disk spin. The following image shows the disk:

A typical optical encoding disk: This disk has 36 holes around its outer edge.

On either side of the disk there is an infrared LED and an infrared sensor. The holes in the disk break the beam of light coming from the LED so that the infrared sensor sees pulses of light. The rate of the pulsing is directly related to the speed of the mouse and the distance it travels

A close-up of one of the optical encoders that track mouse motion: There is an infrared LED (clear) on one side of the disk and an infrared sensor (red) on the other.

An on-board processor chip reads the pulses from the infrared sensors and turns them into binary data that the computer can understand. The chip sends the binary data to the computer through the mouse's cord.

The logic section of a mouse is dominated by an encoder chip, a small processor that reads the pulses coming from the infrared sensors and turns them into bytes sent to the computer. You can also see the two buttons that detect clicks (on either side of the wire connector).

keyboard

keyboard

The keyboard is the primary input device. (The mouse is also a primary input device but lacks the ability to easily transmit textual information.) The keyboard also contains certain standard function keys, such as the Escape key, tab and cursor movement keys, shift and control keys, and sometimes other manufacturer-customized keys.

The computer keyboard uses the same key arrangement as the mechanical and electronic typewriter keyboards that preceded the computer.

The Main Keys (a,b,c,...) on the keyboard behave like a standard typewriter.

Modifier Keys (Ctrl, Alt): These keys have specific functions in software programs when used in combination with the letter keys. For example, to do Ctrl 'A' you would hold down the modifier key Ctrl and tap the A key once. In general, the Ctrl key on a PC = the Command key on a Mac; the Alt key on a PC = the Option key on a Mac. Macintosh's also have a third Modifier key: Control.

Function Keys: These include the Esc and F1 through F12 keys at the top of the keyboard, as well as the Home, Help, End, Del, Page Up & Down keys located above the arrow keys. Their functions are different depending on the software program that you are running. They can sometimes be programmed.

Arrow Keys: Located in between the number pad and the main keys, the arrows let you move around in most programs.

Number Pad: If the NumLock is on (turn on/off with button in upper left-hand corner of number pad), the number keys give numbers. If it is off, the keys act like the arrow keys (8 is up, 2 is down, etc.).

Indicator Lights: Located above the number pad, they tell you if the NumLock or Caps Lock are on.

Keyboards are used to give inputs in the form of text.

All keyboards have keys for basic cursor movements such as carriage return, delete, page up/down, cursor movement keys etc

Keyboard Types

[1]XT Keyboard

[2]AT Standard

[3]AT Enhands

Working of Keyboard

The keyboard consists of a keyboard controller looking after the scan matrix. The scan matrix is a set of crossing lines. At each crossing, a small switch is located above which a key is present supported by a spring

The key that is pressed is determined by activating the vertical lines and determining from which horizontal line a signal is detected. The key pressed is identified by the vertical and the horizontal line.

Data transfer is serial

Keyboard Buffer

The data from the keyboard is held in the keyboard buffer, which is managed by two pointers - read pointer and write pointer.

The write pointer points to the next location in the buffer onto which data can be written. The read pointer points to the location from where data can be read.

Different type of Printers

Printers are output devices which enable one to print text and/or graphics with either black or color ink. The two most common types of printers used today with home computers are the inkjet and laser printers

A printer is categorised according to whether or not the image produced is formed by physical contact of the print mechanism with the paper. Impact printers have contact; non-impact printers do not.

To suit the needs of many different users, different types of printers and plotters are available that have slightly different characteristics and capabilities-cost, quality, and speed.


Laser Printer

Laser printer technology results in much higher printing speeds and quieter operation. The process resembles the operation of a photocopy machine. A laser beam is directed across the surface of a light' sensitive drum and fired as needed to record an image in the form of a pattern of tiny dots. The image is then transferred to the paper-a page at a time-in the same fashion as a copy machine transfers images, using a special toner. Laser printers can produce documents at speeds of 4 to 20 pages per minute (ppm)

Impact Printers
An impact printer makes contact with the paper. It usually forms the print image by pressing an inked ribbon against the paper with a hammer-like mechanism. One type of impact printer, called a dot-matrix printer, is made of separate pin-like hammers that strike the ribbon against the paper in computer-determined patterns of dots

Non-impact Printers
Most printers in use today are non-impact printers. These printers do not strike characters against ribbon or paper when they print. The main categories of non-impact printers are ink-jet printers and laser printers. These printers generate much less noise than impact printers.

Inkjet Printer
The ink-jet printer has a print head that sprays ink through a small hole onto a piece of paper. These printers are much quieter than the dot-matrix printer. They store ink in cartridges, that are easily replaced when they run out. Ink jet printers and Bubble Jet printers work the same way.

Dot-matrix printer
A number of thin print wires act as hammers squeeze ink out of the ribbon onto the paper.
These print wires are moved by electromagnet.
It used continuous sheet type and pre printed sheet type
Used banks, supper market, office, and many company
This printers gives only black and white print

Thermal Printer
It uses the medium of heat to print
Heat is product by electricity. Every time electricity passed printer had different heat. It used for print.
It requires special paper to print, portable and can run on battery.

Other characteristics that differentiate printers include:

Memory: Many printers also have their own memory since a computer can send data faster than a printer can access and print it. This data gets sent to the printer's spooler, or buffer, that holds the data, and releases it at a speed that the printer can handle. Printer memory is usually can be 1Mb to 4Mb.

Speed: The speed of the printer determines how quickly it can print the pages that you have selected. The speed is measured in characters per second (cps) and also pages per minute (ppm). A higher speed will result in faster output.

Resolution: Just like a monitor, the printer also comes in different resolutions. The resolution of a printer determines the quality of the image the printer can reproduce, and it is measured in dots per inch (dpi). A higher resolution results in sharper images. Printing graphics requires at least a 600 dpi printer

How Operate Scanners

Scanners
Because there are so many scanner manufacturers and scanner operation and software varies greatly, it is impossible to go into great depth or provide multiple manufacturer links here. Since HP 6100C scanners were purchased for the labs, there is more specific information about this scanner. There is also generic information about scanner operation that may be helpful to users of other scanners.

install the HP 6100c scanner
You will need the scanner, connecting cable, SCSI card (triangular card that goes inside the computer) and scanner CD. If you are using Windows 95, you must install the software before you install the SCSI card in your computer and connect the scanner. Unfortunately, the scanner card causes hardware conflicts with the network cards installed in the EDS machines. For a successful install of the scanner in an EDS computer

If you are using Windows 98, simply plug in the card, hook up the scanner and follow the prompts to let Windows 98 install the software. Win 98 will install the SCSI card first, then the scanner. You can then install the Corel software to use with the scanner.

The HP 6100C software includes a test to see if it has been successfully installed. Look for the HP scanner program menu in Start/Programs Menu or click the HP scanner icon in Control Panel.

For further HP scanner information and support, go to Hewlett-Packard's home page. Since there are so many scanner manufacturers, you will need to locate your scanner manufacturer on the Internet if you have purchased your own scanner.

operate the scanner

Whatever scanner you buy comes with software to operate the scanner. Most come with the basic scanner software plus a graphics program. Since this software will vary with each scanner, install the software according to the instructions provided with your scanner.

Place your document face down on the scanner glass with the corner of the document in the top corner of the glass - some scanners have a arrow in the desired corner, if not use the top left corner. Make sure scanner is turned on and cables are connected properly.

To operate the basic HP scanner software, look in your Start/Programs Menu for HP Scanner or the icon in Control Panel. Others probably operate in a similar manner. To scan using a graphics program, you can usually run the program and click File and look for Scan. If you have more than one digital device installed on your computer, like a scanner and a digital camera, you may be asked to select the desired device. This should start your scanner's software.

Scanner software varies greatly, but here is the general process. Look at the settings offered. You often can select from a list of black & white and color options and even slide if your scanner has that option. Choose the one that best fits what you want to scan. If you can select resolutions (e.g. 50 dpi, 75 dpi), choose with care. Larger dpi makes for bigger files. Although scanning photographs in higher dpi can make them look better, the larger file size can make it impossible to use on the web or in a document. Try to strike a balance between quality and file size.

Select a Text option if you just want the words for use in a word processing document. This is called OCR (Optical Character Reader). OCR will try to convert the printed text characters on your page - not graphics, columns or tables - to characters and words that you can change like a text document. Some OCR software is better than others, so you may find many errors in the results. Some HP scanners came with full OCR software, while others only have 30 day trial software - it's not worth it to install this trial software unless you want to see what OCR can do (then if you want OCR, go buy it).

Once you've selected the options you want, click the Preview or Pre-Scan button. Your scanner will scan and show you the results. You should see a dashed box on your scan. You can click and drag these lines to cover only the area you want to scan. This can reduce file size and scan time greatly if you only want a portion of a document. As you see the pre-scannned image, you can change settings (like brightness, contrast, colors) to improve the quality of the image scanned. These changes should adjust the preview image you see.

When you're satisfied, click Scan. A final scan will be made. If you're scanning into a graphics program or OCR into a word processor, the scan should appear in that program's window. If you create a large file or want to make scan changes, just repeat the scanning process.

Computer Hardware

CD & DVD Technology

The Technology pages provide an introduction to the CD and DVD formats plus provisional information on the new higher density versions to be launched in 2005.

· The Compact Disc was launched in 1982 for high quality digital audio and has become one of the most successful examples of consumer electronics technology.

· In 1984 the CD Audio specification was extended to CD-ROM for computer applications and was subsequently extended to other formats all based on the audio compact disc format.

· In 1996 DVD became available in Japan and was then launched in the USA in 1997 and Europe in 1998. DVD is available in three formats: DVD-Video for high quality movies, DVD-ROM for games and other computer applications and DVD-Audio for high quality music. There is also the DualDisc, launched at the end of 2004.

· In 2005, two new formats will be launched offering movies in high definition video.

Deluxe offers our customers a full range of CD and DVD services including premastering, replication and fulfilment.

Click on the links on the left or the logos on the right to find out more about these technologies and the various CD & DVD formats and how they are manufactured. There is also a glossary of terms relevant to CD, DVD and the applications they are used for

DVD technology

DVD technology was developed to provide an optical disc format with a much larger capacity than the CD, for a wide range of applications. Pre-recorded DVD discs provide capacities from 4.7 GB to 17.1 GB and can support a wide range of applications, including DVD-Video and DVD-Audio.
The term DVD-ROM is used to define both the physical/logical format of pre-recorded DVD discs and the computer multimedia applications of DVD. DVD-ROM discs, as opposed to DVD-Video or DVD-Audio discs, are being used for games, encyclopaedias and other applications where the large size is needed. In addition DVD-Video and DVD-Audio discs often include a DVD-ROM section with data that runs on a PC, giving additional features such as Internet access

The Disc

As a disc, DVD looks very much like the CD. Both are shiny discs that are 4 3/4 inches (12.0 cm) in diameter. Both are optical formats containing digital information. This means a laser pickup is used to read the digital data encoded on the disc. But that's where the similarities end.
DVD is actually a family of physical and application formats. As far as the physical format, DVD can hold anywhere from seven times to over 25 times the digital data on a CD, depending on the the disc's construction. Additionally, the DVD may be used for video, audio, or data storage applications as a DVD-Video, DVD-Audio, or DVD-ROM application format, respectively.

The Physical Format

There are three reasons for DVD's greater data capacity:

1. Smaller pit size

2. Tighter track spacing

3. Multiple layer capability

Smaller Pit Size. DVDs have smaller pit size than CDs. Pits are the slight depressions or dimples on the surface of the disc that allow the laser pickup to distinguish between the digital 1's and 0's.

Tighter Track Spacing. DVDs also feature tighter track spacing (i.e., track pitch) between the spirals of pits. In order for a DVD player to read the smaller pit size and tighter track spacing of the DVD format, a different type of laser with a smaller beam of light is required. (This is one of the major reasons why CD players cannot read DVDs, while DVD players are capable of reading Audio CDs.)

A comparison of a CD's pit size and track spacing vs. that of a DVD

Multiple Layer Capability. Finally, DVDs may have up to 4 layers of information, with two layers on each side. To read information on the second layer (on the same side), the laser focuses deeper into the DVD and reads the pits on the second layer. When the laser switches from one layer to another layer, it is referred to as the "layer switch" or the "RSDL (reverse spiral dual layer) switch". To read information from the other side of the DVD, almost all DVD players require the user to manually flip the disc.

Based on DVD's dual-layer and double-sided options, there are four disc construction formats:

1. Single-sided, single-layered

2. Single-sided, dual-layered

3. Double-sided, single-layered

4. Double-sided, dual-layered

Single-Sided, Single-Layered. Also known as DVD-5, this simplest construction format holds 4.7 Gigabytes (GBytes) of digital data. The "5" in "DVD-5" signifies the nearly 5 GBytes worth of data capacity. Compared to 650 Megabytes (MB) of data on CD, the basic DVD-5 has over seven times the data capacity of that of a CD. That's enough digital information for approximately two hours of digital video and audio for DVD-Video, or 74 minutes of high resolution music for DVD-Audio.

Single-Sided, Dual-Layered. The DVD-9 construction holds about 8.5 GBytes. DVD-9s do not require manual flipping: the DVD player automatically switches to the second layer in a fraction of a second, by re-focusing the laser pickup on the deeper second layer. This capability allows for uninterrupted playback of long movies up to four hours! Frequently, DVD-9 is used to put a movie and its rich set of bonus materials on the same DVD-Video disc, or its optional DTS Surround Sound track.

Double-Sided, Single-Layered. Known as DVD-10, this construction features a capacity of 9.4 GBytes of data. DVD-10s are commonly used to put a widescreen version of the movie on one side, and a full frame version of the same movie on the other side. Almost all DVD players require you to manually flip the DVD, that's why the DVD-10 is called the "flipper" disc. (There are a few DVD players that can perform the side flipping automatically.)

Double-Sided, Dual-Layered. The DVD-18 construction can hold approximately 17 GBytes (almost 26 times the data capacity of a CD), or about 8 hours of video and audio as a DVD-Video. Think of DVD-18 as a double-sided DVD-9, where up to four hours of uninterrupted video and audio can be stored on one side. To access the content on the other side of a DVD-18, you have to manually flip the DVD. To date, few titles have been released using this construction. Content providers (e.g., movie studios) usually choose to go with two DVD-9s than a single DVD-18 because DVD-18s cost far more to produce