Take a trip through the neural pathways and vital organs of your personal computer with the newest edition of this long-standing bestseller. Glorious full color illustrations make even the most complex subjects easy to understand. Follow PC/Computing senior editor and computer expert Ron White as he shows you the cutting edge technologies, including the Internet, multimedia sound and video, Pentium processors, local bus architecture, Plug and Play, CD-ROM, digital cameras, color printing, and more in new chapters on the hottest, and coolest, PC components.

Includes index.

Pt. 1: What makes a computer a computer : The ghostly LEGOs of computing: How waves take the universe on a joy ride, How information rides the waves, How electromagnetism is the ghost in the machine, How we control electricity, How computers create our world using numbers ; How computers remember: How a little transistor does big jobs, Writing data to RAM, Reading data from RAM, How flash memory remembers when the switch is off ; How a little microprocessor does big things: How a processor tracks numbers, How a processor does math, How a processor moves data, How multi-core processors work, How desktop CPUs keep it complex, How mobile CPUs keep it simple ; How motherboards conduct a symphony of data: How a motherboard brings it all together, How the chipset directs traffic, How PCI-Express breaks the bus barrier -- Pt. 2: Software: the computer's own poetry : How words are stitched into programs: How a program is a roadmap, How software interpreters generate action, How a compiler churns out software ; How applications work so you can play: How text SHOUTS and whispers, How databases track everything, How databases pack it in, How databases make connections, How spreadsheets solve formulas, How numbers become pictures, How art is compressed to save space, How imaging software paints by numbers, How photo editors revive old memories, How apps fuel mobile devices ; How games create new worlds: How computers plot a 3D world, How 3D gets dressed, How shaders control the world, How games populate new worlds ; How security software fights off invaders: How computer hackers break in, How spyware reports everything you do, How viruses invade your computer, How viruses hitch rides in your email, How antivirus software fights back, How firewalls keep hackers out, How spammers find you , How antispam software sniffs out phony email, How prime numbers protect prime secrets -- Pt. 3: How computers evolve : Origins of computer DNA: Fossils of the premobilian era, Persistent Relics: the mouse, Persistent Relics: the keyboard, How the workaday floppy drive ruled, How the CRT was the Grande dame of displays, How the impact printer was right on the spot, Unlikely progenitor to the Internet: the dialup modem, How cabling was worse: serial, How cabling was worse: parallel, How the power supply hasn't changed, How the iPhone made it slick ; How small mutations pay off big: How USB really is universal, How little bits add up to big changes, How file compression makes files smaller, How solid state drives command the instant, How solid state drives take out the trash, How PCs use light to remember, How optical disc drives write with light ; Honey, I've shrunk the PC: How computers get smaller and better, How iPods dish out media, How eInk puts words on your eReader, How all those smarts got packed into a smartphone, How Google glass makes us cyborgs ; Evolution of the super computer: How video cards break the game barrier, How overclocking multiplies time. How a PC keeps its cool, How advanced cooling refrigerates your PC, How jailbreaking frees your devices ; How cameras capture memories: How digital cameras capture the moment, How autofucus clears the picture, How cameras choose an exposure ; Pt. 4: How computers expand our senses : How we stay in touch: How your smartphone knows where you are, How devices recognize our touch, How glass becomes strong and supple, How game controllers let you play, How game controllers let you feel the force, How smartphones get good vibrations, How devices capture light, How a flatbed simplifies scanning, How codes keep track of everything (everything!), How optical character recognition works ; How a computer creates visions: How an LCD creates glowing colors, How plasma displays glow, How DLP spins color, How OLED lights up a new generation of displays, How 3D makes you duck ; How computers tickle your ears: How your device listens, How speakers sound off, How digital sound tricks your ear, How 3D audio surrounds you -- Pt. 5: The little net that grew: How networks tie computers together: How computers connect to each other, How data travels between computers, How wi-fi makes the Internet portable, How bluetooth keeps devices connected, How NFC lets smart devices make close calls ; How the Internet brings us the world: How broadband crams in the data, How DSL turbocharges a phone line, How cable brings the Internet to your neighborhood, How fiber optics lights up the future, How computers make phone calls, How cellular evolved, How networks talk with each other, How information travels the Internet, How online services serenade you, How movies flow into your home ; How the web is all at your fingertips: How a browser opens pages, How a browser displays web pages, How cookies trade crumbs of data, How Google knows everything, How eBay sells everything ; How we keep in touch the Internet way: How email outraces snail mail, How Facebook lets your cat go viral, How Twitter changes communication, How Internet file sharing works, How BitTorrents spread the wealth, How clouds encompass us all -- Pt. 6: How printers put data in our hands : How black and white printing works: How printers make cookie cutter text, How outline fonts set the imagination free, How a printer writes with light ; Printing Gutenberg never imagined: How printers create color, How an ink-jet sprays images, How a printer spits out photographs, How a laser printer creates in color, How a solid ink color printer works, How printers create in 3D -- Pt. 7: So, what's next?