Computer speed is one of the most sought after features of both desktops and laptops. Whether gaming, surfing the Web, executing code, running financial reports or updating databases, a computer can never be too fast. Will adding more random access memory (RAM) increase computer speed? In some cases it will, but not in all.

If RAM is the only bottleneck in an otherwise fast system, adding RAM will improve computer speed, possibly dramatically. If there are other problems aside from a shortage of RAM, however, adding memory might help, but the other factors will need to be addressed to get the best possible performance boost. In some cases a computer might simply be too old to run newer applications efficiently, if at all.

In Windows™ systems you can check RAM usage several ways. One method is to hold down the keys, Ctrl + Alt + Del to bring up the Task Manager. Click the Performance tab to see a graph of RAM resources. Third party freeware memory managers will also check memory usage for you. Some even monitor memory to free up RAM when necessary, though this is a stopgap measure.

If your system is low on RAM or routinely requires freeing RAM, installing more memory should improve computer speed. Check your motherboard before heading to your favorite retailer, however. The board might be maxed out in terms of the amount of RAM it will support. It can also happen that existing memory might need to be replaced if all ports are occupied by 1-gigabyte sticks, for example, on a motherboard that will support greater sticks.

If you are a gamer or work with video applications a slow graphics card might be a contributor to poor performance. A good graphics card should have its own on-board RAM and graphics processor (GPU), otherwise it will use system RAM and CPU resources. Consult the motherboard manual to see if you can improve performance by upgrading to a better card. If your present card is top notch and RAM seems fine, the central processing unit (CPU) is another upgrade that can drastically improve computer speed.

Maintenance issues also affect performance and might need to be addressed to remove bottlenecks. A lack of sufficient hard disk space will slow performance, as will a fragmented drive. Spyware, adware, keyloggers, root kits, Trojans and viruses can also slow a computer by taking up system resources as they run background processes.

In some cases a computer serves fine except for one specific application. Most software advertises minimum requirements but these recommendations are generally insufficient for good performance. One rule of thumb is to double the requirements for better performance. If your system can only meet minimal requirements this is likely the problem.

Taking the measures outlined should improve computer speed unless the system is already running at peak and the motherboard cannot be upgraded further. If so, the only alternative is to invest in a new computer that supports newer, faster technology. With prices falling all the time it should be easy to find an affordable buy that will reward you each time you boot up.

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If you’re trying to save money on your utility bills, you may find yourself wondering how much electricity a computer uses. However, finding the answer to this question can be a somewhat complicated task. The amount of electricity a computer uses depends upon what type of equipment you have and what applications you are running.

Typically, the amount of electricity a computer uses is between 65 watts and 250 watts. The monitor often needs between 35 watts and 80 watts of electricity as well. Most desktop computers have a label that lists how much electricity they need, but this is generally the theoretical maximum and not an average representation.

As you might expect, desktop computers with faster processors use more electricity than computers with slower processors. LCD monitors only use about half the electricity of similarly sized CRT monitors, however. Accessories and peripherals such as cable modems, routers, or webcams contribute to a slight increase in how much electricity a computer uses as well.

Regardless of what type of computer you own, the type of work you do on your computer makes a difference in electrical consumption. Using your computer to edit digital pictures, design a website, or play a video game uses more electricity than reading email or completing simple word processing tasks. In addition, the amount of electricity a computer uses significantly increases when it is connected to the Internet.

One common misconception about the amount of electricity a computer uses is that using a screensaver saves money. A screensaver does not use less energy. It's series of moving images is aimed at protecting the screen from having a static image ingrained into it.

If you’re worried about high utility bills, a better option is to leave your computer in standby mode when it’s not being used. In standby mode, a computer uses approximately 6 watts of electricity and the monitor’s electrical consumption drops to almost nothing. Of course, it’s even cheaper to turn your computer completely off when it won’t be used for several hours at a time.

Although many people prefer laptops because of their added convenience, it is interesting to note that a laptop computer can also result in a significant energy savings. Most laptops use between 15 watts and 45 watts of electricity. Switching to a laptop may be a smart decision if you’re concerned about how much electricity a computer uses.

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Universal Serial Bus (USB) 2.0 is an external serial interface used on computers and other digital devices to transfer data using a USB cable. The designation “2.0” refers to the standard or version of the USB interface. As of fall 2006, USB 2.0 remains the current standard.

USB is a plug-and-play interface. This means that the computer does not need to be powered off in order to plug in or unplug a USB 2.0 component. For example, an iPod or other MP3 player can be connected to a computer via a USB cable running to the USB 2.0 port. The computer will register the device as another storage area and show any files it contains.

Using the USB 2.0 interface, one can transfer files to or from the MP3 player. When finished, simply unplug the USB cable from the interface. Because the computer does not need to be shut down to plug in the device, USB components are considered “hot swappable.”

Aside from MP3 players, many other external devices use USB 2.0 data ports, including digital cameras, cell phones, and newer cable boxes. Native components also make use of USB, such as mice, keyboards, external hard drive enclosures, printers, scanners, fax machines, wireless and wired networks keys, and WiFi scanners. One of the most popular and convenient USB gadgets is a memory stick.

When USB standards change from an existing version to a newer version, as they did from USB 1.1 to USB 2.0, hardware made for the newer version is in most cases backwards-compatible. For instance, if a computer has a USB 1.1 port, a device made for USB 2.0 that is marked as “backwards compatible to USB 1.1” will work on the older port. However, the device will only transfer data at 1.1 speeds using a USB 1.1 port.

Currently, computers are built with USB 2.0 ports. The USB 2.0 standard encompasses three data transfer rates:

* Low Speed: 1.5 megabits per second, used mostly for keyboards and mice.
* Full Speed: 12 megabits per second, the USB 1.1 standard rate.
* Hi Speed: 480 megabits per second, the USB 2.0 standard rate.

Since USB 2.0 supports all three data rates, a device that is marked as “USB 2.0 compliant” isn’t necessarily hi-speed. It may operate through a USB 2.0 port at one of the slower speeds. Look for clarification when shopping for hi-speed USB 2.0 devices.

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UNIX® is a class of operating system developed at Bell Labs in 1969. Today it is owned as a trademark by The Open Group, which oversees its develop and publishes the Single UNIX® Specification. Operating systems which are based on UNIX®, or share many features with UNIX®, but do not comply with the spec, are generally referred to as UNIX®-like.

Generally, UNIX® is seen as the operating system on a workstation or a network server. UNIX® systems formed the backbone of the early internet, and they continue to play an important part in keeping the internet functioning. UNIX® originally set out to be an incredibly portable system, capable of allowing a computer to have multiple processes going on at once, and with multiple users logged in at the same time.

The interactions in early UNIX® systems took place through a text input, and used a hierarchical file storage system. Although UNIX® has changed since its early development, many commands remain the same, and it is largely recognizable today as the same system it was forty years ago. Since 1994, UNIX® has been owned by The Open Group, which purchased it from Novell. The standard continues to develop, and has also had a number of popular offshoots which originated with its core ideals.

The most famous of these is the Linux kernel, which has its beginnings as far back as 1983 when Richard Stallman began the GNU project to try to create a free version of UNIX®. Although the project itself had no success, in 1992 Linus Torvalds produced a free version of the kernel, which he called Linux, and he released it under the GNU license. As a result, while UNIX® remained relatively closed off, Linux was completely open source. This spurred a great number of distributions of the core kernel, including popular ones like Fedora, Ubuntu, and Red Hat.

Although people tend to think of UNIX® as a single operating system, it is actually a broader class of systems that meet a spec. Anyone who has an operating system that meets that spec can use the name UNIX®, assuming they pay the proper licensing fees. A number of existing operating systems could use the mark UNIX® if they so chose, although in many cases this would undermine their own properties.

For example, the Apple OSX system meets the UNIX® spec, and so is strictly speaking a UNIX® system. Similarly, the Solaris operating system is a UNIX® system, as are HP-UX, AIX, Tru64, and IRIX. Operating systems, like Linux flavors, or BSD, which have a great deal in common with UNIX®, but are not technically UNIX® systems because of either a failure to meet the spec, to pay the licensing fee, or both, are often referred to simply as *nix systems. This comes from a practice in UNIX® itself, of using the asterisk as a wildcard symbol, which can stand in for any character. Although technically UNIX®-like systems is the preferred term, it is very rarely seen in place of *nix, *NIX, or ?nix.

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A Live CD is a bootable compact disk that contains its own operating system (OS). Booting to a Live CD allows a user to try out alternate operating systems without making changes to the computer’s existing OS, hard drives or files. Live CDs, sometimes referred to as LiveDistros are used extensively for various incarnations of the GNU/Linux operating system.

When power is supplied to a computer, the first thing the computer does is process a set of instructions read from the BIOS, or the Basic Input/Output System chip. Settings contained here can be user-modified but typical default settings instruct the computer, among other things, to boot off the hard drive after checking to make sure there is no bootable compact disk in the CD/DVD drive.

If the computer finds a Live CD in the drive, it will boot to that system rather than the installed OS. Once the computer boots to the Live CD the user is free to explore the operating system without compromising the host computer. To get back to the locally installed system, simply remove the Live CD from the CD/DVD drive and reboot the computer, allowing it to boot from the hard drive.

Live CDs are useful for a number of reasons. For one, a user no longer has to invest time and internal storage space to set up a dual boot system in order to try out a new OS. Moreover, many Linux distributions such as Ubuntu are self-sufficient systems with a suite of free built-in programs including a word processor, spreadsheet program, graphics editor and the award-winning FireFox™ Web browser. This means one can take a Live CD to any computer to get work done without invading the desktop, workspace or system of the host computer.

If attempts to boot from a Live CD fail and the system boots to the hard drive, you’ll need to change your BIOS settings. To do this, hold down the Delete key during the beginning moments of the boot process. When the BIOS menu pops up, navigate to the options that will allow you to change the order of bootable devices. Rather than listing the hard disk as the first device to check, change the settings so that the computer will try the CD drive first. These settings can be saved without creating problems. When there is not a Live CD in the drive, the computer will boot from the hard drive.

Various Linux distributions are available online, many free. In some cases you can request a Live CD be sent through the mail, though this might incur charges for materials and shipping. You can also opt to download a Live CD file and place it on a CD yourself. The file will be large, however, and unsuitable for download through low-bandwidth connections such as dial up.

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Torrents are specialized files utilized in peer-to-peer (P2P) network environments. P2P is a network of personal computers that communicate with one another by running proprietary P2P software. The first P2P software designed to utilize torrents was BitTorrent by Bram Cohen. Other torrent clients have followed.

Torrents are distinguished by a unique transfer process. To compare how torrents download to standard files, let’s first consider how normal files download off the Internet.

At any given website a user might click on a file to transfer it to his or her computer. Upon clicking on the file, the website’s server starts sending the file to the visitor in discreet data packets. These packets travel various routes to reach the user’s computer and are reconstructed upon receipt to complete the file transfer.

While this works fine for smaller files, it is cumbersome to transfer larger files this way. If the server is busy, download time can be very slow. Communication between your server and the computer can even crash, causing corruption in the transfer, or at best, delays.

Unlike downloads off the Web, torrents do not point to a single source on a P2P network when requesting files. Instead, torrents contain specific information that multiple computers in the network can read to send various parts of the requested file simultaneously and en masse. Torrents keep active track of which parts of the file are needed to complete the request. By downloading bits of the file from dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of sources, large files can download very quickly.

Working with torrents is also unique for another reason. At the same time the user is downloading file parts, the computer is also uploading parts already received to others. This decreases download time because users do not have to wait for file sources to have completed torrents before receiving needed parts of a requested file.

Once requested torrents have downloaded in full, you become a seed for those files. A seed refers to someone that has the entire file available. It is considered rude to download torrents and disconnect, referred to as leeching. Instead, users are encouraged to participate by seeding the file for others so that a minimal 1:1 share ratio is maintained. A swarm refers to the entire group of people transferring a file at any given time.

To encourage sharing, software used for downloading torrents keeps track of the share ratio. The torrent client will automatically allocate more bandwidth for downloading at faster speeds when a user shares more than he or she downloads. This usually means leaving the computer running while doing other things, as upstream bandwidth is much slower for most of us than downstream bandwidth. While it might take 40 minutes to download a 250MB freeware suite, it can take several times longer to upload that same amount of data.

Torrents are archived in libraries that are searchable with a Web browser. One cannot download torrents without installing a torrent client first. There are many free torrent clients available, some of which are open source. Once a desired torrent is found, clicking on it will open the torrent client to begin the download process. The user may have to configure his or her firewall to allow the use of certain communication ports.

Many types of files are shared as torrents, including software, music and videos. While P2P sharing is not illegal, sharing copyrighted material without permission from the copyright holder is illegal. The Recording Industry Artists of American (RIAA), and Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) have targeted some websites that cater to archiving illegal torrents.

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VPN, or virtual private network, is a catchall phrase for a variety of networking schemes that allow businesses to use public Internet lines to create a virtual network.

There is no standard model for a VPN, but in general it uses public Internet lines in one of several unique fashions to create a virtual private network. The VPN can operate between branches, regional centers and field representatives via a set of software and hardware protocols that authenticate users and encrypt traffic.

A few types of VPN security include:

Encrypted tunneling: utilizes SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encryption to authenticate users and send information between the remote client(s) and server(s).

IP Security (IPsec): encrypts IP packets like SSL, but can also encrypt UDP (user datagram protocol) traffic, one layer deeper in the network model. UDP traffic accounts for only a small percentage of network traffic, but is used in some key applications like streaming media, and Voice over IP (VoIP).

Point-to-point Protocol (PTPP): Microsoft's VPN protocol, not considered as secure as some others, including IPsec.

Other VPN models include "trusted VPNs," which rely on the third party services of an established network provider. The provider handles all network traffic and guarantees the security of VPN communications. Trusted network structures might use multi-protocol label switching (MPLS), layer-2 forwarding (L2F), layer 2 tunneling protocol (L2TP), or later versions of these protocols, such as L2TP version 3.

A VPN differs from a WAN (wide area network) in that the latter uses leased network lines, thus restricting all traffic to corporate business only. This is effective but costly, particularly when the network must span large distances.

Some companies use intranets or extranets to facilitate 'private' communication. These protocols involve password-protected pages or sites that, ideally, only employees and authorized personnel can access. However, connections between remote users and host servers are not always encrypted, and intranets and extranets are not technically private networks.

The alternate answer is a VPN.

A VPN is expandable, much more cost-effective than a traditional WAN, connects field operators, international offices, affiliated partners or clients, and improves productivity. Assuming care is taken to build a secure VPN, it is a highly beneficial step that can be a tremendous asset to any company with networking needs.

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A BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) is an electronic set of instructions that a computer uses to successfully start operating. The BIOS is located on a chip inside of the computer and is designed in a way that protects it from disk failure.

A main function of the BIOS is to give instructions for the power-on self test (POST). This self test ensures that the computer has all of the necessary parts and functionality needed to successfully start itself, such as use of memory, a keyboard and other parts. If errors are detected during the test, the BIOS instructs the computer to give a code that reveals the problem. Error codes are typically a series of beeps heard shortly after startup.

The BIOS also works to give the computer basic information about how to interact with some critical components, such as drives and memory, that it will need to load the operating system. Once the basic instructions have been loaded and the self-test has been passed, the computer can proceed with loading the operating system from one of the attached drives.

Computer users can often make certain adjustments to the BIOS through a configuration screen on the computer. The setup screen is typically accessed with a special key sequence during the first moments of startup. This setup screen often allows users to change the order in which drives are accessed during startup and control the functionality of a number of critical devices. Features vary among individual BIOS versions.

Many PC manufacturers today use flash-memory cards to hold BIOS information. This allows users to update the BIOS version on computers after a vendor releases an update. This system was designed to solve problems with the original BIOS or to add new functionality. Users can periodically check for updated BIOS versions, as some vendors release a dozen or more updates over the course of a product's lifetime. To check for an updated BIOS, users can check the website of the specific hardware vendor.

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