Overview
Upgrading and Repairing PCs, Linux Edition addresses Linux-specific hardware issues that do not arise with Windows or DOS. Based on Upgrading and Repairing PCs, 11th Edition, this book covers Linux information such as system requirements, installation and setup, drive partitioning, kernel parameters, memory, and compatibility between Linux and components and components with each other. While Windows has a slick installation that automatically determines most of the hardware in a PC, Linux users still must struggle to identify, configure, and install the hardware in their PCs. This book is an essential reference to understand how your PC hardware works, how it interacts with Linux, and how to troubleshoot, repair, and upgrade the components in a Linux system.- The Linux General Store hosts an Internet site for information, discussion and questions related to the book
- CD-ROM contains a version of Linux, a Special Edition of Partition Magic, various Linux applications, and more
Thoroughly covers key technologies and adds new coverage of Intel processor families, chipsets, motherboards, printer upgrades, repairs, and maintenance, file systems, and data recovery.
Editorials
From Barnes & Noble
The Barnes & Noble ReviewIn 2003, there has been a bumper crop of new PC technology. And to help you assess it, implement it, fix it, Scott Mueller produced the indispensable 15th edition of his legendary Upgrading & Repairing PCs.
For example, this edition includes detailed coverage of AMD’s Opteron, the revolutionary 64-bit processor that delivers remarkable performance without sacrificing compatibility. Intel’s latest innovations are here, too -- notably the new Hyper Threading Technology, which gives you two “virtual processors” inside the same Pentium 4.
These processors have immense performance potential, but you’ll need new motherboards, memories, and chipsets to deliver on it. Mueller covers the latest, hottest stuff -- from higher bus speeds to dual-channel memory architecture. Along the way, he addresses everything from processor slots to form factors, cases, and power connectors -- the details wherein the devil often hides.
He’s equally strong on the “almost new” technologies now coming into widespread use. For example, as part of a detailed chapter on optical storage, he demystifies the bewildering menagerie of DVD standards (DVD+RW, DVD-RAM, DVD-R, DVD-RW). Which ones are likely to last? How do you minimize your risks? What do you need to know about copyright protection and other, umm, realities?
As the value of computers increasingly moves to the network, Mueller has increased the book’s coverage of networking, from LANs to broadband Internet connectivity. This edition covers all of today’s Wi-Fi wireless standards, slow to fast, cheap to expensive -- with a focus on interoperability issues.
Most computers that need repair or upgrading aren’t brand new, so Mueller presents systematic coverage of mainstream technologies, including every significant PC component. You’ll find entire chapters dedicated to your PC’s BIOS; to hard drives; to audio hardware; to I/O devices ranging from ancient RS-232 to contemporary USB 2.0, Serial ATA, and IEEE-1394b. Where you can upgrade existing devices to get the performance offered by newer interfaces, he tells you.
He covers myriad removable storage media from today’s external USB 2.0 and FireWire drives to those failed media formats that doubtless hold your Great American Novel. His detailed coverage of backup/restore issues includes exceptional guidance on trying to recover data that seems irretrievably lost (even data on formatted, repartitioned, or erased hard drives and formatted flash memory devices).
In recent editions, Mueller added a detailed troubleshooting index that identifies hundreds of common PC hardware problems and points you directly to the solutions. That’s still here, but the 15th edition adds new coverage on resurrecting dead systems and tracking down the flakiness in flaky systems.
Last but definitely not least, there’s a DVD-ROM with two full hours of thoroughly updated digital video, in which Mueller walks you through a laundry list of current PC maintenance and repair tasks. Thankfully, the DVD will run on your home DVD player -- so if you’ve taken your computer apart and you’ve got no idea what to do next, you can still have Mueller show you. Bill Camarda
Bill Camarda is a consultant, writer, and web/multimedia content developer. His 15 books include Special Edition Using Word 2000 and Upgrading & Fixing Networks for Dummies, Second Edition.
Necessarily subject to frequent new editions, this hefty manual discusses all areas of computer system improvement—upgrading, repairing, maintaining, and troubleshooting—as well as software issues. Mueller, president of an international research and corporate training firm, presents 25 chapters covering state-of-the-art hardware and accessories and discussing the fine points of motherboards, processors, memory, and case and power-supply improvements; proper system and component care; diagnostics hardware and software; and the important differences between major system architectures from the original Industry Standard Architecture to the latest in PCI and AGP systems. The included CD-ROM conteains some two hours of how-to video with the author. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)