Repairing and Upgrading Your PC

Repairing and Upgrading Your PC
by Barbara Fritchman Thompson, Robert Bruce Thompson

Repairing and Upgrading Your PC
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Book Summary Information

Author: Barbara Fritchman Thompson, Robert Bruce Thompson
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2006-03-09
ISBN: 059600866X
Number of pages: 448
Publisher: O'Reilly Media

Book Reviews of Repairing and Upgrading Your PC

Book Review: Without doubt a 5 star purchase!
Summary: 5 Stars

Having read other books by the Thompson's <a href="http://www.oreillynet.com/catalog/pchardnut3/">PC Hardware in a Nutshell</a> and <a href="http://www.oreillynet.com/catalog/buildpc/">Building the Perfect PC</a> I had very high expectations before I opened the cover on this book, their latest offering. I have to say that they have outdone themselves, which is no mean feat.

This book is an absolute mind of useful information. It covers just about every device or piece of hardware that one would ever reasonably want to install in or connect to a PC, pretty much every physical connection and great advice on assembly techniques. Although a lot of the book focuses on hardware, it also contains many useful operating systems and device driver debugging tips, including references to free software downloads. The book is also fairly agnostic in that it covers some Linux material as well as the expected Windows material.

When they say that they are going to tell you how to do something step by step, they really do mean it. Other books that I have read make the same promises but often make assumptions about your level of knowledge. Accordingly this truly is a book for all levels from beginner to professional.

What's more they have succeeded in presenting the material in a way that is easy for the beginner but not necessarily annoyingly simple for the more experienced amateur or professional. The book is very readable both from a prose and layout standpoint. The illustrations are well thought out to complement the prose and are clear and understandable. There is something for everyone in this book!

Their advice is very sound and reasoned. We benefit from the 20 years of experimentation and experience (40 person years in reality) that they have. For example, they really emphasize the routine maintenance tasks; you know the things that we all hate and keep putting off. This came home to me very recently when, having moved my PC's to new location in my home, we had unseasonably warm weather and suddenly the processor temperature alarm was going off at 70C on one of them! Yikes! A thorough clean and I was down to 55C, which is still too high. Tomorrow I will be going to buy more fans for my case and I will be looking in the book for their recommendations.

I was pleased to see that they have now moved to offering less specific vendor recommendations and moved more towards what component characteristics we should be looking for. There is nothing wrong with vendor recommendations and they certainly make some where they feel particularly strong about it. However, sometimes people are apt to read looking for recommendations and not absorb the far more important educational content.

The material is quite current and comprehensive, in so far as anything can be in the rapidly changing computer world. Knowing where to draw the line must always be difficult. However, I think that their timing is good since what they have covered is likely to be around for some time having now moved into the era of 64 bit dual core processors, DDR2 memory and the increasing popular SATA HD's, for example. There is also some fairly limited information on their thoughts about the requirements for Vista. It is clear that they used some material from "Building the Perfect PC", which I guess gave them a good base to probably get the book out quickly enough to remain current and they have clearly learned from the feedback on their previous publications.

My one disappointment, which admittedly comes with an apology from them, is the rather sparse section on Wireless Networking (Chapter 14). Their explanation was one of space constraints. I believe this to be a sufficiently important topic today for the home and SOHO user that this somehow should have been accommodated. There is supposed to be a pdf download on the O'Reilly site with additional information but so far I have been unable to locate it. This must be incorporated into any future Editions.

As a reasonably experienced home PC user/builder, if I could only have one practical, easily readable, objective book on PC repair and maintenance for reference when I needed advice or help, this would be it! If someone wishing to get started with their own PC work, asked me for a recommendation I would also have no hesitation in suggesting this book. In fact this book could easily be called, "Building, Repairing, Upgrading & Maintaining Your PC" and still fit the bill. I give it an enthusiastic 5 stars.

Graham Jones
President
Vancouver Technology User Group - www.vantug.com
Vancouver, Canada

Summary of Repairing and Upgrading Your PC

Most computer users think that fiddling with the insides of their PC is taboo. They fear that by removing the screws that hold the case on, they're crossing into forbidden territory. And even for those who know they can open the box and fix or upgrade their PC, analysis paralysis often stops them in their tracks:

Which upgrades offer the best bang for the buck? How do you pinpoint the faulty component that's making your system freeze? What about compatibility issues?

Get ready to get unstuck and get your PC running fast and running right. Repairing and Upgrading Your PC delivers start-to-finish instructions, simple enough for even the most inexperienced PC owner, for troubleshooting, repairing, and upgrading your computer. Written by hardware experts Robert Bruce Thompson and Barbara Fritchman Thompson, this book covers it all: how to troubleshoot a troublesome PC, how to identify which components make sense for an upgrade, and how to tear it all down and put it back together. This book shows how to repair and upgrade all of your PC's essential components:

  • Motherboard, CPU, and Memory. Choose the optimal match of these core components to keep your PC running at top speed
  • Hard Drive, Optical Drive, and Removable Storage
  • Give your computer what it needs for long-term and short-term storage
  • Audio and Video. Enhance your computing experience with the right sound and graphics devices for your needs
  • Input Devices. Pick the best keyboard and mouse to keep your hands happy and healthy
  • Networking. Set up secure wireless networking to keep the bits flowing between your computers and the outside world
  • Cases and Power Supplies. Keep everything running cool and reliably


With its straightforward language, clear instructions, and extensive illustrations, this book makes it a breeze for PC owners of any skill level to work on their computer.

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