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LEARNER GUIDE
CONNECT HARDWARE PERIPHERALS
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE
Introduction....................................................................................................................................1
Welcome ..............................................................................................................................1
This Competency Unit .........................................................................................................1
Before you start....................................................................................................................2
Planning your learning programme .....................................................................................2
Self-Assessment Checklist...................................................................................................3
How to use this Learner Guide ............................................................................................4
Using the Computer and Other Resources...........................................................................6
Method of Assessment.........................................................................................................6
Quality Assurance................................................................................................................7
Self-Assessment Checklist.................................................................................................12
Self-Assessment Checklist.................................................................................................21
ITINET1362A
CONNECT HARDWARE PERIPHERALS
INTRODUCTION
Welcome
The content of this guide was developed from the Competency Standard ITINET1362A,
which is one of the basic building blocks for the National Vocational Qualification of
Jamaica (NVQJ) certification within the industry. Please refer to your Learners
Handbook for a thorough explanation of standards and competencies, and how these
relate to the NVQJ certification.
You are also advised to consult the Competency Standard for a better understanding of
what is required to master the competency.
Connect hardware peripherals addresses the knowledge and skills requirements for
effectively connecting hardware peripherals. This competency consists of the following
areas or elements:
As you go through each element you will find critical information relating to each one.
You are advised to study them carefully so that you will be able to develop the necessary
knowledge, skills and attitudes to connect hardware peripherals.
a. Obtain a Learners Logbook. You will use it to record evidence of your new
skills/competence. As you demonstrate your new skills, record your activities and
have your learning facilitator sign off on them. This will allow you to provide
evidence of your competence when you are being assessed against the competency
standard.
b. Ensure that you have access to the facilities and equipment necessary for learning.
d. Ensure that tools and equipment are safe, and that the correct safety equipment is
used.
The self-assessment checklist on the following page will assist you in planning your
training programme as it will help you to think about the knowledge and skills needed to
demonstrate competency in this unit. As you go through the checklist you will be able to
find out what competencies you have already mastered and which one you will need to
pay more attention to as you go through the learning process.
To complete the self-assessment checklist, simply read the statements and tick the Yes
or No box. You should do this exercise now.
Self-Assessment Checklist
- Connect hardware peripherals
If you ticked most of the Yes boxes then you might not need to go through the entire
guide.
Ask your learning facilitator to assist you in determining the most appropriate direction
for this competency.
If you ticked few of the Yes boxes or none at all then you should work through all of
the guide, even though some of the material might be familiar to you.
Plan your learning based on answers. Be sure to involve your learning facilitator in the
planning process.
This Learner Guide is designed to assist you in working and learning at your own pace.
We suggest that you:
Check your progress at each checkpoint to ensure that you have understood the
material.
Observe the icons and special graphics used throughout this guide to remind you of
what you have to do to enhance your learning. The icons and their meanings are as
follows:
Definition Box
Words/phrases are defined or explained in this box. The
words/phrases being explained are in bold print.
Checkpoint
This denotes a brain teaser and is used to check your
understanding of the materials presented. No answers are
provided for the questions asked.
Activity
This denotes something for you to do either alone or with the
assistance of your trainer/supervisor.
Reference
This points you to the reference materials and other support
documents or resources used in compiling the unit content.
Ask your learning facilitator for help if you have any problems with the interpretation
of the contents, the procedures, or the availability.
Complete each activity as you come to it. If the activity requires you to perform an
actual task, be sure to tell your learning facilitator when you get to that activity so that
he/she can make arrangements, if necessary.
Get your learning facilitator to sign and date the Learners Logbook when you have
completed an activity.
When you have worked through all elements of the guide, and when you can tick every
Yes box, you are ready for assessment and may ask your learning facilitator to assist
you in making the arrangements to have your performance assessed.
Where your activities refer you to the library, computer and Internet resources, ask your
learning facilitator to assist you with locating these resources. If you are getting your
training in an institution, there may be a library and computer laboratory. If this is not the
case, visit the local library and find out what resources are available.
If you are new to the computer and the Internet, someone should be able to show you
how to use these resources.
Please note that in many of your activities you have been referred to information on the
Internet. This is because the Internet has a vast amount of information that can help you
in acquiring the particular competencies. We would like to advise you, however, that we
cannot guarantee that all the sites will be available when you need them. If this happens,
ask your learning facilitator to assist you with locating other sites that have the
information you require.
Method of Assessment
Competency will be assessed while work is being undertaken under direct supervision
with regular checks, but may include some autonomy when working as a team. You are
advised to consult the associated competency standard for further details relating to the
assessment strategies.
Quality Assurance
A feedback form is included at the back of each learner guide, to give users an
opportunity to document their concerns about any aspect of the guide. Such feedback
will assist in the review of the guide. Users are encouraged to complete the form and
send it to the address given.
You may now start your learning. Have fun while you work!
LEARNING OUTCOMES
As you go through this element you will acquire the necessary, knowledge, skills and
attitudes to confirm requirements of client. Your learning facilitator is there to assist you
through the various activities, so that on completion you should be able to:
Workstations, PCs,
Bridges
Modems, analog, cable ISDN, DSL
Servers
Network cards
Switches
Hubs and repeaters
Routers and gateways
File and print servers
Peripheral - an auxiliary
device, such as printer, modem
or storage system, that works in
conjunction with a computer.
The term also tends to be applied to devices that are hooked up externally, typically
though some form of computer bus, like USB. Typical examples include joysticks,
printers and scanners. Devices such as monitors and disk drives are not considered
peripherals because they are not truly optional, and video capture cards are typically not
referred to as peripheral because they are internal devices.
Thus in order for a computer to communicate on any level, it requires the use of a wide
range of peripherals such as:
Keyboards
Monitors
Scanners,
Sound cards
Tape cartridges
PC fax
Bluetooth devices
Universal Serial Bus (USB)
Modems
Printers
Refer to: For a more exhaustive list of peripherals, see HEART Trust/NTA
(2005). LG-ITIDAT0131A Operate Computer Hardware
As your client uses his/her system, he/she will need to add peripherals, depending on the
various tasks he/she has to perform. Before you can connect these you need to confirm
his/her peripheral requirements and further to ensure that what his/her requests are in
alignment with the organizations policy. For example, if your client/colleague requests a
colour printer or a scanner, your first task is to confirm that he/she has been approved to
receive one.
CHECKPOINT
Can you name the peripherals that you can see on the computer in
front of you?
Can you distinguish the difference between input and output
devices?
Every organization will have its own way of documenting client requirements including
peripherals. It is your responsibility to document those that are in line with the
organizations guidelines and report them to the supervisor. You must ensure that you
receive the supervisors approval for the items requested before obtaining them.
When it comes to client support, your clients have certain expectations which they expect
you to meet consistently. They see you as a single point of contact for assistance in the
utilization of the organizations computing resources, and to provide that assistance in a
timely and professional manner. They expect you to provide:
Connectivity
Hardware and software support
Consultation
Training
General information and technology recommendations
Web-accessible information
Your client expects that where equipment become defective that they will be fixed
promptly. One way to fulfill this requirement is to know which pieces of equipment are
under warranty so that the appropriate action may be taken.
CHECKPOINT
Printer
Scanner
Mouse
Keyboard
Trackball
ACTIVITY
Now that you have completed this element, check to see whether you have fully grasped
all the components by doing the following Self-Assessment:
Checklist 1 Yes No
Checklist 2 Yes No
LEARNING OUTCOMES
As you go through these elements you will acquire the necessary, knowledge skills and
attitudes to obtain and connect hardware required peripherals. Your learning facilitator is
there to assist you with the various activities, so that on completion you will be able to:
Every organization has its own method of routing equipment to the user. One of these
ways is that the process begins with the instructions or authorization of your manager or
supervisor. These instructions are likely to be written either a memorandum or signing a
requisition form.
As equipment forms a part of the companys fixed asset, you would be required to enter
those peripherals being installed into the equipment inventory. Once again, your
organization would have its own procedures for doing this, which you should follow.
CHECKPOINT
When unpacking equipment you should always validate the contents, this means ensuring
that all the pieces as listed in the packing list are present. Where there are discrepancies,
you must report the matter to your supervisor immediately.
When not in use, peripherals should be stored carefully. You are best advised to follow
the vendor/manual guidelines.
TIP! Always remember that the manufacturer knows its product far more
intimately than you do, hence they know the proper conditions for storage.
CHECKPOINT
ACTIVITY
The operating system detects plug and play hardware without prompting the user.
Note: The operating system acts as an intermediary between the hardware and the
user. If the hardware is not configured it will not work properly or communicate
with the rest of the computer system.
The following are functions of an operating system that you should note:
It manages the hardware and software resources of the system. In a desktop computer,
these resources include such things as the processor, memory, disk and space
It provides a stable, consistent way for applications to deal with the hardware without
having to know all the details of the hardware
The primary operating systems in use are the many versions of Windows (95, 98, NT,
ME, 2000, XP), the many versions of Unix (Solaris, Linux, etc.), the Macintosh OS, IBM
mainframe OS/390 and the AS/400's OS/400. DOS is still used for some applications,
and there are other special-purpose operating systems. Please make an effort to learn at
least one operating system.
CHECKPOINT
ACTIVITY
Read the article at the website noted below and use the information to
compare and contrast MSDOS and Windows operating systems.
Type your findings into a word document and present it to your
learning facilitator. Include a comment on why someone would
choose DOS over Windows.
NB: You do not have to limit your research to the article noted
above.
One of the critical pieces of information that you should get from your supervisor is the
timeframe for installing peripherals. Remember in any organization users of IT
equipment want as little downtime as possible. Therefore you should ascertain the
schedule and work diligently to meet it.
CHECKPOINT
What are some of the factors that could influence the timeframe for
installing peripherals?
When disconnecting peripherals from the system unit, you must first shut down the
system using the correct shutdown procedures. Do not unplug the machine or turn off the
surge protector before the operating system shuts down the machine itself, or prompts
you to shut down manually. When this is completed, it will then be safe for you to unplug
the peripherals from the system unit. Failure to follow this procedure can lead to serious
consequences including malfunction of some peripherals or the system unit.
Connectors - are often called There are three common types of connectors:
'ports'. A port is a logical
channel or channel endpoint in Serial
a communications system. Parallel
USB(Universal Serial Bus)
Other connectors
Blue Tooth
Serial and Parallel ports provide the connections for many devices. With the
introduction of Plug-N-Play, most of the technician's job with configuring and using
these ports is plugging in a device into the right port. However, there is a basic
difference between serial and parallel ports that you need to know and it is this: data
travels in series in the former and in parallel in the latter.
There is also a difference in the way in which they communicate. For example, serial
connections send 1 bit at a time whereas parallel transmits 8 or more at a time. This
makes parallel communications faster in terms of data bandwidth.
Although parallel is the faster of the two, a great number of computers still use serial
connections. This is because current serial ports provide a stronger signal than parallel
ports, making them capable of larger distances. Serial ports on the other hand do not
require as intricate timing of mechanisms, making them simpler to connect to.
CHECKPOINT
Refer to: Further information on serial and parallel connections can be found
in the following article
Frawley, Lucas, Parallel vs. Serial ATA http://www.directron.com/patasata.html
and Serial and Parallel Ports,
http://www.geocities.com/ferds3/serial_and_parallel_ports.htm retrieved
31/3/05
CHECKPOINT
Most of the computers are now using USB ports which are much faster than parallel and
serial
USB's hot swap capability allows everything to be plugged in and unplugged without
turning the system off. USB 2.0, widely known as Hi-Speed USB, dramatically increases
capacity to 480 Mbits/sec.
Peripherals are plugged directly into a four-pin socket on the computer or into a multi-
port hub that plugs into the computer. Peripherals may also be hubs themselves. For
example, a monitor may have a built-in hub that provides a convenient location on the
desktop for plugging in other devices.
TIP! Ensure that peripherals are disconnected and replaced/connected with
minimal disruption to the client, and that you use the correct procedures in each
case.
CHECKPOINT
Hint: You may need to read the article listed below in order to answer these
questions
ACTIVITY
BLUETOOTH TECHNOLOGY
Bluetooth is the name for a short-range radio frequency (RF) technology that operates at
2.4 GHz and is capable of transmitting voice and data. The effective range of Bluetooth
devices is 32 feet (10 meters). Bluetooth transfers data at the rate of 1 Mbps, which is
from three to eight times the average speed of parallel and serial ports, respectively.
Bluetooth can be used to synchronize and transfer data wirelessly among devices.
Bluetooth can be thought of as a cable replacement technology. Typical uses include
automatically synchronizing contact and calendar information among desktop, notebook
and palmtop computers without connecting cables. Bluetooth can also be used to access a
network or the Internet with a notebook computer by connecting wirelessly to a cellular
phone.
There are three ways that you can configure/install device software (drives). These are:
Automatic
Plug and play
Manual
Automatic installation - also known as Single exe installation - is one that most people
are familiar with.
Plug and Play - Windows performs this function without you noticing that it is taking
place. Windows 95/98/SE/2000/ME/XP all have drives in the package for devices that
are compatible to Windows operating system.
Manual installation - here you are given instructions on how to install a particular drive
and you are expected to follow the steps. For more information, explanation and detailed
steps please refer to this website: -
http://www.serverwatch.com/tutorials/article.php/1497901 retrieved 31/3/05
CHECKPOINT
ACTIVITY
Once you have installed a device you need to test it to make sure that it is working
correctly. Some hardware automatically prompts you to test before continuing. All you
need to do in this situation is to follow instructions. You will also need to confirm with
your client that it is working satisfactorily. Where there are adjustments to be made,
ensure that you do so quickly. Printers for example, are known for this kind of exercise.
Plug and play devices are automatically tested and the operating system communicates to
you if the device is functioning properly
You should note different operating systems will interact with you differently. For
example, Windows XP for example will test your devices automatically and a list of plug
and play devices that are not compatable to the version will be listed. If windows have
drives that will be compatible with the device, you will be advised to continue.
ACTIVITY
Now that you have completed this element, check to see whether you have fully grasped
all the components by doing the following Self-Assessment:
Checklist 1 Yes No
Checklist 2 Yes No
Your feedback on the Learner Guides is important to us. Please complete the
form below to indicate areas for review as you see necessary. For each
component tick [ ] the appropriate column.
Other Issues:
Telephone #: E-mail:
Please cut along the dotted line and submit to:
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