Title: Identify common input and output ports
Course: Module 1, Concepts of Information and Communication Technology (ICT)

Input and output ports

A computer port is very much like a shipping port.

In a shipping port ships will dock (connect to the quayside) and unload people and cargo (data), and/or take on-board passengers and goods (data).

Computer ports are similar - they allow external devices to connect and transfer data to or from the computer.

A specific port is identified by its number, known as the port number, and the protocol used for communication. Let's explore some of the common ports you will find on a computer...

USB

- The Universal Serial Bus or 'USB' is a serial bus standard that allows you to connect devices to a computer.

- USB is intended to replace many varieties of serial and parallel ports.

- USB was created to allow many different to be connected using a single standardised interface socket and to improve 'plug and play' capabilities by allowing hot swapping. Hot swapping allows devices to be connected and disconnected without rebooting the computer or turning off the device.

- Other USB features include providing power to low-consumption devices and allowing many devices to be used without requiring extra device drivers to be installed.

- USB can connect computer peripherals such as mice, keyboards, PDAs, gamepads and joysticks, scanners, digital cameras, printers, personal media players, flash drives, and external hard drives. For many of those devices, USB has become the standard connection method. Before USB a mouse would often use a PS/2 connection for example.

- USB was designed for personal computers, but it has become commonplace on other devices such as PDAs and video game consoles, and as a power cord between a device and an AC adapter plugged into a wall plug for charging.

Serial ports

- A serial port is a physical communication interface through which information transfers in or out by one bit at a time.

- While interfaces such as USB, FireWire, and Ethernet all send data as a serial stream, the term "serial port" usually identifies hardware compliant with the RS-232 standard, a standard originally intended to interface with a modem or with a similar communication device.

- The serial port has largely been replaced by USB and Firewire (e.g. connecting mice or printers).

- For networking, it has been replaced by Ethernet.

- For console use with terminals (and then graphics) it was replaced long ago by VGA.

- While nearly every server has a serial port connector, most workstations and laptops do not have one as it is a legacy port, and replaced by USB and FireWire for most uses.

- Serial ports are commonly still used in legacy applications such as industrial automation systems, scientific analysis, shop till systems and some industrial and consumer products. Network equipment (such as routers and switches) often use serial console for configuration.

Parallel ports

- A parallel port is a type of interface found on computers (personal and otherwise) for connecting various peripherals.

- It is also known as a printer port or Centronics port.

- Over the past few years the USB interface, and Ethernet has effectively replaced the parallel printer port.

- Many manufacturers of personal computers and laptops consider parallel to be a legacy port and no longer include the parallel interface. USB to parallel adapters are available to use parallel-only printers with USB-only systems.

- However, due to the simplicity of its implementation, it is often used for interfacing with custom-made peripherals.

Network port

- Ethernet is a family of networking technologies for local area networks (LANs).

- The Ethernet standard is very widely used. been in use from 1980 to the present, largely replacing all other LAN standards.

- The cost of the hardware needed for Ethernet is very cheap.

- Most manufacturers now build the functionality of an Ethernet card directly into PC motherboards, eliminating the need for installation of a separate network card.

- Almost all desktop and laptop computers have Ethernet, with a fairly recent exception being a WiFi only netbook type notebook.

Firewire

- FireWire is a brand name (of Apple Inc.) of the IEEE 1394 interface.

- However, the term FireWire is now commonly used by everyone, although it is sometimes called i.LINK (by Sony), and Lynx (by Texas Instruments).

- The FireWire interface is a serial bus interface standard for high-speed communications and real-time data transfer, frequently used on PCs, as well as in digital audio and video.

- FireWire is the primary transfer mechanism for almost all high end professional audio and video equipment. Since 2003 many computers intended for home or professional audio/video use have built-in FireWire/i.LINK ports, especially Sony and Apple's computers.

Question

Which of the following is a computer port ?

- USB
Feedback: Correct.
- Monitor
Feedback: No, a monitor is hardware.
- Keyboard
Feedback: Correct.
- CPU
Feedback: Correct, CPU is hardware.