Favourite output device - Computer monitors

Computer monitors are what I am talking to you today about. Why? Because without a computer monitor (or screen of any form), you would be unable to read my words of wisdom right here on the interwebs. Seriously, monitors are our window to the world of digital life. Without them, we everything would have to be on a hard copy.

[I would insert a picture of a monitor here, 

but because you're probably viewing this one one,

I decided that was redundant :P] 

A riveting picture, I'm sure.

We used to CRT for our monitors, we were HUGE CLUNKY things. Thankfully, we improved. Imagine having to lug one of those around with your laptop. :/

Oh, and they were also literally throwing radiation out us like there was no tomorrow, so that didn't make the health and safety freaks happy either. Fortunately, we moved to LCD screens. DEVELOPMENT FTW. So now we have lighter

smaller

and better

screens, with better resolution and stuff. So yeah. The future! :O Hopefully we'll then be getting 3D SCREENS! :D

Anyway. Yeah. That's all I got. Now I haz gotta go and evaluate my blog. Which unfortunately does not mean review, because if it did, it would get stuff like 'Groundbreaking, riveting, stunning, life-changing'. 

Favourite storage device - flash drives

The device I will be enlightening you with today is the USB flash drive, often incorrectly and colloquially called a memory stick (more on that later), or a USB/pen drive/stick. They are probably the most used external storage device used, a title deserving given their usefulness and versatility. They are extremely small, but can hold more data than a floppy disk or CDs, and are more robust because of their solid state features: they have no moving parts, which makes damaging them physically harder (the only problems I'v ever hard were when I had accidently squashed the male end of my flash drive, so it physically was unable to fit into the female USB port.

Now, I'm a pedant. Anyone who knows me (and given the nature of this blog, that would mean everyone who is reading this), knows I am a really pedantic pedant (if you'll forgive the tautology for emphasis). What really infuriates me is when people call flash drives: 'memory stick'.



WRONG


Wrong wrong wrong.

This is a memory stick:

It is actually a type of memory card. It is a Sony product, that is mainly used in Sony (and some other) digital cameras, as well as Sony's PlayStation Portable.

THIS is a flash drive:

This particular one is a SanDisk Cruzer brand, of 4GB size. Using the term 'flash drive' and 'memory stick' interchangeably is like using 'chair' and 'table' interchangeably. IT'S JUST WRONG!!!!!!

Rant over :)  Now we have cake.

Nah, the cake is a lie, but back to flash drives. They are wondrously compact.  Of course, SD cards are smaller, but for that reason, they're easier to lose. And you cannot attach them to key ring. Flash drives you can. To show you the scale of their compactness, you can fit the data on these punched cards:

On the 4GB flash drive above. That's almost as compact as this:

Unfortunately, flash drives haven't advanced to the state where they can give us the power to fly and shoot energy weapons :(

As well as storing data, flash drives can hold applications or even full OS on them. Another feature I just discovered is that I can use my flash drive (as well as an external hard drive or memory card), to act as a cache, using a Windows program (available on Vista and 7) called ReadyBoost. They can also be used to backup data, but personally I wouldn't, because the small size makes the data easy to lost. I would use my external HDD. The small and light aspect of the device, as well as being hot-pluggable makes it optimal for transferring data. 

Favourite input device - Joysticks!

My favourite input device is a joystick, despite my actual lack of experience with it ... hmm. Still, this is an IT project which little to no one actually cares. Anywhoodle. Back to this blog. I like gaming. I am a gamer. I wouldn't be so bold to say I am good, but I game a lot.

Nintendo 64 controller. RETRO

 In this respect, I actually have tons of experience with these type of small knoblly joystick ;)

The advatage joysticks as an input device is for gaming, it is far more accurate than mouses. For example, if you are playing a flight simulator, than a joystick would represent the joystick of the plane. They also have programmable buttons which allow you to put in shortcuts, which is far easier than searching for the 'g' button whilst you're being torn apart by zombies ...




Brainsssssssssss .................

 Joysticks are also superior to d-pads. D-pads only really offer four directions, unless you hold two buttons at the same time. But joysticks are easier. They offer 360 degrees direction. They're also analogue, which means you can vary how much you push the stick. This can define your speed, for example, all the way forward to run, partially to walk (although, saying that, on some consoles, buttons are now pressure sensitive apparently).

Also, as a pilot, I have to say, a joystick is perfect for flying, as opposed to buttons or a steering wheel (like Two-Face's helicopter seems to have, for some ridiculous reason) or a large touchscreen panel, like crafts in Star Trek have. I never understood those.

Look at all these buttons! 

Anyway .. it's God know what time of the night, and apparently I have to write two more of these and then troll ... I mean, debate with my fellow classmates on devices. Byez