Friday 18 December 2009

Understand hardware technologies for game platforms

Human-computer interface
The meaning of Human-computer interface is the interaction between people (users) and computers, this can also be used in a simple term called interface. This consists of hardware and software like objects and symbols graphically displayed on a computer screen. Users input are received to the computer by using hardware such as mouse, keyboard and microphone. Of course PCs are not the only systems out there; as technology has evolved to mainly cater for user satisfaction. This is also for the reason of user created design which is a widely and modern practiced design. Designers and users work together to create the structure of an operating system, including the wants, need and limitations. This is also known as user cantered designs; such as video game consoles (Xbox 360), portable devices (mobile phones) and MACs.
Central processing units
A central processing unit is an integrated circuit chip located on the motherboard, a component of the computer that carries out instructions of a programme from the computer and its primary function is to do so. It accepts input, interprets software and also provides output. There are two types of CPU’s, PC’s which are IBM compatible personal computers and MAC’s which are exclusive to itself or Apple. Throughout the durations of it’s existence CPU have drastically changed in appearance but its operation remains the same.
Graphics
A graphics processing unit (GPU) is quite a specialised processer that renders 3D objects from its micro processer. This is found a lot in PC’s, portable devices, video game consoles and more. These are also known as embedded systems. They are very good at managing graphics which makes them more effective then CPU’s.
Pixel art is a form of digital art with the use of raster graphics software. Very old video games, mobile games are pixel art. This is what 2D games was mainly consisted of.
Memory
The purpose of having memory is to store and use programmes for greater uses of applications, data storage provides one of the core functions of modern PC’s. This is random access memory (RAM) it takes the form of integrated circuits so you can store data and access it in any order you want. It can be moved anywhere within the memory or you could also choose to transfer the storage to another device, however the movement takes longer.
Display
Liquid crystal display is a thin and flat panel that is used for electronically displaying text, images. There are ranges of digital based products are humongous; digital clocks, calculators, telephones and more. But the most noticeable are the LCD TVs. Among other features, it’s lightweight, it’s portable and are able to be built in greater sizes than the cathode ray tube models and also consumes less power making LCD unique.

Sound
A sound card can also be known as an audio card. Its an expansion card for the computer and supports the audio signal from a computer which is then under control of computer programmes. A lot of computers support this but some will require this expansion for compatibility. Mono/ monophonic sound system is when all of the audio signals are mixed together and routed through one single audio channel. Stereo/ stereophonic sound systems have two separate audio signal channels.
Game storage medium
Game storage has grown over the years for bigger, better and more interesting games. In the 4th generation of games, game cartridges were used and could only hold up to 4MB which was more than enough back then because games were made up of pictures. With today’s 7th generation games, not even 1GB is enough to hold a game. With the Xbox 360 that uses DVDs a total of 9GB is just about sufficient enough to manage most games. The Sony PS3 however uses blue ray disks that hold up to 50 GB of space. This is very convenient because games will take less time to load off a disk. Though very handy, they also have their disadvantages. Piracy is the main issue here. Disks have been code protected but can just as easily be decoded by people who have the software. The only real way to prevent this from happening is for games to be sold online.
Interface devices
There are plenty of devices at our disposal to enhance our experience. For example; Joystick: this is device consists of a stick that pivots o a base and can be tilted in any direction. Eye toy: this is a colour digital camera device that is quite similar to the web cam. Wireless controllers: preventing the hassle of tangling up your controller and being able to sit back and play simply because the wire is too short. There are hundreds of modifications made to enhance our experience.
Connectivity
Connectivity is one of the primary feature of today’s gadgets with different purposed and ranges from, extra controller ports enabling multi playing fun on one system, wireless features like local area connection (LAN) which connects people under one network and wide area connection which connects people from across the globe enabled through broadband or dial up connection.
Power supply
Modern devices with Power supplies usually have their own battery powered by an external source.

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