Desktop Computer Hardware and Software

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Desktop Computer Hardware and Software
Anil V Parwani, MD., PhD Department of
Pathology Division of Pathology Informatics UPMC
Shadyside Hospital University of Pittsburgh
Medical Center Pittsburgh, PA
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Objectives

•  An explanation of the elements of desktop
  computer specifications, including different
  types of memory chips, and peripheral interfaces
  (serial and parallel),
• A discussion of operating system architecture,
  executable vs non-executable software.
• Review basic hardware concepts

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HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE CHOICES!

• Pathologists rely on computers
• Instrumentation
• Laboratory information systems
• Electronic sign-out
• Telepathology
• Communication
• Pathologists make decisions
• What to buy
• How much to spend
• What is required

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Basics
Computer
Monitor
(cable clutter)
Keyboard
Mouse
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Tower Configuration
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Monitor

• CRT (Cathode Ray Tube)like a TV
• Great color large/heavy
• LCD (Liquid Crystal Display)like a laptop
• Small light sharp getting very cheap
• Resolution
• Diagonal size (17 monitor, etc.)
• Pixels (1024 x 768 1200 x 800)

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CRT
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LCD
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BASIC Computer Components

• CPU/motherboard
• Memory (RAM)
• Storage (Hard disks)
• Optical disc drives (DVD/CD-ROM/burners)
• Other stuff (power supply cooling)

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Overview of Microcomputer Architecture
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Microprocessors

• Intel (Pentium, Celeron) AMD (Athlon, Turion),
  (IBM) PowerPC
• Integrated circuit with millions of transistors
• Executes program commands and math functions
• Features
• Clock speed (MHz)
• The higher the number, the faster the processor
  is..
• "Efficiency" (design)
• Power consumption (heat)
• 32 bit vs 64 bit

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Central Processing Unit

• The brainexecutes instructions
• Usually major determinant of a computers worth
• 2 big vendors (Intel and AMD)
• Attributes
• Speed (gigahertz)
• Core (Pentium 4 CoreDuo Celeron)
• Memory (cache, called L1 or L2)
• Data bus width (32bit vs. 64bit)
• Cost

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DATA BASE WIDTH AND WORD SIZE

• Data bus is a series of parallel wires, connects
  the internal components of the microprocessor.
• Bus is a pathway for the electronic impulses
  that form bytes.
• The more lanes this highway, the faster data can
  travel
• Data bus width is measured in bits (8, 16, 32,
  64)
• The maximum number of bits the CPU can process at
  once is its word size.
• The word size of the CPU is important because it
  determines which operating system the CPU can use
  and which software can be run.

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OPERATING SYSTEMS AND WORD SIZE OPERATING
SYSTEM WORD SIZE
Windows 95/98/NT/2000/XP 32 bits Windows XP
64-Bit Edition 2003 64 bits Linux 64 bits Mac
OS X 128 bits Windows Vista 32 bits/64 bits
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30 years ago, Intels cofounder, Mr. Gordon
Moore, predicted that the computer processing
power could be doubled every 18-24 months. This
is measured by doubling the transistor counts in
a microprocessor, the brain of a computer. This
prediction is now known as Moores Law
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Motherboard

• Aka--Main board
• This is a large circuit board containing the
  computers CPU, support chips, RAM and connecting
  internal components
• Several varieties available for each CPU type
• Chipsets
• Expansion slots
• USB ports firewire size included
  graphics/sound
• RAM Speed, CPU Speed

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Motherboard

• Main board connecting internal components
• Socket CPU mount
• RAM memory
• AGP high performance video
• Card slots
• Battery for persistent RAM
• BIOS basic input-output system
• Permanent memory
• Initial startup and management of communication
  between components

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Connectors
Keyboard Mouse Serial port Monitor Print
er (parallel) port Phone line (modem) USB
(4) Firewire Ethernet Microphone Audio in
and out
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Graphics Cards

• Secondary CPU (GPU) with its own RAM
• Special high-throughput slot
• AGP or PCI-Express
• Permits 3D rendering and/or multiple displays
• Sometimes included on motherboard
• Business PCs Laptops cheap PCs

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Graphics

• 3 major vendors Intel, ATI, and nVidia
• Intel does integrated (motherboards)
• For add-on cards, prices up to 600
• Easy upgrade (along with RAM and HDD)
• Can make a big difference for games

VGA Output
DVI Output
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Memory

• Memory (RAM) versus Storage (Hard Disk Drive or
  HDD)
• RAM only while the computer is running
• RAM is fastest but also volatile
• HDD persistent
• HDD can be put into the basement or FedExd
• Slower but persistent and very high capacity
• Several types of RAM
• Cache system RAM flashRAM

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Cache

• A temporary storage area for frequently-accessed
  or recently-accessed data.
• Having certain data stored in a cache speeds up
  the operation of the computer.
• There are two kinds of cache internal (or memory
  cache) and external (or disk cache).
• Internal cache is built into the processor, and
  external cache is on the motherboard.
• When an item is called for, the computer first
  checks the internal cache, then the external
  cache, and finally the slower main storage.

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Random Access Memory (RAM)

• Primary storage for programs and data in use,
  measured in megabytes
• Very fast, connected to CPU by main ("front
  side") bus
• Volatile (contents lost when power is turned off)
• Common functional types
• SRAM static RAM, stable as long as power is on
• DRAM dynamic RAM, requires refreshing but small
  and cheap
• SDRAM synchronous DRAM (performance advantages)
• Others
• Physical layout
• SIMM single inline memory module
• DIMM dual inline memory module (pins are
  different on each side of the chip)

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RAM
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Hard Disk Drives

• Currently a bottleneck for most systems
• Slowest link in the chain
• Still getting cheaper with ever-increasing sizes
• Speed also getting better
• Refer to this as storage, not as memory

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Flash RAM

• This is special RAM that acts like an HDD
• It is RAM, but it stays put (ie non-volatile)
• No moving parts

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Units of RAM and Storage

• Engineer (and Windows)
• 1 byte 8 bits (1 bit is a single 0 or 1)
• 1 kilobyte 1024 bytes (or 210 bytes)
• 1 megabyte 1024 KB (aka 220 bytes)
• 1 gigabyte 1024 MB (230 bytes)
• Marketing Person (and general public)
• 1 kilobyte 1000 bytes
• 1 megabyte 1,000,000 bytes
• 1 gigabyte 1,000,000,000 bytes

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Optical Disc Drives

• CD and DVD burners
• Numerous media
• Know the difference between R and RW
• CD-RW vs. CD-R DVD-R (or DVDR) vs DVD-RW (or
  DVDRW)
• Re-writable media is obsolete (avoid it)
• Useful for backup

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Peripherals

• Printers
• Scanners
• Digital Cameras (maybe)
• Other stuff
• Game controllers Bar code scanners WebCams
  etc.
• USB and Firewire 99 of them

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Networking Hardware

• NIC
• Hubs/Switches
• Routers
• Wireless
• Firewall

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Cables
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Network Hubs

• Small 10/100 baseT
• Inexpensive
• Easy to set up
• Small wireless
• Inexpensive, limited range
• Require wireless cards in computers
• Security issues to consider
• Enterprise 10/100 baseT
• One or more per building floor
• Remote administration

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Computer Types (PC)

• Desktop PC (Personal Computer)
• IBM PC (1981) gt Wintel
• Apple II series (1977) gt Macintosh
• Inexpensive easy to use etc.
• Now a commodity item
• Homogenous good traded mainly on price

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Current Minimums

• 1 GB RAM
• 100 GB Hard Drive
• Built-in network adapter
• All other variables (CPU, display, etc.) are
  probably acceptable.

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Industrial Strength Computer(Server)

• Optimized for specific purpose
• Centrally stored data (patient data images)
• Web pages (web server)
• Managing all printers for a department (print
  server)
• Support multiple simultaneous users
• Security
• High availability
• Redundant parts (disks power supplies etc.)
• Hot-swap parts replacement (dont turn it off)
• Snappy support from vendor (not cheap)

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Servers

• CPU demands different from desktop PC
• Parallelismmultiple CPUs with large cache
• Lots of I/Oseveral hard drives permit redundancy
  (RAID)
• 24/7 operation versus repeated on/off
• Server hardware is much more expensive than
  consumer-grade PC hardware

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Low End Server
(almost looks like a regular desktop PC)
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Rack Server

• (each rack-mounted unit is a complete computer)
• Rack system dates back to telephone industry
• Width is fixed but height can vary

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Blade Servers

• Each blade is an incomplete computer
• The enclosure provides power, etc.

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Laptops/Notebooks

• Small and light
• Low power consumption
• Sturdy
• Secure

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SOFTWARE
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Operating System

• Does all the dirty work
• Interacts with Hardware
• Memory CPU storage
• Drivers for interaction with peripherals
• Presents consistent environment to user
• Windows programs all similar look/feel
• Versus Macintosh (one mouse button!)
• or Linux

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Operating System and Files

• Chunk of related information is a file
• Data file (image Word document PDF article)
• Application file (set of instructions)
• Graphical interface permits interaction with
  files (ie skipping the application layer)
• windows (to view files) folders (to hold
  collections of related files)
• View, organize, copy, delete, move, etc.

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Files

• Files are stored on a hard disk or DVD/CD
• OS interacts with hardware
• OS permits interaction with files
• Graphical metaphor (windows clicking and
  dragging)
• Text interface (command-line you type commands)
• OS can automatically start application if user
  wants to open a data file

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Applications

• Collection of instructions a program
• A file that can do something
• Office productivity software (word, PPT)
• CoPath
• Web browser (Internet Explorer Firefox)
• Some start automatically (anti-virus program)

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Pathologist Applications

• LIS (CP and/or AP)
• EMR/HIS/PACS (hospital chart radiology)
• Office productivity (Word Powerpoint)
• Email
• Web browser (possibly in combination with above)
• Imaging
• Telepathology

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Laboratory Information System Software

• Pathologist workflow (signout grossing QA)
• Patient information
• Surgeon demographics gross description
  diagnosis
• Case images
• Keywords for searching (Snomed Codes)
• Exchange patient info with other systems
• Reporting (print/fax)
• Billing

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Old Style (pre-1999ish)

• Mainframe/terminal architecture
• Powerful mainframe supports access by multiple
  simultaneous users
• Terminals are keyboard/monitor without a box
  (directly hooked up to the mainframe via the
  network )
• All intelligence (computing) occurs in a central
  computer (thats why terminals are dumb)
• Text-based

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Terminal System
Multiple Dumb Terminals
Terminal Server (mainframe computer)
Every keystroke sent to mainframe (like 1
computer box with multiple keyboard/monitor sets)
PC with terminal emulator
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Terminal Text Interface
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Terminal Setup

• Pros
• Workstations are cheap and simple and identical
  (easy to support)
• All software is in the computer room
• Easily updated or changed
• Cons
• Limited to text interface
• Expensive
• Not redundant (ie central vulnerability for
  failure)

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Client-Server Architecture

• Client is more than a dumb terminal
• Examplethe Web
• Client software Internet Explorer
• Server serves web pages to client upon request

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Client Server
Requests sent
Data/info returned
Clients
Servers (may be multiple)
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Client Server

• Clients are regular desktop PCs (cheap)
• Servers are cheaper than mainframe type computers
  (usually)
• Can more cheaply/easily use multiple servers that
  work together
• Permits GUI (like a web page)

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Fat Client (Thick Client)

• Client software is robust/complex
• CoPath Plus
• Google Earth
• Yahoo/MSN/AIM messenger
• Web browser
• Full featured clients but may cause issues
• Updates
• Complexity vulnerability for failure
• Dependent on client computer
• May not work quickly/well

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Thick Client
Clients are complex and must be maintained
Requests sent
Data/info returned
Server
Lots of information is exchanged if a 5MB image
is requested, the transfer occurs across the
network/internet
Clients
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Thick Clients

• Pros
• Better performance with large files
• More computer resources on a thick client (more
  RAM better CPU etc.)
• Less demand on servers than thin clients (the
  alternative)

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Thin Client

• Most of the computing occurs on the server
• Like a modern dumb terminal
• Examples Citrix Stentor web browsers (sorta)
• Citrix is an environment upon which one can run
  other programs (like firing up Word from within
  CoPathyoure firing it up on the server, not on
  the local computer)
• Real Thin clients are very sparse (almost dumb)
• Just enough to get onto a network and connect
  with a server (in theory)

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Middleware

• This is (sometimes home-made) software that helps
  2 different software systems interact
• Exampleinterface software that links APLIS to
  the ADT (admission/discharge transaction) system
• ExampleEndnote is middleware that permits one to
  integrate electronic search engine data (medline)
  into word documents

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Pathology Middleware

• Currently under development
• Improving APLIS workflow
• Images
• Login management
• Pathology information integration (research, EMR
  systems)
• Pathology PACS (Stentor for pathology images
  including virtual slides
• Helper apps (mitosis counters) that would
  assist pathologists and automatically interact
  with CoPath or EMR

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Summary

• Reviewed the components of a microcomputer and
  how they work together
• Discussed typical peripheral connections
• Reviewed basic network hardware and cabling
• Brief overview of types of softwareoperating
  system vs. applications