My IGCSE ICT class is studying operating systems right now. One of the eternal computing debates is MAC vs. PC, and operating systems are a large part of this debate. The problem is you get a lot of people who are so passionate on one side or the other that their judgement comes across as a little too biased. Below is a video that presents a much more balanced view of the two operating systems:

Of course those are not the only two operating systems available. Many people believe that open source operating systems like Linux are the way to go over both the PC and MAC options. Chirs Pirillo, an avid videographer and knowledgeable computer user, weighs in on Linux:

What do you think?

In our Hardware & Software unit today my IGCSE ICT class spent a great deal of time discussing various printing issues.  My students demonstrated how young they really are (or perhaps how old I really  am?!) by admitting they have never seen a dot matrix printer in action.  Here are some of the videos we watched & discussed:

1. Are you old enough to remember dot matrix printers? Here’s one in action.
2. Here is a good, if a little long winded comparison of Ink-jet versus Laser printers.
3. Want to save money with printing? Here are some tips from PC World for saving money for printing :.
4. Finally, the shocking truth about the cost of inkjet cartridges.

In our hardware unit we discussed USB ports and how in the past many peripheral devices had their own style of port.  This has obviously changed and so many things are connected to PCs with USB ports.  Check out these devices that have USB capability.  Did you know about these?

Included here are some buying guides from Future Shop, an electronics store from Canada.  While I don’t necessarily recommend the store (I have purchased some hardware from them with mixed results) I do think their buying guides are a good place to start to learn what to look for when buying hardware.  Some of the ones to look at include:

• Desktop Buying Guide
• Laptop Buying Guide
• Printer Buying Guide
• Monitor Buying Guide

As well their advice for 10 Home Office Essentials might come in handy for my IGCSE students when they do their research task for purchasing hardware & software.

For all the guides Future Shop has to offer go here.

One of the assessed tasks for my IGCSE ICT class is to buy a computer system given a certain budget. Techspot.com`s guide to buying PCs might come in handy.

Handling and maintaining all technology is important, but especially your portable devices.  Here is some good advice for handling laptops.