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A computer monitor, or simply a monitor, is the screen on which you view things from your computer. As you are reading this, you’re probably reading it on a monitor – either on your laptop, your desktop, or even a mobile phone or PDA. In any case, the monitor has a very important job. A good monitor should see you through several computer upgrades, so it is important to choose a good one.

There are several types of monitor – cathode ray tube (or CRT) and Liquid Crystal Display (or LCD).

CRT.

CRT monitors work by an electron gun shooting electrons down the CRT to the screen, where the electrons cause the phosphor coating lining the screen to glow. On the coating there are dots, one of each colour (red, green and yellow) – each dot is called a pixel.

CRT monitors are large and bulky but cheap. They generally need slightly more room than their screen size, so a 17″ monitor will need 18-19 inches deep (size is measured diagonally).

They are not as common these days, with the more advanced LCD monitors becoming the choice for people updating their systems.

LCD.

LCD works by blocking light – specifically, they are made of two pieces of polarised glass, with a liquid crystal material between them. A light is passed through the first piece of glass, and at the same time, electrical currents cause the molecules of liquid crystal to align, allowing varying levels of light to pass through to the second substrate, creating the colours and images that you see.

Thin Film Transistor LCD (or TFT-LCD) is a type of LCD that works by arranging tiny transistors and capacitors in a matrix on the glass of the display. To turn on particular pixel, the proper row is switched on, and then a charge is sent down the correct column. Since all of the other rows that the column intersects are turned off, only the capacitor at the designated pixel receives a charge. The capacitor is able to hold the charge until the next refresh cycle.

Generally speaking, no matter how big a screen on a LCD monitor, they are usually only an inch or two deep. However, the angle at which the monitor is positioned can make it difficult to view due to fading.

Other things to consider are:
· The refresh rate, as it can help reduce eye strain – at least 60 Hz is recommended, 75Hz is ideal. This does not apply to LCD screens, as they turn each pixel off individually.

· Resolution is the amount of pixels on a screen, and together with refresh rate they decide picture quality. See what the highest resolution is at 85Hz to give you an idea of how good the picture will be. Something to note is that when resolution increases, the writing on a screen will decrease. LCD monitors only display well at the resolution at which they were designed – this is called the native resolution.

· Dot pitch is the distance between adjacent pixels – around 0.26 for a 17″ monitor is good.

· Controlling the picture quality is essential – check to see how easy they are to use, so you know how to adjust contrast, brightness and alignment.

· Warranty – how long is it and do they offer an extended warranty?

· “Dead Pixel Policy” – what do they allow for? Look carefully before you decide to buy a monitor. You don’t want to be stuck with a monitor full of dead pixels that disturb your viewing on the monitor.

Knowing what you want is only half the battle of getting a good bargain on a monitor – knowing what’s what so you can go in well-armed with knowledge is the other half.

Wi-Fi, short for wireless fidelity refers to a set of wireless networking technologies more specifically referred to as any type of 802.11 network, 802.11b and 802.11a, dual band. The word Wi-Fi was built by an organization called the Wi-Fi Alliance. They overlook tests that confirm the production.

A product that undergoes the alliance analyses is given the name “Wi-Fi certified”. In earlier times, the term “Wi-Fi” was used only in place of the 2.4 GHz 802.11b.standard. It rapidly gained in fame with access points across the Unites States.

These standards are generally in used around the world, and allow users that have Wifi capable device, like a laptop or PDA to connect anywhere there is available Wi-Fi access point.

There are three standards referred to signify the speed of connection. Both the 802.11a and 802.11b are the ones capable of 54 MBPS with 802.11a additional capabilities.

802.11b are the most common of the three standards because it can transmit at 11 Megabits per Second even though the faster WI-Fi standards are quickly changing it. However, all these Wi-Fi standards are fast enough to generally allow a broadband connection.

Wireless Fidelity is an appearing technology that will probably be as common as electric outlets and phone lines in a few years. It adds great levels of convenience and high level of production for workers whose offices have a Wi-Fi access.

It is intentionally planned to be use for wireless devices but is now often used for Internet access. You can connect computers anywhere, in or out your home or office without needing wires. They are just connected to the network that uses radio signals. Even travelers can progressively equip Wi-Fi in airports, coffee shops, Internet cafes, malls, and hotels around the world.

How does W-Fi work?

Wi-Fi is the wireless way to handle networking. Wi-Fi allocates a worldwide Internet connection to be transmitted through radio waves. Radio waves are the ones that make Wi-Fi run and exist. They permit Wi-Fi networking occurs between many people. These waves are transmitted from antennae and Wi-Fi receivers are picking them up. The moment a device receives signal within the range of a Wi-Fi network, an Internet connection is produced without a chord and with the use of a Wi-Fi card that reads the signal. The user will be incited with login screen and password if needed once the connection is established between the user and the network.

How secure is Wi-Fi?

Wi-Fi maintains and continues to have numerous security issues. Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) is used in the physical and data link layers. It was planned to provide wireless security by protecting the data while it travels from one point to the other. Contrasting with the wired LANs, their networks are usually inside the building.

Even if it is protected by wireless LANs, they are more exposed due to the fact that the data travels over radio waves which are much easier to capture. One of the reasons why WEP is vulnerable, some other corporations do not even change their shared keys for a long time. The keys are too long to be used. With that much time, the key can get into other hands and use it in a wrong motive, which could be disastrous for the corporation.