The document discusses various types of internal and external cables and connections used in computing. It describes basic internal cables like the FDD cable and IDE/EIDE cables. It then outlines several external connection types like serial, parallel, PS/2, SCSI, sound connectors, network connectors, USB, IEEE 1394, and eSATA. Finally, it separates display device connections into analog connections like RCA, S-Video, component, and VGA, and digital connections such as DVI, HDMI, and DisplayPort.

1. Cables and
connections.

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Instructor, PACE-IT Program – Edmonds Community College
Areas of Expertise Industry Certifications
 PC Hardware
 Network Administration
 IT Project Management
 Network Design
 User Training
 IT Troubleshooting
Qualifications Summary
Education
 M.B.A., IT Management, Western Governor’s University
 B.S., IT Security, Western Governor’s University
Entrepreneur, executive leader, and proven manger
with 10+ years of experience turning complex issues
into efficient and effective solutions.
Strengths include developing and mentoring diverse
workforces, improving processes, analyzing
business needs and creating the solutions
required— with a focus on technology.

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– Internal cables and connections.
– External cables and connections.
– Display device cables and
connections.
PACE-IT.

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Cables and connections.

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– Floppy disk drive (FDD).
» Contains 34 wires and the connector has 34 pins.
» Up to two FDDs can be connected per cable, with the higher
priority going to the device connected after the twist in the cable.
– Parallel AT attachment (PATA).
» PATA has two basic standards—the integrated drive electronics
(IDE) and enhanced integrated drive electronics (EIDE).
• IDE contains 40 wires and the connector has 40 pins. Up to two
PATA devices can be connected per cable, with the priority
being set by jumpers.
• EIDE contains 80 wires and the connector has 40 pins. It is
backward compatible with IDE, but allows for higher throughput.
Both have a maximum length of 18 inches.
– Serial AT attachment (SATA).
» The cable contains seven wires with seven pins.
» Only one device can be connected per cable, with the priority
being set in the Basic Input/Output System (BIOS).
» The connector is L shaped.
Cables and connections.

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Cables and connections.

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– Serial.
» The most common cable and connection is the nine pin
connector.
» The connector is often called a DB-9 or RS-232 connector (RS-
232 is a serial communications standard).
– Parallel.
» The most common cable and connection is the 25 pin
connector.
» The connector is called a DB-25.
– Personal System/2 (PS/2) or miniDin6.
» It was most often used to connect a mouse and/or a keyboard
to a PC.
» In most cases, the end not connected to the PC was hardwired
into the actual device.
» It used a keyed six pin connector.
Cables and connections.

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– Small Computer System Interface (SCSI).
» SCSI is a standard that involves how peripheral devices
communicate with the PC. It has been implemented through various
cables and connections.
» The most common cable used in implementing SCSI is a ribbon
cable with two or more connectors on it.
» The most common SCSI connectors are:
• 68-pin
• 50-pin
• 25-pin
– Sound connections.
» In many cases, the connections to speakers, microphones, and
subwoofers is made with cables that plug into jacks on the back of
the PC—providing an analog audio sound (each cable caries a
single sound channel).
» The jacks are called tip ring sleeve (TRS) connectors.
» The Sony/Phillips Digital Interconnect Format (S/PDIF) connector
will provide digital sound over a single cable.
Cables and connections.

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– Network connections.
» The registered jack (RJ) 45 (RJ-45) is the most common
modern connector for Ethernet networks.
» RJ-45s use an eight pin modular connector with up to
eight wires being used as conductors (8P8C) to transmit
data.
» The RJ-11 is the most common connector for telephony
and is often used when networking over telephone wiring.
» RJ-11s use a six pin modular connector with up to four
wires being used as conductors (6P4C) to transmit data.
» Coaxial cabling can also be used to make a network
connection.
Cables and connections.

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– Universal Serial Bus (USB) 1.x and 2.0.
» They use the same cables and connections and the connectors
contain either four or five pins.
» Type A USB connectors carry power to the peripheral device
as well as carrying data.
» Type B USB connectors do not provide power to the peripheral
device.
» The maximum length of a USB cable is five meters.
– USB 3.x
» A newer higher speed version of USB.
» USB 3.x devices use a different type of connector for the
peripheral.
» Earlier USB peripheral devices can use standard USB cables
to connect to a USB 3.x port.
» The USB 3.x port on PCs is usually colored blue to differentiate
it from earlier USB versions.
» As long as the cable matches the specifications, there is not a
maximum length for USB 3.x cables.
Cables and connections.

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– IEEE 1394 (FireWire).
» FireWire comes in two current standards:
• FireWire 400: uses a six conductor cable, with a maximum
length of 4.5 meters.
• FireWire 800: uses a nine conductor cable and has a
maximum length of 4.5 meters as well.
– External SATA (eSATA).
» A standard that brings the speed of SATA outside of the PC’s
case.
» eSATA is a type of combination port. It combines a USB port
with a SATA port.
» It has not been approved by the organization that sets the USB
standards, nor by the organization that sets the SATA
standards, so use at your own risk.
Cables and connections.

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Cables and connections.

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– Analog.
» Composite/RCA cable: looks like a TRS cable but can carry
an analog video stream. It results in low resolution.
» S-video cable: is a four pin cable that has better resolution
than a composite cable.
» Component/RGB cable: is a combination of three cables, it
breaks the color components of the video stream into three
discrete channels. This allows for better resolution than S-
video.
» Video Graphics Array (VGA)/DB-15/HD-15: is the analog
display standard that uses a 15 pin D-subminiature connector.
The pins are arranged in three rows of five, which are fitted into
a D shaped shell.
Cables and connections.

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– Digital.
» Digital Visual Interface (DVI): is designed to carry an
uncompressed video stream resulting in a superior image.
• DVI-A (analog): it can only carry an analog stream.
• DVI-D (digital): it can only carry a digital stream.
• DVI-I (integrated): it can carry either a digital or analog
stream.
» High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI): is designed to
carry uncompressed digital video and audio across the same
cable. It provides for a high transfer rate with very good quality.
It comes in two standards:
• HDMI: the full size 19 pin standard.
• Mini-HDMI: smaller but still contains 19 pins; it is not as
robust.
» DisplayPort: is a nonproprietary standard for transmitting high
quality video from a device to a display. It uses a 20 pin
connection. It also comes in various sizes, depending on the
form factor of the device.
Cables and connections.

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Cables and connections.
Basic internal cables and connections include the FDD cable, a 34 pin 34
wire cable. For PATA devices, there is also the IDE cable (40 pin with 40
wires) and the EIDE cable (40 pin with 80 wires). SATA data cables are
seven pin seven wire cables that have an L shaped connector.
Topic
Internal cables and
connections.
Summary
There are many different kinds and types of external cables and
connections. Some of these include: serial, parallel, PS/2, SCSI, sound
connectors, network connectors, USB, IEEE 1394, and eSATA. Each has
its own characteristics and purpose.
External cables and
connections.
Display device cables and connections can be broken up into two basic
categories—analog and digital. Analog connections include: RCA, S-video,
component, and VGA. Digital connections include: DVI, HDMI, and
DisplayPort.
Display device cables and
connections.

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