Basic English for Computing / Basic English for Computing (Units) / UNIT 7

Output devices

It is common for people to spend long periods of time in front of a computer. This can be detrimental to their health unless they follow a few simple guidelines. It is important that they remain relaxed and comfortable and that they avoid eyestrain. To achieve this, they must have appropriate furniture, lighting, and computer equipment – and must make sure that it is positioned correctly. The term workstation is sometimes used to describe a very powerful desktop computer but in this unit it refers to the furniture and environment used for working with a computer.

A printer is a very common output device. It is used to print the computer output on paper. Colour printers are available but sometimes printing is done using a mono printer that prints only in blaсk. The types of printer mentioned in this unit are inkjet, laser mono, and dye sublimation. Each type of printer has its own advantages and disadvantages.

A monitor is the most common type of output device. It displays the output from the computer on a screen. Because the user sees the computer in action using the monitor screen, the quality of the monitor can make a tremendous difference to the way the user interacts with the computer, and feels about the computer. The display image on a monitor screen can be thought of as being made up of a series of dots. The quality of the image depends on a number of factors including:

Factors	Affected by
the number of dots	the resolution
the space between dots	the aperture grill pitch (or dot pitch)
how often the dots are refreshed by the beam of light	the refresh rate
the size of the dots	the size of the screen and the resolution

Although technical factors are discussed in this unit, subjective preferences are important when choosing a monitor. The only way to choose a good monitor is by trying to use it.

^{7 Output devices}

Tuning-in

Task 1 Think about a typical workstation. Match the items (1-7) to the guidelines (a-g).

1 keyboard	4 copyholder	7 printer
2 monitor screen	5 chair
3 lamp	6 footrest

a This should be adjustable and provide good back support.

b This should be more than a metre away from you and as quiet as possible.

с Keep this level with your eyes. Don't have it level with the desk. Make sure

it is flicker-free, and that you can read everything easily. Avoid any glare

from the window.

d Use this if your feet do not rest flat on the floor.

e Make sure this lights your work and not the screen.

f Don't get a stiff neck. Use this when you enter a lot of data.

g Keep this directly in front of you and within easy reach.

Listening: Printers

Task 2 Work in groups of three: A, B, and C. You are going to hear about three kinds of printer. Note down what the speaker says about one type only as your teacher directs. Use the table below.

Student A Take notes about dot-matrix printers.

Student В Take notes about laser printers.

Student С Take notes about inkjet printers.

Type	Print quality	Speed	Running costs	Noise level	Price	Colour
Dot-matrix	low		cheap			No
Inkjet		relatively slow			a bit more
Laser			expensive	quiet

Task 3 Now exchange information with other students in your group to complete the table for all three kinds of printer. Ask questions like these.

What's the print quality like?

How fast is it?

Does it cost a lot to run?

How noisy is it?

Is it expensive?

Reading: How to read a monitor ad

Task 4 Study this text about monitors. Then decide if each statement is true or false. Give reasons for your answers.

1 Twenty-two inches is a common monitor size.

2 A dot pitch of 0.31 mm is better than one of 0.2 5 mm.

3 A maximum resolution of 1600 X 1200 is better than 1280 X 1024.

4 A refresh rate of 85Hz is better than one of 75Hz.

5 A 17-inch monitor is 17 inches wide.

6 You can change the picture using controls on the screen.

7 The price of a monitor depends only on the size.

8 The monitor uses less power because of the Power-Saver feature.

Price The price mainly depends on the screen size. Common monitor sizes are 14-inch, 15-inch, 17-inch, and 21-inch.The price also depends on aperture grill pitch, resolution, and the number of controls. Screen size The size of the screen is the diagonal distance from one corner to another.The actual area for images is smaller than this. Aperture grill pitch This controls the space between the dots which make up the image. The less space between the dots, the better the display. Most monitors offer 0.28mm dot pitch but some go as high as 0.31mm or as low as 0.25mm. Maximum resolution The quality of the display depends on the number of dots which make up the image.The more dots, the better the display. Refresh rate The monitor refreshes the image on the screen all the time. The faster this happens, the less the screen flickers. You should have a refresh rate of at least 72Hz. Safety standards These are international standards to control harmful signals. Power-saving feature The power the monitor uses automatically reduces when it is not in use. On-screen menu Digital controls on the screen allow you to adjust the image.

5 10 15

Task 5 Work in pairs, A and B. Each of you has details of a monitor. Ask your partner about his/her monitor and complete the table below.

Student A Your monitor details are on page 118.

Student В Your monitor details are on page 119.

Screen size __________________________________________________

Aperture grill pitch ___________________________________________

Maximum resolution __________________________________________

Refresh rate _________________________________________________

Price _______________________________________________________

Language work: Giving advice

You can advise people in different ways. Study these examples.

Advising people to do something: Why don't you buy an inkjet? (I think) you should buy a laser.

Advising people not to do something: Don't buy a dot matrix. You shouldn't buy a laser.

To make your advice more effective, add a reason.

advice reason Why don't you buy an inkjet? They're very quiet. (I think) you should buy a laser. The print quality is excellent. Don't buy a dot matrix. They're very noisy. You shouldn't buy a laser. They're very expensive.

We use too to make our advice stronger, almost a warning. Study these examples. You should adjust your monitor. It's too bright. You should move your printer. It's too close.

Task 6 Advise the user of this workstation on improvements she should make.

Example I think you should use a chair with back support. It's more comfortable.

Problem-solving

Task 7 Work in pairs. Study this flowchart for choosing a printer. Decide which is the best kind of printer for these users. Someone who needs to:

1 print forms with two parts

2 print high quality black and white copies

3 print a lot of colour photos in a short time

4 print a few copies - colour and speed are not important

5 print a few pages in colour.

Writing

Task 8 Fill in the gaps in this comparison of printers.

There are three different types of printer: dot-matrix, inkjet, and laser.

Dot-matrix printers are the ¹ _____________ kind of printer,

² _________ their print quality is low and they are slow and

³ _________. They are ⁴ ______________to run.

Inkjets are ⁵ ____________ expensive, but you get ⁶ __________

quality and quieter operation. However, they are relatively ⁷ ___________

and also ⁸ ___________ to run. They are a good choice for colour.

Laser printers give the ⁹ ___________ quality of output. They print

¹⁰ _______ than either of the other two ¹¹ __________of printer

and they cost ¹² ___________ to run than an inkjet. Unfortunately, they

¹³ ____________ almost twice as ¹⁴ ____________ as an inkjet.