P4,M4 and D4 User Guide

P4, M4 and D4 User Guide.

Lan Connection Via ps3.

Managing my time and resources: when setting up the console I had to be quick when setting up and configuring the consoles so that my colleagues could equally have the time and opportunity to set up and configure the consoles. also I had to use the resources provided to set up the consoles so that others can equally set up consoles at the same time.

Software Technologies (p3)

Software Technologies.

 

 

Platform Dependency

 

 

Dependent: Hardware-dependent is a program or programming language that is designed only to work on specific hardware device. For example, a game could be hardware-dependent and only work with PC (IBM compatible) hardware, which would cause the game to be incompatible with an Apple computer.

 

Independent: Is when a program can be run on either any hardware platform (e.g. Pc or Mac) or any software platform(e.g. OS x, windows or Linux).Programs written in Java tend to be able to run on practically any platform.

 

Operating systems

The operating system is the most important program that runs on a computer. Every general-purpose computer must have an operating system to run other programs. Operating systems perform basic tasks, such as recognizing input from the keyboard, sending output to the display screen, keeping track of files and directories on the disk, and controlling peripheral devices such as disk drives and printers. Examples of operating systems are :

 

 

 

OS X mavericks: The new os comes with over 200 new features to make the use of the pc even more amazing. Features include iBook’s, multiple display support, maps, calendar, safari 7, cloud keychain, finder tabs, notifications and tags. Those are some of the most notable and best features that have been added since they make using the pc simpler.

 

 

Windows 8: Windows 8 equally have an impressive haul of new features that amaze users. Some are secret start menu, sync settings, windows defender, simple shut down, built in screenshots, keyboard shortcuts, snap your apps, file history, iso support, reinstall windows are just some as many brilliant features added to the new windows OS.

 

 

Drivers


A driver is software that allows your computer to communicate with hardware or devices. Without drivers, the hardware you connect to your computer for example, a video card or a printer won't work properly. examples of drivers are: Soundcard driver and  graphics card driver

 

Soundcard drivers: when you want to Listen to audio from a computer system, it requires a sound card. With the right type of sound card, you can turn an average  computer into an entertainment system. But in order to make the sound card actually work, you'll also need a sound card driver.

Graphics card driver:The graphics components are the part of your computer that control and enhance how graphics (pictures, videos, programs, animation and 3D) are displayed on your computer screen.The graphics driver is a program that controls how your graphic components work with the rest of your computer, your software, like SketchUp, your monitor, and so on.


Application software

Application software is all the computer software that causes a computer to perform useful tasks beyond the running of the computer itself.
 

 

Interpreted language: is a programming language. The interpreter executes the program source code directly, statement by statement, as a processor or scripting engine does interpreted tend to be slower than compiled but don't need any compliers which are expensive.

Compiled language: Compiled Language: A language that requires a compiler program to turn programming source code into an executable machine-language binary program. After compiling once, the program can continue to be run from its binary form without compiling again examples are C and C++.

Scripting :A high-level programming language that is interpreted by another program at runtime rather than compiled by the computer's processor as other programming languages (such as C and C++) are.

 

Graphical API

Graphical Api: application programming interface is the software that renders the video you see on the screen an example is direct X9 which has high frames per second.

OpenGL (Open Graphics Library) is the computer industry's standard application program interface (API) for defining 2-D and 3-D graphic images.

Windows supports DirectX 8.0, which enhances the multimedia capabilities of your computer. DirectX provides access to the capabilities of your display and audio cards, which enables programs to provide realistic three-dimensional graphics and immersive music and audio effects.

 

Sound API

Sound API: is very similar to graphical API's as well in the sense that they equally come in libraries. an example of a sound API is direct sound.

DirectSound is a software component of the Microsoft DirectX library for the Windows operating system. DirectSound provides a low-latency interface to the sound card driver and can handle the mixing and recording of multiple audio streams.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Analysing Hardware of game platforms. (P2,M2 and D2)

Hardware technologies for game platforms. 

 

 

 

CPU: The CPU of the XBOX 360 is called the XENON. The processor was initially called “water noose” which was named after a character from monster Inc. There are four types of xenon’s due to the Generations and modifications of the XBOX 360 over the years. They are called xenon- XCPUES, XCPU Zephyr, XCPU falcon and XCGPU. The speed of the xenon is measured in GHz. The cache is a smaller, faster memory which stores copies of the data from frequently used main memory locations. The speed of the XENON is measured in GHz and is clocked at 3.2 GHz.

Address Bus: A collection of wires connecting the CPU with main memory that is used to identify particular locations (addresses) in main memory.

 

GPU: Graphics processing unit. The Xbox 360 boasts the new, custom-built 500-MHz ATI Graphics Processor card with 10 MB of embedded DRAM.GPU clock is the graphics processor unit's (GPU) clock speed, measured in megahertz (MHz).
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Memory types: on the x box 360 you can buy certain memory types e.g. 120GB or the 250GB hard drive x box 360s these massive hard drives give you the option to be able to install games onto your hard drive so if the disk scratches you can still play the game. You can also connect you portable of flash drives and move or play or use files of them And equally install games on them.

Also you have different memory types such as hard drive and flash drive.

Hard drive: A portable hard drive is a type of digital storage device. It is generally convenient to transport and has a large storage capacity. Such a device is compatible with most computers and will generally operate with Windows and Mac. People tend to store things such as games and game saves on them also movies and songs.

 

 

Advantages:

• Large amounts of memory
• recovers data much faster than a floppy disk or CD-ROM
•  data is not lost when you switch off the computer

Disadvantages:

•  hard disks ultimately fail

Flash Drive: A small, portable flash memory card that plugs into a computer USB port and functions as a portable hard drive. USB flash drives are touted as being easy-to-use as they are small enough to be carried in a pocket and can plug into any computer with a USB drive. USB flash drives have less storage capacity than an external hard drive, but they are smaller and more durable because they do not contain any internal moving parts. These can also be used to store games and loads more depending on the game storage.

Advantages:

• Portable
• uses little power
• Data stored on flash drives is impervious to mechanical shock, magnetic fields, scratches and dust

Disadvantages:

• Can only sustain a small amount format life cycles.

 

Other memory types include:

RAM: Random access memory, a type of computer memory that can be accessed randomly, that is, any byte of memory can be accessed without touching the preceding bytes. RAM is the most common type of memory found in computers and other devices.


SRAM:A

type of memory chip which is faster and requires less power than dynamic memory.

Human-computer interface: the study, planning, and design of the interaction between people (users) and computers. My study is about the x box 360 

Interface: is a type of computer device that interacts directly with, and most often takes input from, humans and may deliver output to humans. The interface device for the x box 360 is the gamepad which involves analogues as well as the d pad. The controller has 2 types, wired and wireless, the wired controller connects to one of the four USB ports that can be found on either the front or back of the console, whereas the wireless controller connects via an infrared sensor planted on the console also.  

 

 

Game storage medium: for the X box 360 include flash memory and DVD drive.

 

 

Flash memory: Can be used on the latest consoles to transfer data, saved games, downloaded files, profiles and is a useful means of extra storage for consoles with low memory built however only new consoles support flash memory therefore they already have the necessary hard drive capacity needed.

 

DVD: is another means of storage as they can be used to store data, boot operating systems, run games, videos and music. DVD allow users to travel with the data easily as there small and most gaming devices are compatible with them.

Advantages:

• Portable
• data stored in compact format

Disadvantages:

• Easily corrupted

UMD: Universal Media Disc, ) is an optical disc medium developed by Sony for use on their PlayStation Portable handheld gaming and multimedia platform. It can hold up to 1.8 gigabytes of data and is capable of housing video games, feature-length films, and music.
Advantages:

• portable
• multiple storages options such as (games, videos and more)

Disadvantages:

• Only has 1.8 Gb memory
• only works on some versions of the PlayStation portable

Connectivity: For the x box 360 include USB ports, Wi-Fi and Lan.
USB ports: are a way of connectivity because you can connect  devices such as flash drives, hard drives, Kinect sensor and the wired controller. without these the use of the x box would be of lesser use and meaning.

  Wi-Fi: enables the X box 360 to be connected to the internet wirelessly and effortlessly. This enables the x box to access its online feature which is x box live, this enables gamers to be able to play and interact online with millions of other gamers worldwide.

 
Lan: enables you to play system link on the x box 360, System link play is a form of multiplayer gaming that lets you connect two Xbox 360 consoles by using a cable or up to 16 consoles through a network. With linked consoles, multiple players can play the same game. This type of multiplayer gaming is different from split-screen multiplayer gaming, in which all the players are connected to the same console
Other types of connectivity include WAN, GPRS, WAP and Bluetooth.

WAN: Wide Area Network, Wide-Area Networks are commonly connected either through the Internet or special arrangements made with phone companies or other service providers.

GPRS: General packet radio service, is a packet oriented mobile data service available to users of the 2G cellular communication systems global system for mobile communications (GSM), as well as in the 3G systems.

WAP: wireless application protocol. Wireless Application Protocol, a secure specification that allows users to access information instantly via handheld wireless devices such as mobile phones, pagers, two-way radios, smartphones and communicators.


Bluetooth: A standard for the short-range wireless interconnection of mobile phones, computers, and other electronic devices.

 

 

Power supply: The power supply is incredibly vital because it controls the power going in and out of the console and it controls what voltage to run at so that it does not overheat.