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Learn MoreComputers for Mere Mortals
Rating: 4.2 out of 54.2(12 ratings)
22 students
Computers for Mere Mortals
Simplifying the computer for everyone. Computer basics. Computer Concepts.
Created byPaul Sleeper
Last updated 6/2025
English
English [Auto],
What you'll learn
- This is a computer course for non computer people
- Learning basic computer terms.
- Computer concepts explained in short concise lectures
- The basics of security and networking explained.
Explore related topics
Course content
9 sections • 106 lectures • 7h 5m total length
- Introduction Computers for Mere Mortals1:08
Explain the basics of computer technology in plain terms, preparing you for an IT career or becoming an average computer user, demystifying tech support terms in fast lectures.
- Computer History in Less than 10 Minutes4:59
- How fast is my Computer?12:56
Discover how computer speed depends on multiple buses and bottlenecks, including memory, drives, and CPU, and how cache, multi-core processing, and refresh cycles shape performance.
- The answer to how fast is my computer1:52
Identify computer speed by clock speed, the primary hard drive, and network performance; Windows relies on fast drives, while memory matters for graphics and gaming.
- Solid State2:18
- DRAM2:22
Explore dynamic ram and how its data doesn't last long. Learn how the CPU uses columns and rows, aided by the DMA controller, to locate memory for reading and writing.
- Cache me if you can3:38
- Backups1:24
Learn to create two backups: a local backup on NAS, USB drives, or SD cards, and a remote off-site copy stored at a family member’s home or a data facility.
- Backup Software1:29
Explore using the built-in backup software on Windows and Apple, target backups to a NAS, an SD card, or Time Machine for Mac, and consider third-party options if needed.
- Bit Width in Computers - why my computer is called 64 bit.6:26
Understand how 64-bit CPUs use shift registers to perform binary addition and subtraction, how ascii fits in eight-bit data, and data buses and word sizes expand memory and address capacity.
- Math Co-Proccessor2:30
Learn how the math coprocessor uses a shift register with an extra column as a floating point to manage decimal point for Maya and AutoCAD geometry, later integrated into CPU.
- GPU Explained3:11
Discover how the gpu handles video data and heavy computation, enabling real-time rendering and powerful math work with tools like Matlab, and learn why modern gpus power standalone supercomputers.
- Email Security4:27
Learn essential email security in under ten minutes by treating emails as deceptive, avoid using email as an account ID, never share passwords, and never click links in emails.
- My Computer Overheated4:43
Learn why CPUs overheat, from wattage and heat transfer to cooling options like heat sinks, fans, and liquid cooling with glycol-based coolant; check airflow and environment to prevent overheating.
- The Smell of Electronic Death3:51
Explore how thermal runaway overheats chips, melts connections, and causes short circuits and vaporized metal, producing the distinctive smell of electronic death.
- Storing a Computer Long Term2:21
Learn how to store a laptop or desktop long-term, including removing the battery pack, inspecting the CMOS battery, and replacing it before reuse; dispose at recycling centers rather than trash.
- What is an OS?3:29
Explore what an operating system is, from Windows variants to Apple OS, Linux flavors, and Unix, and how GUI and command line interfaces shape user interaction.
- Software updates for your OS, Windows, IOS, Apple and Linux.2:26
Install updates promptly on Windows, Apple, and Linux, as urgent security updates protect systems; despite occasional breaks, the risk of not updating is greater than game compatibility issues.
- USB2:20
Understand the universal serial bus (USB) as a simplified evolution of RS-232 and RS-444 that enables multiple devices via port extenders, with USB 1, 2, and 3 offering data speeds.
- ROM2:33
Explore read-only memory (rom) and its variations, including eprom and erasable rom, with examples from cd-roms, punch cards, dvds, and write-once formats.
- Ransomware4:01
Protect your data from ransomware by keeping offsite backups, including a recent copy and a three-to-six-month-old copy, and use antivirus on devices and NAS, then shut down daily.
- Computer Viruses2:57
Define computer viruses and their nefarious purposes. Prevent infections by avoiding suspicious links and downloads from reputable sources, using a reliable virus scanner, and backing up against ransomware.
- Interpreted or Compiled Programs - The two types of programs4:30
- What is a BUS and what is an IRQ?5:34
- What is the BIOS?3:09
- The CPU2:15
Explain how a central processing unit uses multiple cores inside one CPU. Note bus bottlenecks that limit gains with cores or CPUs and mention bit width from 8-bit to 128-bit.
- Clock speed and overclocking7:03
- What is RAM?2:10
What does the term RAM mean and what is RAM
- Magnetic Recording5:54
- Data Storage2:02
- NAS - Network Addressed Storage1:41
- Hard drive basics for magnetic drives10:49
- SATA drives4:06
- Drive arrays It's RAID4:42
- Don't call me FAT2:42
The File Allocation Table - FAT, FAT16 and FAT32 - let go back to the 70s!
- NTFS - New Technology File System3:16
NTFS what it is and why.
- MBR and GPT drives2:43
Understand MBR vs GPT drives, how the master boot record locates bootable files, why GPT supports larger drives and a larger namespace, and RAID implications for MBR security.
- Dynamic and Basic volumes and drives.3:43
- Folders and Directories2:31
explains the historical distinction between directories and folders, shows legacy dos commands like dir, cd, md, and rd, and notes ntfs security limits and backward compatibility.
- What is a file?3:09
Files are collections of data points, built from bits, with a header, body, and footer; metadata describes type, extension, language, formatting, and security.
- What is Namespace?6:07
Explore how namespace limits constrain how many file names a folder can hold across dos, linux, and ntfs, with examples from desktop clutter, data collection, and credit card terminals.
- You've been hacked - what to do first5:21
Notify the local police, check fraud coverage with your insurer, then have your bank audit transactions and change usernames and gibberish passwords stored in an offline vault such as Keepass.
- You've been hacked - remote work4:23
Learn how to spot internet fraud in remote work, avoid downloading untrusted programs, and use a separate business computer for security and legal compliance.
- You've been hacked - Device recovery6:04
- You've been hacked - banking5:35
Explore credit, debit, and cheques/ACH forms, with credit fraud disputeable without proof. Handle compromised accounts by contacting your bank and changing passwords; prefer safer transfers like PayPal or Fed transfers.
- You've been hacked - reporting to police4:04
- You've been hacked - online recovery tools2:49
If you've been hacked, online recovery tools are often unreliable or fraudulent; recover manually via offline backups, factory reset, or visiting a trusted retailer, while avoiding unsolicited links.
- You've been hacked - ransomware3:33
Discover how to respond to ransomware: avoid paying, rely on backups, restore to factory settings, reinstall Windows, and recover files from backups, plus spot phishing emails.
- You've been hacked - prevention3:04
Back up your documents, photos, and files using USB drives, SD cards, and offline drives, and maintain three backups: recent, three months old, and six months old.
- You've been hacked - not your fault2:43
Recognize that being hacked is not your fault and that data is transitory. Learn how backups and redundancy reduce risk, and how to shield systems from ransomware and viruses.
- You've been hacked - Mental health4:02
When you’re hacked, protect your mental health by seeking counseling and using resources like 988 and the employee assistance program (EAP) to recover with support.
- Disposable batteries2:41
Explore disposable battery technologies, focusing on lithium disposable batteries versus rechargeable types, their best uses in smoke detectors, keyboards, and mice, leakage risks, and outdoor temperature performance.
- Rechargeable batteries4:36
Explore rechargeable battery technologies—lead acid, gel cell, nickel cadmium, lithium ion, and nickel iron—focusing on safety, energy density, and hazards like hydrogen gas and thermal runaway.
- UPS Explained2:05
Learn how an uninterruptible power supply keeps a computer powered by switching to battery within 1/60th of a second, delivering clean power and 120v, with capacitors charging for 2-3 cycles.
- Battery Fire3:04
- TCP/IP IPv4 and IPv63:31
- LAN - Local Area Network1:09
- WAN - Wide Area Network and Internet2:10
This lecture explains how wide area networks differ from local area networks, why WAN speeds use bits per second, and speeds from 50 mbps to 1 gbps.
- What Is a router1:42
A router connects a local area network to another network or the internet, often as an edge router with wifi, dhcp, firewall, anti-spoofing, and anti-virus.
- DHCP2:15
- Wi-Fi2:05
Wi‑Fi is a radio technology that acts like a wide area network with a range over 100m, limited channels, and requires a pre‑shared key for encryption.
- My Wi-Fi was Hacked3:08
- Wi-Fi Security Walk though12:12
Secure a TP-Link wifi router by enabling WPA2 personal, using a long complex PSK, avoiding disable security, backing up configurations, and enabling isolation, MAC filtering, and WPS for strong security.
- WiFi Signals and Signal Strength11:19
- Time to get your own router2:12
Boost home and small business network security by using your own router. Connect the ISP router's WAN port to a TP-Link router, then to a switch.
- Network Managed Switch, Un-Managed Switch and Dumb Hub1:27
Explore how a network switch manages a local area network and vlans, compare it with an unmanaged switch, and explain how a dumb hub shares connectivity.
- Internet Security - Banking3:07
- Printers - connection types2:14
- Printers - prnter type and the print quality2:10
Explore printer types from laser and inkjet to dot-matrix and typeface printers, including use cases in shipping and maritime contexts and limitations like ASCII-only fonts and fixed typefaces.
- Color Printers3:55
- Pen Plotters2:06
What is a Pen Plotter
- Ink Jet printers - how they work4:29
The function of a ink jet printer
- How a Laser printer works6:31
How a laser printer prints.
- What to Know when buying a computer1:03
What are the factors that will help you buy the right computer for what you do? In this lecture series I will tel you what you need to know.
- Laptop or Desktop3:00
When do I buy a Laptop or Desktop?
- The Laptop or Notebook when do we need them3:00
When should I buy a Laptop or Notebook
- What to get if you travel6:08
When we travel with a Laptop, Notebook or Tablet what is going to be best suited to how we travel?
- Tablet and Convertables2:42
What is the differance between a Tablet and a Convertable?
- Mini-Tower, Mid-Tower and Full Tower.3:04
When do I buy a tower PC and why do I want them?
- Air-cooled or Liquid-cooled.4:57
What is the differance between Air-cooled and Liquid cooled PCs?
- Buying a Desktop5:23
What kind of Desktop should I buy?
- The ultra small systems.2:11
What are ultra small PC and when do we use them.
- What is a PC processing power?4:26
How do I rate a PCs processing power and when do I need a more powerful CPU?
- How Much Drive space and DRAM Memory.5:43
How big a Hard drive should I get and how much memory do I need?
- Should I get a SSD or a Physical drive?4:31
What are the advantages of SSDs and Physical Drives and what applications do we use one or the other for?
- The referbished PC.3:13
Should I buy a used or refurbished PC?
- Hardware requirments of your software2:58
- All in One Systems3:00
- Where and How to Buy your PC1:59
Visit original equipment manufacturer sites like dell.com or hp.com to explore and build pc configurations before shopping at retailers or online stores such as Amazon or Newegg.
- Laptop accessories3:02
What accessories should I get with my laptop.
- When not to Buy a PC5:47
Emloyement scams and BYOD at work
- Has the price of Personel computers come down?7:22
Computers stay within a similar price band of 800 to 3,000 dollars, relative to inflation, while processing power has surged since the IBM system/360 era.
- Microsoft Windows over the years9:52
Trace the evolution of Microsoft Windows from early 16-bit systems to modern 64-bit versions, detailing memory management, compatibility, and the shift toward subscription models.
- The best Operating system in each decade, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s.7:44
Trace the evolution of personal operating systems from the 1980s to the 2010s, highlighting dos five, OS/2, and Windows 98, XP, and 7, plus desqView's role and longevity debates.
- What is a Server2:55
A server is a computer that serves data or services to a workstation, such as file storage, a printer queue, or application data.
- The Terminal server7:21
- Server software4:01
- Server OS7:40
Trace the evolution of server operating systems from dos-based networks and novell to nt and os/2 server, leading to Active Directory and modern options like Server 2022 Essentials.
- Server Hardware5:25
Discover how server hardware achieves reliability for 24/7 operation with dual power supplies. Explore raid arrays, multiple drives, and data center design concepts used in servers.
- Cloud Server4:57
Explore how cloud servers differ from traditional setups, with managed options from AWS, Google, and Microsoft, including maintenance, VPN access, and data centers.
- Fake Computers - Not a good idea3:37
- That Should Have been Bolted down.2:24
- Smoking is bad - For computers3:37
- There is a reason it's called a Telecom Rack3:05
Discover why telco racks are not server racks by examining a column collapse that toppled stacked servers and caused network downtime.
- The printer stand.5:31
Recounting a bygone era, the talk shows how printer stands, designed for dot matrix printers, were repurposed to hold early servers, causing a collapse and a shift to baker's racks.
- Thank you for doing whatever you do.7:00
Requirements
- This is a basic course explaining computers as simply as possible.
Description
This is a course the quickly and simply explains a number of computer terms and attributes. This course is for the computer novice and beginner. You don’t need to know anything about computers, networking or computer types. I will cover LAN, WAN, TCP/IP networking terms. I will explain the parts of the computer. We will talk about RAM, ROM, SDRAM, SRAM and other memory terms. This will include how we rate CPUs and what is computer speed. How is memory addressed. What are the printer types. How does Magnetic media work. What is a hard drive. What is an SSD. Backups, Backup Software and NAS storage. What is a Virus, Ransomware and how to protect my PC. What is cache and buffer? Internet security basics. Email Security. Phishing and protection from Internet theft. Password and username size and complexity. On-Line banking. Battery types. Battery fire and what to do. Disposable batteries. What is a router. Storing a computer you are not using for a extend period. WIFI what is it? Wi-Fi security. Local network Security. Should you be getting your own router? Heat management in a computer. Liquid cooled computers. Managing Windows and IOS Software updates. Anecdotal stories of computers and IT stories.
Who this course is for:
- The home or small business computer users, the aspiring IT professional or future developer.