Irq, Dma & I/O

by Jim Aspinwall

If you embark on the installation of a network card, modem, scanner card, or just about any other peripheral interface in your PC, be prepared: You can easily find yourself lost in an unnerving maze of interrupts, DMA channels, SCSI chains, and other arcane device-management issues. IRQ, DMA & I/O: Resolving and Preventing PC System Conflicts is an invaluable guide that will teach you enough to install and troubleshoot these devices while keeping your system running smoothly.

This book's second edition includes valuable information on SCSI and PCI interfaces, Windows 95 and Windows NT 4.0 device management, and a preview of what Microsoft's PC97 spec for plug-and-play devices will bring to the world of upgrades in the very near future. A handy chapter on the Windows system registry tackles some of its hardware-related mysteries. Diagnostic software on a bundled diskette helps you locate IRQ conflicts, check DMA channel settings, and hunt down devious memory-address anomalies. Most impressive is how the author breathes life into this inherently dry and tedious subject. Aspinwall manages to be effective, erudite, and practical in a refreshingly brief presentation.

390 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1995