Chapter 24 -- Installing and Configuring Hardware

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Chapter 24

Many people feel that one of the greatest weaknesses of Microsoft Windows NT, the predecessor to Windows 2000, was its lack of hardware support. Only a limited number of devices was supported, which meant that you had to be very selective when you bought peripheral devices for a system running Windows NT. Support for new devices was often slow in coming, and support for some types of devices and from some manufacturers was nonexistent.

Furthermore, Windows NT didn't support Plug and Play, a technology first employed in Windows 95 that—with the right combination of hardware and software components—allowed you to simply connect a device and begin using it. Instead, once you found a device that was "supported" by Windows NT, you then faced the often-daunting task of configuring it properly.

Windows 2000 dramatically improves upon Windows NT in three key areas of hardware support:

• First, you'll find support for many more devices—and new types of devices—including:

• Universal serial bus (USB) devices. This new generation of Plug and Play devices includes everything from keyboards to cameras. USB devices share a common connector, and you don't need to configure the USB port or the device manually.
• IEEE 1394 devices. IEEE 1394 is a nonproprietary high-speed serial bus with roots in Apple Computer's FireWire technology. It's used by some devices that require fast data transfer, such as scanners and video cameras.

• Second, because of its use of Windows Driver Model (WDM) technology, in many cases manufacturers can develop a single driver that works for Windows 98 and Windows 2000—which should result in support for more devices sooner after they're released.
• Third, thanks to the Windows 2000 implementation of Plug and Play technology, many of the potential frustrations and bewilderments associated with hardware changes have been eliminated. In many cases, adding a new device is truly as simple as hooking up the device and getting on with your work.

This chapter explains how Plug and Play makes life easier and then offers some specific information about installing and configuring certain types of devices, including printers, modems, scanners, cameras, and game controllers.