Serial Port Slot
The most commonly used serial port card is the PCMCIA card or PCI serial card, probably because these are easy to insert and start using in any desktop or laptop computer with a standard PCMCIA port slot or standard PCI card slot. Some motherboards come with a serial port with no cable or external serial DB connector. Someone may build a PC from this and decide not to use this serial port. There may be a 'serial' connector and label on the motherboard but no ribbon cable connects to its pins. To use this port you must get a ribbon cable and connector.
Peripherals are devices that are attached to a computer system to enhance its capabilities. Peripherals include input devices, output devices, storage devices, and communications devices.
All peripherals must have some way to access the data busof the computer (the communications channel on the motherboard that connectsthe processor, RAM, and other components). To do this, peripherals are connectedvia some kind of port (also called a I/Oport, forinput/output) on the computer (and a cable with the proper connectors is needed).
In some cases, the controller chips and circuitry for a port may be included on the motherboard itself (especially in laptop computers). In other cases, an expansion card in one of the expansion slots on the motherboard provides the needed port. This card is also called a controller card or an interface card. The software needed to handle the interface through the controller card is called a device driver, a type of system software.
Serial Port Plotter
Serial Port Slot Games
A video card that allows output to be sent to a monitor is an example of an interface card. The part of the video controller card that protrudes through the case of the computer includes a port (or ports) that monitor cables can connect to.
Let’s look at some of the kinds of ports used on personal computers.