Of course you can also find online enough free information, including free video course on youtube from universities if you are willing to follow. For instance just a 5min search and filter revealed next good info for you:
http://www.electronics-tutorials.ws/ - start with binary system and Boolean algebra, that is the basic for the rest.
Then one more here:
http://www.asic-world.com/digital/tutorial.html
Here click on the right side for different chapters:
http://www.electrical4u.com/digital-electronics/
Here are some slides:
https://www.wiziq.com/tutorials/digital-electronics
Here is just one video, maybe not even the best:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zy_uv_r0t3I
If I remember or find better video tutorials I will let you know.
But if this is a hobby, which may become a passion or even a profession, then the best learning is hands on, practical things. You will buy some basic components and make some experiments at low voltage with batteries following some tutorials, then you will grasp that in-between feeling of understanding how software animates the hardware.

yes theory without application in dayly life is not fruitful

Back in the dark ages of PC's (1977ish), a single 16 kilobit memory chip ran $16 to $40 and a floppy disk drive often cost $2,000+.  When the sum of the hardware ran $15,000+, we were expected to find the failing part (I.C.'s, not boards) and replace it.  To do so, we had to learn TTL logic, how to read schematics, how to use an oscilloscope, logic probe, & voltmeter so we could track down the problem part.  But; to aid in the hunt, we had a tool that (really) no longer exists which was a front panel and one of its key uses was the ability to stop the computer dead in its tracks and to "single step" the PC which meant it would execute one instruction and stop until the switch was pushed again.
And that was a key advantage in learning how a computer really works.  Even though todays PC's may be 4,000 times faster, they still work in exactly the same manner; one little instruction at a time.  Even though the parts may be approaching one billion transistors in a single piece of silicon, the logic functions of ands and nands are still part of their circuitry.
Add the fact that the entire computer is now a few hundred dollars to 30+ years since the demise of the front panel and most IT people now have little or no clue how the hardware works which becomes a severe disadvantage when there is a hardware problem which needs a completely different approach to achieve solution.
The intricacies of computer hardware are way beyond this forum and I would ask; what are you most interested in learning?

That and everything pertaining to I/O came with an add-on card. Serial Ports, LPT ports, Video, nothing was onboard except for the keyboard connector.. One of the major cost cutting items was a Multi-IO card. Serial/Parallel and Game Ports on 1 card saving 2 of the 8 slots. VGA was 800x600 SVGA was anything >800x600 and one wanted NON Interlaced Display.  People hated CGA because it was blocky compared to the crisp monochrome monitors, EGA was tolerable.

Oh, but you're leaving out green screens and separate terminals for displays and playing Asteroids on them.  And no networks and 300 baud modems connecting to BBS's and Compuserve and Genie.  And bumping your computer and having it crash in the middle of your programming...

Dave,

"I wouldn't recommend either of those books.  And without knowing what your goal is, it is hard to make a recommendation.  "

I just want to understand more and have some fun on it. it is all about learning, that's what the books is about, some CODE we even didn't know.

that's what MS and UNix/linux hide from us, they can do it and we can't! we can only build apps !

I have another books I bought 20 years ago and it said how computer system works. it talk about CPU register cache, RAM and disk.


"Many of the things that I have learned and built and programmed no longer exist so you can't learn the way I have."

yes, that's what I found these books, there are sth make the code can control the hardware,  I am interesting on it.

"I think that the best way now would be to learn about digital logic functions and realize that there is hardware made to operate like the logic does.  ... "

I understand this when I am doing computer science 20 years ago, but this is not what i want.

Merete,

"BIOS (basic input/output system) is the program a personal computer's microprocessor uses to get the computer system started after you turn it on. It also manages data flow between the computer's operating sys"

yeah, I know, and I also want to know how BIOS interact with OS.

" A+Certification"

it is from MS ? I don't want it as MS might describe it in the way they want us to KNOW. they don't want us to know more so that no new OS will comes up. I want to have some independent learning on this topic.

"How software makes hardware work is a very narrow term when  you understand how the computer reads the software and how the software runs in the operating system.
Programming and the language written for this purpose is the how the registry functions."

not just for windows but in general, knowing the registry seems no use to me, right?

nobus,

it doesn't matter, I can keep reading, it takes times but just learn something, like what code and how it can make the disk reader start reading the disk.... how can it know it is the right location to read the data block.

viki2000,

"If is just for fun and you try to deepen that part of science/technology starting from basics then of course you can read some books, but for sure you will have many questions and you will need a place and persons to ask."

yeah, exactly! please suggest some good book, not that detail is necessary.

"It starts with basic logic of what bits are, having simple analogy with on/off of the bulb, on/off for a switch, a relay, later replaced by transistor then goes to more abstract to decimal systems, binary systems, arriving to essence of 0 and 1 with good simple examples. Then basic operations of 0 and 1"

the second books right? why the first one is not for me ? :):)

"It is a long, but nice journey. You will need additional books or online links, but the 2nd book "The Hidden Language of
Computer Hardware and Software" is good for beginning."

exactly.....

any more please suggest after I go in the middle of this journey.

"If I remember or find better video tutorials I will let you know."

tks.

" You will buy some basic components and make some experiments at low voltage with batteries following some tutorials,"

you are the right person on this then, you get what i mean.  basically learning. learn has a hobby.

young generation never know how a PC works. if I know this, I can switch to all OS easily. I hate reading linux doc... very complex.

you mean by the Lot kids from MS ?... for Windows 10.... :):):)

David Johnson,

"he only advantage they have is that they are quite willing to execute instructions incredibly quickly, they never get bored or tired all they want is electricity and a non hostile environment to operate in."

exactly.. that's why robot can really take over human, you can see that in US, specially LA, a lot of robot, they don't ask for increase in salary nor kill the boss !

"They don't know how to multiply, subtract or divide but only add. multiplication is simply addition and using a shift register and you keep adding until the shift register is empty. "

any books briefly discuss about that, just briefly.... I am not interested in detail, just how SW programming can make HW start to move.

Davis:

"And that was a key advantage in learning how a computer really works.  Even though todays PC's may be 4,000 times faster, they still work in exactly the same manner;"

this is what I bear in mind., tks. and therefore I want to learn this.

" most IT people now have little or no clue how the hardware works which becomes a severe disadvantage when there is a hardware problem which needs a completely different approach to achieve solution."

this is ONE of my concern.. so I am searching.

"The intricacies of computer hardware are way beyond this forum and I would ask; what are you most interested in learning?"

why an OS can work with OS and what programming language can instruct a PC to do sth it wants.

The complete source code for most versions of Linux are available for free.  They are not hidden.  Microsoft Windows is more obscure but a lot of what they know, especially about networks, is in the code for Linux because Microsoft contributed it to the Linux projects.  But both Linux and Windows and every other operating system are huge programs with thousands and maybe millions of lines of code.  I doubt that anyone know all of any of them.

I suggest that you pick a smaller subject and go learn and Do something with that.  And then pick another...  After a while you will know a lot.

Dave,

just the way they make HW work is enough, not the complete picture.

I think I watch video and books is better, I just need to know.

linux in this case are good to use to learn, right?

Linux or any other operating system is too complex to learn.  So is modern hardware for that matter.  This book http://www.amazon.com/Microprocessors-Interfacing-Programming-Douglas-Hall/dp/0070257426/ref=pd_sim_14_2?ie=UTF8&dpID=51KaurhPl0L&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&refRID=1K7P4VFJX0J88VB08NC8 looks like it might be good for you.

hi,

is it your book?  the photo seems .

do you think second book in my list is good ?

It might be alright.  It is not as technical as the book I mentioned.

It would have been very helpful if you could answer my question: how old are you? A roughly range is good enough. And second: do you have any technical background? It is important to know from where can you start. You cannot read just like that, because you will not understand. It has to be for your level.
Most of the people here, that already answered to your question, have a technical background, many years of experience, are involved for many years in these learning and with all these each one can understand as overview and be specialized on one field. Nobody understands or have knowledge about everything. There is place to learn for each one even if we would live 1000 years from now on.
The basic info about how a PC works, a microprocessor, digital electronics, operational systems, programming languages…and so on, all these take time. We speak here about years. Take one subject and read it slowly, then make some practical tests, ask more, because future questions will arrive for sure and you will understand after that point. You can learn in weeks or months about one specific subject and to feel comfortable with the notions. Ii is not a easy way, unless you are genius, but then you would have not asked here.
Why not the 1st book? Because is too complex for a beginner.
The 2nd book is more friendly.
The 1st one is more written in university teaching style, but the 2nd one is more visual, addressed to common people without a good technical background.
There are few ways how you can approach your desire of understanding the digital world. You remember me of myself when I was 18. My high-school math teacher came to me and said: you must became a math teacher, you know and understand enough, I can give you additional private lessons, for free, just to prepare you to enter at university among the first. I disappointed him, because even if I liked him and the math, I said no. I told him that even if I like the abstract theoretical world of math, where I feel attraction is that feeling combined with mental/rational satisfaction to grasp what makes the software to animate the hardware, like the soul and the body.
Well, is so much to learn about the hardware and so much to learn about software, because each field spread with so many branches impossible to cover in a life time, not only few years. You want to learn about too many different things at once. It does not work like that. You have to build you base first for hardware and software basics. Then you can go deep in different fields. But if you start from low technical background, even if you want only an overview how PC works or a simple microcontroller on 8bits, which maybe is more suitable for a beginner, do not expect to get it right away.
There are kids, that just do experiments with simple kits, as for instance Arduino, but also PIC and they just follow the tutorials, they see the effect and is one level of understanding. Then read literature related with that board, kit and is easier to memorize, to retain and understand also the theoretical side. The same is with programming languages. You learn the basics and then you try your first program. You must try. Is not enough only to read. The feedback of the machine is important step. The interesting part is that nowadays you may learn only software of a certain kind without need to fully understand the hardware behind and the other way around too. But as much as you know and you understand the basics at low level, the better is your understanding and the control over the hardware or software.

viki2000,

"It would have been very helpful if you wanted to answer my question: how old are you? "

I don't think it is related, 40-50,  in the process of getting old :):) ok ?

"And second: do you have any technical background? It is important to know from where can you start"

yes, computer science, database technology person.

"Most of the people here, that already answered to your question, have a technical background, many years of experience, are involved for many years in these learning and with all these each one can understand as overview and be specialized on one field."

that's why I like to come here and ask.

"Why not the 1st book? Because is too complex for a beginner.
The 2nd book is more friendly."

ok, this mean once i read 2nd book, then I can buy 1st .

"Well, is so much to learn about the hardware and so much to learn about software, because each field spread with so many branches impossible to cover in a life time, not only few years"

I understand this.

"But as much as you know and you understand the basics at low level, the better is your understanding and the control over the hardware or software."

that's why I want to learn it as hobby.

If your background is "computer science, database technology person", then you already should know at least at software level about the programs, software and bits and so on.
Then, I am not so sure anymore about the 2nd book. Still, it gives you basic understating about the hardware, how come is possible to have 0 and 1 software, with what is the hardware support to make possible that. And that may be good enough to fill in some gaps. If you feel that you need to understand how 0 and 1 work from hardware point of view, how are the physical layers, then you should focus on basic digital electronics, gates, registers, flip-flops, later memory, microprocessors and make some tests with microcontrollers using basic language, either a visual one or plain C. For that direction, the 2nd book is good enough at beginner level.

my computer science final project was to write a compiler for a mythical language. with and without symbols. the non-symbolic version was about 2,000 lines of code (2 boxes of punch cards) and the symbolic version was 12,000 lines of code (12 boxes)

About the lowest language to write some test programs in is the C language. i.e.
#include stdio.h
int main(void) {
printf("Hello World\n");
return 0;
}

just clicking on a program to execute it involves many different items that need to be processed in sequence and it
would take several screenfulls of typing just to cover it in even the most cursory of detail. Easier when you could toggle in the instructions, toggle in the load address, execute the load address switch, toggle in the first instruction, hit the save address and increment, do this for each instruction until you reach the end. then toggle in the starting address, hit load address, then execute. A digital clock is a good entry level project. which starts off simple.  I actually built one using logic gates and 7 segment displays. was about $50 in parts and a few days of labour. Then they came out with a clock on a chip requiring only a crystal, a source of power and 4 x 7  segment displays, later on they mulitplexed the display lines eliminating 24 connections to just 11 connections.

If I remember correctly the logic to which element of the 7 segment display was probably were I spent the most amount of time to optimize

Some good years ago, when in fashion was 8086, our university just bought a lot of 286. I learned about computers and digital electronics on those PCs. But actually, lots younger, maybe 6-7 years before I had home Z80, ZX Spectrum. That was my first and I learned from 2 big yellow books the Basic language for  Z80. I started to read  a lot by myself and was hard. I was 16 -17. My mother worked a lot to pay that ZX Spectrum. Then I found a course in the city, not in the school, where together with other 2 classmates we learned the basics of Basic language. I do not know why we made later in high-school one trimester of Basic language with our math teacher, but we already knew more than him.
In university, I learned first Pascal and later C, luckily we jumped over Fortran and Cobol. After the university was equipped with 286 computers, we felt at the edge of high-tech. How stupid! Well, I finished the university with those 286, so not even Pentium (586), some colleagues already had home 486, and as final diploma project I made a PC board without too much money.
I made an analog to digital board, a data acquisition system with 16 channels, like a simple, basic oscilloscope, only up to 40KHz, because the ADC was limited at that frequency.
And at that time I had no internet, only books and instruments and a bit of help from one teacher.
It was for ISA slot, that I learned by heart each signal, and the teachers did not let me to play with the 286 from the lab. They were scared I will destroy the mother board with my wiring. So they gave me an old monster 8088, booting from 5.25” floppy, made from parts in university. I played with DOS at that time, but Win 3.1 was also around.
It took me 3 months to make it work, without proper datasheets, finding by myself the formula behind the ADC using a good signal generator and  an oscilloscope. I learned C and wrote the interface in the same time, after we had the basic courses of C language. I remember it was 50 screens, but I got it running and in the end they let me plug in the board in 286 and they used it years afterwards to teach ADC in the lab.
I worked many nights up to the mornings, because it was the only time when the PCs were available, without courses. Now, after I told the story I feel old.
But we do not want to scary, neither to discourage marrowyung in any way.

" most IT people now have little or no clue how the hardware works which becomes a severe disadvantage when there is a hardware problem which needs a completely different approach to achieve solution." Pass/Fail tests for hardware are normally quite simple to implement. Hardware usually either works or it doesn't and a simple A/B test will show up defective hardware. 99.999% of the time it is a software error either a bug or a misconfiguration.

If hardware fails the cost to replace these days is so low in comparison to the labour charge for troubleshooting and the skills and tools required in today's micro parts far outweighs the replacement cost. there are capacitors and resistors that are about 1/2 the size of a grain of rice.  This does not also include the fact that most circuit boards are multilayer which adds to the repair complexity. Even getting a proper schematic (circuit diagram) is almost impossible.
In order to replace a part you have to know the values of the part and with no color codes these days you need the schematic just to find out whether it is a 1 Meg Ohm or 1 Gig Ohm resistor replacing with the wrong one may damage something else.

“there are capacitors and resistors that are about 1/2 the size of a grain of rice”

And are microcontrollers (= microprocessor + RAM + ROM + I/O + Peripherals) at the size of a grain of rice.
2 years ago I just finished a project using PIC10F322 for  a product sold in hundreds of thousands per year.
It is so much to learn about it  and in the same time to report as bugs to Microchip :( , I think they had enough from me, but with so much potential because the entire PIC10F family is so small and low consumption, similar with ATtiny4/5/9/10 from Atmel and the cost is under 50 cents, down to and even below 30 cents per piece in high volumes.

marrowyung, there is enough to learn and play – there is no place for boring days.

I agree that books seem to cover subjects better and when reading the mind can absorb the technology in peace and quiet.
I recommend these books to become familiar with how technology has advanced
The Internet of Things is the Title and this subject has many books, to see the actual book on the left of the page click about this book!!! and the ebook has a price.

From Machine-to-Machine to the Internet of Things: Introduction to a New Age ...
The Internet of Things: Technologies, Connecting Objects
Internet of Things: Converging Technologies for Smart Environments and Integrated Ecosystems
The book aims to provide a broad overview of various topics of the Internet of Things (IoT) from the research and development priorities to enabling technologies, architecture, security, privacy, interoperability and industrial applications.

Here is a list of them, I sourced for you
And page two of the internet of things

in order to explore them so at least you can read most online and do some more sourcing yourself using that term,
How software works with / makes hardware work has a lot of small print now, and the focus on ownership and copyrights with all systems software / hardware in the public  arena on the internet.
Technology was meant to free us instead it has become a benchmark for greed and competition. very expensive and very unsafe exposing us all to the world.  a place of storage of  all our data to use as a marketing tool and eaves dropping  on our activity..
The Internet of Things: How Smart TVs, Smart Cars, Smart Homes, and Smart Cities Are Changing the World.
Hope these help you on your journey.
Regards Merete

a ggod start here "understanding the windows boot process" :  http://sourcedaddy.com/windows-7/understanding-the-startup-process.html

here some info on i/o :  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Input/output

viki2000,

"If your background is "computer science, database technology person", then you already should know at least at software level about the programs, software and bits and so on."

yes, so that;s why I said I needs high level, e.g. why windows shut down key can REALLY make a PC shut down.

"And at that time I had no internet, only books and instruments and a bit of help from one teacher.
 It was for ISA slot, that I learned by heart each signal, and the teachers did not let me to play with the 286 from the lab. They were scared I will destroy the mother board with my wiring. So they gave me an old monster 8088, booting from 5.25” floppy, made from parts in university. I played with DOS at that time, but Win 3.1 was also around."

nice, my first computer is 286 but when I am doing university course,  I am using Pentium X, I forget it.
I learn C but just know programming but don't know how it instruct a PC to works.

"Now, after I told the story I feel old."

I have that feeling too..

I think you can tell me as you build your PC and what is called interface, so I want to know how OS/SW work with HW.

no one will knows now and I just feel it is an interesting topic, just like how apple SW works, Microsoft working with apple since apple II and I want to know how that simple program work on that SW, this is the way I learn more.

"marrowyung, there is enough to learn and play – there is no place for boring days. "

that's what I want, I want to know this .e.g. what make up a computers..... instead of just theory from university

Merete,

"From Machine-to-Machine to the Internet of Things: Introduction to a New Age ...
 The Internet of Things:  Technologies, Connecting Objects
 Internet of Things: Converging Technologies for Smart Environments and Integrated Ecosystems
 The book aims to provide a broad overview of various topics of the Internet of Things (IoT) from the research and development priorities to enabling technologies, architecture, security, privacy, interoperability and industrial applications."

link here doesn't work.

I think I am focus on old stuff here.. not Lot...

"nobus"

tks.

all, so second books is not for me, right? so the first one now back to the list ?

the shutdown key uses ACPI G2
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advanced_Configuration_and_Power_Interface

tks, so I keep seeing interface.

so it seems I have to do more on interface?

which SW provide interface? BIOS ? then how BIOS works...?

i posted a link to how that works - you seem not to read that?

I was ready to recommend you, as extension to what Merete said about IoT, a list of links and cheap kits with a new circuit which is now "en vogue": EPS8266, the cheapest WiFi IC offered for 2-4$ as small break board, which attached to any microcontroller, including Arduino, makes the application WiFi, very suitable for IoT. It is cheap, a lot of examples on internet and requires only a USB-TTL, FTDI chip 3.3V to program it.
But now, after I have read your last post, there is one thing which explains a lot “, e.g. why windows shut down key can REALLY make a PC shut down.”.
You miss the software-hardware connection. What makes the hardware to be animated by the software and behave in a certain way.
Maybe small kits with Arduino will make you understand that. They are really cheap, around 10-20$ and they have a lot of break boards with different sensors that will be attached/inserted in the main Arduino board. The programming is in C, its own free IDE, but the good thing is that you have the basic knowledge of C and the Arduino community already provides so many examples, ready written simple codes, which animates your Arduino board and peripheral: push button, temperature, humidity, pressure sensors, accelerometer, small displays, relays…you name it, and then you can “feel” the software activating the hardware. For deeper understating, I think you need that connection, that link about basics hardware of digital electronics as I mentioned above. The rest is just more complex programmable circuits integrated more and more and then communicating one to each other based on different protocols.

"You miss the software-hardware connection. What makes the hardware to be animated by the software and behave in a certain way."

yeah, exactly that. BIOS control it or OS control it. and how  ?

"Maybe small kits with Arduino will make you understand that. They are really cheap, around 10-20$ and they have a lot of break boards with different sensors that will be attached/inserted in the main Arduino board. "

I will not buy that, I just need some reading.

"For deeper understating, I think you need that connection, that link about basics hardware of digital electronics as I mentioned above"

good info for you:
http://www.electronics-tutorials.ws/ - start with binary system and Boolean algebra, that is the basic for the rest.
 Then one more here:
http://www.asic-world.com/digital/tutorial.html
 Here click on the right side for different chapters:
http://www.electrical4u.com/digital-electronics/
 Here are some slides:
https://www.wiziq.com/tutorials/digital-electronics
 Here is just one video, maybe not even the best:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zy_uv_r0t3I

Select allOpen in new window

sorry which one ?

nobus,

I have it on my list .. tks.

I see, you do not want to dirty your fingers...
Well, then if you prefer only the abstract  approach, then I would say all the links provided are good for basics in digital electronics. But looking better at what are you up to, I think you need more focus on PC, rather than other boards with digital electronics.
Then maybe next book fits better for you:
http://www.amazon.com/How-Computers-Work-9th-Edition/dp/0789736136

Until then, you may go through the next lectures, pdf and video:
http://computerscience1.tv/2011/spring/
http://www.aduni.org/courses/hcw/index.php?view=cw

"I see, you do not want to dirty your fingers..."

I just want a hobby reading as I knew I never has chance to touch/made a OS myself in the rest of my live.

The book above, that I recommended you „How Computers Work 9th Edition“ is exactly what you need as first step. I checked it out. I think is really good for you. It is 465 pages with a lot of illustrations and simple explanations and answers to many questions similar with what you already asked about BIOS and OS and other hardware and relations between hardware and software.

good tks.

Thank you for the points.
Just to let you know, few minutes ago, I just bought that book also for my daughter as she started to ask me all kind of questions about computers and how they work. The used, but in good shape, are not expensive:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0789736136/ref=olp_f_usedVeryGood?ie=UTF8&f_usedLikeNew=true&f_usedVeryGood=true&qid=1454403209&sr=8-1

but this is too simple for me right from computer science point of view? the interface book is good I think.

I think not. It will fill some gaps that you have.
It is at beginner level about software-hardware connection focused on PC.
It answers in simple way questions as “BIOS control it or OS control it. and how ?” and “why windows shut down key can REALLY make a PC shut down?”
And for deeper knowledege you still have the rest of the recommendations with definitely more advanced knowledege.

"I think not. It will fill some gaps that you have."

tks.

I keep hearing interface in this post, I think this is the way I try to understand how SW work with HW and make HW works. even what is behind the interface.

if it is a Robot, why the SW can make Robot walk !

"It answers in simple way questions as “BIOS control it or OS control it. and how ?” and “why windows shut down key can REALLY make a PC shut down?”"

good, I added it to my list.

marrowyung it is a combination of programming a chip through an OS such as linux/python languages that sends a signal via electricity to another sensor chip that has components connected to it.
That is really a broad term and your question is kind of closed now
For example my raspberry pi is a small board similar to Arduino which I installed linux with XBMC media interface software  and enables me to connect it to my TV and add a usb stick with my mp4 video onboard and they play on the TV through the XBMC menu on my PI. I need to use a keyboard  to navigate the XBMC media menu which I can see on my TV
http://netupd8.com/w8img2/xbmc-12.png
These boards are now being used for all type of purposes for the home business any computerised control board that controls a camera and any devices
Another example
GrovePi is a hardware system that helps you connect, program, and control sensors to build your own smart devices.
http://www.dexterindustries.com/shop/grovepi-board/
Esquilo Internet Of Things Development Board (video)
http://www.geeky-gadgets.com/esquilo-internet-of-things-development-board-12-05-2015/ 
There is tons of courses if this is what interests you, reading a book may not be sufficient as you need interaction with a qualified person to ask questions
Programming the Internet of Things ( training)
Prerequisites:
You should have at least a passing familiarity with JavaScript and Node.js for this course
http://shop.oreilly.com/category/learning-path/programming-the-internet-of-things.do
cheers

"marrowyung it is a combination of programming a chip through an OS such as linux/python languages that sends a signal via electricity to another sensor chip that has components connected to it."

Good, then how SW make the board chip set signal, this is what I mean. .

"That is really a broad term and your question is kind of closed now "

of course.. I get the book list and link. tks.

" raspberry pi is a small board similar to Arduino which I installed "

that Pi board can install Win10 as well, right? that's why it is one of the Lot kits ..

Yes it is the future.
Windows for the next billion devices: Meet Windows for the Internet of Things
What you need
A PC running Windows 10 - as prepared in the previous step.
Raspberry Pi 2
5v Micro USB power supply with at least 1.0A current. If you plan on using several power-hungry USB peripherals, use a higher current power supply instead (>2.0A).
8GB Micro SD card - class 10 or better.
HDMI cable and monitor
Ethernet Cable
Micro SD card reader - due to an issue with most internal micro SD card readers, we suggest an external USB micro SD card reader like this one or this one
Install the Windows 10 IoT Core tools
https://ms-iot.github.io/content/en-US/win10/SetupRPI.htm
How to install Windows 10 on Raspberry Pi 2: 6 steps to bake a micro computer
http://www.t3.com/features/how-to-install-windows-10-on-a-raspberry-pi

how SW make the board chip set signal, this is usually done through the manufacturer you buy the chip from with purpose of that chip then instructables included how to run it with a specific program' had you as a child ever learnt of transistor radios?
An off the shelf PIC micro will need to be programmed with an assembler and chip programmer.
Programming formats for PIC® microcontrollers
https://www.microchip.com/pagehandler/en_us/designsupport/programming

"Yes it is the future.
 Windows for the next billion devices: Meet Windows for the Internet of Things"

they are doing what Linux is doing, what's wrong with Linux...... :)):

just very hard to use.

"Install the Windows 10 IoT Core tools
https://ms-iot.github.io/content/en-US/win10/SetupRPI.htm
 How to install Windows 10 on Raspberry Pi 2: 6 steps to bake a micro computer
http://www.t3.com/features/how-to-install-windows-10-on-a-raspberry-pi "

but this one can't make me understand what an underlying method Windows is working with HW, right?

It's about ownership marrowyung,
Agree with your sentiment and linux :)
 in order to grasp this you need to have some base understanding of how the internet opened the world up to access everything and for free so now it starts to take control back,
So everyone can make money again. Fortunately for many we can learn just about anything off the net if we know what to look for.
In order to understand how windows works with hardware you need to go back to dos and NT.
It is a bit like our human brains, the motherboard is the brain base, our brain which has conscious and subconscious is like a computer registry communicates with the motherboard.
Our Brain is built up of many cells that run the entire nervous system which is connected to every part of body through nerves> electrical sensors. It learns through our touch and experiences so does a computer.
The names on the motherboard is also interesting, it has bridges and carries like passengers that travel in a bus so to does the cmos carry information from one place to another from the registry to the motherboard  it uses buses and an address.
Complementary metal-oxide semiconductor, or CMOS, typically refers to a battery-powered memory chip in your computer that stores startup information. Your computer's basic input/output system (BIOS) uses this information when starting your computer.
 I always thought it kind of funny how similar they are.
 In computer language that is the binary language 00111000011110010100 which you can learn about in the book I mentioned A+
ASCII stands for American Standard Code Information Interchange, which is a standard of 7 bit binary codes that will translate into computer logic to represent text, letters and symbols that humans will recognize. There are from 0 to 127 numbers or letters represented in the ASCII system.
That code has many different numbers that kind of flash on and off for that code for that chip that has been programmed to open that door when triggered and then perform that function.
http://www.computerhope.com/jargon/b/binary.htm
I wont go too deep as this really way ahead of your knowledge base but asking questions is a good start.
cheers

"Agree with your sentiment and linux :)
  in order to grasp this you need to have some base understanding of how the internet opened the world up to access everything and for free so now it starts to take control back,"

I knew, I watched some Youtube vide, there is one guy bring internet from private to public, and the next one is the HTML guy.

the third one the video said who make internet famous is Bill Gate, Windows 95 bring internet usage surged.

"Fortunately for many we can learn just about anything off the net if we know what to look for."

I don't think I will create an OS, no worry ! a:)):

impossible! Linux already make Windows cut the price by 1/2, this is what Linux success on ! but you know Linux and OSX seems messed up with the real world and this make MS keep going big no matter what mistake MS made !

"In order to understand how windows works with hardware you need to go back to dos and NT.
 It is a bit like a brains, the motherboard is the brain base with cells in it that run the entire nervous system which is connected to every part of body through electrical sensors."

yep, I hang around DOS and NT but why is that? I have the source code of DOS 1.0 and 2.0, they all build using assemble.

" In computer language that is the binary language 00111000011110010100 which you can learn about in the book I mentioned A+
"

the complier help on this I knew.

Ultimately, all of it goes back to assembly language as that is all the "computer" understands; but, because writing in assembly language is so tedious and expensive, almost everything is now written in an interpreted languages (Visual C, Basic, etc.) which then requires libraries to be loaded that can pass the requested function back to the operating system.  What needs to be grasped as a concept is that it now takes millions of instructions to do something as seemingly simple as moving the mouse pointer around.

Assembly is still OK with small microcontrollers, but not with more complex architectures.
Imagine now the stupid idea from Matrix, when they let the viewers think they could read directly code-machine 00111000011110010100...

Davis McCarn,

"What needs to be grasped as a concept is that it now takes millions of instructions to do something as seemingly simple as moving the mouse pointer around. "

I don't understand this,, why make it complex ?

"but, because writing in assembly language is so tedious and expensive, almost everything is now written in an interpreted languages (Visual C, Basic, etc.) which then require"

you mean when going to low level call, still assembly ?

viki2000,

"Assembly is still OK with small microcontrollers, but not with more complex architectures."

why is it ? what's wrong with assembly ?

they don't try to ùmake it complex - it's just that so much is needed, even for something "seemingly simple"

Assembly is good for the CPU, but is not friendly for programmers. To make a bit of action you must write a lot of commands and steps. It deals directly with the internal registry of the processors. The same result is only few lines written in C, which is more logical/friendly for our mind.
When you have complex processors/microcontrollers assembly program will be so long and difficult to be written and read that you better forget it. That’s why new languages as C came to solve the problem and to interpret or compile the more friendly looking code into assembly ASM and then in code-machine HEX.
Here are some examples for your to compare:
https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~guna/15-123S11/Lectures/Lecture27.pdf
C is good for us because is close to the math and logic that we learn in school and ASM is good for CPU because is a “pre-digested” food ready for 01 HEX code what the CPU understands.
It is something like this: when we speak, we can use words and make sentences quite fast. That is C. But we may use syllables in case something is not clear and has to be better understood. That is ASM. And when we have difficulties, then we spell it on letters. That is HEX. This is a human perspective. It is clear, at low level and slow, takes time, it is a long process. But the CPU understands it better and is fast for it.

"Assembly is good for the CPU, but is not friendly for programmers. To make a bit of action you must write a lot of commands and steps. It deals directly with the internal registry of the processors. The same result is only few lines written in C, which is more logical/friendly for our mind."

ok, but the complier C will convert it to Assembly finally, right? need Assembly anyway?

"When you have complex processors/microcontrollers assembly program will be so long and difficult to be written and read that you better forget it. That’s why new languages as C came to solve the problem and to interpret or compile the more friendly looking code into assembly ASM and then in code-machine HEX."

yeah, everything still ASM...

"It is something like this: when we speak, we can use words and make sentences quite fast. That is C. But we may use
 syllables in case something is not clear and has to be better understood. That is ASM. And when we have difficulties, then we spell it on letters. That is HEX. This is a human perspective. It is clear, at low level and slow, takes time, it is a long process. But the CPU understands it better and is fast for it. "

I understand now..

You write in C and the compiler translate it for you in ASM and in HEX. It just a part of the process.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dan4hJlOv0
http://www.engineersgarage.com/articles/what-is-compiler-tutorial
http://www.zap.org.au/elec2041-cdrom/unsw/common/compiler-intro.pdf
https://gcc.gnu.org/ml/gcc-help/2004-10/msg00060/GccPorting.pdf

tks.

If your interested
How to write assembly language using masm32
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ch9UwP42-lM
download here
http://website.assemblercode.com/masm32/m32v10r.zip

He cannot be. I am 100% sure.

AHHAHHA, interesting..  I have enough here. :)):

Lol should keep you occupied for a while
Have a good week-end :)

have a good end mate

"Lol should keep you occupied for a while"

I buy other books then. porns ??

to give you an idea - i have worked for about 20 years with a "minicomputer" as it was called then - composed of several 19 " racks
to start it, we had to introduce the "bootstrap" instructions into memory - 16 words of 16 bits, that would start reading the teletype papertape reader  - which then loaded a larger program, that was able to start a real magnetic tape that had the OS

introducing the bootstrap was done with 16 switches you could set to 1 and 0, and confirm with an enter key to load it into ram, and step up the location with 1, so you could move to the next instruction
then you set the ram adress to the starting point, and hit run
if you made no errors -  the sequence descripted above was started

and yes it was written in assembler, i even made some small routines for testing devices hardware wise (eg  in/or output a character to screen)

"to give you an idea - i have worked for about 20 years with a "minicomputer" as it was called then - composed of several 19 " racks
to start it, we had to introduce the "bootstrap" instructions into memory - 16 words of 16 bits, that would start reading the teletype papertape reader  - which then loaded a larger program, that was able to start a real magnetic tape that had the OS"

that's what I want to learn too: bootstrap, what is it for.. e.g.