What is plug-and-play? Tell me what the components are and info?
plug n play is exactly that…plug it in and go. An industry-wide standard for add-on hardware which indicates that it will configure itself, thus eliminating the need to set jumpers, and making installation of the product quick and easy.
To expand on that, in the model rr world “plug-and-play” is usually used in the context of DCC systems, such as add-on boosters that you just plug into your existing DCC system to add power. More commonly, PnP is used to refer to drop-in decoders that go into a locomotive with a minimum of fuss, such as those that plug into a DCC socket already present in the loco, or a board that easily replaces an existing light or control board in the loco.
Basically, it is ready to use, out of the box without any (or much) set up.
When referring to model railroads, PnP usually means that a locmotive has an NMRA decoder socket in it so you can plug in a decoder that has a wiring harness with a matching NMRA plug, and not have to do any soldering.
Kato’s Unitrack system is plug and play. I am trying on my layout using dcc.
While the NMRA standards have helped to make “plug and play” more of a reality in the model railroad field, the computer field has modified the term to “plug and pray”. Not all products behave the way we expect them to.