Components of Computer Chapter 4

Peripheral

(computer science) electronic equipment connected by cable to the CPU of a computer

ROM

(computer science) memory whose contents can be accessed and read but cannot be changed. nonvolatile

Address

(computer science) the code that identifies where a piece of information is stored

Hardware

(computer science) the mechanical, magnetic, electronic, and electrical components making up a computer system

CPU

(computer science) the part of a computer (a microprocessor chip) that does most of the data processing or manages most of the computer'r operations.

Processor

(computer science) the part of a computer (a microprocessor chip) that does most of the data processing. Dual-core is a single chip that contains two processors. Multi-core is a single chip with two or more processors.

Software

(computer science) written programs or procedures or rules and associated documentation pertaining to the operation of a computer system and that are stored in read/write memory

Embedded Processor

A chip designed with a specific set of usable instructions. The user cannot change the instructions an embedded processor was programmed to understand.

Storage Device

A device where data from a computer can be stored permanently on a non-volatile storage medium such as a magnetic or optical disk.

Ethernet

A network communications protocol that specifies how machines will exchange data. It uses a broadcast system in which one machine transmits its message on the communication medium. The other machines listen for messages directed to them.

Removable Media

A portable device allowing for the storage of computer data. Examples can include, Memory Sticks, magnetic tapes, CD-ROM, and DVD R.

USB

Acronym for the Universal Serial Bus, an interface connection to a personal computer. USB speech recognition headsets and microphones bypass the sound card and input speech more directly and with less distortion into a computer processor.

Integrated Circuit

Also called chips; multiple transistors integrated into a single module used to store and process bits and bytes in today's computers

Operating System

Also known as an "OS," this is the software that communicates with computer hardware on the most basic level. Without an operating system, no software programs can run.

Information Processing

Capturing, storing, updating and retrieving data information.

Control Unit

Component of a processor that directs and coordinates most of the operations in the computer.Operates by repeating set of basic operations: 1. Fetching instruction 2. Decoding the instruction 3. Executing the instruction 4. Storing the results

Output

Data that has been processed into a useful form or information. Four common types: 1. Text consists of characters that are used to create words, sentences and paragraphs. 2. Graphics are digital representations of non-text information such as images, drawings, charts, pictures and photos. 3. Audio is any music, speech, or other sound stored or produced by the computer. 4. Video consists of photographic images that are played back at speeds that provide appearance of full motion in real time.

Input

Data that is entered into the computer system via an input or storage device such as:Keyboard, microphone, mouse, video camera.Four types: 1. Data is a collection of unprocessed items. 2. Program is a series of instructions that tells a computer how to perform 3. Command is an instruction given to a computer program. 4. Keyword is a special word, phrase or code that a program understands as an instruction.

Ghz

GIgahertz - most modern processors have their clock speed measured using this. 1 Ghz = 1 billion operations per second.

Storage Medium

Is the physical material on which data, instructions, and information are kept- a disc.

ALU

Short for Arithmetic Logic Unit, this component of the processorhandles most of the mathematical calculations and logical reasoning needed to execute an instruction.

Storage

Stores data, instructions, and information when they are not being processed. Think of storage as a filing cabinet used to hold file folders, and memory at the top of your desk.

SDRAM

Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory - employs special internal registers and clock signals to organize data requests from memory.

Machine Cycle

The four basic operations (fetching, decoding, executing, and storing) performed by a processor.See Control Unit

Motherboard

The main circuit board of a microcomputer. The motherboard contains the connectors for attaching additional boards.

Microprocessor

The main processing unit of a computer or information processing device; the "brains" of the machine carrying out instructions, performing calculations, and interacting with the components used to operate the computer.It is more versatile than embedded processor.

Hard Drives

The mechanism that reads and writes data on a hard disk. Hard disk drives (HDDs) for PCs generally have seek times of about 12 milliseconds or less. Many disk drives improve their performance through a technique called caching.

QWERTY

The name fo the standard keyborad, which is derived form the arrangement of alphabetic letters on the top left row.

Clock speed

The pace at which the computer processes information is regulated by the system clock. Modern system clocks tick at a rate of 1-4 gigahertz (billions of ticks each second).

Insertion Point

The place in a document where something will be added; represented by a blinking vertical bar, also known as a cursor

System Clock

The system clock is an important part of the processor that keeps time for the computer. Much like the heart in a human body, the system clock helps coordinate the actions the computer takes. The faster the clock, the more the system can do in a period of time.

Download

The term is often used to describe the process of copying a file from an online service to one's own computer. Downloading can also refer to copying a file from a network file server to a computer on the network.

Video Input

To capture full-motion images into a computer and store them on a storage medium such as a hard disk or DVD

Audio Input

To enter any sound, such as speech, music, and sound effects, into a computer

DIMM

[Dual In-line Memory Module] a small circuit board, capable of holding several memory chips, that has a 64-bit data path and can be easily connected to a PC's system board. (contrast with SIMM)

Wireless

a communication system based on broadcasting electromagnetic waves

LAN

a local computer network for communication between computers

Byte

a sequence of 8 bits (enough to represent one character of alphanumeric data) processed as a single unit of information

Read Only Memory

a type of memory that is used to store premanent data an instructions because it is nonvolatile memory.

Terabyte

a unit of information equal to a trillion (1,099,511,627,776) bytes or 1024 gigabytes

Gigabyte

a unit of information equal to one billion (1,073,741,824) bytes or 1024 megabytes

Megabyte

a unit of information equal to one million (1,048,576) bytes

Kilobyte

a unit of information equal to one thousand (1024) bytes

Memory

an electronic memory device that stores data and information. Three basic Items memory stores: 1. operating system and other software that control the computer equipment 2. application software designed to carry out a specific task, such as Word 3. data being processed by the application software

Touch-Sensitive Pad

an input device that enables users to scroll through and play music, view pictures, and etc on a portable media player

Processing

executes instructions given to the computer.

Flash Memory

sometimes called "flash ram"; is solid-state memory that can be erased and reprogrammed; gets its name because the microchip is organized so that a section of memory cells are erased in a single action or "flash"

Hot Plugging

the ability to insert and remove the removable flash memory while the computer is running.

Random Access Memory

the most common computer memory which can be used by programs to perform necessary tasks while the computer is on. When computer is turned off data is erased. Volatile memory The more RAM the more programs and files it can work on at once.

Formatting

the organization of information according to preset specifications (usually for computer processing)

Artificial Intelligence

the science of designing and programming computer systems to do intelligent things and to simulate human thought processes such as reasoning and understanding language

Nonimpact Printers

type of printer in which characters are formed without anything striking the paper. Ink-jet or Photo

Optical Discs

type of storage media that consists of a flat, round, portable disc made of metal, plastic, and lacquer that is written and read by a laser