Hardware

NIC CARD

(Network Interface Controller) is a computer hardware component that connects a computer to a computer network

ROUTER

(computer science) a device that forwards data packets between computer networks

PORT

(computer science) computer circuit consisting of the hardware and associated circuitry that links one device with another (especially a computer and a hard disk drive or other peripherals)

CPU

(computer science) the part of a computer (a microprocessor chip) that does most of the data processing

EXPANSION SLOT

(computer) a socket in a microcomputer that will accept a plug-in circuit board

CD-RW

A CD that allows data to be erased and written again several times.

WEBCAM

A camera that broadcast images through the Internet through a computer or web cell phone.

DIGITAL CAMERA

A camera that images rather than recording on film. Once a picture has been taken, it can be downloaded to a computer and then manipulated and printed.

MOTHERBOARD

A circuit board that contains all of the computer system's main components

CD-R

A compact disk that reads only memory.

SYSTEM UNIT CASE

A computer case also known as a computer chassis, tower, system unit, cabinet, base unit or simply case and sometimes incorrectly referred to as the "CPU" or "hard drive", is the enclosure that contains most of the components of a computer (usually excluding the display, keyboard and mouse).

KEYBOARD

A computer input device that uses a set of keys to put data into the computer.

CPU FAN

A cooling fan located on a CPU. (3)

MONITOR

A display device that forms an image by converting electrical signals from the computer into points of colored light on the screen.

CASE FAN

A fan inside a computer case used to draw air out of or into the case.

INTERNAL HARD DRIVE

A hard drive that is installed inside the system unit.

USB CONNECTION

A personal computer connection that enables you to connect multiple peripherals to a single port with high performance and minimal device configuration.

GRAPHICS TABLET

A pressure-sensitive touch tablet used as a pointing device. The user presses on the tablet with a stylus.

DIGITAL VIDEO

A video camera is a camera used for electronic motion picture acquisition, initially developed by the television industry but now common in other applications as well

KENSINGTON LAPTOP LOCK

Alternatively referred to as a K lock or K slot, the Kensington lock is small hole found on almost every portable computer

What are ports?

An electronically defined pathway to facilitate the movement of zeroes and ones

SOUND CARD

An expansion card that attaches to the motherboard inside the system unit and that enables the computer to produce sounds by providing a connection for the speakers and microphone.

Define Moore's Law

An observation made by Intel co-founder Gordon Moore in 1965. He noticed that the number of transistors per square inch on integrated circuits had doubled every year since their invention.

CD-ROM / DVD-ROM

An optical disc drive that reads and writes all common CD and DVD formats. All modern optical drives that come with personal computers are CD/DVD drives. See DVD writer, CD-ROM drives and DVD drives.

What is an input device? Give 2 examples.

Any machine that feeds data into a computer. For example, a keyboard and a mouse.

How do windows based systems identify their drivers?

By checking the CD - ROM

Give an example of an optical disc drive.

CDs, DVDs, and Blu-ray discs

What piece of hardware do you need to connect to a network?

CPU

VIDEO CARD

Connects to the mother board, creates the images that appear on the monitor

LASER PRINTER

Electrostatic printer that focuses a laser beam to form images that are transferred to paper electrostatically

POWER SUPPLY

How electricity gets to your computer.

FIREWIRE CONNECTION

IEEE 1394 standard; can support up to 63 devices on one port; 400 Mbps 6-pin or 800 Mbps 9-pin connector; FireWire is Apple's name for it b/c they were the primary promoter

Is a keyboard an input or output device?

Input

Where is the power supply located in a desktop computer

On the back end of the system unit

COMPUTER SPEAKERS

Output devices connected to computers that provide audio output.

RFID Scanner

RFiD is Radio Frequency IDentification. It is an automatic 'radio tagging' identification technology whereby digital data encoded in an RFiD tag or "smart label" is captured by a reader using radio waves. Put simply, RFiD is similar to barcode technology, but uses radio waves to capture data from labels (tags), rather than optically scanning the bar codes on a label. An RFiD scanner does not require the tag or label to be seen to be able to read its stored data, but of course a label may be printed with a barcode and other text. An RFiD printer programs the RFiD chip in a label and also prints text and/or barcodes on the label.

ROM MEMORY

ROM is short for read only memory and indicates that the memory in question is non-volatile and cannot be changed under normal use. ROM memory is fixed at the time of its production and can only be read from and seldom, if ever, changed. In certain cases, certain types of ROM may be re-flashed, but this is not a common task. For this reason, the instructions stored on a ROM chip such as a computer's BIOS are often called firmware.

RAM MEMORY

Random Access Memory (RAM) is volatile memory that is used by the computer to store instructions for running programs and any data currently needed by those programs. It is the main memory of a computer and is the one most commonly referenced when reading a computer's specs.

LED LIGHT

Stands for light emitting diode light. Its light source is an array of semiconductors (a solid state electronic device) that emits light when electricity passes through. Can produce different colored lights.

Which hardware is considered the "brain" of the computer?

The most important piece of hardware is a tiny rectangular chip inside your computer called the central processing unit (CPU), or microprocessor. It's the "brain" of your computer—the part that translates instructions and performs calculations.

What is a bit?

The smallest unit of information consisting of either a 1 or a zero. It can only represent two possibilities - either yes or no, black or white.

EXTERNAL HARD DRIVE

Used to back-up the contents of the entire computer (or huge files), this large drive sits outside the main computer in its own enclosure.

LAPTOP TOUCHPAD

a computer input device for controlling the pointer on a display screen by sliding the finger along a touch-sensitive surface

MOUSE

a hand-operated electronic device that controls the coordinates of a cursor on your computer screen as you move it around on a pad

What is a peripheral device?

a mouse, keyboard, printer, monitor, external Zip drive or scanner -- or internal, such as a CD-ROM drive, CD-R drive or internal modem.

FLASH DRIVE

a plug-and-play portable storage device that uses flash memory and is lightweight enough to attach to a key chain; also known as a pen drive, keychain drive, thumb drive, jump drive

WATER COOLING SYSTEM

allow components in gantry (target, klystron, accelerator structure) and stand to operate at a constant temperature

SCANNER

an electronic device that generates a digital representation of an image for data input to a computer

The case that holds the internal components of a PC is called?

chassis

INK JET PRINTER

use liquid ink sprayed through tiny nozzles onto paper