components of the computer

petabyte

A petabyte (PB) is a unit of digital information storage used to denote the size of data. It is equivalent to 1,024 terabytes or 1,000,000,000,000,000 bytes.

exabyte

An exabyte (EB) is a unit of digital information storage used to denote the size of data. It is equivalent to 1 billion gigabytes (GB), 1,000 petabytes (PB) or 1,000,000,000,000,000,000 bytes (B).

BIOS

A basic input/output system (BIOS) is a preinstalled program used during startup on Windows-based computers. The CPU initially accesses the BIOS, after which the operating system is loaded. A basic input/output system is also known as system BIOS or ROM BIOS.

gigabyte

Gigabyte (GB or GByte) is a data measurement unit for digital computer or media storage. One GB equals one billion (1,000,000,000) bytes or one-thousand (1,000) megabytes (MB).

battery

A battery is a device that produces electrons through electrochemical reactions, and contains positive (+) and negative (-) terminals. A battery consists of one or more electrochemical cells, which transform stored chemical energy directly into electrical energy. When an external load connects to a battery, electrons cross from the negative to the positive terminal, creating an electrical current. This current may power a motor, a light bulb, a clock, a computer, a cellphone, and other electronic devices or equipment. Battery flow speed is determined by the battery's internal resistance and outside load.

hard drive

A hard disk drive (HDD) is a non-volatile computer storage device containing magnetic disks or platters rotating at high speeds. It is a secondary storage device used to store data permanently, random access memory (RAM) being the primary memory device. Non-volatile means data is retained when the computer is turned off. A hard disk drive is also known as a hard drive.

heat sink with cooling fan

A heat sink and fan (HSF) is an active cooling solution used to cool down integrated circuits in computer systems, commonly the central processing unit (CPU). As the name suggests, it is composed of a passive cooling unit (the heat sink) and a fan. The heat sink is usually made from a high-temperature conductive material such as aluminum and copper, and the fan is a DC brushless fan, which is the standard used for computer systems.

kilobyte

A kilobyte (KB) is a multiple unit used for binary data. Although "kilo" generally refers to 1,000, in computer science, one kilobyte often refers to 1,024 (2^10) bytes. It may also be used to refer to 1,000 bytes depending on the context. This measure is often used to describe memory capacity and disk storage.

motherboard

A motherboard is a computer's main circuit board, and it includes the following attached to a fixed planar surface: Input/output ports Peripheral connections PCI expansion slots Bus and power connectors Heat sinks and mounting points for fans and major components, including the central processing unit (CPU) and optional coprocessors Supporting chipset for CPU, bus and external components BIOS Memory sockets for RAM, ROM and cache Interconnecting circuitry Additionally, daughterboards and mezzanine cards, installed on a second level, may be plugged into the motherboard. A daughterboard may be the actual motherboard and/or card or board plugged into the motherboard. The motherboard is also referred to as the main board (mobo), system board or planar board. Apple computers refer to the motherboard as the logic board.

power supply

A power supply is a component that supplies power to at least one electric load. Typically, it converts one type of electrical power to another, but it may also convert a a different form of energy - such as solar, mechanical, or chemical - into electrical energy. A power supply provides components with electric power. The term usually pertains to devices integrated within the component being powered. For example, computer power supplies convert AC current to DC current and are generally located at the rear of the computer case, along with at least one fan. A power supply is also known as a power supply unit, power brick or power adapter.

terabyte

A terabyte (TB) is a unit of digital information storage used to denote the size of data. It is equivalent to 1,000 gigabytes, or 1,000,000,000,000 bytes, using the SI standard.

expansion card

An expansion card is an electronic card/board that is used to add extra functionality to a computer. It is inserted into an expansion slot on the motherboard of a computer. Expansion cards contain edge connectors that are used to create an electronic link between motherboard and card, thus enabling these two to communicate. Many different classes of expansion card are available, including sound cards, video graphics cards, network cards and so on. All expansion cards are used to enhance the quality of their specific function. For example, video graphics cards are used to enhance the video quality on a computer. Expansion cards are also known as add-on cards or interface cards.

expansion card slot

An expansion slot is a socket on the motherboard that is used to insert an expansion card (or circuit board), which provides additional features to a computer such as video, sound, advanced graphics, Ethernet or memory. The expansion card has an edge connector that fits precisely into the expansion slot as well as a row of contacts that is designed to establish an electrical connection between the motherboard and the electronics on the card, which are mostly integrated circuits. Depending on the form factor of the case and motherboard, a computer system generally can have anywhere from one to seven expansion slots. With a backplane system, up to 19 expansion cards can be installed.

CPU (Central Processing Unit)

The central processing unit (CPU) is the unit which performs most of the processing inside a computer. To control instructions and data flow to and from other parts of the computer, the CPU relies heavily on a chipset, which is a group of microchips located on the motherboard. The CPU has two components: Control Unit: extracts instructions from memory and decodes and executes them Arithmetic Logic Unit (ALU): handles arithmetic and logical operations To function properly, the CPU relies on the system clock, memory, secondary storage, and data and address buses. This term is also known as a central processor, microprocessor or chip.

megabyte

Megabyte (MB) is a data measurement unit applied to digital computer or media storage. One MB equals one million (106 or 1,000,000) bytes. The International System of Units (SI) defines the mega prefix as a 10 multiplier or one million (1,000,000) bits. The binary mega prefix is 1,048,576 bits or 1,024 Kb. The SI and binary differential is approximately 4.86 percent.