computing exam 2
bay
a bay is nothing more than a mounting point within a computer chassis where components such as a hard drive, cd rom, or dvd player can be placed
a byte
a byte is the smallest practical unit of computer memory. it consists of 8 individual bits (1s or 0s). a single byte can represent any one ASCII character or a number between 0 and 225
memory access time
a measure of the time it takes to find data and retrieve it, speed of memory is measured in nanoseconds
voice input/speech/voice recognition
allows you to communicate with the computer via spoken commands
pen input
allows you to use a stylus or "pen" to write on a screen or make menu selections
optical mice
alternative to ball mice and use light to detect movement; greater sensitivity, no moving parts, easier to clean
commands
are keywords and phrases that the user inputs to direct the computer to perform certain activities
a ____ is an identification code that consists of a set of vertical lines and spaces of different widths
bar code
the _____ system is a number system that has just two unique digits, 0 and 1, called bits
binary
_____ is the technology of authenticating a persons identity by verifying a personal characteristic
biometric
data collection devices
broad category of devices used to collect and process data
within the circuitry of a computer, each channel along which bits transfer, called a(n) ____ allows the various devices both inside and attached to the system unit to communicate with each other
bus
when 8 bits are grouped together as a unit, they form a ____
byte
most of todays computers improve memory access and processing time with ____, which stores frequently used instructions and data. they try to anticipate what the processor will need next
cache
cache memory
cache memory is a small chunk of extreemly high speed memory that is placed between the processor and main memory in order to help speed up some tasks. cache memory holds the most commonly requested items together with anticipated items in order to speed up access to them. in many cases this can result in a significant performances gain
optical scanner or scanner
can capture an entire page at a time and convert it to electronic format (OCR software?), more bits per dot, the better the image will be, sharpness is resolution and is measured in dots per inch
the processor
centeral processing unit (CPU), carries out the basic instructions that operate the computer (contains: control unit, ALU, registers, systems clock)
a graphic processing unit's _____ depth is the number of bits it uses to store information about each pixel
color
random access memory RAM
computer can go directly to a desired memory address rather than having to search sequentially through all addresses, has volatile memory bc when the computer is turned off whatever was stored in the memory is erased
which of the following is the component of the processor that directs and coordinates most of the operations in the computer
control unit
pointing devices
controls movement of pointer also called mouse pointer
power supplies
convert ac power to dc power
systems clock
coordinates the timing of all events such as fetches and calculations, each tick of the clock is called a clock cycle, measured in gigahertz, the faster the clock speed, the more instructions a computer can execute in a second
the ____ is a symbol on the screen, usually a blinking vertical bar, that indicates where the next character typed will display
cursor
user responses
data that a user inputs in response to questions or prompts from the software
in the machine cycle steps illustrated in the accompanying figure, the term ____ refers to the process of translating instructions into signals the computer can execute
decoding
mouse pads
designed to help keep the mouse clean and provide a good surface for traction
optical mark recognition (OMR)
devices are used to process questionnaires and test answers, made at specific locations on a form using a type of pencil or ink that the machine can read
optical recognition
devices that can read printed, type-writtenm and sometimes hand written documents, scanned text is then interpreted by OCR software so that it can be used in a word processing program and edited
input
entering data, programs, commands, and responses to commands into the computers memory; also floppy disks, hard drives, tape cartridges
the goal of ____ is to incorporate comfort, efficiency, and safety in the design of items in the workplace
ergonomics
biometric devices measure the shape and size of a person's hand using a hand _____ system
geometry
an artist can create drawings and sketches by using a pen
graphics
a _____ is a small ceramic or metal component with fins on its surface that absorbs and disperses heat produced by electrical components such as a processor
heat sink
registers
high speed storage locations where data that is about to be manipulated is kept, they are not part of the system memory
expansion card
in order to allow for computers to be configured to suit different tasks, computer motherboards contain slots into which expansion cards may be plugged. an expansion card is a circuit board onto which chips have been arranged so that the board can perform a desired task. for ex a card may be designed to act as a modem, to display
bus
in the non-computer world, a bus is a vehicle responsible for moving people from one location to another. inside a computer, the function of a bus is to move data from one component (memory, processor, expansion card) to another. for example, the system bus is responsible for moving data back and forth between main memory and the processor
ergonomic keyboards
incorporate comfort, efficiency and safety
firmware
instructions that are stored in ROM
control unit (short)
interprets instructions and decides what must be done to carry them out
what is unique about a multi-core processor
it is a single chip with two or more separate processor cores
trackball
like an upside down mouse, ball is on top so you just move the ball not the whole mouse
mother board
main circuit board in the system, consists of many computer chips
a _____ mouse is one that has a rubber or metal ball on its underside. the ball rolls against a surface and its motion is detected by rollers inside the mouse
mechanical
CMOS
memory is used to store information about the computuer such as the type of hard drive, system time and date, and amount of memory installed, it is a type of RAM, has a battery to retain information even when the computer is off, when the battery starts to go itll forget time and date
chache
memory that holds commonly used instructions and data to help speed up computation
pointing stick/trackpoint/isometric pointing
middle red thing
keyboard
most common used input device, key board is used to insert data at the insertion point on the screen, QWERTY keyboard
building a computer:
mother board, processor, ram, ssd/hdd, chassis, video card, power supply, optical drive
which of the following is the main circuit board of the system unit
motherboard
joy stick
move the entire vertical stem to indicate movement of the cursor on screen
ROM read only memory
non-volatile because what is stored there remains even after the computer is powered off, cannot be erased or written to, start up instructions when computer is first turned on
control unit
one fo the primary components of a processor chip. the control unit is responsible for fetching an instruction into the registers within a processor and analyzing that instruction to determine what needs to be done. the control unit is responsible for overseeing the machine cycle
bay
opening in the computer to install devices, usually drives (outside is external bay inside is internal bay)
ALU (Arithmetic logic unit)
performs basic caluclations and comparisons such as addition, subtration, multiplication, greater than, and less than
_____ allows modern processors to perform more work because the parts of the CPU are working on different stages of the machine cycle for different instructions. one instruction is being fetched while another is executing and another is decoding
pipelining
a ______ is a more affordable and lightweight version of a camera and provides acceptable photographic images for the home or small business user
point and shoot camera
graphics tablet/digitizer
pressure sensors that react to a stylus or pen
digital computers
process data, where it is text, graphics, sound or video, by converting the data to and from a digital (numeric) value
a ____ is similar to an electronic filing cabinet that provides access to exact reproductions (scanned pictures) of the original documents
processing system
field cameras
professional portable digital cameras and look like regular cameras
data
raw facts which can be numbers leters words graphics video sounds that the computer can receive
magnetic stripe card reader
reads data magnetically encoded into a strip on the back of a plastic card such as your credit card or ATM card, exposure to strong magnetic fields can damage the data on the card
biometric input
scanners are desinged to verify the identity of a person using some body characteristic
ALU
short for arithmetic logic unit, this component of the processorhandles most of the mathematical calculations and logical reasoning needed to execute an instruction
CMOS memory
short for complimentary metal-oxide semiconductor and indicates that the memory is manufactured from components that require very little power to remain energized and retain the memorys contents. in most computers, CMOS memory is used to store the configuration of the computer for use in the POST (power on self-test) run when a computer starts. the CMOS memory may also store current time and date information
trackpad and a touchpad
small rectangular surface that you use by dragging your finger across it
expansion slots
sockets designed to hold circuit boards for devices such as sound cards, video adapters, internal modems
ports
sockets on the outside of the computer that are used to connect peripheral devices such as monitors, keyboards, mice, modems, printers, scanners, joysticks
audio input
sounds are usually reordered with a microphone connected to a sound card or a sound device, like an elctronic music keyboard connected ot a sound card (wafeform files WAV)
studio cameras
stay permaneltly connected to a computer
image processing systems
store and manage documents
digital camera
store images in memory rather than on film
programs
stored instructions that direct the computer to do something
computer memory and computer storage are available in varying sizes. which of the following is the largest amount of memory storage
terabyte
ASCII
the america standard code for information interchange. it is a mapping that takes common characters in american english and maps them to number so that tehy can be represented on a computer. for example, "A" maps to the decimal number 65 or the byte 010000001
clock speed
the place 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)
if a computer advertisement states a computer operates at 5 GHz., what does that mean
the system clock has a clock speed of five billion clock cycles per second
a _____ is a pressure sensitive pad that moves a pointer on the computer screen by capturing the motion of a finger or fingers across its surface
touchpad
for users that have limited desk space, the _____ is a good alternative to a mouse because the device is stationary and uses a rolling ball
tracking mouse
a _____ which is contained on an integrated circuit, can act as an electronic switch that opens or closes the circuit for electrical charges
transistor
_____ is a coding scheme capable of representing almost all of the world's current written languages, as well as classic and historical languages
unicode
light pens
use a light call in the tip of the pen to sense light from the screen and determine the location of the pen
optical readers
use a light source to read codes, marks, and characters, and then converts them into digital data that a computer can use (bar code)
analog computers
use continuous signals to represent data and information
wireless keyboards
use infrared light waves to connect to the computer
Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR)
used by banks to process checks
parallel processing
uses more than one CPU in a computer, each CPU can have its own memory or share a pool of memory
which of the following cards converts computer output in a video signal that travels through a cable to the monitor, which displays an image on the screen
video card
____ is the computers capability of distinguishing spoken words
voice recognition
_____ is used almost exclusively by the banking industry for check processing
MICR
many scanners include ____ which can read and convert text documents into electronic files which the user can then edit normally
OCR
____ is a technology that uses radio signals to communicate with a tag placed in or attached to a object, animal, or a person
RFID
enhanced keyboards
12 function keys
covert the binary number 10101100 to base 10
172
binary
1: electronic charge is on; 0: electronic charge is off; a group of 8 bits equals one byte
