Computer System Flashcards
(25 cards)
What 3 things does every COMPUTER do?
Input, Process, Output.
What 3 things does every CPU do?
Fetch, Decode, Execute.
What is hardware?
It is the internal components of the computer which you can touch.
What is software?
The computer programs which provide the system with instructions.
How is data represented in the computer?
In Binary.
What are the switches inside the CPU called?
Transistors.
What numbers does binary consist of?
1’s and 0’s.
Why don’t we use binary?
It would take humans too long to code.
What does ASCII stand for?
American Standard Code for Information Interchange.
How many ASCII keys are there for the UK?
ASCII represents 128 characters.
What is defragmentation?
It puts the files back into one block and collects the free spaces together.
What is a system software?
A software which maintains the computer.
What is an application software?
A software which in the user has to execute a specific duty.
Where is the virtual memory stored?
In the hard-drive.
What is a proprietary software?
Proprietary software (sometimes referred to as closed source software) is software that legally remains the property of the organisation, group, or individual who created it.
What cools down the CPU?
Heat-sink.
What 3 components are in the CPU?
ALU (Arithmetic Logic unit.)
Register.
Control Unit.
What does the ALU do?
Carries out instructions and performs regular operations such as division and multiplication.
What does the CU do?
It coordinates the CPU.
What are registers and what do they do?
They are small quick stores of data and some are used for programming. They are on the chip for efficiency as it is close to the CPU.
What are the 3 main factors that affect the CPU’s performance?
Clock speed.
Amount of cores.
Cache Size.
What does the NOT gate do?
It displays the opposite of the input.
Give a type of secondary storage.
SSD.
What is the main purpose of secondary storage?
To provide a long term storage for application files and data.
