Lesson 3.2: Introduction to Computer Hardware Flashcards
CPU
CPU
The CPU (central processing unit or processor) is responsible for processing all information from programs run by your computer. The speed at which the processor processes information is measured in gigahertz (GHz). This means that a processor advertising a high GHz rating will likely perform faster than a similarly specified processor of the same brand and age.
RAM
Random-access memory, or RAM, is hardware found in the memory slots of the motherboard. The role of RAM is to temporarily store information created by programs and to do so in a way that makes this data immediately accessible. The tasks that require random memory could be rendering images for graphic design, editing video or photographs, or multitasking with multiple applications open.
Hard drive
The hard drive is a storage device responsible for storing permanent and temporary data. This data comes in many different forms but is essentially anything saved or installed to a computer; for example, computer programs, family photos, operating systems, word-processing documents, and so on. There are two different types of storage devices: the traditional hard disk drive (HDD) and the newer solid-state drives (SSD). Hard disk drives work by writing binary data onto spinning magnetic disks called platters that rotate at high speeds, while a solid-state drive stores data by using static flash memory chips.
GPU or Graphics Processor Unit
Especially important for 3D rendering, the graphics processing unit (GPU) does exactly what its name suggests and processes huge batches of graphic data. You will find that your computer’s graphics card has at least one GPU. As opposed to the basic on-board graphic capabilities that PC motherboards supply, dedicated graphics cards interface with the motherboard via an expansion slot to work almost exclusively on graphic rendering. This also means you can upgrade your graphics card if you want to get a bit more performance from your PC. Not only this, but modern GPUs fulfill a broad computational workload beyond just rendering, making them an extension to the central processing unit.
Expansion Card
In computing, the expansion card, expansion board, adapter card, or accessory card is a printed circuit board that can be inserted into an electrical connector or expansion slot on a computer motherboard, backplane, or riser card to add functionality to a computer system via the expansion bus.
An expansion bus is a computer bus that moves information between the internal hardware of a computer system (including the CPU and RAM) and peripheral devices. It is a collection of wires and protocols that allows for the expansion of a computer.
computer system
a system of hardware, software, networking, and human components that function together.
IPOS
The IPOS (input-process-output-storage) model explains what computer systems are used for. They take input, process it, and provide an output while using storage to keep intermediate and final results of the transformation of data.
computer hardware contains three major components
the central processing unit, storage, and peripheral devices.
Expansion Slot
An expansion slot is a socket on the motherboard to plug in expansion cards.
Expansion Card
An expansion card allows the addition of new features to a computer.
RAM
RAM temporarily stores information inside a computer. The information is lost when the
computer is turned off.
Hard Drive
A hard drive is the device a computer uses to store information long-term.
Power Supply
A power supply changes normal household electricity into electricity that a computer can use.
Motherboard
A motherboard is the main circuit board of a computer.
