Abstract We are going to discuss what hardware is inside your computer. We will be explaining what it is and how it words at a layman’s level. What make a computer work? OK, time to pop off the cover of your desk top computer and have a look around. Most people never see the inside of the computer, but today we are going to explore it. You don’t really NEED to understand the parts of the computer to use it.
Just as you do not need to be an auto mechanic to drive a car. But understanding what the parts of the computer are and how they work, might make some of the software more understandable. Besides it is sometimes useful to understand what is happening inside your computer when something goes wrong.
I should start with an apology to those of you who are viewing this on the web, and not in the class. For this talk I brought in a suite case full of hardware to examine in the class room. But it is a little hard to include that on the web page.;-) I have included pictures and some diagrams, but it is not the same as having the object in your hand to view. So maybe it is time to consider pulling the cover off your own desktop computer.
If you have a laptop, I am afraid you are out of luck for looking inside the box. With a laptop, you have the same components, and they work the same way. The difference is that they are all build on the motherboard since space and size are the reason you have a laptop. Lets start by having a look at the names/terms used in the computer. This list is by no means complete, but it will cover the most common ones.
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All definitions taken from:, which I highly recommend, as it has some of the best human readable explanations. • 802.11: or Wi-Fi denotes a set of Wireless LAN standards developed by working group 11 of the IEEE LAN/MAN Standards Committee (IEEE 802).
The term is also used to refer to the original 802.11, which is now sometimes called “802.11legacy.” The 802.11 family currently includes six over-the-air modulation techniques that all use the same protocol, the most popular (and prolific) techniques are those defined by the a, b, and g amendments to the original standard; security was originally included, and was later enhanced via the 802.11i amendment. Other standards in the family (c u2013f, h u2013j, n) are service enhancement and extensions, or corrections to previous specifications. 802.11b was the first widely accepted wireless networking standard, followed (somewhat counterintuitively) by 802.11a and 802.11g. 802.11b and 802.11g standards use the unlicensed 2.4 gigahertz (GHz) band. The 802.11a standard uses the 5 GHz band. Operating in an unregulated frequency band, 802.11b and 802.11g equipment can incur interference from microwave ovens, cordless phones, and other appliances using the same 2.4 GHz band. • ADC In electronics, an analog-to-digital converter (abbreviated ADC, A/D, or A to D) is a device that converts continuous signals to discrete digital numbers.
Typically, an ADC converts a voltage to a digital number. A digital-to-analog converter (DAC) performs the reverse operation. • ALU: The arithmetic logic unit/arithmetic-logic unit (ALU) of a computer’s CPU is a part of the execution unit, a core component of all CPUs. ALUs are capable of calculating the results of a wide variety of basic arithmetical computations. Virtually all modern computer ALUs use the two’s complement binary number representation • Assembly Language or simply assembly is a human-readable notation for the machine language that a specific computer architecture uses. Machine language, a pattern of bits encoding machine operations, is made readable by replacing the raw values with symbols called mnemonics. For example, a computer with the appropriate processor will understand this x86/IA-32 machine instruction: 1010001 For programmers, however, it is easier to remember the equivalent assembly language representation: mov al, 0x61 which means to move the hexadecimal value 61 (97 decimal) into the processor register with the name “al”.
The mnemonic “mov” is short for “move”, and a comma-separated list of arguments or parameters follows it; this is a typical assembly language statement. • Baud: In telecommunications and electronics, baud is a measure of the “signaling rate” which is the number of changes to the transmission media per second in a modulated signal.
It is named after Emile Baudot, the inventor of the Baudot code for telegraphy. For Example: 250 baud means that 250 signals are transmitted in one second. If each signal carries 4 bits of information then in each second 1000 bits are transmitted. This is abbreviated as 1000 bit/s. Note: Baud rate should not be confused with data rate (also called “bits per second”). Each signalling event transmitted can carry one or more bits (as many as 256 in 256-QAM modulation) of information. When each signalling event transmitted carries one bit the baud rate and the data rate are equal.
However, it is more common to make better use of bandwidth by encoding multiple bits in one event. This reduces the transmission time required for sending information. Thus, a 2400 bit/s modem actually transmits at 600 baud, where each quadrature amplitude modulation event carries four bits of information.
• BIOS in computing, stands for basic input/output system. BIOS refers to the software code run by a computer when first powered on. The primary function of BIOS is to prepare the machine so other software programs stored on various media (such as hard drives, floppies, and CDs) can load, execute, and assume control of the computer.
• Bit: A bit (sometimes abbreviated b, see below) is the most basic information unit used in computing and information theory. A single bit is a one or a zero, a true or a false, a “flag” which is “on” or “off”, or in general, the quantity of information required to distinguish two mutually exclusive states from each other.
A bit is like a light switch; it can be either on or off. • Byte: A byte is commonly used as a unit of storage measurement in computers, regardless of the type of data being stored.
A contiguous sequence of a fixed number of bits. On modern computers, an eight-bit byte or octet is by far the most common. This was not always the case. Certain older models have used six-, seven-, or nine-bit bytes - for instance on the 36-bit architecture of the PDP-10. Another example of a non eight-bit sequence is the 12-bit slab of the NCR-315. A byte is always atomic on the system, meaning that it is the smallest addressable unit. An eight-bit byte can hold 256 possible values (28 = 256) – enough to store an unsigned integer ranging from 0 to 255, a signed integer from -128 to 127, or a character of a seven-bit (such as ASCII) or eight-bit character encoding.
• CD-Rom The CD-ROM (an abbreviation for “Compact Disc Read-Only Memory”) is a non-volatile optical data storage medium using the same physical format as audio CDs, readable by a computer with a CD-ROM drive. A CD-ROM is a flat, metallized plastic disc with digital information encoded on it in a spiral from the center to the outside edge. The CD-ROM Yellow Book standard was established in 1985 by Sony and Philips.
Microsoft and Apple Computer were early enthusiasts and promoters of CD-ROMs. • Clock Signal: In electronics and synchronous digital circuits, such as most computers, a clock signal is a signal used to coordinate the actions of two or more circuits. A clock signal oscillates between a high and a low state, normally with a 50% duty cycle, and is usually a square wave. The circuits using the clock signal for synchronization may become active at either the rising or falling edge, or both (see for example DDR SDRAM), of the clock signal. • Computer Keyboard: A computer keyboard is a peripheral modelled after the typewriter keyboard. Keyboards are designed for the input of text and characters, and also to control the operation of the computer. Physically, computer keyboards are an arrangement of rectangular or near-rectangular buttons, or “keys”.
Keyboards typically have characters engraved or printed on the keys; in most cases, each press of a key corresponds to a single written symbol. However, to produce some symbols requires pressing and holding several keys simultaneously, or in sequence; other keys do not produce any symbol, but instead affect the operation of the computer, or the keyboard itself. • Computer Monitor: A computer display, monitor or screen is a computer peripheral device capable of showing still or moving images generated by a computer and processed by a graphics card. Monitors generally conform to one or more display standards. Sometimes the name “display” is preferred to the word “monitor”, as the latter can be ambiguous alongside the other senses of “monitor” meaning “machine-level debugger” or “thread synchronization mechanism”. Computer displays are sometimes called heads, especially when talking about how many are connected to a computer. Once an essential component of a computer terminal, computer displays have long since become standardized peripherals in their own right.
• Computer Mouse: A mouse is a handheld pointing device for computers, involving a small object fitted with one or more buttons and shaped to sit naturally under the hand. The underside of the mouse houses a device that detects the mouse’s motion relative to the flat surface on which it sits. The mouse’s 2D motion is typically translated into the motion of a pointer on the display. • Computer Trackball: A trackball is a pointing device consisting of a ball housed in a socket containing sensors to detect rotation of the ball about two axes – like an upside-down mouse, but with the ball sticking out more. The user rolls the ball with their thumb, fingers, or the palm of their hand to move a cursor. Tracker balls are common on CAD workstations for ease of use and, before the advent of the trackpad, on portable computers, where there may be no desk space on which to use a mouse.
Some clip onto the side of the keyboard and have integral buttons which have the same function as mouse buttons. Trackballs are sometimes seen on computerised special-purpose workstations, such as the radar consoles in an air-traffic control room or sonar equipment on a ship or submarine. Modern installations of such equipment may use mice instead, since most people now already know how to use one. However, military mobile anti-aircraft radars and submarine sonars tend to continue using trackballs, since they can be made much more durable and are better fit for fast emergency use. • CPU: A central processing unit (CPU) refers to part of a computer that interprets and executes instructions and data contained in software.
The more generic term processor is sometimes used to refer to a CPU as well; see processor (disambiguation) for other uses of this term. Microprocessors are CPUs that are manufactured on integrated circuits, often as a single-chip package. Since the mid-1970s, these single-chip microprocessors have become the most common and prominent implementations of CPUs, and today the term is almost always applied to this form. • CPU Cache A CPU cache is a cache used by the central processing unit of a computer to reduce the average time to access memory. The cache is a smaller, faster memory which stores copies of the data from the most frequently used main memory locations.
As long as most memory accesses are to cached memory locations, the average latency of memory accesses will be closer to the cache latency than to the latency of main memory. • CRT The cathode ray tube or CRT, invented by Karl Ferdinand Braun, is the display device used in most computer displays, video monitors, televisions and oscilloscopes.
The CRT developed from Philo Farnsworth’s work was used in all television sets until the late 20th century and the advent of plasma screens, LCDs, DLP, OLED displays, and other technologies. • DAC In electronics, a digital-to-analog converter (DAC or D-to-A) is a device for converting a digital (usually binary) code to an analog signal (current, voltage or charges). Digital-to-Analog Converters are the interface between the abstract digital world and the analog real life. Simple switches, a network of resistors, current sources or capacitors may implement this conversion. An analog-to-digital converter (ADC) performs the reverse operation. • Dot Matrix A dot matrix printer or impact matrix printer refers to a type of computer printer with a print head that runs back and forth on the page and prints by impact, striking an ink-soaked cloth ribbon against the paper, much like a typewriter. Unlike a typewriter or daisy wheel printer, letters are drawn out of a dot matrix, and thus, varied fonts and arbitrary graphics can be produced.
Because the printing involves mechanical pressure, these printers can create carbon copies and carbonless copies. • DVD (sometimes called a Digital Versatile Disc) is an optical disc storage media format that can be used for data storage, including movies with high video and sound quality. DVDs resemble compact discs as their physical dimensions are the same (12cm in diameter) but they are encoded in a different format and at a much higher density. DVDs use the UDF file system which is an extension of the ISO 9660 Standard used for CD-ROMs.
• Ethernet is a frame-based computer networking technology for local area networks (LANs). The name comes from the physical concept of ether. It defines wiring and signaling for the physical layer, and frame formats and protocols for the media access control (MAC)/data link layer of the OSI model. Ethernet is mostly standardized as IEEEs 802.3. It has become the most widespread LAN technology in use during the 1990s to the present, and has largely replaced all other LAN standards such as token ring, FDDI, and ARCNET. • Flash Memory is a form of EEPROM(Electrically-Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory) that allows multiple memory locations to be erased or written in one programming operation. In layman’s terms, it is a form of rewritable memory chip that, unlike a Random Access Memory chip, holds its content without the need of a power supply.
It is also an example of a Non-Volatile Read Write Memory (NVRWM). The memory is commonly used in memory cards, USB flash drives, MP3 players, digital cameras and mobile phones.
• Floppy Disk: A floppy disk is a data storage device that is composed of a circular piece of thin, flexible (i.e. “floppy”) magnetic storage medium encased in a square or rectangular plastic wallet. Floppy disks are read and written by a floppy disk drive or FDD, the latter initialism not to be confused with “fixed disk drive”, which is an old IBM term for a hard disk drive. • Hard Disk: A hard disk uses rigid rotating platters (disks). Each platter has a planar magnetic surface on which digital data may be stored.
Information is written to the disk by transmitting an electromagnetic flux through an antenna or read-write head that is very close to a magnetic material, which in turn changes its polarization due to the flux. The information can be read back by a read-write head because the magnetic fields cause electrical change in the read-write head as it passes over a platter. • Hertz: One hertz simply means “one per second” (1 / s); 100 Hz means “one hundred per second”, and so on. The unit may be applied to any periodic event u2013 for example, a clock might be said to tick at 1 Hz, or a human heart might be said to beat at 1.2 Hz.
Frequency of random events, such as radioactive decays, is expressed in becquerels. • Inkjet Most current inkjets (Epson being a notable exception) work by having a print cartridge with a series of tiny electrically-heated chambers constructed by photolithography.
To produce an image, the printer runs a pulse of current through the heating elements. A steam explosion in the chamber forms a bubble, which propels a droplet of ink onto the paper (hence Canon’s tradename for its inkjets, Bubblejet). When the bubble condenses, surplus ink is sucked back up from the printing surface. The ink’s surface tension pumps another charge of ink into the chamber through a narrow channel attached to an ink reservoir. Epson’s Micro Piezo technology uses a piezoelectric crystal in each nozzle instead of a heating element.
When current is applied, the crystal bends, forcing a droplet of ink from the nozzle. • ISA: Industry Standard Architecuter, originated as an 8-bit system in the IBM PC in 1981, and was extended in 1983 as the XT bus architecture. The modern 16-bit standard was introduced in 1984. Designed to connect peripheral cards to the motherboard, the protocol also allows for bus mastering although only the first 16 MB of main memory is available for direct access. The 8-bit bus ran at 4.77 MHz, while the 16-bit bus operated at 8 MHz. In reference to the XT bus, it is sometimes referred to as the AT bus architecture. It was also available on some non-IBM compatible machines such as the short-lived AT&T Hobbit and later PowerPC based BeBox.
• Jumpers: In electronics and particularly computing, a jumper is two or more connecting points that can be conveniently shorted together to set up or adjust a printed circuit board, such as a computer’s motherboard. Jumpers are arranged in groups called jumper blocks, each group having at least one pair of contact points and often more. In general, each contact in a jumper block terminates in a small metal pin. An appropriately sized conductive sleeve called a shunt is slipped over the pins to complete the circuit. (In everyday usage, shunts are very commonly but incorrectly called “jumpers”.) • Laser Printer A laser printer is a common type of computer printer that produces high quality printing, and is able to produce both text and graphics. The process is very similar to the type of dry process photocopier first produced by Xerox.
Indeed, the first laser printer was created by Xerox researcher Gary Starkweather by modifying a Xerox copier in • Laser printing eventually became a multibillion-dollar business for Xerox. • LCD A liquid crystal display (LCD) is a thin, flat display device made up of any number of color or monochrome pixels arrayed in front of a light source or reflector.
It is prized by engineers because it uses very small amounts of electric power, and is therefore suitable for use in battery-powered electronic devices. • Light Pen: A lightpen is a device similar to a touch screen, but is facilitated by use of a special light sensitive pen instead of the finger. The advantage of using a pen is that more accurate screen input is possible than with a touch screen. Also, a light pen can work with any CRT-based monitor, not just with a special touch screen. However, light pens cannot work with LCD screens, projectors etc • Logic Gate A logic gate is an arrangement of controlled switches used to calculate operations using Boolean algebra in digital circuits. • Machine Language A system of codes directly understandable by a computer’s CPU is termed this CPU’s native or machine language. Although machine code may seem similar to assembly language they are in fact two different types of languages.
Assembly code consists of both binary numbers and simple words whereas machine code is composed only of the two binary digits 0 and 1. Every CPU model has its own machine language, although there is considerable overlap between some. If CPU A understands the full language of CPU B it is said that A is compatible with B. CPU B may not be compatible with CPU A, as A may know a few codes that B does not. • Memory Management is the act of managing computer memory.
In its simpler forms this involves providing ways to allocate portions of memory to programs at their request and free it back to the system for reuse when no longer needed. Virtual memory systems increase the effectively available amount of RAM using disk swapping and the quality of the virtual memory manager can have a big impact on overall system performance.
• Motherboard: A motherboard, also known as a main board, mainboard, logic board or system board, and sometimes abbreviated as mobo, is the central or primary circuit board making up a complex electronic system, such as a computer. • NIC A network card (also called network adapter, network interface card, NIC, etc.) is a piece of computer hardware designed to provide for computer communication over a computer network.
Whereas network cards used to be expansion cards to plug into a computer bus, most newer computers have a network interface built into the motherboard, so a separate network card is not required unless multiple interfaces are needed or some other type of network is used. The card implements the electronic circuitry required to communicate using a specific physical layer and data link layer standard such as ethernet or token ring. This provides a base for a full network protocol stack, allowing communication among small groups of computers on the same LAN and large-scale network communications through routable protocols, such as IP. A network card typically has a twisted pair, BNC, or AUI socket where the network cable is connected, and a few LEDs to inform the user of whether the network is active, and whether or not there is data being transmitted on it. The Network Cards are typically available in 10/100/1000 Mbit/s.
This means they can support a transfer rate of 10 or 100 or 1000 Mbit/s. • Opcode In computer science, an Opcode is the portion of a machine language instruction that specifies the operation to be performed. The term is an abbreviation of Operation Code. Their specification and format will be laid out in the instruction set architecture (ISA) of the computer hardware component in question u2014normally a CPU, but possibly a more specialised unit. A complete machine language instruction contains an opcode and, optionally, the specification of one or more operands u2014what data the operation should act upon.
Some operations have implicit operands, or indeed none. Some ISAs have instructions with defined fields for opcodes and operands, while others (e.g. the Intel x86 architecture) have a more complicated and ad-hoc structure. The operands upon which opcodes operate may, depending on CPU architecture, consist of registers, values in memory, values stored on the stack, I/O ports, the bus, etc.
The operations an opcode may specify can include arithmetic, data copying, logical operations, and program control. • Parallel Port: In computing, a parallel port is an interface from a computer system where data is transferred in or out in parallel, that is, on more than one wire.
A parallel port carries one bit on each wire thus multiplying the transfer rate obtainable over a single cable (contrast serial port). There are also several extra wires on the port that are used for control and status signals to indicate when data is ready to be sent or received, initiate a reset, indicate an error condition (such as paper out), and so forth. • PC A personal computer or PC is generally a microcomputer intended to be used by one person at a time, and suitable for general purpose tasks such as word processing, programming, multimedia editing or game play, usually used to run software not written by the user. Unlike minicomputers, a personal computer is often owned by the person using it, indicating a low cost of purchase and simplicity of operation.
The user of a modern personal computer may have significant knowledge of the operating environment and application programs, but is not necessarily interested in programming nor even able to write programs for the computer. • PCI: The PCI bus is common in modern PCs, where it has displaced ISA and VESA Local Bus as the standard expansion bus, but it also appears in many other computer types. The bus will eventually be succeeded by PCI Express and other technologies, which have already started to appear in new computers.
The PCI specification covers the physical size of the bus (including wire spacing), electrical characteristics, bus timing, and protocols. • PC Card / PCMCIA: The PCMCIA is the Personal Computer Memory Card International Association, an industry trade association that creates standards for notebook computer peripheral devices. The best known such devices are known as PC Cards (formerly PCMCIA cards). A later revision of the PC Card is known as CardBus. The PCMCIA is also developing a new notebook peripheral specification called Newcard or ExpressCard. The initialism “PCMCIA” was jokingly expanded as “People Can’t Memorize Computer Industry Acronyms”. The first PC cards (PCMCIA) were Type I, and supported actual Memory Cards (e.g. ATA Type I Flash Memory Cards), such as DRAM or Flash memories.
Type II cards added I/O support in addition to memory applications, and type III expanded on this. The ports role as I/O for various devices has largely superseded its role as a Memory Card, but this role did spawn a generation of flash memory cards that set out to improve on the size and features of ATA Type I cards (CompactFlash, MiniCard, and SSFDC(Smartmedia)). • Processor Register In computer architecture, a processor register is a small amount of very fast computer memory used to speed the execution of computer programs by providing quick access to commonly used values – typically, the values being in the midst of a calculation at a given point in time. Most, but not all, modern computer architectures operate on the principle of moving data from main memory into registers, operating on them, then moving the result back into main memory – a so-called load-store architecture. Processor registers are the top of the memory hierarchy, and provide the fastest way for the system to access data.
Registers are normally measured by the number of bits they can hold, for example, an “8-bit register” or a “32-bit register”. Registers are now usually implemented as a register file, but they have also been implemented using individual flip-flops, high speed core memory, thin film memory, and other ways in various machines • PS/2: the mini-DIN mouse and keyboard connection ports which were introduced by the IBM Personal System/2.
Because of the old AT type of keyboard connection, the plugs were usually too cluttered and difficult to handle. So when the new technology came along, and it had some success. It could handle the old type of keyboards with an adapter to fit between them. It’s technically the same connection, but it’s more stable, better speed and the plug has been replaced.
Most modern computers have two of those ports. • RAM: is an acronym for random access memory. Is a type of computer storage (in practice only computer chips) whose contents can be accessed in any (i.e., random) order.
This is in contrast to sequential memory devices such as magnetic tapes, discs and drums, in which the mechanical movement of the storage medium forces the computer to access data in a fixed order. • ROM: Read-only memory (ROM) is used as a storage medium in computers. Because it cannot (easily) be written to, its main uses lie in the distribution of firmware (software that is very closely related to hardware, and not likely to need frequent upgrading). • RS-232: In telecommunications, RS-232 is a standard for serial binary data interconnection between a DTE (Data terminal equipment) and a DCE (Data communication equipment). It is commonly used in computer serial ports.
• Serial Port: In computing, a serial port is an interface on a computer system with which information is transferred in or out one bit at a time (contrast parallel port). Throughout most of the history of personal computers, this was accomplished using the RS-232 standard over simple cables connecting the computer to a device such as a terminal or modem.
Mice, keyboards, and other devices were also often connected this way. • SVGA: Originally, it was an extension to the VGA standard first released by IBM in 1987. Unlike VGA – a purely IBM-defined standard – Super VGA was defined by the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA), an open consortium set up to promote interoperability and define standards. • Graphics Tablet: A graphics tablet is a computer peripheral device that allows one to hand-draw images directly into a computer, generally through an imaging program. Graphics tablets consist of a flat surface upon which the user may “draw” an image using an attached stylus, a pen-like drawing apparatus. The image generally does not appear on the tablet itself but, rather, is displayed on the computer monitor. • Tape Drive A tape drive, also known as a streamer, is a peripheral device that reads and writes data stored on a magnetic tape or a punched tape.
It is typically used for archival storage of data stored on hard drives. Tape drives are sequential-access, and must wind past all preceding data to read any one particular piece of data.
They are not the fastest form of data storage, as they are sequential, but are long lasting and cost efficient. Modern LTO drives can reach burst transfer rates of over 160 MB/s, with average transfer rates in the 80 MB/s range. Tape drives can be connected with SCSI (most common), parallel port, IDE, USB, FireWire or Optical Fibre. • Touch Screen: Touchscreens, touch screens, touch panels or touchscreen panels are display overlays which are typically either pressure-sensitive (resistive), electrically-sensitive (capacitance), acoustically-sensitive (SAW - surface acoustic wave) or photo-sensitive (infra-red).
The effect of such overlays allows a display to be used as an input device, removing the keyboard and/or the mouse as the primary input device for interacting with the display’s content. Such displays can be attached to computers or, as terminals, to networks.
• TTL Transistor-Transistor Logic (TTL) is a class of digital circuits built from bipolar junction transistors (BJT), and resistors. It is notable for being a widespread integrated circuit (IC) family used in many applications such as computers, industrial controls, music synthesizers, and electronic test and measurement instruments. • USB: Universal Serial Bus (USB) provides a serial bus standard for connecting devices, usually to a computer, but it also is in use on other devices such as set-top boxes, game consoles such as Sony’s PlayStation 2, Microsoft’s Xbox 360, Nintendo Revolution and PDAs • Virtual Memeory or virtual memory addressing is a feature of computer systems wherein “permanent” data storage is used to assist in handling processing functions, thereby freeing more RAM or main memory (i.e. “active” or “fast” memory) to be used by running software. The use of virtual memory, though slower than if more RAM were added, allows a computer system to handle larger files and operate with more memory “headroom” than the computer actually physically possesses. • VGA: Video Graphics Array (VGA) is a computer display standard first marketed in 1987 by IBM.
VGA belongs to a family of earlier IBM video standards and largely remains backward compatible with them. VGA can be seen as an enhancement of and successor to the previous EGA and CGA graphics adapters. MCGA, also produced by IBM, is a simpler version of the VGA hardware. • Word In computing, “word” is a term for the natural unit of data used by a particular computer design. A word is simply a fixed-sized group of bits that are handled together by the machine. The word size (or length) is an important characteristic of a computer architecture.
The size of a word influences many aspects of a computer’s structure and operation. The majority of the registers in the computer are usually word-sized. The typical numeric value manipulated by the computer is probably word sized. The amount of data transferred between the processing part of the computer and the memory system is most often a word. An address used to designate a location in memory often fits in a word. Modern computers usually have a word size of 16, 32, or 64 bits. • WiFi: (sometimes written Wi-fi, WiFi, Wifi, wifi) is a trademark for sets of product compatibility standards for wireless local area networks (WLANs).
Wi-Fi, short for “Wireless Fidelity”, was intended to allow mobile devices, such as laptop computers and personal digital assistants (PDAs) to connect to local area networks, but is now often used for Internet access and wireless VoIP phones. Desktop computers can use Wi-Fi too, allowing offices and homes to be networked without expensive wiring. Many computers are sold today with Wi-Fi built-in; others require adding a Wi-Fi network card. Other devices, such as digital cameras, are sometimes equipped with Wi-Fi. The Motherboard I think the best way to talk about motherboards is to look at a few of them and talk about them. So here are a few pictures of mother boards I collected for discussion.
This first one is a good diagonal view of a motherboard so we can see the connectors clearly. This next one is also an angle view, but from the other side. This view is a motherboard from the top, showing the fan over the processor. This is another top view of a motherboard so you see the connectors clearly. Lastly we have one more from the top.
It is a larger mother board so it might be a bit clearer. Now lets see if I can get a board diagram to work. OK now that we have seen what the motherboard looks like, lets review a few of the components found there. When I use a term defined above I will link to the definition instead of explaining it again. The is the heart of the computer since it contains the CPU.
In the the CPU consists of a single chip, while in some larger computers, especially mainframes, the CPU might be a complete circuit board. No discussion of computer hardware would be complete without a discussion of a CPU. But I know this is not a hardware engineering course, so we will go through it only superficially. CPU The consists of a number of sub parts. These include the ALU, the Process Registers, the CPU Cache, and the Memory Management Unit.
This is not a complete list of all the sub parts of the CPU, there are whole books on that subject, along with jobs at Intel. Here is a reasonable drawing of what a CPU does and how it works. Another name for Instructions is opcode. The is the basic unit of control in the CPU.
When a CPU is designed, the opcodes are defined and usually hard coded into the CPU. These opcodes define what the CPU does. Some of you are probably familiar with assembly code, also known as. Assembly code is the human readable version of. For those of you who are not familiar with machine code, let me see if I can make it understandable. A computer is a series of registers and.
In the computer everything is stored as ON and OFF, commonly referred to as 1 and 0. This is easy to visualize if you think of a light switch, the light is either ON or it is OFF. The computer use a number system based on 2, also known as a base 2 system, (0, 1). Our normal number system is a base 10, (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9). This might seem cumbersome to us mortals, but to a computer a number system of only 2 numbers works fine.
The trick to understanding how things work is to visualize how a computer can work with these 2 values, 0 and 1. Lets start by seeing how to convert from base 10 to base 2.
Soma Cube is a 3D puzzle game invented by Piet Hein in 1933. Inspired by pentomino puzzles it is a collection of seven pieces (polycubes) made out of unit cubes which must be assembled into a 3x3 cube.
It is also know under the name Block by Block. The seven pieces can be used to make many different 3D shapes.
Currently the game has 60 different shapes to solve. Each puzzle has its own leaderboard. The game also has several achievements. *Internet and wifi permissions* are used for leaderboards, achievements, anonymous analytics and ads. Sounds from www.freesound.org and touch gestures' icons provided by GestureWorks® (www.gestureworks.com).
Three Parts: If you’re trying to make yourself smarter, you’re in good company! Many people are learning ways to increase and improve cognitive functioning. Research is still being developed, but basic strategies to make yourself smarter are easy to access.
Try doing simple activities that have been connected to improvements in cognitive function. Improving your memory will help you access your intelligence, and developing healthy living habits will help protect your brain from age-related cognitive loss. Practice doing simple chores with the “wrong” hand.
Try brushing your teeth or eating your breakfast with your non-dominant hand. Routine behaviors are run by the brain’s sub-cortex, which control automatic functions of the body. • If you make a point of mixing up your routines, your brain will be forced to be active and alert. • For any activity to help exercise your brain, it must be both novel and complex.
The simple act of switching to a new hand for easy chores allows for both qualities in everyday activity. Learn to play a musical instrument. Research suggests a strong correlation between learning to play a musical instrument and the development of executive function skills. Executive functioning is the brain’s ability to organize and act on perceived information, which is a critical component in the application of intelligence.
Learning to play a musical instruments requires the coordination of multiple parts of the brain and body. • The particular musical instrument you choose to learn doesn’t appear to make a difference in intelligence level. • Choose an instrument that you enjoy, and one to which you have easy access. Lessons are often a good way to find a local music community that will help support your new hobby.
Take a dance class. The best activities to improve your intelligence are those that require split-second, rapid decision making.
Scientists have found that people who take social dance classes improve their intelligence no matter what age they are. • Frequent dancing was the only physical activity that seemed to offer any protection against the development of dementia in people aged 75 and older. • Doing activities which use rote memory, no matter how complex, do not require the development of new neural pathways, which improve intelligence. Learn about dual n-back exercises. Research has suggested that dual n-back exercises increase fluid intelligence. Fluid intelligence is one of the most important factors in IQ.
It refers to the brain’s ability to reason and problem solve without relying on previously learned information. • N-back is a memory test. N refers to a certain number of previous stimuli that must be recalled by the player. For example, in a 1 = n sequence, you have to recall a stimuli 1 item back; with a 2 = n sequence, the stimuli must be recalled 2 items back. • In dual n-back exercises, two independent sequences are presented simultaneously, and usually using two different modalities. For example, a sequence of numbers would be read, while a colored sequence was also present. • You can find open-source software for dual n-back software online at brainworkshop.net.
Create acronyms to aid your memory. Acronyms provide a word to help you remember a larger set of information. They help your brain encode and recall the information. Acronyms are a shorthand way to remind yourself of complex information through a simple image or word. • One of the most common single-word acronyms people use is ASAP, which stands for as soon as possible, or NASA, which stands for National Aeronautics and Space Administration. • Many times acronyms become so well known that the meaning of the acronym becomes a new word itself, such as with SNAFU or Taser. Use mnemonic devices.
An acronym is the shortest form of mnemonic device, but you can also make a sentence that helps you to remember a stream of words or information. Developing your own mnemonic devices that are specific to your interests and knowledge will be the most effective way of using this memory aid. • For example, a simple sentence that helps children remember the order of the 4 directions on the compass might be: Never Eat Soggy Worms. • You can see how the first letters of these words (N, E, S, W) align with the first letters of the 4 directions (North, East, South, West) in an easier-to-remember fashion. Build a memory palace. For people with strengths in visual and spatial memory, the imagined construction of a location (such as a house or “palace”) with mnemonic devices throughout can help to develop a strong memory of even detailed events or information. You can start by using your own home as a tool to memorize something commonplace, such as a shopping list.
• In your imagination, place the items you’ll need at the store in a variety places throughout the house. For example, consciously imagine placing a bunch of bananas on the coffee table, a loaf of bread on the chair nearby, and a bag of coffee on top of the television. Then, at the store, visualize walking through your created image of your home with these items in it. • Try adding items, adding rooms, as your ability to remember increases. • You can also try this process by placing your mental attention along a familiar walking route, fixing items along landmarks of your walk.