Computer Components ICS 3U0

Today’s Agenda Internal Components Specifications of Components Input/Output Devices

Internal Components CPU RAM ROM Cache Hard Drive Power Supply Video/Sound Cards Motherboard

Internal Components … CPU Most instructions are handled by the Central Processing Unit (CPU) – the “brains of the computer”. On most home computers, the CPU is housed in a single chip called a microprocessor. The CPU determines the computer's power and speed. The clock or processor speed is the speed at which a CPU can execute instructions measured in (GHz). Popular CPU vendors are Intel, AMD and VIA.

Internal Components – RAM Random Access Memory (RAM) is the place in a computer where the operating system, applications, and data in current use are kept so that they can be quickly reached by the computer's processor. RAM is much faster to read from and write to than other kinds of storage such as the hard disk. The data in RAM stays there only as long as your computer is running. Turn computer off ->RAM loses its data. Turn computer on -> OS and other files are once again loaded into RAM, usually from your hard disk.

Internal Components - ROM Read Only Memory (ROM) is computer memory that can permanently store data and applications within it. There are various types of ROM with names like EPROM (Eraseable ROM) or EEPROM (Electrically Eraseable ROM). The EEPROM chip is typically used for the computer BIOS which contain instructions and setup for how your system should boot and operate.  Unlike RAM, when a computer is powered down, the contents of the ROM are not lost.

Internal Components … Cache Cache memory is a specialized high-speed, high-performance memory that is integrated into the CPU. Because it is fast and efficient, recent program instructions are stored in cache so that they can be executed quickly. Cache memory is expensive, so most computers have a small cache.

Internal Components – Hard Drive Hard drives consist of one or more metallic platters. A read/write head magnetizes sectors to store data. Program instructions or data are stored until it is overwritten. Hard drive capacities are typically between 500 gigabytes (GB) and 2 terrabytes (TB). Newer hard drives may be solid-state drives, similar to flash memory.

Internal Components – Power Supply Power supplies connects computer to external power such as wall outlet or battery Changes power into a form useful to various components on motherboard Many internal components require different electrical voltages and currents

Internal Components – Sound and Video Some computers have dedicated sound and video controllers to display graphics and text to a monitor. Other computers may use separate cards, which have more memory or on-board processors. This allows for more powerful graphics or sound-processing capabilities.

Internal Components – Motherboard Inside the case , you will find all of the components we talked about so far. These internal components are all connected to a large circuit board called the motherboard. The motherboard connects most of the internal components, including any microprocessors, integrated circuits, and on-board controllers. Motherboards also typically provide connections for common peripheral devices as well.

Input/Output Devices I/O devices allow the computer to communicate with the outside world. Some typical I/O devices include: data: floppy disk (largely obsolete), CD/DVD burner, USB flash drive input: keyboard, mouse, joystick, optical scanner, light pen, touch panel, or microphone output: CRT monitor, LCD panel, printer, speakers communication: modems, network units

Common Input/Output Devices

Exercises – Computer Components Complete Exercise 1.2 – Computer Components