- Chip
- An integrated circuit. A thin piece of silicon that
contains all the components of an electronic
circuit.
- Embedded Processor
- A chip designed with a specific set of usable
instructions. The user cannot change the
instructions an embedded processor was
programmed to understand.
- Expansion Slot
-
- Floppy Disk
- A small, portable, flexible magnetic disk used
for data storage on many computers. Diskettes
come in 3½" and 5¼" sizes, with several
densities and formats. These disks are known
as "floppy" disks (or diskettes) because the disk
is flexible and the read/write head is in physical
contact with the surface of the disk, in contrast
to "hard disks" that are rigid and rely on a small,
fixed gap between the disk surface and the
heads. Diskettes may be either single-sided or
double-sided.
- Hard Disk (Hard Drive)
- The main device that a computer uses to store
information. Hard disks are rigid aluminum or
glass disks about 3.5" in diameter in a personal
computer, and smaller in a laptop. They are
coated with ferromagnetic material and rotate
around a central axle. Data is transferred
magnetically by a read/write head. A hard disk
drive for a personal computer may contain as
many as eight hard disks, rotating around the
same axle.
- Hardware
- The physical parts of the computer system that
you can touch and feel such as the keyboard,
monitor, and computer case.
- Information Processing
- Capturing, storing, updating and retrieving data
and information. A computer is an
information-processing machine.
- Input
- The data that is entered into a computer. The
act of entering data into a computer.
- Integrated Circuit
- A complete circuit on a chip, built by a chip
fabrication process.
- Internet
- The large global network formed by the
connection of many smaller computer networks.
The Internet was originally developed for the
United States military, and then became used
for government, academic and commercial
communications.
- Keyboard
-
- Megahertz (MHz)
-
- Memory
-
- Microprocessor
- The main processing unit of a computer or
information processing device; the "brains" of
the machine carrying out instructions,
performing calculations, and interacting with the
components used to operate the computer.
Handles the fetch, decode and execute steps of
the computer.
- Monitor
-
- Motherboard
-
- Mouse
-
- Mylar
-
- Output
- The computer generated information that is
displayed to the user in some discernible form
such as a screen display, printed page, or
sound.
- Personal Computer (Microcomputer)
-
- Primary Storage
-
- Random Access Memory (RAM)
- The memory that is available on a computer for
storing data and programs currently being
processed. It is automatically erased when the
power is turned off. Information in the RAM that
needs to be stored for future use must be saved
onto a disk or a tape.
- Read Only Memory (ROM)
- Stored permanent systems instructions, which
are never changed; it holds its contents even
when the power is turned off. Data is placed in
ROM only once, and stays there permanently.
ROM is generally installed by the manufacturer
as part of the system.
- Scanner
-
- Secondary Storage
-
- Software
- The programs and data that make computer
hardware function.
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