Technology 101: What’s That Hardware Under the Computer?
When a person purchases a new or used computer or if they decide to build their own, they may be surprised to learn what’s inside. There are a wide variety of different components that make up a computer – from the motherboard to the hard drives to even the case itself. Here’s a little bit of information to what’s going on inside.
Motherboard & CPU – the motherboard is the most important aspect of any computer. It’s where all the action takes, sending bits of data and information to and from various parts. Think of it as a city – there are lanes in which data travels back and forth, getting to where it needs to go. The CPU or central processing unit (also known as the processor) is the brain; it makes mathematical equations and decisions about what goes on. The faster the speed of the processor, the faster it can make these decisions, which means your documents and files open faster.
RAM – RAM or random access memory is your computer’s short term memory core. It handles things like remembering your passwords and websites. This is different from ROM, which is read only memory, and is apart of your computer’s long term memory. The more RAM you have, the more it can remember.
Hard Drive – hard drives are where you store all of your files, documents, and pictures. The bigger your hard drive, the more things you can install on it, which also has a hand in how fast your computer runs.
External cards – external cards are the things that you add in that may not have been included on your motherboard. Things such as a graphics card, wireless or ethernet card, and sound cards. Many newer motherboards will come with these onboard, but some users enjoy having the separate cards in order to transfer them to new motherboards if theirs goes out.
July 28 2011 12:00 am | Uncategorized