Parts of a computer

If you use a desktop computer, you might already

know that there isn't any single part called the
"computer." A computer is really a system of many
parts working together. The physical parts, which you
can see and touch, are collectively called hardware.
(Software, on the other hand, refers to the
instructions, or programs, that tell the [hardware what
to do.)
The illustration below shows the most common
hardware in a desktop computer system. Your system
may look a little different, but it probably has most of
these parts. A laptop computer has similar parts but
combines them into a single notebook-sized package.
Let's take a look at each of these parts.
System unit
The
system unit is the core of a computer system. Usually it's a rectangular
box placed on or underneath your desk. Inside this box are many
electronic components that process information. The most important of
these components is the central processing unit (CPU), or
microprocessor, which acts as the "brain" of your computer. Another
component is random access memory (RAM), which temporarily stores
information that the CPU uses while the computer is on. The information
stored in RAM is erased when the computer is turned off.
Almost every other part of your computer connects to the system unit
using cables. The cables plug into specific ports (openings), typically on
the back of the system unit. Hardware that is not part of the system unit is
sometimes called a peripheral device or device.

Storage
Your computer has one or more disk drivesdevices that store
information on a metal or plastic disk. The disk preserves the information
even when your computer is turned off.
Hard disk drive
Your computer's hard disk drive stores information on
a hard disk, a rigid platter or stack of platters with a
magnetic surface. Because hard disks can hold
massive amounts of information, they usually serve as
your computer's primary means of storage, holding
almost all of your programs and files. The hard disk
drive is normally located inside the system unit.

CD and DVD drives

Nearly all computers today come equipped with a CD or DVD drive, usually located on the front of the system unit. CD
drives use lasers to read (retrieve) data from a CD, and many CD drives can also write (record) data onto CDs. If you
have a recordable disk drive, you can store copies of your files on blank CDs. You can also use a CD drive to play music
CDs on your computer.
DVD drives can do everything that CD drives can, plus read DVDs. If you have a DVD drive, you can watch movies on
your computer. Many DVD drives can record data onto blank DVDs.
Floppy disk drive
Floppy disk drives store information on floppy disks, also called floppies or diskettes. Compared to CDs and DVDs, floppy
disks can store only a small amount of data. They also retrieve information more slowly and are more prone to damage.
For these reasons, floppy disk drives are less popular than they used to be, although some computers still include them.
Why are floppy disks "floppy"? Even though the outside is made of hard plastic, that's just the sleeve. The disk inside is
made of a thin, flexible vinyl material.
Mouse
A mouse is a small device used to point to and select items on your computer screen. Although mice come in many
shapes, the typical mouse does look a bit like an actual mouse. It's small, oblong, and connected to the system unit by a
long wire that resembles a tail. Some newer mice are wireless.
A mouse usually has two buttons: a primary button (usually the left button) and a secondary button. Many mice also have
a wheel between the two buttons, which allows you to scroll smoothly through screens of information.

When you move the mouse with your hand, a pointer on your screen moves in the same direction. (The pointer's
appearance might change depending on where it's positioned on your screen.) When you want to select an item, you
point to the item and then click (press and release) the primary button. Pointing and clicking with your mouse is the main
way to interact with your computer. For more information,.
Keyboard
A keyboard is used mainly for typing text into your computer. Like the keyboard on a typewriter, it has keys for letters and
numbers, but it also has special keys:

The function keys, found on the top row, perform different functions depending on where they are used.
The numeric keypad, located on the right side of most keyboards, allows you to enter numbers quickly.

The navigation keys, such as the arrow keys, allow you to move your position within a document or webpage.

You can also use your keyboard to perform many of the same tasks you can perform with a mouse. For more information,

Monitor
A

monitor displays information in visual form, using text

and graphics. The portion of the monitor that displays
the information is called the screen. Like a television
screen, a computer screen can show still or moving
pictures.

There are two basic types of monitors: CRT (cathode ray tube) monitors and LCD (liquid crystal display) monitors. Both
types produce sharp images, but LCD monitors have the advantage of being much thinner and lighter. CRT monitors,
however, are generally more affordable.
Printer
A printer transfers data from a computer onto paper. You don't need a printer to use your computer, but having one allows
you to print e-mail, cards, invitations, announcements, and other materials. Many people also like being able to print their
own photos at home.
The two main types of printers are inkjet printers and laser printers. Inkjet printers are the most popular printers for the
home. They can print in black and white or in full color and can produce high-quality photographs when used with special
paper. Laser printers are faster and generally better able to handle heavy use.
Speakers
Speakers are used to play sound. They may be built into the system unit or connected with cables. Speakers allow you to
listen to music and hear sound effects from your computer.
Modem
To connect your computer to the Internet, you need a modem. A modem is a device that sends and receives computer
information over a telephone line or high-speed cable. Modems are sometimes built into the system unit, but higher-speed
modems are usually separate components.
Parts of Mother Board

PCI - Peripheral Component Interconnect.

Typical PCI cards used in PCs include: network cards, sound cards, modems, extra ports such as USB or serial, TV tuner
cards and disk controllers. Historically video cards were typically PCI devices, but growing bandwidth requirements soon
outgrew the capabilities of PCI. PCI video cards remain available for supporting extra monitors and upgrading PCs that do
not have any AGP or PCI Express slots.

AGP - Accelerated Graphics Port

The Accelerated Graphics Port (often shortened to AGP) is a high-speed point-to-point channel for attaching a video
card to a computer's motherboard, primarily to assist in the acceleration of 3D computer graphics. Since 2004, AGP has
been progressively phased out in favor of PCI Express. As of mid-2009, PCIe cards dominate the market, but new AGP
cards and motherboards are still available for purchase, though OEM driver support is minimal.
USB (Universal Serial Bus)
USB (Universal Serial Bus) is a specification[1] to establish communication between devices and a host controller
(usually personal computers).[2] USB is intended to replace many varieties of serial and parallel ports. USB can connect
computer peripherals such as mice, keyboards, digital cameras, printers, personal media players, flash drives, and
external hard drives. For many of those devices, USB has become the standard connection method. USB was designed
for personal computers[citation needed], but it has become commonplace on other devices such as smartphones, PDAs and
video game consoles, and as a power cord between a device and an AC adapter plugged into a wall plug for charging. As
of 2008, there are about 2 billion USB devices sold per year, and approximately 6 billion total sold to date.
ATX (Advanced Technology Extended)
ATX (Advanced Technology Extended) is a computer form factor designed by Intel in 1995. It was the first big change in
computer case, motherboard, and power supply design in many years. ATX overtook AT completely as the default form
factor for new systems. ATX addressed many of the AT form factor's annoyances that had frustrated system builders.
Other standards for smaller boards (including microATX, FlexATX and mini-ITX) usually keep the basic rear layout but
reduce the size of the board and the number of expansion slot positions. In 2003, Intel announced the BTX standard,
intended as a replacement for ATX. As of 2009, the ATX form factor remains a standard for do-it-yourselfers; BTX has
however made inroads into pre-made systems.
Molex Connector
Molex originated a large variety of connector types, but only one is commonly used in microcomputers, and thus known
unambiguously as a "Molex connector" in that context. That connector type is the one pictured, which is used for power
connections for disk drives and other computer components. An AT or ATX standard power supply normally has multiple
connectors of this type.
Color
Yellow
Black
Black
Red

Function
+12 V
Ground
Ground
+5 V

ATA Advance Technology Attachment

IDE - Integrated Drive Electronics
SATA - Serial ATA
The serial ATA (serial advanced technology attachment), or SATA computer bus, is a storage-interface for connecting
host bus adapters to mass storage devices such as hard disk drives and optical drives. The SATA host adapter is
integrated into almost all modern consumer laptop computers and desktop motherboards.
PATA - Parallel ATA
Parallel ATA (PATA) is an interface standard for the connection of storage devices such as hard disks, solid-state drives,
and CD-ROM drives in computers. The standard is maintained by X3/INCITS committee[1]. It uses the underlying AT
Attachment and AT Attachment Packet Interface (ATA/ATAPI) standards.
The current Parallel ATA standard is the result of a long history of incremental technical development. ATA/ATAPI is an
evolution of the AT Attachment Interface, which was itself evolved in several stages from Western Digital's original

Integrated Drive Electronics (IDE) interface. As a result, many near-synonyms for ATA/ATAPI and its previous
incarnations exist, including abbreviations such as IDE which are still in common informal use. After the market
introduction of Serial ATA in 2003, the original ATA was retroactively renamed Parallel ATA.
DDR Double Data Rate
In computing, a computer bus operating with double data rate transfers data on both the rising and falling edges of the
clock signal[1]. This is also known as double pumped, dual-pumped, and double transition.
The simplest way to design a clocked electronic circuit is to make it perform one transfer per full cycle (rise and fall) of a
clock signal. This, however, requires that the clock signal changes twice per transfer, while the data lines change at most
once per transfer. When operating at a high bandwidth signal integrity limitations constrain the clock frequency. By using
both edges of the clock, the data signals operate with the same limiting frequency but at double its data transmission rate.
This technique has been used for microprocessor front side busses, Ultra-3 SCSI, the AGP bus, DDR SDRAM, and the
HyperTransport bus on AMD's Athlon 64 processors.
Multi Core, Dual Core, Quad Core Processor
A multi-core processor is a processing system composed of two or more independent cores. It can be described as an
integrated circuit to which two or more individual processors (called cores in this sense) have been attached.[1] The cores
are typically integrated onto a single integrated circuit die (known as a chip multiprocessor or CMP), or they may be
integrated onto multiple dies in a single chip package. A many-core processor is one in which the number of cores is
large enough that traditional multi-processor techniques are no longer efficient this threshold is somewhere in the range
of several tens of cores and likely requires a network on chip.
A dual-core processor contains two cores, and a quad-core processor contains four cores. A multi-core processor
implements multiprocessing in a single physical package. Cores in a multi-core device may be coupled together tightly or
loosely. For example, cores may or may not share caches, and they may implement message passing or shared memory
inter-core communication methods. Common network topologies to interconnect cores include: bus, ring, 2-dimensional
mesh, and crossbar. All cores are identical in homogeneous multi-core systems and they are not identical in
heterogeneous multi-core systems. Just as with single-processor systems, cores in multi-core systems may implement
architectures such as superscalar, VLIW, vector processing, SIMD, or multithreading.
(GPUs) graphics processing units
GeForce
GeForce is a brand of graphics processing units (GPUs) designed by Nvidia. As of 2009, there have been eleven iterations of the
design. The first GeForce products were discrete GPUs designed for use on add-on graphics boards, intended for the high-margin PC
gaming market. Later diversification of the product-line covered all tiers of the PC graphics market, from cost-sensitive motherboardintegrated GPUs to mainstream add-in retail-boards. Most recently, Geforce technology has been introduced into Nvidia's line of
embedded application processors, designed for electronic handhelds and mobile handsets.
ATI Radeon is a brand of graphics processing units (GPU) that since 2000 has been manufactured by ATI Technologies and
subsequently AMD and is the successor to their Rage line. There are four different groups, which can be differentiated by the DirectX
generation they support. More specific distinctions can also be followed, such as the HyperZ version, the number of pixel pipelines, and
of course, the memory and processor clock speeds.
Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) and was renamed the AMD Graphics Product Group (or sometimes named ATI Technologies ULC),
although the ATI brand was retained for graphics cards.