Chapter 4 Vocabulary

Front 1

system unit

Back 1

case that contains the electronic components of a computer that are used to process data

Front 2

motherboard

Back 2

main circuit board of the system unit which has some electronic components attached to it and others built in to it

Front 3

chip

Back 3

small piece of semi conducting material, usually silicon on which integrated circuits are etched

Front 4

CPU (central processing unit)

Back 4

electronic components on a computers motherboard that interprets and carries out the basic instructions that operate the computer

Front 5

Multi-core processor

Back 5

single chip with two or more seperate processor cones

Front 6

Control Unit

Back 6

component of a processor that directs and coordinates most of the operating in the computer

Front 7

ALU (Arithmetic Logic Unit)

Back 7

performing arithmetic, comparison and other operations

Front 8

system clock

Back 8

small quartz crystal air unit that is used by the processor to control the timing of all computer operations

Front 9

clock speed

Back 9

piece of the system clock measured by the number of ticks per second

Front 10

binary system

Back 10

number system used by computers that has just two unique digits 0 and 1

Front 11

bit

Back 11

the smallest unit of data a computer can press BD which is short for binary digit

Front 12

byte

Back 12

eight bits that are grouped together as a unit. A byte provides enough different combinationsof 0's and 1's to represent 256 individual characters

Front 13

memory

Back 13

electronic components in a computer that stores instructionswaiting to be executed and data needed by those instructions

Front 14

volatile memory

Back 14

type of memory that loses its contents when a computer power is turned off

Front 15

nonvolatile memory

Back 15

type of memory that does not lose its contents when a computer power is turned off

Front 16

RAM memory

Back 16

type of memory that can be read from and written to by the processor and other devices programs and data are louded into RAM from storage devices such as hard disks and remain in RAM as long as the computer has continuous power

Front 17

ROM memory (read only memory)

Back 17

memory chips storing permanent data and instructions

Front 18

memory module

Back 18

small circuit board that houses RAM chips and is held in a memory slot on the mother board

Front 19

memory slot

Back 19

slots on the motherboard that hold memory modules

Front 20

Cache

Back 20

area of memory that is stores the contents of frequently used data or instructions

Front 21

L1 Cache

Back 21

is built directly into the processor chip usually has a very small storing capacity ranging from 8 KB to 128KB

Front 22

L2 Cache

Back 22

is slightly slower than L1 but has a much larger capacity

Front 23

expansion slot

Back 23

socket on a motherboard that can hold an adapter card

Front 24

adapter card

Back 24

circuit board that enhances functions of a component of a system unit and/ or provides connecting to peripherals

Front 25

flash memory

Back 25

type of nonvolatile memory that can be erased electronically and rewritten

Front 26

peripheral

Back 26

device that connects to a system unit and is controlled by the processor on the computer

Front 27

video card

Back 27

adapter card that converts computer output into a video signal that travels through a cable to the monitor which displays a image on the screen

Front 28

sound card

Back 28

an adapter card that enhances the sound generating capabilities of a personal computer by allowing sound to be input through a microphone and output through external speakers or headsets

Front 29

hub

Back 29

a device that plugs in a Fire Wire Port on the system unit and contains multiple Fire Wire ports in which you plug cables from Fire Wire devices

Front 30

graphics card

Back 30

adapter card that converts computer output into a video signal that travels through a cable to the monitor which displays an image on the screen

Front 31

memory card

Back 31

removable flash memory device usually no bigger than 1.5" in height or width that you insert and remove from a slot in a computer mobile device on card rebuilder/ writer

Front 32

port

Back 32

point at which a peripheral attaches to or communicates with a system unit so it can send data to or recieve information from the card

Front 33

USB port

Back 33

port than can connect up to 127 different peripherals with a single connector type

Front 34

FireWire port

Back 34

port that can connect multiple devices that rewire faster data transmission speed

Front 35

SCSI port

Back 35

special high speed paralled part to which peripherals such as disk wires and printers can be attached

Front 36

ROM (read only memory)

Back 36

type of nonvoliatile memory that is used to store permanent data and instructions

Front 37

flash memory

Back 37

type of nonvoliatile memory that can be erased electronically and be rewritten

Front 38

CMOS

Back 38

provides high speeds with little power

Front 39

Access Time

Back 39

measurement of the amount of time it takes the process to read data, instructions, and information from memory

Front 40

nanosecond

Back 40

one billionth of a second

Front 41

port replicator

Back 41

external device that attaches to a mobile computer to provide connections to peripherals through ports biult into the device

Front 42

docking station

Back 42

external device that attaches to a mobile computer or device and provides power connections to peripherals along with memory and optical disks and other devices

Front 43

bus

Back 43

electrical channel that transfers electronics bits internally within the cuircuitary of a computer, allowing the devices both inside and attached to the system unit to communicate with each other

Front 44

system bus

Back 44

bus that is part of the motherboard and connects the processor to main memory

Front 45

fron side bus

Back 45

bus that is part of the motherboard and connects the processor to main memory

Front 46

backside bus

Back 46

bus that connects the processor to Cache

Front 47

expansion bus

Back 47

bus that allows the processor to communicate with peripherals

Front 48

bay

Back 48

opening inside the system unit in which additional equipment can be installed

Front 49

drive bay

Back 49

rectangular opening inside the system unit that typically holds disk drives

Front 50

power supply

Back 50

component of the system unit that converts wall outlet AC power to the DC power that is used by a computer