Module A Terms

Front 1

The set of wires connecting the CPU to level 2 cache. First appearing in the Pentium Pro, most modern CPUs have a special backside bus. Some buses, such as that in the later Celeron processors, run at the full speed of the CPU, whereas others run at a fraction.

Back 1

BACKSIDE BUS

Front 2

A number system alson called Base 2 with only two numbers (0 & 1), unlike the number systems most of us use which have bases of 10 or ten numbers (0-9)

Back 2

BINARY

Front 3

cLASSICALLY, THE SOFTWARE ROUTINES BURNED ONTO THE SYSTEM rom OF A pc. mORE COMMONLY SEEN AS Any software that directly contols a particular piece of hardware. A set of programs encoded in REad Only Memory (ROM) on computers. These programs handle startup operations and low level control of hardware such as disk drives, the keyboard, and monitor.

Back 3

BIOS (Basic Input/Output Services)

Front 4

A special area of RAM that stores thte data most frequently accesssed from the hard drive. Cashe memory can optimize the use fo your systems.

Back 4

CACHE

Front 5

Electronic chips that handle all of the low level functions of a PC, which in the original PC were handled by close to 30 different chips. Chipsets usually consist of one, tow or three separate chips embedded into a motherboard to handle all of these functions.

Back 5

CHIPSET

Front 6

Originally, the type of nonvolatile RAM that held information about the most basic parts of your PC such as hard drives, floppies, and amount of DRAM. Today, actually these chips have been replaced by flash-type non-volatile RAM.

Back 6

CMOS (COMPLEMENTARY METAL-OXIDE SEMICONDUCTOR)

Front 7

The brain of the computer. The microprocessor that handles the primary calculations for the computer. CPUs are known by names such as Pentium 4 and Athlon.

Back 7

CPU (CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT)

Front 8

The memory used to store data in most personal computers, it stores each bit in a cell composed of a transistor and a capacitor. Because the capacitor in one cell can only hold a charge for a few milliseconds, it must be continually refreshed, or rewritten, to retain its data.

Back 8

DRAM (DYNAMIC RANDOM-ACCESS MEMORY)

Front 9

A type of DRAM packaging, similar to SIMs with the distinction that each side of each tab inserted into the system performs a separate function. Comes in a compact 72 pin SO DIMM format, and full size 144-and 168-pin formats.

Back 9

DUAL IN-LINE MEMORY MODULE

Front 10

A special form of ROM that can be erased by high-intensity ultraviolet light and then rewritten (reprogrammed).

Back 10

EPROM (ERASABLE PROGRAMMABLE READ-ONLY MEMORY)

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A receptacle or slot on a motherboard that is designed to accept adapters. Common types include AGP, PCI, CNR.

Back 11

EXPANSION

Front 12

Software that has been written onto read only memory (ROM). It is a combination of software and hardware. ROMs, PROMs and EPROMs that have data or programs recorded on them are considered this.

Back 12

FIRMWARE

Front 13

A removable and widely used data storage medium that uses a magnetically coated flexible disk of Mylar enclosed in a plastic envelope or case wiht maximum capacities of up to 1.44 MB.

Back 13

FLOPPY DISK

Front 14

Name for the wires that connect the CPU to the main system RAM. Generally running at speeds of 66-133 MHz. Distinct from the Expansion Bus and the Backside Bus, though it shares wires with the former.

Back 14

FRONTSIDE BUS

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A data recording system using solid metallic disks of magnetic material turning at high speeds to store and retrieve programs and data in a computer. Current data storage capacities are greater than 250 GB

Back 15

HARD DRIVE

Front 16

a BASE 16 numbering system using 10 digits (0-9) and six letters (A - F). Used in the computer world as a shorthand way to werite binary numbers, by substituting one hex digit for a four digit binary number.

Back 16

HES (HEXADECIMAL)

Front 17

A pair of small pins that can be shorted wiht a shunt to configure many different aspects of PCs. Usually used in configurations that are rarely changed, such as master/slave setings on IDE drives.

Back 17

JUMPER

Front 18

The primary circuit board that holds all of the core components of the computer. Also called a Planar Board or System board.

Back 18

MOTHERBOARD

Front 19

The system check performed by all computers when they are first turned on.

Back 19

POWER ON SELF TEST

Front 20

A patented RAM technology that uses accelerated clocks to provide very high speed memory.

Back 20

RAMBUS DRAM

Front 21

Memory that can be accessed at random, that is, in which any memory address can be written to or read from without touching the preceeding address. This term is often used to mean a computer's main memory.

Back 21

RANDOM ACCESS MEMORY

Front 22

The generic term for non volatile memory that can be read from but not written to. This means that code and data stored here cannot be corrupted by accidental erasure. Additionally , it retains its data when power is removed, which makes it the perfect medium for storing BIOS data or informaion such as scientific constants.

Back 22

READ ONLY MEMORY ROM

Front 23

A type of DRAM packaging distinguished by having a numbe rof small tabs that install into a special connector. Each side of each tab is the same nsignal. SIMMs come in tow common sizes 30 pin and 72 pin.

Back 23

SIMM (SINGLE INLINE MEMORY MODULE)

Front 24

A type fo RAM that uses a flip flop type circuit rather trhan the typical transistor capacitor of DRAM to hold a bit of informaiton. It does not need to tbe refreshed and is faster than regular DRAM. Used primarily for cache.

Back 24

SRAM (STATIC RAM)

Front 25

The primary set of BIOS stored on an EPROM or flash chip on the motherboard defines the Bios for all the assumed hardware on the motherboard such as keyboard controller, floppy drive, basic video, RAM, etc.

Back 25

SYSTEM BIOS