d i g i t a l m e d i a l a n d s c a p e sHow Computers Work Slide 1

Overview

Hardrive

CD Rom

s e c o n d a r y s t o r a g eMother Board

CPU

RAM

p r i m a r y s t o r a g e

Mouse Keyboard

i n p u t d e v i c e s

Monitor Speakers

o u t p u t d e v i c e s

d i g i t a l m e d i a l a n d s c a p e sHow Computers Work Slide 2

The Control Unit does not execute functions, but routes information.

The ALU executes functions. It has two functions: perform arithmetic functions (addition, multiplication, subtraction, and division) and test for relationships between data (equal to, less than, greater than, less than or equal to, greater than or equal to, and not equal). The ALU processes these conditions and returns this information to the Control Unit, which routes that information to the memory.

The Registers are the CPU’s internal memory. It is the fastest form of memory but lacks capacity so the bulk of the storage is housed in main memory.

CPU p r i m a r y s t o r a g e

The CPU is the brain of the computer. It consists of:

The CPU

Control Unit ALU

Registers

i n p u t

o u t p u t

d i g i t a l m e d i a l a n d s c a p e sHow Computers Work Slide 3

Clock speed is the rate at which a microprocessor executes instructions. This also refers to the speed of the processor.

Clock Speedp r i m a r y s t o r a g e

c l o c k s p e e d

3.2GHz Quad-core Intel Core i5

The CPU

Control Unit ALU

Clock

Registers

i n p u t

o u t p u t

d i g i t a l m e d i a l a n d s c a p e sHow Computers Work Slide 4

Within the CPU some readily used information is stored in the cache memory. It has much more capacity than the Register memory so it exists to speed up the interchange of information from the main memory to the register memory.

Cache Memoryp r i m a r y s t o r a g e

The CPU

Control Unit ALU

Clock

Registers

Cache Memory

i n p u t

o u t p u t

d i g i t a l m e d i a l a n d s c a p e sHow Computers Work Slide 5

Main Memory (RAM)p r i m a r y s t o r a g e

Memory stores program instructions or data for only as long as the program they pertain to is in operation. The memory stores information temporarily, as long as its needed.

That information is stored permanently on secondary storage (hardrives, floppy disk, cd rom, thumb drives, external hardrives) and sent there by the CPU.

RAM is sold in powers of 2, 128mb, 256mb, 512 mb...8gb because it runs in sync with the register memory which is managed with binary code. Main Memory

o u t p u t

The CPU

Control Unit ALU

Clock

Registers

Cache Memory

i n p u t

d i g i t a l m e d i a l a n d s c a p e sHow Computers Work Slide 6

Multi - Corep r i m a r y s t o r a g e

Engineers have joined multi CPU’s into single processors so now have processors multi-cores

d i g i t a l m e d i a l a n d s c a p e sHow Computers Work Slide 7

Magnetic Storages e c o n d a r y s t o r a g e

Data is represented as 1’s and 0’s—a magnetized spot equals a 1, while a non-magnetized spot = 0

d i g i t a l m e d i a l a n d s c a p e sHow Computers Work Slide 8

Diskettess e c o n d a r y s t o r a g e . m a g n e t i c s t o r a g e

There were two forms of portable storage: Floppy Disk and its smaller companion 3.5 Disk. They had an plastic casing surrounding magnetic disk. Floppy drives read / wrote the information.

f l o p p y d i s k

3 . 5 d i s k

d i g i t a l m e d i a l a n d s c a p e sHow Computers Work Slide 9

Optical Storage s e c o n d a r y s t o r a g e

A tiny laser hits a layer of metallic film—the heat from the laser produces tiny spot. The data is read by a lens that picks up different reflections of light from the spots

d i g i t a l m e d i a l a n d s c a p e sHow Computers Work Slide 10

Solid State or Electronic Disk

s e c o n d a r y s t o r a g e

A data storage device using integrated circuit assemblies as memory to store data persistently. It basically is a permanent version of memory. This type of storage is available in some computers, but is most used in Smartphones and jump drives.

d i g i t a l m e d i a l a n d s c a p e sHow Computers Work Slide 11

Capacitys e c o n d a r y s t o r a g e

Size on computers is measured in bytes:

1 byte is called a bit - it is a value of 1 or 0 (on or off )Byte = 8 bitsKilobyte (kb) = 1,024 bytesMegabyte (mb) = 1,024 kbGigabyte (gb) = 1,024 mbTerabyte (tb) = 1,024 gb

d i g i t a l m e d i a l a n d s c a p e sHow Computers Work Slide 12

Input / Output Devices (I / O)Input devices inlcude keyboard, mouse, external hard-drives, digital cameras, etc...

Output Devices include printers, monitors, projectors, speakers. Certain output devices require their own cards, which contain their own protocols and logic.

d i g i t a l m e d i a l a n d s c a p e sHow Computers Work Slide 13

Data Connectionsi n p u t / o u t p u t

Firewire was created by Apple to facilitate data transfer like the USB. Its mostly defunct now.

USB was created to standardize the connection of peripherals. As with everything, over time the transfer rate of data has gotten faster.

d i g i t a l m e d i a l a n d s c a p e sHow Computers Work Slide 14

Monitorsi n p u t / o u t p u t

Most monitors have a density of 72ppi, which means 72 pixels per inch. Apple has now released high density monitors that have twice the density. The resolution of a monitor generally refers the width and height of the monitor in pixels. The greater the resolution the larger the output. The quality of the image on a monitor is determined in part by the connection type:

VGA (Video Graphics Array) serves analog video

DVI (Digital VIsual Interface ) allows for digital video transmission. The connection port was minimized for laptops—mini and than micro

d i g i t a l m e d i a l a n d s c a p e sHow Computers Work Slide 15

Thunderbolti n p u t / o u t p u t. m o n i t o r

It was built by Intel. It is almost twice as fast USB, and unlike USB digital video can be sent through it. It has allows for the transfer of power. Lastly it allows for daisy chains—if I only have one thunderbolt drive, but want to connect two hardrives I can connect one to the computer and plug the remaining hardrive into the first hardrive.

d i g i t a l m e d i a l a n d s c a p e sHow Computers Work Slide 16

Motherboard

This is the hub where everything connects. The CPU and main memory are plugged into the motherboard. The secondary memory (hardrive) is connected via a bus (wires). I / O devices are connected via their respective cards, which are plugged into the hardrive.

While a motherboard doesn’t actually do any computing it helps determine the amount of RAM and hardrives contained in a computer. Its one part physical space—you need connection points and one part the amount of voltage that the motherboard can handle at once. One of the most common computer problems is an overheated motherboard.

d i g i t a l m e d i a l a n d s c a p e sHow Computers Work Slide 17

Other things of noteMain memory is sold as a stick—memory sticks are installed in pairs. It is recommended that the pairs match in capacity Some more advanced programs allow you to allocate the amount of memory they have access too. They also allow you to turn unused space on your hardrive into faux memory. This is referred to as a scratch disk. RAID devices - Its a piece of hardware that connects two hardrives, writing the same information to bothThe best way to increase the speed of your computer is to buy a solid state hardrive and increase RAM