Using Information Technology

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

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Hardware--The CPU & Storage

Microchips, Miniaturization, & Mobility

The System Unit

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

Secondary Storage

Future Developments in Processing & Storage

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 Microchips, Miniaturization, &
Mobility
 Vacuum Tubes vs. Transistors
 Vacuum tubes were the original logic gates of

computers
 They looked like light bulbs, were hot, and burned out

like them too

 The original transistors were 1/100 th the size of vacuum

tubes (less power, faster, more reliable too)

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

 Transistors vs. Integrated Circuits
 Compare 1955’s 45 lb “portable” color TV to today’s 7

oz Casio 2.3 inch color TV

 One integrated circuit contains thousands of transistors

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 Microchips, Miniaturization, & Mobility
From Vacuum Tubes to Transistors to
Microchips
 Transistor - a tiny
electrically operated
switch, or gate, that
can alternate
between “on” and

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

“off” many millions
of times per second

1940s vacuum tube towering

over 1950s transistor 4
 Microchips, Miniaturization, & Mobility
From Vacuum Tubes to Transistors to
Microchips
 Semiconductor
 A material whose electrical properties are

intermediate between a good conductor and a

nonconductor of electricity
 Perfect substrate to overlay complex circuits

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

on
 Microchips are made from semiconductors

 Contain millions of microminiature

integrated circuits

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 Miniaturization Miracles: Microchips,
Microprocessors, & Micromachines

 Types of microchips:
 Memory
 Logic
 Communications

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

 Graphics
 Math
 Microprocessor
 Microcontroller

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 The Binary System: Using On/Off
Electrical States to Represent Data &
Instructions

 The binary system has only

two digits--0 and 1.

Bit - binary digit

Hardware--The CPU & Storage



 Byte - group of 8 bits used

to represent one character,
digit, or other value
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The Binary System: Using On/Off
Electrical States to Represent Data &
Instructions
 Kilobyte 1000 bytes

 Megabyte 1,000,000 bytes (one million)

 Gigabyte 1,000,000,000 bytes (one billion)

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

 Terabyte 1 trillion bytes

 Petabyte 1 quadrillion bytes

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 The Binary System: Using On/Off
Electrical States to Represent Data &
Instructions
 Binary coding schemes assign a
unique binary code to each letter
 EBCDIC

 Requires 8 bits per character

 Used for IBM mainframes

 ASCII

 Requires 7 or 8 bits per

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

character, depending on the
version
 8 bit Extended ASCII

provides 256 characters

 Used for PCs, Unix hosts,

Macs
 Unicode

 Requires 16 bits per character

 Handles 65,536 characters

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 The Parity Bit

Parity bit - an extra bit attached to the end of a byte for

purposes of checking for accuracy
 Even parity -
sum of bits
must come

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

out even
 Odd parity -
sum of bits
must come
out odd Even parity scheme
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 Machine Language

 Machine language - a
binary-type
programming
language that the
computer can run

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

directly

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 The Computer Case: Bays, Buttons &
Boards
 Bay - a shelf or
opening used for the
installation of
electronic equipment

 System unit - houses

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

the motherboard,
power supply, and
storage devices

 Case - empty box

with just power
supply Overhead view of system unit
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 Power Supply
 Power supply - a
device that converts
UPS
AC to DC to run the
computer
 Types of power
protection devices:

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

 Surge protector
 Voltage regulator Surge protector
 UPS

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 The Motherboard & the Microprocessor
Chip
 Motherboard - the main
circuit board in the
system unit
 Expansion - increasing
a computer’s capabilities

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

by adding hardware
 Upgrading - changing
to newer, more powerful
versions

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 How the Processor or CPU works: Control
Unit, ALU, & Registers

Name Definition
1. Word size 1. The number of bits the processor
can process at any one time
2. The part of the CPU that
2. Control unit deciphers instructions and

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

carries them out
3. The ALU performs
mathematical and logical
3. Arithmetic Logic operations and controls the speed
Unit of them

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 How the Processor or CPU works: Control
Unit, ALU, & Registers
4. High-speed storage areas
4. Registers
that temporarily store data
during processing
5. Buses 5. Electrical data roadways
used to transmit bits within

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

the CPU and between CPU
and other motherboard
components

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How the Processor or CPU works: Control
Unit, ALU, & Registers

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

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How the Processor or CPU works: Control
Unit, ALU, & Registers

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

Machine cycle
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 How Memory Works: RAM, ROM,
CMOS, & Flash
 Types of memory
chips:
1 RAM - Random
Access Memory,
used to temporarily

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

hold software
instructions and data
2 ROM
3 CMOS
4 Flash
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 How Memory Works: RAM, ROM,
CMOS, & Flash

 Types of memory chips:

1 RAM
2 ROM - Read-Only Memory, which cannot

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

be written on or erased by the computer
user. Contains fixed start-up instructions
3 CMOS
4 Flash
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How Memory Works: RAM, ROM,
CMOS, & Flash
 Types of memory chips:

1 RAM
2 ROM

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

3 CMOS - Complementary metal-oxide
semiconductor; powered by a battery and thus
doesn’t lose its contents when the power is off
4 Flash

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How Memory Works: RAM, ROM,
CMOS, & Flash
 Types of memory chips:

1 RAM
2 ROM
3 CMOS

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

4 Flash - can be erased and reprogrammed more
than once

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 How Cache Works: Level 1 (Internal) &
Level 2 (External)
Cache - temporary storage for instructions and data that the
processor is likely to use frequently, thus speeding up
processing

Level 1 (L1) cache - built into the microprocessor



Hardware--The CPU & Storage

Level 2 (L2) cache - consists of RAM chips outside


microprocessor

Virtual memory - free hard-disk space used to extend the

capacity of RAM

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 Other Methods of Speeding Up Processing:
Interleaving, Bursting, & Pipelining

Interleaving - a process in which the CPU alternates



communication between two or more memory banks

Bursting - a process in which the CPU grabs a block of



information at a time, on the assumption that the next

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

address requested will be sequential to the previous one

Pipelining - division of large tasks into a series of



smaller overlapping ones

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Ports & Cables
 Types of ports:

1 Serial port - sends bits one at a time, one after

another
2 Parallel port

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

3 SCSI port
4 USB port
5 Dedicated port
6 Infrared port

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 Ports & Cables
1 Serial port
2 Parallel port - transmits
8 bits simultaneously
3 SCSI port

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

4 USB port
5 Dedicated port
6 Infrared port

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 Ports & Cables
1 Serial port
2 Parallel port
3 SCSI port - allows
data to be transmitted
in a “daisy chain” to

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

up to 7 devices
4 USB port
5 Dedicated port
6 Infrared port
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 Ports & Cables
1 Serial port
2 Parallel port
3 SCSI port
4 USB port - can
theoretically connect up to

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

127 peripheral devices
daisy-chained to one
general-purpose port
5 Dedicated port
6 Infrared port 28
 Ports & Cables
1 Serial port
2 Parallel port
3 SCSI port
4 USB
5 Dedicated port -

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

special-purpose
ports
6 Infrared port
Dedicated ports: mouse port, modem
port, and keyboard port

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 Ports & Cables
1 Serial port
2 Parallel port
3 SCSI port
4 USB
Dedicated port - special-

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

5

purpose ports
6 Infrared port - allows a
computer to make a cableless
connection with infrared-
capable devices
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 Expandability: Buses & Cards

 Expansion slots-
sockets on the
motherboard into
which you can plug
expansion cards

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

 Expansion cards -
circuit boards that
provide more memory
or that control
peripheral devices
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Expandability: Buses & Cards
ISA bus - for ordinary low-speed uses; the most
widely used expansion bus

PCI bus - for higher-speed uses; used to connect

graphics cards, sound cards, modems, and high-

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

speed network cards

 AGP bus - for even higher speeds and 3D graphics

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 Expandability: Buses & Cards
Graphics cards - for monitors


Sound cards - for speakers and audio output



Modem cards - for remote communication via phone

lines

Hardware--The CPU & Storage

Network interface cards - for remote communication via
cable

PC cards - for laptop computers



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