UNIT 2
TOPICS
What are the basic components of a modern
computer?
What is the role of CPU in a PC?
How does the CPU work?
What is dual core CPU?
What is the main job of the motherboards in a
PC?
What are the types of motherboards?
Why could we say the hard disk is the “data
center” of the PC?
What is RAM?
Situational conversations on dining.
How to write a perfect professional E-mail in
English?
UNIT 2
Computers are composed of two basic specifications, h
ardware and software. Hardware consists of the actual physic
al parts of the machine. Hardware can pertain to many differ
ent things including: the CPU, memory, hard drive, mouse, ke
yboard, motherboard, etc. So hardware refers to a physical pie
ce of a computer. The key idea is that the item is something y
ou can touch. This compares to software which is not tangibl
e in any way. You can’t pick it up or weigh it.
TEXT
Basic Components of a Modern Computer
UNIT 2
CPU—Central Processing Unit
Think of the CPU as the “Brain” of a computer and of all y
our hardware. It is indeed responsible for interpreting and exec
uting most of the commands from the computer’s hardware and
software. Its job is deceptively simple—to execute programs. Ke
ep in mind that a program is simply a sequence of stored instruct
ions. However, the process of retrieving data, decoding it, execu
ting it, and storing the results, is far from simple. It involves ma
ny different parts of the CPU; each specialized to handle a specif
ic job. On top of that, these simple steps are broken into many s
maller operations and have been extensively modified and added
to in order to improve performance.
UNIT 2
Motherboard or Mainboard
The motherboard and the CPU are the most important hard
ware components. The motherboard contains slots for the CPU,
memory, and I/O devices. The core of each mainboard is a pair o
f chips collectively referred to as “the Chip Set”. They sit in the
middle of the mainboard and are connected to everything else. In
current designs, one chip called the Northbridge sits between and
connects the three high speed devices: CPU, memory, and PCI E
xpress or AGP video port. It is then connected to a second chip c
alled the Southbridge that provides logic for all the slow speed d
evices: the keyboard, mouse, modem port, printer port, IDE contr
oller, PCI, USB, and any other devices. The motherboard is attac
hed to a tray in the bottom or side of the case by nine screws that
screw into metal “standoffs” that keep the bottom of the mainbo
ard a safe distance from the metal of the case. Everything else pl
ugs into the mainboard.
