Central Processing UnitThe purpose of the central processing unit is to serve as a “brain” or a
“decision maker.” The Central Processing Unit can be compared to a police
officer directing traffic on a heavy rush hour day. The Central Processing
Unit is responsible for storing and retrieving files and other media on the
computer system. Without the Central Processing Unit, the computer has no
purpose for its use. The Central Processing Unit is what all software and
hardware is connected to, which can also be compared to a basic motor
vehicle. The engine is what the car needs to serve its purpose. Very
important peripherals are connected to the Central Processing Unit. Certain
things that are connected to the CPU is the printer, monitor, microphones,
the keyboard that I am typing on now, and many other tangible items like
scanners and digital cameras.
Hard DriveA hard drive is what every computer system needs to be used for its
intended purpose. The purpose of a hard drive is to store changing digital
information in a relatively permanent form. Just say for instance, if you
don’t have any floppy disks or compact discs at the time and you really need
something to be stored on the computer for the next day’s use. You can
store many things on the computer’s hard drive so that you won’t find
yourself having to type that twenty-page research paper over again. It’s also
a newly updated technological advance for items such as digital cameras.
Another main purpose of the hard drive is to provide backup for certain
instances such as if your computer breaks down by shutting off or even
shorting.
Random Access MemoryRandom Access Memory, or RAM, is the place in a computer where
the operating system, application programs, and data are kept so they can be
quickly accessed by the computer at any given time. This can only happen
when your computer is running. As soon as the computer is turned off, the
Central Processing Unit looses all of its Random Access Memory. Random
Access Memory can be compared to a person’s short-term memory. You
can remember something that someone says in a lecture the same day of it,
but a month, or even a week later, I doubt anyone will remember exactly
what the professor said. RAM is very small in physical size and in the
amount of data it can hold. It is smaller than the hard disk that can hold
forty billion bytes. RAM is called “random access” because any storage
location can be accessed directly. In addition to disk, floppy disk, and
Compact Disc ROM storage, another important form of storage is read only
memory, which is a more expensive kind of memory that retains data even
when the computer is turned off.
Read Only MemoryRead Only Memory plays a very important part in making computers
much easier to use. Read Only Memory is the type of memory chip that
does not lose information even when the computer’s main power is turned
off. It is used as a storage medium and this is very useful to one’s who are
typing and the computer happens to shut off on them. Most computers
usually contain a very small amount of read only memory that keeps
instructions for starting up the computer. ROM is a permanent type of
memory storage used by the computer for important data and information
that does not change.
KeyboardA keyboard allows any computer user to be able to type and relay
information, in words, the computer system. With the addition of
applications such as Microsoft Works and Word, the user is able to type
information inside of the application to prepare the file for whatever use that
is possible, such as emailing the document, printing, or any other use that is
possible. Without a keyboard, very important options, such as surfing the
web and using search engines, or luxury items, such as emailing a friend or a
corporation about any type of issue, would not be able to be done. The
absence of the keyboard would take away the whole reason for even owning
a computer. Just incase your mouse ends up failing you for some odd reason,
the keyboard will then be your “Savior” because, without the mouse, the
keyboard will be the only way that you could control the computer until you
purchase another mouse.