Components of the system unit

1. System unit is box like case that contains the computers main electronic
components
2. Components of the system unit include:
 Motherboard: the main circuit board of the system unit
 Drive bay(s):
 Power supply: provide electric power to all parts of the system unit.
 Sound card: allows to listen music and record your own sound.
 Video card:
 Ports: connects external devices to the system unit.
 Cooling fan: keeps the system unit cool.
 Expansion slot: a set of sockets that help to attach extra input/output
devices to the motherboard.
3. Motherboard is also known as the system board.
4. Motherboard contains:
 Processor( also known as microprocessor or CPU)
 Memory
 Chipset: group of chips that control system capabilities.
 Input & output buses
5. Processor: the processor also known as Central Processing Unit CPU is
the brain of the computer system.
a. The CPU is divided into:
 Control unit: tells the rest of the computer how to carry out
programs and instructions
 Arithmetic logic unit (ALU): performs two types of operations
arithmetic (+,-,*, /) and logic (<,>, =).
b. The leading manufacturers of CPU chips are Intel and AMD
c. The 4 basic operations of the CPU(specially control unit) are :
 Fetching
 Decoding
 Executing
 Storing
6. Memory: is a device that enables the computer to store information.
7. There two types of memory:
  Volatile memory (also known as temporary storage): the contents of
the memory are erased when the power supply is turned off: example:
Random Access Memory (RAM), Cache memory and virtual
memory.
 Nonvolatile memory (also known as permanent storage): the contents
of the memory are not erased when the power supply is turned off:
example: Read Only Memory(ROM) & flash memory

Input
8. Input is any data and instructions entered into the memory of a computer
9. Instructions can be entered into the computer in the form of programs,
commands, and user responses
10.An input device is any hardware component that allows users to enter data
into a computer
11.Input devices include:
a. Keyboard: is an input device that contains keys users press to enter
data and instructions into a computer
o There are two types of keyboard: wired and wireless.
o Most desktop computer keyboards have…

o The insertion point, also known as the cursor, is a symbol on

the screen that indicates where the next character you type will
appear
 o A pointing device is an input device that allows a user to
control a pointer on the screen while Pointer is a small symbol
on the screen whose location and shape change as a user moves
a pointing device
b. Mouse: is a pointing device that fits under the palm of your hand
comfortably
o A mouse is the most widely used pointing device on desktop
computers and can be wired or wireless
o Mouse operations include:

Point Click Right-click Double-click Triple-click Drag

Rotate Free-spin Press thumb

Right-drag Press wheel Tilt wheel
wheel wheel button

c. Touchpad: pointing device that is sensitive to pressure and motion

d. Touchscreen is a touch-sensitive display device
e. Digital camera is a mobile device that allows users to take pictures
and store them digitally
f. Microphone
g. Barcode reader uses laser beams to read bar codes
h. Biometric input: identifies personal characters such as fingerprint,
face recognition and etc.
i. Sensors:

Output
12.Output is data that has been processed into a useful form
13.An output device is any type of hardware component that conveys
information to one or more people
14.Output devices include:

Speakers,
Display devices Printers headphones, Data projectors
and earbuds

Force-feedback
Interactive
game Tactile output
whiteboards
controllers

15.A display device visually conveys text, graphics, and video information
16.A monitor is packaged as a separate peripheral e.g.
a. LCD monitor
b. Widescreen
17.A printer produces text and graphics on a physical medium
18.An audio output device produces music, speech, or other sounds
19.A data projector is a device that takes the text and images displaying on a
computer screen and projects them on a larger screen
20.An interactive whiteboard is a touch-sensitive device, resembling a dry-
erase board, that displays the image on a connected computer screen

Storage
21.Storage holds data, instructions, and information for future use
22.A storage medium is the physical material on which a computer keeps data,
instructions, and information
23.Capacity is the number of bytes a storage medium can hold
24.A storage device is the computer hardware that records and/or retrieves
items to and from storage media
25.Common storage devices are:
a. Hard disk
b. Flash memory storage
c. Optical disc
 Operating System and Utility Programs
26.System software consists of the programs that control or maintain the
operations of the computer and its devices

27.Types of system software:

a. Operating system
b. Utility program
28.An operating system (OS) is a set of programs containing instructions that
work together to coordinate all the activities among computer hardware
resources
29.Functions of operating system include:
a. Start and shut down computer
b. Provide user interface
c. Manage tasks
d. Manage memory
e. Control network
30.Types of operating systems are:
a. Stand-alone operating system e.g. windows 7 & Mac OS X.
b. Server operating system e.g. windows server 2008
c. Embedded operating system.
31.The process of starting or restarting a computer is called booting
32.A boot drive is the drive from which your computer starts
33.A recovery disk contains a few system files that will start the computer
34.Memory management optimizes the use of RAM
35.Virtual memory is a portion of a storage medium functioning as additional
RAM.
36.A utility program is a type of system software that allows a user to perform
maintenance-type tasks
37.There are two types of utility programs:
a. Built in e.g. windows media player
b. Stand-alone utility e.g. Google chrome.
38.Other utility programs include:
a. File manager
b. Image viewer
c. Media player
d. Search utility