Hardware: Physical components of a computer

Mainframe vs Supercomputers:
● Supercomputers have tremendous calculative power used for models and simulations.
● Mainframes are critical for handling data, particularly within large businesses.

China is the world’s leader in supercomputer development.

Laptop: A portable computer

Desktop computer: A computer system with a separate screen and system unit.

MAC address: A unique address embedded in network connected devices.

Primary storage: Storage systems found inside the computer, i.e: RAM or ROM

Secondary storage: Storage systems connected externally to the computer’s motherboard.

Solid State Storage/Memory: A form of secondary storage

Data storage:
● Bit: 0 or 1 (Binary)
● Byte (B): 8 bits; A single character is between 1 - 4 bytes
● Kilobyte (KB): 1024 bytes
● Megabyte (MB): 1024 KB
● Gigabyte (GB): 1024 MB
● Terabyte (TB): 1024 GB

If the “B” is lower case then it refers to bit, not byte. I.e: Mb=Megabit.
ASCII is an old code standard for information interchange. However, it failed to take into account languages
such as Cantonese or Arabic, and even certain accents.

Unicode is a modern representation of ASCII. As up to 4 bytes can represent each character thousands of
characters can be represented.

The above are examples of plain text, where font type, size, or features such as bold or underline aren’t
considered.

Failover system:
A failover system/standby system is designed to keep a system running in case of failure of the primary
system. It is also known as redundant systems. It automatically starts in case of a fail.

Distributed systems are spread over geographical locations in case of natural disasters.

A RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks) is a failover storage system. It uses data striping, in which
another storage system mirrors the primary storage system. IT IS NOT A DATA BACKUP, AS PRIMARY
STORED DATA IS MIRRORED AND IF CORRUPTED, THE RAID WILL BE AS WELL. It is useful if
a hard disk fails.

Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) provide redundant power sources in case of a main power source’s
electricity failure.

Hard disk security/privacy: Physical destruction of the hard drive or use of a magnet is a surefire method of
destroying the data on the storage device.

If it is to be reused, disk wiping or secure deletion software (otherwise known as shredding software) can
be used, which overwrites current data with random data. User accounts can also be deleted, which removes the
interface or ‘doorway’ to the data on the account, making it a reasonable way of securing your privacy.
Deleting of data: Data remains on the disk, it is just not part of the File Allocation Table (FAT).

Volatile memory: A system for maintaining memory only when powered, i.e: RAM.

Non-Volatile memory: A system for maintaining memory which is kept even when not powered or connected
to a device, i.e: a USB drive.

Magnetic tape: A tape used for storing computer data. Very durable but lack speed.

Magnetic disk: Common form of secondary storage found in computers. Low price.

Read Only Memory (ROM): A type of primary storage whose contents can’t be changed. Contents are
programmed at the time of manufacture. Contains BIOS (Basic Input and Output System), which is for
booting up, locating secondary storage devices, perform checks etc.

Accessibility for disabled:

● Vision impaired: Large pointers, high contrast, screen magnification, text-to-speech.
● Braille keyboard
● Mobility issues: Sticky keys
● Sip and puff: A type of input device allows the user to control computer by blowing or sucking into
plastic tubes. Appropriate for the paralyzed.