Digital devices

This module tells you about the different devices and its role in the situation.

RAM

A temporary holding area for data, application program instructions, and the operating system. RAM can be packaged in a chip carrier that is wired to the system board or it can be located on small circut boards that plug into the system board.

ROM

Is a type of memory circuity that is housed in a single integrated circut on the system board. Whereas RAM is temporary and volatile. ROM is more permanent and non-volatile. The contents of ROM remain in place even when the device is turned off.

Magnetic storage

Repersents data by magnetizing microscopic particles on a disk or tape surface.

A hard disk drive

Is a flat, rigid disk made of aluminum or glass and coated with magnetic iron oxide particles.

A read-write head

Mechanism in the disk drive magnetizes particles to write data, and senses the particles’ polarities to read data.

Data transfer rate

Is the amount of data a storage device can move per second from the storage medium to RAM.

Optical storage

Represents data as microscopic light and dark spots on on the disc surface.

File synchronization

Make copies of files from your documents, music, pictures, and videos folders, along with any files that were created or modified while One drive was offline.

Peripheral Device

Techspeak for devices such as printers, display devices, storage devices, mice, and headsets that are connected to the system unit of a computer.

Expansion ports

When you plug in a USB flash drive or insert a memory card, you are using an expansion port.

Expansion bus

The part of the data bus that stretches from RAM to various expansion ports is called the expansion bus.

A USB hub

An Inexpesive device that turns one USB port into multiple ports.

A device driver

Is software that helps a peripheal device establish communication with its host device. For example, the device driver for an HP printer sets up data streams from RAM to the printer and makes sure that the data is formatted in a way that the printer can work with.

Graphics processing (GPU)

A graphics card contains (GPU) and special video memory.

Ink jet printer

Has a nozzle-like the one shown (figure) uses the same technology as a photocopier to paint dots of light on a light senstive drum.

Sense plan act alogortihms

Gather data, analyze it, and then carry out the required actions. Multiple sense plan act loops operate simutanousely.

Lidar

Is a key input for the computer alogriterms that steer an automomous vehicle, but radar, sonar, infrared, GPS, cameras, nand internal navigation systems also supply essential data.