Computer Hardware Study Guide with
Complete Solutions
an output device that is used to create hard copies of things displayed on your monitor. -
Ans -Printer
anything that will connect to the outside of the computer, they can be input and output,
depending on the device. - Ans -Peripheral
a personal computer designed for regular use at a single location on a desk or table due to
its size and power requirements. - Ans -Desktop PC
a portable computer, usually battery-powered, small enough to rest on the user's lap and
having a screen that closes over the keyboard like a lid. - Ans -Laptop PC
considered the brain of a computer, which carries out the processing of tasks and
instructions in the computer. - Ans -Central Processing Unit (CPU)
a thin board made of fiberglass or other laminate material on which conductive pathways
are "printed", connecting different components on the PCB, such as transistors, resistors,
and integrated circuits. - Ans -Printed Circuit Board (PCB)
the main circuit board of your computer which hosts the CPU, the chipset, BIOS chip, RAM
expansion slots, PCI slots, and USB ports etc. - Ans -Motherboard
the time between two adjacent pulses of the oscillator, during which a CPU can perform a
basic operation such as fetching an instruction, accessing memory, or writing data. -
Ans -Clock Cycle
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, a type of volatile memory that can be accessed randomly. - Ans -Random Access
Memory (RAM)
a type of non-volatile memory on which data can only be read but not written to. -
Ans -Read Only Memory (ROM)
a read-only memory in which a set of routines is stored, enabling a computer to start the
operating system and to communicate with the various devices in the system, such as disk
drives, keyboard, monitor, printer, and communications ports. - Ans -BIOS chip
a data storage device that does not use any movable parts and consist of flash memory
chips that store your data. - Ans -Solid State Drive (SSD)
a data storage device comprised of a set of stacked "disks," each of which has data
recorded electromagnetically in tracks and sectors on it. - Ans -Hard Disk Drive
(HDD)
a computer memory that can retain the stored information even when not powered. -
Ans -Non-Volatile Memory
a computer memory that can not retain the stored information when not powered. -
Ans -Volatile Memory
computers designed with a full set of computer instructions that range from very simple to
very complex and specialized to provide needed capabilities in the most efficient way. -
Ans -Complex Instruction Set Computer (CISC)
computers designed with a reduced set of computer instructions that includes only the
2
most frequently used instructions so that the computer would get more work done in a
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Complete Solutions
an output device that is used to create hard copies of things displayed on your monitor. -
Ans -Printer
anything that will connect to the outside of the computer, they can be input and output,
depending on the device. - Ans -Peripheral
a personal computer designed for regular use at a single location on a desk or table due to
its size and power requirements. - Ans -Desktop PC
a portable computer, usually battery-powered, small enough to rest on the user's lap and
having a screen that closes over the keyboard like a lid. - Ans -Laptop PC
considered the brain of a computer, which carries out the processing of tasks and
instructions in the computer. - Ans -Central Processing Unit (CPU)
a thin board made of fiberglass or other laminate material on which conductive pathways
are "printed", connecting different components on the PCB, such as transistors, resistors,
and integrated circuits. - Ans -Printed Circuit Board (PCB)
the main circuit board of your computer which hosts the CPU, the chipset, BIOS chip, RAM
expansion slots, PCI slots, and USB ports etc. - Ans -Motherboard
the time between two adjacent pulses of the oscillator, during which a CPU can perform a
basic operation such as fetching an instruction, accessing memory, or writing data. -
Ans -Clock Cycle
1
Page
, a type of volatile memory that can be accessed randomly. - Ans -Random Access
Memory (RAM)
a type of non-volatile memory on which data can only be read but not written to. -
Ans -Read Only Memory (ROM)
a read-only memory in which a set of routines is stored, enabling a computer to start the
operating system and to communicate with the various devices in the system, such as disk
drives, keyboard, monitor, printer, and communications ports. - Ans -BIOS chip
a data storage device that does not use any movable parts and consist of flash memory
chips that store your data. - Ans -Solid State Drive (SSD)
a data storage device comprised of a set of stacked "disks," each of which has data
recorded electromagnetically in tracks and sectors on it. - Ans -Hard Disk Drive
(HDD)
a computer memory that can retain the stored information even when not powered. -
Ans -Non-Volatile Memory
a computer memory that can not retain the stored information when not powered. -
Ans -Volatile Memory
computers designed with a full set of computer instructions that range from very simple to
very complex and specialized to provide needed capabilities in the most efficient way. -
Ans -Complex Instruction Set Computer (CISC)
computers designed with a reduced set of computer instructions that includes only the
2
most frequently used instructions so that the computer would get more work done in a
Page
