question

Computer

answer

A programmable, electronic device that accepts data input, performs processing operations on that data, and outputs and stores the results

question

Primary four operations of a comptuer

answer

input, processing, output, and storage

question

Input

answer

the process of entering data into a computer; can also refer to the data itself

question

Processing

answer

Performing operations on data that has been input into a computer to convert that input to output

question

Output

answer

The process of presenting the results of processing; can also refer to the results themselves

question

Storage

answer

the operation of saving data, programs, or output for future use

question

Fifth operation of computers

answer

communications

question

Communications

answer

the transmission of data from one device to another (sending or retrieiving data via the internet, accessing info from a shared computer database, or emailing, for example)

question

data

answer

raw, unorganized facts (input into computer)

question

process

answer

to modify data into a meaningful form (i.e., information

question

information

answer

data that has been processed into a meaningful form, i.e., usually to answer a question

question

IPOS cycle

answer

the progression of input, processing, output and storage; also called the information processing cycle

question

hardware

answer

the physical parts of a computer

question

software

answer

programs or instructions used to tell the computer what to do in order to accomplish tasks - used to perform specific tasks

question

end user

answer

a computer user, a person who uses the computer to performs tasks or obtain information (as opposed to a professional)

question

cloud computing

answer

to use data, applications, and resources stored on computers accessed over the internet rather than one users' computers. Essentially, apps are based on the Web

question

embedded computer

answer

a tiny computer embedded in a product and designed to perform specific tasks or functions for that product. E.G., cars often have embedded computers to indicate when maintenance is required.

question

mobile device

answer

a very small communications device with built-in computing or internet capability

question

Personal computer

answer

a small computer based on a microprocessor and designed to be used by everyone

question

desktop computer

answer

a personal computer designed to fit on or next to a desk

question

portable computer

answer

a small PC designed to be carried around easily

question

notebook computers

answer

a.k.a laptops - about the size of a notebook, wtih a screen on top and a keyboard on the bottom. Comparable to desktops in features and capabilities.

question

tablet computers

answer

designed to be used with digital pen or stylus. Slate tablets with screen and n keyboard, or convertible tablets that are like laptops but can be rotated into slate tablets.

question

netbook

answer

a.k.a. mini notebooks, mini laptops, or ultra-portable computers. Smaller and lighter than conventional notebooks

question

ultra-mobile PC (UMPC)

answer

a portable PC small enough to fit in one hand; sometimes called handheld computers, used either with hands or stylus

question

dumb terminal

answer

a computer that must be connected to a network to perform processing or storage tasks (most computers don't need this)

question

two types of PCs that may be able to perform a limited amount of independent processing

answer

thin clients and internet appliances

question

thin client

answer

aka a network computer (NC), a PC designed to be used in conjunction with a company network. It's designed to access a network for processing and data storage instead of performing those tasks locally. These are stored on a network server. Advantages over desktops: cheaper, increased security because no local data storage, and easier maintenance because software is stored on a local server

question

internet appliances

answer

NCs designed primarily for internet access and/or email exchange. Can be built into home products like phones, fridges, gaming consoles

question

midrange servers

answer

a medium-sized computer used to host programs and data for a small network. Can serve many users at once - users connect to server via PCs. Often used in small to medium-sized businesses.

question

virtualization

answer

the creation of virtual version of a computing source. Separate servers on same computer but function as separate computers and do not interact. Don't need to waste resources by having separate servers that don't use all their space. Efficient and lower cost.

question

mainframe computer

answer

a computer used in large organizations that manages large amounts of centralized data and runs multiple programs simultaneously. Can serve thousands of users connected via PCs. AKA high-end servers or enterprise-class servers

question

supercomputers

answer

the fastest, most expensive/powerful type of computer - for space exploration, controlling satellites, looking for oil, etc. One program at a time, superfast

question

supercomputing cluster

answer

a supercomputer composed of numerous smaller computers connected together to act as a single computer

question

network

answer

collection of computers and devices that are connected to enable users to share hardware, software, and data, as well as communicate. Home networks allow home computers to share a single printer and internet connection and files

question

internet

answer

the largest and most well-known computer network, linking millions of computers all over the world

question

internet service provider (ISP)

answer

a business or organization that provides internet access to others for a fee

question

world wide web

answer

refers to one resource, the collection of web pages available through the internet

question

web page

answer

a document located on a web server

question

website

answer

a collection of related web pages belonging to one individual or company

question

web server

answer

a computer continually connected to the internet that stores web pages accessible to the internet. They can be accessed at any time by anyone with an internet connection

question

web browser

answer

a program used to view web pages, such as Chrome, Safari, Firefox, etc

question

internet address

answer

an address taht identifies a computer, person, or web page on the internet, such as an IP address, domain name, or email address

question

IP address

answer

a NUMERIC internet address used to uniquely identify a computer on the internet - connects to a NETWORK (like net login)

question

domain name

answer

a text-based internet address used to uniquely identify a computer on the internet - corresponds to IP address - google.com

question

uniform resource location (URL)

answer

an internet address that uniquely identifies a web page

question

email address

answer

an internet address consisting of a username nad computer domain name that uniquely identifies a person on the internet

question

username

answer

a name that uniquely identifies a user on a specific comptuer network

question

surf the web

answer

to use a web browser to use web pages

question

intellectual property rights

answer

the legal rights to which the creators of intellectual property (original creative works) are entitled

question

copyright

answer

form of protection; the legal right to sell, publish, or distribute an original artistic or literary work; held by creator as soon as it exists in physical form

question

fair use

answer

permits limited duplication and use of a portion of copyrighted material for specific purposes, such as criticism, commentary, news reporting, teaching and research

question

digital watermark

answer

a subtle alteration of digital content that identifies copyright holder. It is imperceptible to humans but easily read by software.

question

digital rights management (DRM)

answer

software used to protect and manage the rights or creators of digital content. Can control usage of document, such as if users can copy to other devices, etc.

question

trademark

answer

a word, phrase, symbol or design that identifies goods or services

question

plagiarism

answer

presenting someone else's work as your own

question

ethics

answer

overall standards of moral conduct

question

computer ethics

answer

standards of moral conduct as they relate to computer use (priacy, etc.)

question

business ethics

answer

standards of moral conduct that guide a business's policies, decisions and actions

question

repetitive stress injury (RSI)

answer

a type of injury such as carpal tunnel syndrome, caused by performing the same physical movements over and over

question

carpal tunnel syndrome

answer

condition affecting hands and wrists that can be caused by computer use

question

DeQuervain's tendonitis

answer

a condition in which the tendons in the thumb side of the wrist are swollen and irritated, associated with texting

question

green computing

answer

the use of computers in an environmentally friendly manner - minimizing use of natural resources, energy-saving devices

question

eco-label

answer

a certification, usually issued by a government agency, that identifies a device as meeting minimal environmental performance specifications

question

ergonomics

answer

the science of fitting a work environment to those who work there, with proper and adjustable screens, keyboards, charis, to minimize workplace injury

question

e-trash

answer

electronic trash, such as discarded computer parts - often contain hazardous elements

question

bit

answer

the smallest unit of data that a binary computer can recognize

question

byte

answer

eight bits grouped together

question

file

answer

a named collection of bytes representing virtually any type of data, such as a word doc, program, photo, or song

question

system unit

answer

the main case of a computer - houses processing hardware as well as other devices - rectangular box on desktop computers

question

circuit board

answer

a thin board containing computer chips and other electronic components

question

computer chip

answer

a very small piece of silicon or other semi-conducting material that contains integrated circuits (ICs) and transistors (microscopic pathways along which electric currents travel and switches that control the flow of electrons)

question

motherboard

answer

the main circuit board inside the system unit

question

port

answer

a connector on the exterior of the system unit case that is used to connect an external hardware device to the motherboard

question

central processing unit (CPU)

answer

the chip located on the motherboard that performs the processing for a computer (calculations and comparisons and operations)- the "brain" of the computer

question

multi-core CPU

answer

A CPU that contains the processing components or cores of multiple independent processors in a single CPU

question

clock speed

answer

a measurement of hte number of instructions that a CPU can process per second

question

word

answer

the amount of data (measured in bits or bytes) that a CPU can manipulate at a time. larger words allow for faster processing

question

cache memory

answer

a group of very fast memory circuitry located on or close to teh CPU to speed up processing

question

memory

answer

chips located inside the system unit used to store data and instructions while it is working with them

question

RAM (random access memory)

answer

memory used to store data and instructions while the computer is running

question

register

answer

high-speed memory built into the CPU that temporarily stores data during processing - fastest type of memory used by CPU - most CPUs have multiple registers

question

ROM (read-only memory)

answer

nonvolatile chips on the motherboard that permanently store data or programs - cannot write over dta and programs in ROM chips or erase their cntent when you shut computer off - used for storing permanent instructions used by computer

question

flash memory

answer

nonvolatile memory chips that can be used for storage by the computer or the user

question

BIOS (basic input/output system)

answer

the sequence of instructions the computer follows during the boot process

question

expansion slot

answer

a location on the motherboard into which an expansion card is inserted to connect it to the motherboard

question

expansion card (interface card)

answer

a circuit board used to give desktop computers additional capabilities (connect monitors, add a TV tuner, connect to a network)

question

bus

answer

an electronic path over which data travels )located in CPU to move data between CPU components, also on motherboard to tie CPU to memory and peripheral devices)

question

throughput (bandwidth)

answer

the amount of data that can be transferred via the bus in a given time period (calculated by bus width and bus speed)

question

expansion bus

answer

a bus on the motherboard used to connect peripheral devices (USB port, chipsets, etc)

question

universal serial bus (USB)

answer

a versatile bus architecture widely used for connecting peripherals

question

FireWire (IEEE 1394)

answer

a high-speed bus standard used to connect devices (particularly multimedia devices like digital video cams) to a computer

question

transistor

answer

key element of CPU - a device of semiconductor material that controls the flow of electrons inside a chip

question

arithmetic/logic unit (ALU)

answer

the part of a CPU core that performs logical operations and integer arithmetic (comparing two pieces of data to see if they are equal or determining if a condition is true or false)

question

floating point unit (FPU)

answer

part of a CPU core that performs decimal arithmetic

question

control unit

answer

part of a CPU core that coordinates its operations (retrieving data, passing them on) - directs flow of electronic traffic within core - tells everything what and when to do in order to ensure appropriate processing

question

prefetch unit

answer

part of a CPU core that attempts to retrieve data and instructions before they are needed for processing in order to avoid delay

question

decode unit

answer

the part of a CPU core that translates instructions into a form that can be processed by the ALU and FPU

question

bus interface unit

answer

section of CPU core that allows the core to communicate with other CPU components

question

System clock

answer

a small quartz crystal located on motherboard that synchronizes the comptuer's operations

question

machine cycle

answer

the series of steps performed by the computer when the CPU processes a single piece of microcode: fetch, decode, execute, store

question

storage medium

answer

the hardware where data is actually stored

question

storage device

answer

the hardware where a storage medium is read from or written to

question

hard drive

answer

hardware used to store most programs and data on a computer

question

magnetic hard drive

answer

hard drive consisting of one or more metal magnetic disks permanently sealed, with an access mechanism and read/write heads, inside its drive

question

track

answer

a concentric ring ont eh surface of a hard disk where data is recorded

question

sector

answer

a pie-shaped section on the surface of a hard disk

question

cluster

answer

the smallest storage area on a hard disk, formed by one or more sectors. Everything stored on hard disk always takes up at least one cluster

question

cylinder

answer

collection of tracks located in same location on a set of hard disk surfaces

question

solid state drive (SSD or flash memory hard drive)

answer

a hard drive that uses flash memory media, instead of spinning hard disk platters and magnetic technology - data stored as electrical charges - are not subject to mechanical failures and are more resistant to shock and vibration

question

disk access time

answer

the total time that it takes for a hard drive to read or write data

question

disk cache

answer

memory used in conjunction with a magnetic hard drive to improve system performance

question

hybrid hard drive

answer

a combination flash memory/magnetic hard drive

question

optical disc

answer

a storage medium in thte shape of a thin circular dic made out of polycarbonate substrate read from and written to using a laser beam (data storage)

question

optical drive

answer

a drive designed to read optical discs

question

flash memory card

answer

a small rectangular flash memory medium

question

USB flash drive

answer

flash memory media integrated into a self-contained unit that plugs into a USB port

question

remote storage

answer

a storage device that is not connected directly to a user's comptuer

question

network attached storage (NAS)

answer

a high-performance storage server connected individually to a network to provide storage for computers on that network

question

storage area network (SAN)

answer

a network of hard drives or other storage devices that provide storage for another network

question

online storage (cloud storage)

answer

remote storage devices accessed via the internet

question

smart card

answer

a credit card-sized piece of plastic that contains a chip and computer circuitry that can store data

question

storage server

answer

a storage device containing multiple high-speed hard drives connected to the computer system or network

question

RAID (redundant array of independent discs)

answer

a method of storing data in two or more hard drives that work together (most often used to protect critical data on a storage server)

question

magnetic tape

answer

storage media consisting of plastic tape coated with a magnetizable substance

question

input device

answer

any piece of equipment that is used to enter data into the computer

question

keyboard

answer

an input device containing keys used to enter characters on teh screen

question

pointing device

answer

an input device that moves an on-screen pointer used to select and manipulate objects and to issue commands to the computer

question

mouse

answer

a common pointing device that the user slides along a flat surface to move the point on teh screen

question

trackball

answer

a pointing device similar to an upside-down mechanical mouse with the ball mechanism on top

question

stylus

answer

a pen-like device used for input by writing, drawing, or tapping on the screen

question

touch screen

answer

an input device that is touched with the finger to select commands or otherwise provide input to the computer

question

touch pad

answer

a rectangular pad across which a fingertip or thumb slides or taps to control the pointer

question

scanner

answer

an input device that reads printed text or captures an image of an objects, then transfers that data to a computer

question

dots per inch (dpi)

answer

a measurement of resolution that indicates the quality of an image or output (quality of scanned images - optical resolution, measured in number of dpi)

question

barcode

answer

machine-readable code that represents data as a set of bars

question

barcode reader

answer

an input device that reads barcodes

question

radio frequency identification (RFID)

answer

a technology that can store, read, and transmit data in RFID tags

question

RFID tags

answer

tiny chips ad radio antennae attached to an object so it can be identified using RFID technology

question

RFID reader

answer

a device that reads the data in an RFID tag

question

optical mark reader (OMR)

answer

a device tha tinputs data from special forms to score or tally the data on those forms

question

optical character recognition (OCR)

answer

the ability of a computer to reognize scanned text characters

question

biometric reader

answer

a device used to input biometric data, such as an individual's fingerprint or voice

question

output device

answer

a device that accepts processed data from the computer and presents the results to the viewer

question

display device

answer

an output device that contains a viewing screen

question

display screen

answer

a display device built into a notebook computer, netbook UMPC, or other device

question

CRT monitor

answer

a display device that uses cathode-ray tube technology

question

flat-panel display

answer

a slim display device that uses electronically charged chemical or gases to display images (also in phones)

question

liquid crystal display (LCD)

answer

a type of flat-panel display that uses charged liquid crystals to display images

question

LED (light emitting diode)

answer

a common flat-panel technology

question

organic light emitting diode

answer

a type of flat-panel display that uses emissive organic material to display brighter and sharper images

question

interferometric modulator (IMOD) display

answer

a flat-panel display technology that uses external light to display images

question

plasma display

answer

a flat-panel display technology that uses a layer of gas between two plates of glass instead of liquid crystals or organic material

question

pixel

answer

the smallest colorable area on a display device

question

surface-conduction electron-emitter display (SED)

answer

a high-def display technology that is in development.. It uses millions of tiny electron guns to power the pixel of a plat-panel display.

question

data projector

answer

a display device that projects computer output to a wall or projection screen

question

hard copy

answer

a permanent copy of output on paper

question

pages per minute (ppm)

answer

the typical measurement of print speed

question

malfunction device (MFD)

answer

an output device that can copy, scan, fax, and print documents

question

laser printer

answer

an output device that forms images with toner powder (essentially ink powder)

question

ink-jet printer

answer

an output device that forms images by spraying tiny drops of liquid ink from ink cartridges onto paper

question

barcode printer

answer

a printer used to print barcodes

question

portable printer

answer

a small, lightweight printer that can be used on the go, such as with a notebook comptuer or mobile device

question

3d printer

answer

a printer that uses molten plastic during a series of passes to build a 3d version of the desired output

Test Answers on Computer

Unlock all answers in this set

Haven't found what you were looking for?

Search for samples, answers to your questions and flashcards