The system unit

A system unit houses the processor and memory of a personal computer system. The fun­damental building blocks of all com­puter systems and subsystems are the in­tegrated circuit chips. All the functional hardware parts of the computer—input, processor, storage, and output—can be made from integrated circuits.

One of the most important integrated circuits chips is the central processing unit (CPU) Working in close conjunction with the processor is a form of storage called the computer's memory. This is where the programs, along with the data to be input and the results to be output, are stored.

ROM (read-only memory) is per­manent memory from which the ­processor can read information, but whose contents can be neither erased nor written over—thus the name, read­ only memory. ROM stores the instruc­tions that start up the computer when the power is turned on as well as some additional programs that need never be changed.

RAM (random-access memory) is temporary memory that is empty until the processor needs to use it, that is, until it loads programs and data into it. RAM is often called read/write memory, meaning that the processor can read its contents and write programs or data into it. Most RAM is temporary be­cause it loses its contents when the computer's power is turned off.

Memories for personal computers are rated according to their capacity, which is measured in millions of bytes. A byte consists of eight consecu­tive bits and is the equivalent of one character, such as a letter, a number, or a punctuation mark. One thousand bytes, called a kilobyte or simply K, represents the number 1024. One million bytes or a megabyte represents the number 1 048 576.

By themselves, the chips cannot do much—they have to be connected and fed with electricity. The chips are usually mounted on a system board or mother board—a fibreglass circuit board that contains sockets into which the chips are plugged and a set of tracks (printed on the circuit board) that connects the various chips. Because these tiny inte­grated circuit chips require so little elec­tricity to operate, a power supply is also housed in the system unit. This converts ordinary household current into the low-voltage direct current that the inte­grated circuits require.

Personal computers also con­tain a series of sockets, called expansion slots, into which additional circuit cards can be plugged. These additional circuit cards expand the capabilities of the computer.

Storage provides a place to store data and programs before and after processing. Disks have become the most widely used medium for the storage part of a system. They provide fast access to information.

6.3 Give Ukrainian equivalents of the following word – combinations.

Permanent memory, temporary memory, system board, disk drive,expansion slot, DIMM, hard disk drive, floppy disk drive, colour display screen, capacity, external device, retrieve information, record information, read/write head, erase, delete, rotate a disk.

6.4 Give synonyms.

Make up, private, link, various, important, significant, carry out, quantity, command, perform, interpret, spin, translate, execute, personal, additional, provide, give, apply, use, join, in lieu, convenient, compose, low, instruction, comfortable, different, amount, rotate, flexible, hard, require, supplementary, demand, instead of, high.

6.5 Fill in the blanks with the words from the text.

1. Additional circuit boards can be plugged into _________________.
2. A system board contains sockets into which _______________________are plugged.
3. ______________ carries out the processing tasks by interpreting and executing the commands in a program.
4. ________________ is used for storing large quantities of information and provides fast access to that information.
5. The capacity of hard disk drives is measured in _______________.
6. Additional circuit boards expand the ______________ of a computer.

6. 6 Translate the following words and phrases into English.

Cистемний блок, розділовий знак, змінний струм, постійний струм низької напруги, дисковод, резервна копія, запам’ятовувальний пристрій великої ємності, головка читання / запису, лазерний промінь, інтегральна схема, мікросхема, центральний процесор, оперативна пам’ять, тимчасова пам’ять, гніздо розширення, джерело електроживлення, розміщувати, зовнішній пристрій, забезпечувати доступ, вилучати, ємність, з’єднувати з системою, завантажувати програму.

6.7 Translate the sentences into English using the necessary terms from the text

1. Блок електроживлення перетворює змінний струм стандартної мережі на постійний струм низької напруги.

2. На системному блоці розміщено всі основні вузли комп’ютера.

3. Дисковод містить механічне обладнання, необхідне для обертання диску та головку читання / запису.

4. Ємність пам’яті вимірюється у байтах.

6. 8 As we have seen there are three types of memory used by computers: RAM, ROM and storage memory. Look through this list of features and decide which type of memory they refer to.

1. Any section of the main memory can be read with equal speed and ease.

2. It is available in magnetic, optical, and video disks.

3. It stores basic operating instructions, needed by the CPU to function correctly.

4. Memory which can be expanded by adding DIMMs.

5. Information is permanent and cannot be deleted.

6. You can store your documents and applications.

6.9 Answer the questions.

1. What does a system unit house?

2. What functions does a CPU perform?

3. What is a difference between ROM and RAM?

4. What is a typical unit to measure RAM memory and storage memory?

5. What type of electrical current is required for feeding chips?

6. In what way can you expand the capabilities of the computer?

7. What is the meaning of the acronym DIMM?

8. What is the abbreviation for “binary digit”?

9. How can we store data and programs permanently?

Дата добавления: 2015-01-03