Hardware of a modern personal computer 1. Monitor 2. Motherboard 3. CPU 4. RAM 5. Expansion cards 6. Power supply 7. Optical disc drive 8. Hard disk drive 9. Keyboard 10. Mouse Personal computer hardware are component devices which are typically installed into or peripheral to a computer case to create a personal computer upon which system software is installed including a firmware interface such as a BIOS and an operating system supporting application software that performs the operator's desired functions.
Operating systems usually
communicate with devices through
hardware buses by using software device drivers. Mother board Main article: Motherboard The motherboard is the main
component inside the case. It is a large
rectangular board with integrated
circuitry that connects the other parts
of the computer including the CPU, the RAM, the disk drives (CD, DVD, hard disk, or any others) as well as any peripherals connected via the ports or
the expansion slots. Components directly attached to the
motherboard include: The central processing unit (CPU) performs most of the calculations
which enable a computer to
function, and is sometimes referred
to as the "brain" of the computer. It
is usually cooled by a heat sink and fan. Newer CPUs include an on-die Graphics Processing Unit (GPU). The chip set mediates communication between the CPU
and the other components of the
system, including main memory. RAM (random-access memory) stores resident part of the current
running OS (OS core and so on) and
all running processes (application
parts, using CPU or input/output (I/
O) channels or waiting for CPU or I/O
channels). The BIOS includes boot firmware and power management. The Basic Input Output System tasks are handled by operating system drivers. Newer motherboards use Unified Extensible Firmware
Interface instead of BIOS. Internal buses connect the CPU to various internal components and to
expansion cards for graphics and
sound. Current The north bridge memory controller, for RAM and PCI
Express PCI Express, for expansion cards such as
graphics, lannd and
physics processors, and
high-end network
interfaces PCI, for other expansion cards SATA , for disk drives ATA Obsolete AGP (superseded by PCI Express) VLB VESA Local Bus (superseded by AGP) ISA (expansion card slot format obsolete in PCs, but
still used in industrial
computers) External bus controllers support ports for external peripherals. These
ports may be controlled directly by
the south bridge I/O controller or based on expansion cards attached
to the motherboard through the PCI
bus. USB FireWire eSATA SCSI Power supply Main article: Power supply unit (computer) Inside a custom-built computer: the power supply at the bottom has its own cooling fan. A power supply unit (PSU) converts
alternating current (AC) electric power
to low-voltage DC power for the
internal components of the computer.
Some power supplies have a switch to
change between 230 V and 115 V. Other models have automatic sensors
that switch input voltage
automatically, or are able to accept any
voltage between those limits. Power
supply units used in computers are
nearly always switch mode power supplies (SMPS). The SMPS provides regulated direct current power at the
several voltages required by the
motherboard and accessories such as
disk drives and cooling fans. Removable media devices Main article: Computer storage CD (compact disc) - the most common type of removable media,
suitable for music and data. CD-ROM Drive - a device used for reading data from a CD. CD Writer - a device used for both reading and writing data to and
from a CD. DVD (digital versatile disc) - a popular type of removable media
that is the same dimensions as a CD
but stores up to 12 times as much
information. It is the most common
way of transferring digital video,
and is popular for data storage. DVD-ROM Drive - a device used for reading data from a DVD. DVD Writer - a device used for both reading and writing data to
and from a DVD. DVD-RAM Drive - a device used for rapid writing and reading of
data from a special type of DVD. Blu-ray Disc - a high-density optical disc format for data and high-
definition video. Can store 70 times
as much information as a CD. BD-ROM Drive - a device used for reading data from a Blu-ray disc. BD Writer - a device used for both reading and writing data to and
from a Blu-ray disc. HD DVD - a discontinued competitor to the Blu-ray format. Floppy disk - an outdated storage device consisting of a thin disk of a
flexible magnetic storage medium.
Floppies are used today mainly for
loading device drivers not included with an operating system release (for example, RAID drivers). Zip drive - an outdated medium- capacity removable disk storage
system, first introduced by Iomega
in 1994. USB flash drive - a flash memory data storage device integrated with a USB
interface, typically small, lightweight,
removable, and rewritable.
Capacities vary, from hundreds of
megabytes (in the same range as
CDs) to tens of gigabytes (surpassing, at great expense, Blu-
ray discs). Tape drive - a device that reads and writes data on a magnetic tape, used
for long term storage and backups. Secondary storage Hardware that keeps data inside the
computer for later use and remains
persistent even when the computer
has no power. Hard disk - for medium-term storage of data. Solid-state drive - a device similar to hard disk, but containing no moving
parts and stores data in a digital
format. RAID array controller - a device to manage several internal or external
hard disks and optionally some
peripherals in order to achieve
performance or reliability
improvement in what is called a
RAID array. Sound card Main article: Sound card Enables the computer to output sound
to audio devices, as well as accept
input from a microphone. Most modern computers have sound cards
built-in to the motherboard, though it
is common for a user to install a
separate sound card as an upgrade.
Most sound cards, either built-in or
added, have surround sound capabilities. Input and output peripherals Main article: Peripheral Input and output devices are typically housed externally to the main
computer chassis. The following are
either standard or very common to
many computer systems. Wheel mouse Input Main article: Input device Text input devices Keyboard - a device to input text and characters by depressing
buttons (referred to as keys or
buttons). Pointing devices Mouse - a pointing device that detects two dimensional motion
relative to its supporting surface. Optical Mouse - uses light (laser technology) to
determine mouse motion. Trackball - a pointing device consisting of an exposed
protruding ball housed in a
socket that detects rotation
about two axes. Touchscreen - senses the user pressing directly on the monitor. Gaming devices Joystick - a hand-operated pivoted stick whose position is
transmitted to the computer. Game pad - a hand held game controller that relies on the digits
(especially thumbs) to provide
input. Game controller - a specific type of controller specialized for
certain gaming purposes. Image, Video input devices Image scanner - a device that provides input by analyzing
images, printed text,
handwriting, or an object. Web cam - a video camera used to provide visual input that can
be easily transferred over the
internet. Audio input devices Microphone - an acoustic sensor that provides input by
converting sound into electrical
signals. Output Main article: Output device Printer - a device that produces a permanent human-readable text of
graphic document. Dot Matrix Printer Laser Printer Ciode display OLED - Organic Light-Emitting Diode Monitors See also Glossary of computers References v d e Basic computer components Input devices Keyboard · Image scanner · Microphone · Pointing device (Graphics tablet · Joystick · Light pen · Mouse · Touchpad · Touchscreen · Trackball) · Webcam (Softcam) Output devices Monitor · Printer · Speakers Removable data storage Optical disc drive (CD-RW · DVD+RW) · Floppy disk · Memory card · USB flash drive Computer case Central processing unit (CPU) · Hard disk / Solid- state drive · Motherboard · Network interface
controller · Power supply · Random-access memory (RAM) · Sound card · Video card Data ports Ethernet · Firewire (IEEE 1394) · Parallel port · Serial port · Thunderbolt · Universal Serial Bus (USB)

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Am waiting for your writeup on softwares too o.

[ m ]