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Hardware comprises all of the physical parts of a computer, as distinguished from the data it contains or operates on, and the software that provides instructions for the hardware to accomplish tasks. The boundary between hardware and software is slightly blurry—firmware is software that is "built-in" to the hardware. Firmware is usually the province of computer programmers and computer engineers in any case and not an issue that computer users need to concern themselves with.
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Typical Computer
The vast majority of computers are hidden, or "embedded", in embedded systems such as automobiles, microwave ovens, electrocardiograph machines, compact disc players, and many other household appliances.
Only a small minority of computers (about 0.2% of all new computers produced in 2003) are desktop or laptop personal computers1.
Personal Computer
A typical PC (personal computer) consists of a desktop or tower case (chassis) and the following parts:
- System board/Motherboard which holds the CPU, Random Access Memory and other parts, and has slots for expansion cards
- Power supply - a case that holds a transformer, voltage control and fan
- Storage controllers, of IDE, SCSI or other type, that control hard disk, floppy disk, CD-ROM and other drives; the controllers sit directly on the motherboard (on-board) or on expansion cards
- Video display controller that produces the output for the computer display
- Computer bus controllers (parallel, serial, USB, FireWire) to connect the computer to external peripheral devices such as printers or scanners
- Some type of a removable media writer:
- CD - the most common type of removable media, cheap but fragile.
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- Floppy disk
- Zip drive
- Tape drive - mainly for backup and long-term storage
- Internal storage - keeps data inside the computer for later use.
- Hard disk - for medium-term storage of data.
- Disk array controller
- Sound card - translates signals from the system board into analog voltage levels, and has terminals to plug in speakers.
- Networking - to connect the computer to the Internet and/or other computers
- Modem - for dial-up connections
- Network card - for DSL/Cable internet, and/or connecting to other computers.
- Other peripherals
In addition, hardware can include external components of a computer system. The following are either standard or very common.
See also
- E-waste
- Computer architecture
- legacy system
- Open hardware
- optical computer
- DNA computer
- History of computing hardware
- Origins of computer terms
Wiki links
External links
- Hardware review sites
- Your source for computer news and reviews
- Another source for computer news and reviews
- Computer Hardware Directory @ dmoz
- Definition of hardware at eLook Computing Reference
- Definition of Computer hardware @ Webopedia
- Computer Discussion Forums