The basic hardware components in a PC are:
- Case or Tower
- Motherboard
- Microprocessor (CPU)
- RAM (Random Access Memory)
- Hard drive
- CD and/or DVD drive
- Sound card
- Graphics card (video card)
- other expansion cards
- Various ports
Hardware refers to objects that can be touched such as, disk drives, monitors, keyboards, printers and chips.
In contrast, software is untouchable. Software exists as ideas, concepts, and symbols, but it has no substance.
Operating Systems:
Often abbreviated OS, operating systems are software systems that manage the interaction between users and hardware. Operating systems are used to tell a computer what to do with the resources at its disposal in order to run programs, store data, or send files to peripherals such as scanners and printers. OS's could be thought of as the master control program (e.g., Windows) that manages a computer's internal functions and provides a means of control to the computer's operations and file system. Computech supports Windows 2000 and Windows XP.
Computer Peripherals:
A peripheral, short for peripheral device, is a type of computer hardware that is added to a computer in order to expand its abilities. The term is used to describe devices that are optional, as opposed to required hardware. The term peripheral is applied to devices that are hooked up externally though some form of computer bus like USB. Examples include:
- Keyboards
- Printers
- Scanners
- Joysticks
- Mice
- Microphones
- Speakers
- Cameras
Devices such as monitors and disk drives are not considered peripherals because they are not optional.
Internal devices that are optional are not considered peripherals.
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