ABCD of Computer - Part II

So here we are, with the second installment/part of ABCD of Computer. As you know, we are covering everyday computer terms trough this particular series of blog posts, and we have already seen software terms in previous post, now its time to go through some of the popular terms from hardware zone of computer.

I have listed following 12 popular terms, some of them are known to us, and some create confusion with a closely related term. Let us take these terms one by one in a very simple language. Here we go...

1. Access Point

An access point is a device, such as a wireless router, that allows wireless devices to connect to a network. Most access points have built-in routers, while others must be connected to a router in order to provide network access. In either case, access points are typically hardwired to other devices, such as network switches or broadband modems.

Access points can be found in many places, including houses, businesses, and public locations. In most houses, the access point is a wireless router, which is connected to a DSL or cable modem.

2. DSL (Digital Subscriber Line)

Stands for "Digital Subscriber Line". It is medium for transferring data over regular phone lines and can be used to connect to the Internet. However, like a cable modem, a DSL circuit is much faster than a regular phone connection, even though the wires it uses are copper like a typical phone line.

3. Flash Drive

Flash drives have many names — jump drives, thumb drives, pen drives, and USB keychain drives. Regardless of what you call them, they all refer to the same thing, which is a small data storage devices that uses flash memory and has a built-in USB connection.

4. Flash Memory

Flash memory is a type of electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM). The name comes from how the memory is designed -- a section of memory cells can be erased in a single action or in a "flash."

A common use of flash memory is to store the BIOS settings in a computer's ROM. When the BIOS needs to be changed, the flash memory can be written in blocks, rather than bytes, making it easy to update. Most modems use flash memory for the same reason. 

Flash memory cards used for digital cameras, cellular phones, networking hardware, and PC cards. Though the memory's read/write speed is not lightning fast, it is nice to be able to tote around a little card rather than a cumbersome hard drive.

5. HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface)

HDMI is a digital interface for transmitting audio and video data in a single cable. It is supported by most HDTVs and related components, such as DVD and  Blue-Ray players, cable boxes, and video game systems.

HDMI carries the audio and video streams together, greatly eliminating cable clutter. For example, a component cable connection requires three cables for video and two for audio, totaling five cables in all. The same information can be transmitted using one HDMI cable.

6. LCD (Liquid Crystal Display)

LCDs are super-thin displays that are used in laptop computer screens and flat panel monitors. Smaller LCDs are used in handheld TVs, PDAs, and portable video game devices. Since LCD screens are based on the principle of blocking light (rather than emitting it), they use up much less power than standard CRT (Cathode-Ray Tube) monitors.

7. LED (Light-Emitting Diode)

An LED is an electronic device that emits light when an electrical current is passed through it. Early LEDs produced only red light, but modern LEDs can produce several different colors, including red, green, and blue (RGB) light. Recent advances in LED technology have made it possible for LEDs to produce white light as well.

Some examples include street lights, the red lights on cars, and various types of decorative lighting. You can typically identify LEDs by a series of small lights that make up a larger display. For example, if you look closely at a street light, you can tell it is an LED light if each circle is comprised of a series of dots.

The energy efficient nature of LEDs allows them to produce brighter light than other types of bulbs while using less energy. For this reason, traditional flat screen LCD displays have started to be replaced by LED displays, which use LEDs for the backlight. LED TVs and computer monitors are typically brighter and thinner than their LCD counterparts.

8. Modem

The word modem is actually short for Modulator/Demodulator. A modem is a communications device that can be either internal or external to your computer. It allows one computer to connect another computer and transfer data over telephone lines. The original dial-up modems are becoming obsolete because of their slow speeds and are being replaced by the much faster cable and DSL modems.

9. Motherboard

The motherboard is the main circuit board of your computer and is also known as the mainboard or logic board. If you ever open your computer, the biggest piece of silicon you see is the motherboard.

Attached to the motherboard, you'll find the CPU, ROM, memory RAM expansion slots, PCI slots, and USB ports. It also includes controllers for devices like the hard drive, DVD drive, keyboard, and mouse. Basically, the motherboard is what makes everything in your computer work together. Each motherboard has a collection of chips and controllers known as the chipset. 

10. Plug and Play

Plug and Play, sometimes, abbreviated PnP, is used to describe devices that work with a computer system as soon as they are connected. 

The user does not have to manually install drivers for the device or even tell the computer that a new device has been added. Instead the computer automatically recognizes the device, loads new drivers for the hardware if needed, and begins to work with the newly connected device.

For example, if you connect a Plug-and-Play mouse to the USB port on your computer, it will begin to work within a few seconds of being plugged in. A non plug-and-play device would require you to go through several steps of installing drivers and setting up the device before it would work.

11. Router

This is a hardware device that routes data (hence the name) from a local area network (LAN) to another network connection. A router allow only authorized machines to connect to other computer systems. Most routers also keep log files about the local network activity.

12. USB

Stands for "Universal Serial Bus." USB is the most common type of computer port used in today's computers (a sort of industry standard). It can be used to connect keyboards, mice, game controllers, printers, scanners, digital cameras, and removable media drives, just to name a few.

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