COMPUTER HARDWARE

TECHNOLOGY GUIDE ONE

TECHNOLOGY GUIDE OUTLINE

TG1.1 IntroductionTG1.2 Strategic Hardware IssuesTG1.3 Innovations in Hardware UtilizationTG1.4 Computer HierarchyTG1.5 Input and Output TechnologiesTG1.6 The Central Processing UnitTG1.7 Computer Memory

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

• Identify the major hardware components of a computer system.• Discuss the strategic issues that link hardware

design to business strategy.• Discuss the innovations in hardware utilization.• Describe the hierarchy of computers according to

power and their respective roles.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES (CONTINUED)

• Differentiate the various types of input and output technologies and their uses.• Describe the design and functioning of the central

processing unit.• Discuss the relationships between microprocessor

component designs and performance.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES (CONTINUED)

• Describe the main types of primary and secondary storage.• Distinguish between primary and secondary

storage along the dimensions of speed, cost, and capacity.• Define enterprise storage, and describe the

various types of enterprise storage.

HARDWARE CONSISTS OF:

• Central processing unit (CPU) – think of a chef in a kitchen

• Primary storage – think of the counter space in the kitchen

• Secondary storage – think about storage in the cupboard

• Input technologies

• Output technologies

• Communication technologies

TG1.2 STRATEGIC HARDWARE ISSUES

• How do organizations keep up with the rapid price and performance advancements in hardware?

• How often should an organization upgrade its computers and storage systems?

• Will upgrades increase personal and organizational productivity?

• How can organizations measure such increase?

• How do organizations manage telecommuting?

TG1.3 INNOVATIONS IN HARDWAREUTILIZATION (NOT SO IMPORTANT)

• Server Farms• Virtualization• Grid computing• Utility computing• Cloud computing• Edge Computing• Autonomic Computing• Nanotechnology

TG1.4 COMPUTER HIERARCHY

• Supercomputers• Mainframe Computers• Midrange Computers• Workstations• Notebooks and Desktop Computers• Ultra-mobile PCs• Computing devices

TG1.5 INPUT AND OUTPUT TECHNOLOGIES

Input technologies

Human data-entry

Source-data automation

OUTPUT TECHNOLOGIES

• Output

• Monitors• Printers• Plotters• Voice

TG1.6 THE CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT

Central processing unit (CPU)

Microprocessor

– Control unit

– Arithmetic-logic unit (ALU)

– Registers

HOW THE CPU WORKS

• Binary form• Machine instruction cycle• Clock speed• Word length• Bus width• Line width

ADVANCES IN MICROPROCESSOR DESIGN

Moore’s Law Years

Power

1½ 2

3 4

4½ 8

6 16

7½ 32

9 64

10½ 125

12 256

13½ 512

15 1024

TG1.7 COMPUTER MEMORY

Two basic categories of computer memory:• Primary Storage

• Secondary Storage

HIERARCHY OF MEMORY CAPACITY

• Kilobyte – 1,000 (thousand)

• Megabyte – 1,000,000 (million)

• Gigabyte – 1,000,000,000 (billion)

• Terabyte – 1,000,000,000,000 (trillion)

• Petabyte – 1,000,000,000,000,000

• Exabyte – 1,000,000,000,000,000,000

• Zettabyte – 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000

• What's a Google?

"Googol" is the mathematical term for a 1 followed by 100 zeros. The term was coined by Milton Sirotta, nephew of American mathematician Edward Kasner, and was popularized in the book, "Mathematics and the Imagination" by Kasner and James Newman. Google's play on the term reflects the company's mission to organize the immense amount of information available on the web.

PRIMARY STORAGE

• Primary storage or main memory

MAIN TYPES OF PRIMARY STORAGE

• Registers (fastest primary storage)• Random access memory (RAM)• Cache memory• Read-only memory (ROM) (slowest primary

storage)

SECONDARY STORAGE

Secondary Storage– Magnetic tape (sequential access) slow– Magnetic disks (direct access) faster

About Capacity• Compact Disk, Read-Only Memory (CD-ROM)• Digital Video Disk (DVD)

FLASH MEMORY DEVICES

Flash memoryFlash memory devicesThumb drive

ENTERPRISE STORAGE SYSTEMS

Enterprise storage system

• Redundant Arrays of Independent Disks (RAID)• Storage Area Network (SAN)• Network Attached Storage (NAS)