The PC construction

The PC consists of a central unit (referred to as the computer) and various peripherals. The computer is a box, which contains most of the working electronics. It is connected with cables to the peripherals.

On these pages, I will show you the computer and its components. Here is a picture of the computer:

Here is a list of the PC components. Read it and ask yourself what the words mean. Do you recognize all these components? They will be covered in the following pages.

 

Components in the central unit - the computer Peripherals
The motherboard: CPU, RAM, cache,
ROM chips with BIOS and start-up programs.
Chip sets (controllers). Ports, buses and expansion slots.

Drives: Hard disk(s), floppy drive(s), CD-ROM, etc.

Expansion cards: Graphics card (video adapter),
network controller, SCSI controller.
Sound card, video and TV card.
Internal modem and ISDN card.

Keyboard and mouse.
Joystick
Monitor
Printer
Scanner
Loudspeakers
External drives
External tape station
External modem