| Storage units
are also known as memory units. There are two types: those that provide permanent storage such as the hard disk and those that provide transient storage
such as Random Access Memory ( RAM). The contents of RAM are lost when power is turned off. The primary residents of memory units are
computer programs , the data they work with and the results they produce. The basic unit of storage is the
file. The contents of a file are bytes. These bytes
are machine codes for the various data formats such as text, graphics, music, pictures, devices, etc. During processing, blocks of bytes
can be copied from a file and stored in temporary storage units inside the computer. Each file is unique in name and in its address in the storage unit.
The operating system is responsible for establishing the protocol for naming, addressing and organizing files. The organizational structure
it establishes is called its file system. There are three general types of file systems: Disk based filesystems: they manage local disk space or the space in devices such as the USB flash drive that emulates a disk. Some examples of this type of filesystem are Linux's Second Extended Filesystem(Ext2) and Third Extended Filesystem(EXt3); Microsoft's MS-DOS, VFAT and NTFS; ISO9660 CD-ROM filesystem and Universal Disk Format (UDF) DVD filesystem. |
| Also included in this group are proprietary filesystems such as IBM OS/2 (HPFS) and
Apple's Macintosh (HFS). Network filesystems: this type of filesystem allows access to files in computers that are part of a network. Some examples are NFS, Common Internet File System (CIFS), Novell's Netware Core Protocol (NCP), Coda and AFS. Special filesystem: this type of filesystem is not bound to physical block devices and usually contains system and device files. Some examples are the bdev (block devices) and the sysfs (provides general access point to system data). Both are from the Linux operating system. Processing/Control units are together known as the Central Processing Unit (CPU). The CPU is also called the microprocessor and informally, the brain of the computer because it contains the Arithmetic and Logic Unit (ALU) which handles the calculations and logic functions in the computer. Also in the CPU are: the instruction decoder which decodes program instructions; the program counter which is a register that keeps track of the address of the next instruction to be decoded; several other registers that function as temporary storage spaces of the data being process by the CPU; the CACHE which is a storage space for the data the CPU uses frequently; and a clock/timer which synchronizes the CPU's activities. |
| Coordination units: the operating system is the chief coordinator in the computer, however, the
motherboard and buses are the units that make the cordination possible. The motherboard provides the platform
for the electronic components and circuitry that make up the computer. The buses provide coordinated pathways for communication inside the computer. Some examples of bus architecture are:
Industrry Standard Architecture (ISA), Extended Industry standard Architecture (EISA), Micro Channel Architecture (MCA).
Output units: they receive the final or intermediary results of CPU's processing. Display screens such as monitors (Cathode-Ray Tubes) and Liquid-Crystal Display (LCD), and printers are common output units. So are the hard disk , floppy disk, USB disks and compact disks(CD-R,CD-R/W, DVD, etc). The CPU's RAM, cache and registers are often recipients of temporary outputs from the CPU. The evolution of computer architecture has been fundamentally based on the refinement of the basic computer units shown in fig. SG 1. The basic goal has always been to increase the speed and storage capacity of the units. The movement of software in the software space begins in the human mind. The mind is presented with a problem. The mind then creates programmable instructions to solve the problem. The instructions become the |
RAM = randon Access Memory; control = control unit 1 = instruction decoder; 2 = counter with clear 3 = address register; 4 = program counter 5|6 = general registers; ALU = Arithmetic/Logic Unit. source code of the software after they have been written in a high-level language. The source code is then compiled into an object code (machine code) and stored in a permanent storage unit. |
| Data Bus |
| Address Bus |
| <- - - |
| <- - - |
| - -> |
| <- - - |
| - - - - > |
| - - - - > |
| - - - - > |
| <- - - |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Let us use our environment respectfully so that future generations would not label us"prodigal ancestors" |
|
|
| 8550 W.Desert Inn Road | Suit 102-223 | Las Vegas | NV 89117. |
| TEC Technics logo by Kimberlee J. Benart | Website construction by Peter O. Sagay | Copyright 2000 - 2008 TEC Technics Group Inc. All rights Reserved. |