you may already know that there are many
important parts inside a computer
but what exactly do they do let's take a
look inside and learn about the various
components that make a computer work
whether it's a desktop computer or a
laptop every computer has a large
circuit board
called a motherboard this contains some
of the most important parts of the
computer
such as the cpu also known as the
central processing unit
or processor the cpu can be considered
the brain
of the computer because it processes
information and carries out commands
since it tends to get hot it's covered
by a piece of metal called a heat sink
which draws heat away from the processor
the motherboard also contains the
computer's ram or random access memory
this is the short term memory that the
computer uses whenever it's performing
calculations
however you cannot store your files
there because the ram is cleared when
you shut off the computer
the hard drive provides long term
storage keeping
all of the computers data even when it's
turned off
many hard drives use a magnetic platter
to store data
but many newer computers have solid
state drives
which are faster and more durable but
also more expensive
on many desktop computers the
motherboard has expansion slots that
allow you to upgrade by adding expansion
cards
you can add a video card to get better
graphics performance
or you can add a wireless card to
connect to your wireless home network
most laptops however don't have
expansion slots
of course the computer's components need
electricity to run
the power supply unit is designed to
take power from the wall outlet
and send it to all of the different
components that need power
laptops also contain a built-in battery
that lets you use them anywhere
a computer is a pretty complex machine
but now that you've seen what goes on
inside
it should be a little less mysterious
gcf global creating opportunities for a
better life