| A | B |
|---|
| power supply | the component that supplies power to the computer and converts alternating current(AC) to direct current (DC) |
| keyed component | a component whose connector is designed such that connecting cables can only be attached in one way |
| UPS | an uninterruptible power supply is a device intended to save computer componentsfrom damage due to power problems such as failures spikes and sags |
| standby UPS | SUPS are UPSs that supplies power from a battery when power problems are detected |
| online UPS | a UPS that supplies power from a battery at all times |
| line conditioner | a device that reduces noise and some power problems mainly implemented because of its ability to reduce electromagnetic interference (EM) and radio frequency interference (RFI) |
| BIOS | low-level software that acts as the interface between the hardware and the operating system in a computer |
| POST | a serious of built-in diagnostics that are performed when the computer is first started |
| plug and play | method to have the operating system automatically configure adapter settings |
| CMOS | the most widely used type of integrated circuit for digital processors and memories |
| CPU | the main chip on the system board, performs software instructions and mathematical and logical equations |
| ZIF socket | a type of processor socket that uses a lever to tighten or lossen the pin connections between the processor chip and the socket |
| CISC | processors that dont require instructions to be fixed length and that allow for more complicated functions to be executed in one instruction |
| RISC | there are processors that require instructions to be of a fixed length making their instructions simpler and fewer than CISC but more instructions are required to carry out a single function |
| overdrive chip | chip that enables you to upgrade a computers performance simply by replacing the original processor with a new processor on the older system board |
| SECC | type of CPU packaging that refers to a design where the processor is located on a circuit board that is inserted into a slot on the system board |
| SPGA | this CPU packaging design staggers pins so that more pins will fit on the same amount of surface |
| PGA | a type of CPU packaging design on which pins are distributed evenly in parallel rows on the entire bottom of a square chip |
| DIP | CPU packaging designs that feature two rows of pins one down each side of the CPU package |
| heat sink | a device attached to a processor that addresses the problem of overheating processors |
| MIPS | the execution speed of a computer |
| EPIC | a new processor design that resembles very long instruction word, which takes multiple simple instructions and combines them into a longer internal instruction word format |
| MMX | a set of additional instructions to support multimedia functions and beyond |
| SIMD | a processing technique that allows a single instruction to work on multiple pieces of data |
| out-of-order completion | technology that enables superscalar processorsto re-assemble the results of instructions that were finished out of order into the correct order |
| DIB | the architecture used in pentium processors |
| dual-voltage | design that enables use of a higher external voltage and a lower internal voltage for processors |
| superscalar | technology that enables the CPU to execute two instructions simultaneously using the U and V pipelines |
| superpipelining | the ability of the CPU chip to overlap the execution steps of four instructions |
| speculative execution | the process of the CPU trying to guess which instruction will be used next and executing one or more instructions as a result of the guess |
| branch prediction | the process of the CPU trying to anticipate which code will be used next based on past history and executing that code |
| register renaming | technology that uses multiple sets of registers in the processor to provide multiple execution paths |
| cache | dedicated high-speed memory for storing recently used instructions and data |
| math coprocessor | a mathematical circuit that performs high-speed floating point operations |
| virtual machine | the ability of a CPU to perform as multiple 8086 CPUs |
| protected mode | starting with the 286 an operational state that allows the computer to address all of its memory |
| conventional memory | the first 640 k of memory |
| real mode | an operational state in intel CPU chips in which the computer functions like the first intel CPU chip which is limited to accessing 1 MB of memory |
| bus | a set of physical and logical interconnections between the computer and add-on boards |
| datapath | the number of bits wide or the number of channels in the bus |
| CMOS | a small memory bank backed up by a battery that stores system configuration settings |
| clock speed | the frequency at which the system board and CPU operate |
| form factor | the size and shape of AT system boards |
| DIN | a type of connector with 5 pins |
| DIP switch | switches on a card used to configure hardware settings |
| flash ROM | memory that stores data similar to EEPROM but uses a super-voltage charge to erase a block of data |
| RIMM | a memory module for RDRAM supports from one to 16 direct RDRAM devices in Rambus channel |
| SDRAM | memory that has a clock that is coordinated with the system clock to synchronize the memory chips input and output signals |
| RDRAM | a new memory archetechture by rambus,inc.that supports speeds up to 800 MHz |
| EDO RAM | a type of DRAM that enables a memory address to hold data for multiple reads |
| VRAM | these chips have two access passto a single memory address to improve performance |
| WRAM | develpoed by samsung electronics this type of RAM is optimized for display adapters |
| parity bit | an extra bit attached to a byte character or word used to detect errors in transmission |
| ECC | a type of memory that corrects errors on the fly |
