information technology foundations-bit 112 technology guide one computer hardware 1

Information Technology Foundations-BIT 112

TECHNOLOGY GUIDE ONE

Computer Hardware

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Technology Guide Outline

• TG1.1 Introduction

• TG1.2 The Central Processing Unit

• TG1.3 Computer Memory

• TG1.4 Computer Hierarchy

• TG1.5 Input and Output Technologies

• TG1.6 Innovations in Hardware Utilization

• TG1.7 Strategic Hardware Issues

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Learning Objectives

• Identify the major hardware components of a computer system.

• Describe the design and functioning of the central processing unit.

• Discuss the relationships between microprocessor component designs and performance.

• Describe the main types of primary and secondary storage.

• Distinguish between primary and secondary storage along the dimensions of speed, cost, and capacity.

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Learning Objectives

• Define enterprise storage and describe the various types of enterprise storage.

• Describe the hierarchy of computers according to power and their respective roles.

• Differentiate among the various types of input and output technologies and their uses.

• Discuss the innovations in hardware utilization.

• Discuss strategic issues that link hardware design to business strategy.

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TG1.1 Introduction

• Hardware refers to the physical equipment used for the input, processing, output and storage activities of a computer system.

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Hardware consists of:

• Central processing unit (CPU)– manipulates data; controls the tasks performed by the other components.

• Primary storage– internal to the CPU; temporarily stores data & program instructions during

processing.

• Secondary storage– external to the CPU; stores data & programs for future use.

• Input technologies– accept data & instructions and converts them to a form that the computer

can understand.

• Output technologies– presents data & information in a form people can understand.

• Communication technologies– provide for the flow of data from external computer networks (e.g. the

Internet and intranets) to the CPU, and from the CPU to computer networks.

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TG1.2 The Central Processing Unit

• Central processing unit (CPU) performs the actual computation or “number crunching” inside any computer.

• Microprocessor is made up of millions of microscopic transistors embedded in a circuit on a silicon chip.– Control Unit sequentially accesses program instructions,

decodes them and controls the flow of data to and from the ALU, the registers, the caches, primary storage, secondary storage and various output devices.

– Arithmetic-logic Unit (ALU) performs the mathematic calculations and makes logical comparisons.

– Registers are high-speed storage areas that store very small amounts of data & instructions for short periods of time.

– Primary Storage temporarily stores data & program instructions during processing.

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Central Processing Unit (CPU) (continued)

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How the CPU Works (continued)

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See this view from Intel of how a chip workshttp://www.intel.com/education/mpworks/intro.htm

http://www.intel.com/education/mpworks/intro.htm


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Advances in Microprocessor Design

• Moore’s Law=microprocessor complexity would double every two years as a result of the following changes:– Increasing miniaturization of transistors.– Making the physical layout of the chip’s components as compact and efficient

as possible. – Using materials for the chip that improve the conductivity (flow) of electricity.– Targeting the amount of basic instructions programmed into the chip.

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Evolution of Computer Power/Cost

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What factors determine the speed of the microprocessor?

• Microprocessor speed is rated in machine instruction cycles per second, or MIPS. MIPS are determined by the following factors:– The preset speed of the clock that times all chip activities, measured

in megahertz (MHz). The faster the clock speed the faster the chip (a 500 MHz chip is less than a 1.0 GHz chip).

– The word length, which is the number of bits (0s and 1s) that can be processed at any time. Today’s chips are designed to handle 32-bit, or 64-bit word length. The larger the word length, the faster the chip.

– The bus width. The wider the bus (the physical avenues down which the data and information travel as electrical impulses), the more data can be moved and the faster the processing. Buses are measured in microns (millionths of a meter).

– The physical design of the chip. Specifically, the distance between transistors is known as line width. The smaller the line width, the more transistors, and the faster the chip.

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How the CPU Works-Definitions

• Binary form– The form in which data & instructions can be read by the CPU – only 0s and 1s.

• Machine instruction cycle: – The cycle of computer processing, whose speed is measured in terms of the

number of instructions a chip processes per second.

• Clock speed: – The preset speed of the computer clock that times all chip activities, measured in

megahertz and gigahertz.

• Word length: – The number of bits (0s and 1s) that can be processed by the CPU at any one time.

• Bus width: – The size of the physical paths down which the data and instructions travel as

electrical impulses on a computer chip.

• Line width: – The distance between transistors; the smaller the line width, the faster the chip.

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Digital Data Representation Handout

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TG1.3 Computer Memory

Two basic categories of computer memory:– Primary Storage

• Stores small amounts of data and information that will be immediately used by the CPU.

– Secondary Storage • Stores much larger amounts of data and information (an

entire software program, for example) for extended periods of time.

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Memory Capacity

• Bit: – Short for binary digit (0s and 1s), the only data that a CPU

can process.

• Byte: – An 8-bit string of data, needed to represent any one

alphanumeric character or simple mathematical operation.

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In this picture, one byte, 01001000, represents the letter H


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Hierarchy of Memory Capacity

• Bit – One binary digit

• Byte– 8 bits

• Kilobyte (KB)– Approximately one thousand

bytes, (1024 or 210 bytes)

• Megabyte (MB) – Approximately one million

bytes (1,048,576 bytes, or 1,024 x 1,024 or 220 bytes).

• Gigabyte (GB) – Actually 1,073,741,824 bytes

(1,024 x 1,024 x 1,024 or 230 bytes).

• Terabyte – One trillion bytes, or 240

bytes.

• Petabyte – One thousand terabytes,

or 250 bytes.

• Exabyte– One thousand petabytes,

or 260 bytes.

• Zettabyte– One thousand exabytes.

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Primary Storage

• Primary storage or main memory stores three types of information for very brief periods of time:1. Data to be processed by the CPU;2. Instructions for the CPU as to how to process the data;3. Operating system programs that manage various aspects of

the computer’s operation.

• Primary storage takes place in chips mounted on the computer’s main circuit board, called the motherboard.

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Main Types of Primary Storage

• Registers– Registers are part of the CPU with the least capacity, storing

extremely limited amounts of instructions and data only immediately before and after processing.

• Random Access Memory (RAM)– The part of primary storage that holds a software program and small

amounts of data when they are brought from secondary storage.

• Cache Memory– A type of primary storage where the computer can temporarily store

blocks of data used more often.

• Read-only Memory (ROM)– Type of primary storage where certain critical instructions are

safeguarded; the storage is nonvolatile and retains the instructions when the power to the computer is turned off.

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Internal workings of personal computer

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RAM

Hard disk drive

Floppy disk drive

CPU board with fan


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Primary versus Secondary Memory

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Secondary Storage

• Memory capacity that can store very large amounts of data for extended periods of time.

• It is non-volatile.

• It takes much more time to retrieve data because of the electromechanical nature. – Magnetic tape (sequential access)– Magnetic disks (direct access)– Optical storage devices– Flash memory devices– Enterprise Storage Systems

• It is cheaper than primary storage.

• It can take place on a variety of media.22


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Magnetic Tape

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Magnetic tape reel

Magnetic tape cartridge


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Hard Drive

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The IBM Microdrive

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Optical Storage Devices

• Optical storage devices: A form of secondary storage in which a laser reads the surface of a reflective plastic platter.– Compact disk, read-only memory (CD-ROM): A form of

secondary storage that can be only read and not written on.– Digital video disk (DVD): An optical storage device used to

store digital video or computer data.

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Flash Memory Devices

• Non-volatile memory that can be erased and reprogrammed.– Flash memory devices– Thumb drive

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Enterprise Storage Systems

• An independent, external system with intelligence that includes two or more storage devices.

• Three types of enterprise storage:– Redundant arrays of independent disks (RAID): An

enterprise storage system that links groups of standard hard drives to a specialized microcontroller that coordinates the drives so they appear as a single logical drive.

– Storage area network (SAN): An enterprise storage system architecture for building special, dedicated networks that allow rapid and reliable access to storage devices by multiple servers.

– Network-attached storage (NAS) device is a special-purpose server that provides file storage to users who access the device over a network; plug-and-play.

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TG1.4 Computer Hierarchy

• Supercomputers – Greatest processing power available

• Mainframe Computers – Relatively large computers used by 1000s of users.

• Midrange Computers - computers that are more powerful and capable than personal computers but less powerful and capable than mainframe computers.

• Workstations

• Notebooks and Desktop Computers

• Ultra-mobile PCs

• Computing devices

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NASA Supercomputer

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Mainframes and Mid-range computers

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IBM System Z mainframe

IBM iSeriesmidrange computer


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Desktops, Laptops, Notebooks

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Dell desktop

HP notebook

IBM Thinkpad laptop (now Lenovo)


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Ultramobile PC

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TG1.5 Input and Output Technologies

• Input technologies allow people and other technologies to put data into a computer.

• Output technologies allow information generated by a computer to be transmitted to the user via output devices and media.

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Input Technologies

• The two main types of input devices are:– Human Data-Entry Devices Include Keyboards, Mouse,

Trackball, Joystick, Touchscreen, Stylus and Voice Recognition;

– Source-Data Automation Devices Input Data with Minimal Human Intervention (E.G. Barcode Reader). • Speed up data collection;• Reduce errors;• Gather data at the source of a transaction or other event.

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Output Technologies

• Output generated by a computer can be transmitted to the user over several output devices and media, which include:– Monitors– Printers– Plotters– Voice

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We’ve come a long way!

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Keypunch machine

Punch card


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Microsoft Seadragon

• Microsoft Seadragon is a very interesting interface. See a demonstration here.

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http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/129


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The Multitouch Screen

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Jeff Han presents the multitouch screen at the TED talks.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7623755146597949445&q=%22Jeff+Han%22+%22TED%22&total=87&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=2


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Microsoft Surface Computing

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Microsoft Surface Computing offers a new interface for users. This technology is also called the Microsoft “coffee table.” Demo

Another look at Microsoft Surface Computing Demo

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1609598963341135369&q=%22Microsoft+surface&total=444&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cog8b8ojji0&mode=related&search=


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Bluetooth Laser Virtual Keyboard

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The Maltron Keyboard

• The Maltron keyboard is designed to lessen user fatigue and perhaps carpal tunnel syndrome. Note the angles of the keys and the many keys that are operated with your thumbs.

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Multimedia Technology

• Multimedia technology is the computer-based integration of text, sound, still images, animation and digitized motion video.

• Merges capabilities of computers with televisions, VCRs, CD players, DVD players, video and audio recording equipment, music and gaming technologies.

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Multimedia Authoring System

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TG1.6 Innovations in Hardware Utilization

• Server Farms: massive data centers that contain thousands of networked computer servers.

• Virtualization: using software to create partitions on a single server so that multiple applications can run on a single server.

• Grid computing involves applying the resources of many computers in a network to a single problem at the same time.

• Utility computing (also called subscription computing and on-demand computing) is when a service provider makes computing resources and infrastructure management available to a customer as needed for a charge based on specific usage rather than a flat rate.

• Edge Computing: process where parts of Web content and processing are located close to the user to decrease response time and lower processing costs.

• Autonomic Computing: systems that manage themselves without direct human intervention.

• Nanotechnology refers to the creation of materials, devices and systems at a scale of 1 to 100 nanometers (billionths of a meter).

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TG1.7 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?

• Do you want to be the one solving these problems?– It could be part of your career . . .

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information technology foundations-bit 112 technology guide one computer hardware 1

Documents

data instructions

flow of data

cpu stores data programs

data program instructions

computer system

computer hierarchytg1

computer memorytg1

external computer networks