Podcast Script on Computer Components

Hello I am here to talk to you about the basic hardware components within a computer. I will discuss the internal and external components of this such as sound and graphics cards and printers. Firstly I shall begin describing internal components in computers.

Let’s start with the motherboard. The motherboard is the base of the brains in a computer and serves as the foundation for many other elements that are included in a computer. It provides a range of connections and sockets which allow other components in a computer to connect with each other. Motherboards are very different and can come in different shapes and sizes. You may find that the motherboard for a desktop pc may look very different to on that is used in a laptop.

Next we have the CPU. The computers brain is a microprocessor known as the CPU. This stands for central processing unit. It is a chip which contains many millions of tiny transistors. The purpose of the CPU is to perform the calculations necessary in order to make a computer work. It is sometimes thought of as the decision maker.

Another critical component in a computer is memory, without it no data can be stored on the computer’s system. The two most important kinds of memory are ROM and RAM. These stand for read-only memory and random access memory. Computers can read data that is stored on ROM however they cannot write new data on to it, whereas with RAM computers can read from and write to that memory. Without computer memory, everything that you do would be pointless as nothing would save meaning that you have nothing to come back to.

BIOS is a small chip that works closely with the CPU. BIOS stands for basic input/output system and it is a specific type of ROM. If you think of the CPU as the brain of the computer, then you might consider BIOS to be the spine. The job of the BIOS is to handle interactions between the software running on a computer and the machine's hardware components.

The drives in a computer are the device that allow you to store and recall data and applications. Most computers have a hard drive which is either thin platters used to store information using magnetic recordings or a solid state flash hard drive with no moving parts. In either case the hard drive allows you to store information and applications directly to your computer.Older computers used floppy disk drives however the newer computing systems have storage drives such as DVD-ROM or CD-ROM.  These drives allow you to use media storage devices such as DVD’s on your computer.

Sound cards allow your computer to be able to play all audio components and media applications. Graphics cards enable your computer the ability to display graphics. Not all of these cards are the same however as some are able to support more software formats than others. Generally graphics card come in a wide variety of specs. 

Cooling systems generally include fans and heat sinks. Overheating can be a serious problem for computers as the performance of the computer will suffer from it. Also some parts within the computer could possibly fail from this. Heat sinks absorb heat from the PC components and remove it away from these parts. This helps to prevent the things discussed. A fan gives computers a way to exhaust heat externally, taking the cool air into the system whilst the hot air goes out of it.

Now we shall talk about the external hardware components of a computer, starting with power supplies and batteries.

The power supply component provides a supply of electricity throughout the rest of the computer, allowing it to be able to function properly. When the computer is plugged into a power socket, electricity flows from a cord to a transformer and then to the computer. The job of this transformer is to convert incoming electricity to the proper voltage for each part of the machine that needs electricity. When using a laptop, some of this power goes to the laptop’s battery to charge it. When it is unplugged the laptop needs to rely on the charge already in the battery for its needs.

A keyboard is one of the most basic input devices for a computer. It is an essential component for user interfacing with the machine. It consists of each character in the alphabet, numbers, basic punctuation, mathematical symbols, brackets and several modifier keys to expand functionality. With a laptop the keyboard is already built in so you are unable to change it, however with a computer usually it plugs in to the computer in order to work. This provides better customisation as with a laptop, you are stuck with the keyboard you’ve got.

A computer mouse is a hand operated electronic device used to control and coordinate the cursor on the computer screen as it is moved, usually on a pad. There are two buttons on it known as the left and right mouse click. They are used for different applications on the computer. There is a ball on the bottom of the mouse or an infra-red sensor which allows the cursor to move across the screen.

A printer is an external device which can allow you to print words and pictures from a computer screen onto a piece of paper. It is linked to the computer so it prints a certain document that you have requested. The printer must be linked to the computer so that you can print directly from the computer to paper.

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