VIDEO ADAPTER
A video adapter, referred to as a video card, is responsible for displaying images on the monitor. Modern video cards support 3D imaging and include a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) or Visual Processing Unit (VPU) to handle special graphics-related tasks. This design frees up the processor (CPU) to handle other data. Additionally, modern video cards come with increasingly higher amounts of dedicated (onboard) RAM. The RAM onboard the video card ensures that system RAM remains free for other tasks.
* AGP Accelerated Graphics Port is the standard interface a video card uses to connect to the motherboard. A motherboard offering an AGP port will accommodate all of today’s latest 3D graphics cards. A number in front of the letters denotes increased speed; for example, “8x AGP” means the video card supports AGP speeds up to eight times its original specification.
* HARD DRIVE Hard drives (also called hard disks) store data permanently. The amount of information you can store on your hard drive depends on its size, which is measured in gigabytes (GB). Though this seems like a lot of space, programs and data can quickly gobble up large amounts of storage. Investing in a large hard drive will serve you well during the life of your system.
⦁ ATA Advanced Technology Attachment. Interface that allows hard drives to connect to the motherboard. Revisions of ATA include ATA/66, ATA/100, and ATA/133, all offering increased speeds. Also known as Parallel ATA or IDE, this interface is beginning to be phased out with the introduction of SATA hard drives. Optical drives still require an IDE attachment.
⦁ Cache Similar to the cache on processors, a hard drive's cache stores frequently-used information for quick access. The larger a drive's cache, the more information it can store inside.
⦁ RPM (Revolutions per Minute) Hard drives contain a spindle which rotates the magnetic platters. The spindle speed of the hard drive is measured in RPM. Traditional speeds include 5400RPM and 7200RPM. Serial ATA offers speeds of 10,000RPM.
⦁ SATA/150 or Serial ATA Serial Advanced Technology Attachment. High-speed interface for connecting hard drives to the motherboard. SATA replaces ATA by offering increased data transfer speeds (up to 150 Mbps), and cables that are easier to manage inside a system's case. Today's motherboards can support 2 Serial ATA drives in a RAID configuration.
* RAID Redundant Array of Independent (or Inexpensive) Disks. Technology that allows two hard drives to be "striped" together into a single C:\ drive, providing a variety of benefits. The most common setup is RAID 0 Stripe which offers increased hard disk performance since two hard drives are working to process the same data. Most motherboards today provide for RAID, eliminating the need for a separate controller.
* AGP Accelerated Graphics Port is the standard interface a video card uses to connect to the motherboard. A motherboard offering an AGP port will accommodate all of today’s latest 3D graphics cards. A number in front of the letters denotes increased speed; for example, “8x AGP” means the video card supports AGP speeds up to eight times its original specification.
* HARD DRIVE Hard drives (also called hard disks) store data permanently. The amount of information you can store on your hard drive depends on its size, which is measured in gigabytes (GB). Though this seems like a lot of space, programs and data can quickly gobble up large amounts of storage. Investing in a large hard drive will serve you well during the life of your system.
⦁ ATA Advanced Technology Attachment. Interface that allows hard drives to connect to the motherboard. Revisions of ATA include ATA/66, ATA/100, and ATA/133, all offering increased speeds. Also known as Parallel ATA or IDE, this interface is beginning to be phased out with the introduction of SATA hard drives. Optical drives still require an IDE attachment.
⦁ Cache Similar to the cache on processors, a hard drive's cache stores frequently-used information for quick access. The larger a drive's cache, the more information it can store inside.
⦁ RPM (Revolutions per Minute) Hard drives contain a spindle which rotates the magnetic platters. The spindle speed of the hard drive is measured in RPM. Traditional speeds include 5400RPM and 7200RPM. Serial ATA offers speeds of 10,000RPM.
⦁ SATA/150 or Serial ATA Serial Advanced Technology Attachment. High-speed interface for connecting hard drives to the motherboard. SATA replaces ATA by offering increased data transfer speeds (up to 150 Mbps), and cables that are easier to manage inside a system's case. Today's motherboards can support 2 Serial ATA drives in a RAID configuration.
* RAID Redundant Array of Independent (or Inexpensive) Disks. Technology that allows two hard drives to be "striped" together into a single C:\ drive, providing a variety of benefits. The most common setup is RAID 0 Stripe which offers increased hard disk performance since two hard drives are working to process the same data. Most motherboards today provide for RAID, eliminating the need for a separate controller.
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COMPUTER AND THEIR PARTS
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