15th

Edition
Understanding
Today and Tomorrow
Computers
Comprehensive

Chapter 2
The Systems
Unit:
Processing
and Memory
Deborah
Morley Muhammad Jameel Summra
 Learning
Objectives
1. Understand how data and programs are represented to a
computer and be able to identify a few of the coding systems
used to accomplish this.
2. Explain the functions of the hardware components
commonly found inside the system unit, such as the CPU,
GPU, memory, buses, and expansion cards.
3. Describe how peripheral devices or other hardware can be
added to a computer.
4. Understand how a computer’s CPU and memory components
process program instructions and data.

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 Learning
Objectives
5. Name and evaluate several strategies that can be used today
for speeding up the operations of a computer.
6. List some processing technologies that may be used in future
computers.

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 Overvie
w
• Explain how computers represent data and program
instructions.
• Explain how the CPU and memory are arranged with other
components inside the system unit.
• Explain how a CPU performs processing tasks.
• Identify strategies that can be used today to create faster and
better computers in the future.

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 Data and Program
Representation
• Digital Data Representation
– Coding Systems
• Used to represent data and programs in a manner
understood by the computer
– Digital Computers
• Can only understand two states, off and on
(0 and 1)
– Digital Data Representation
• The process of representing
data in digital form so it can be
understood by a computer
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 Digital Data
Representation
– Bit
• The smallest unit of data that a
binary computer can
recognize (a single 1 or 0)
– Byte = 8 bits
• Byte terminology used to express
the size of documents and other
files, programs, etc.
– Prefixes are often used to express larger quantities of
bytes: kilobyte (KB), megabyte (MB), gigabyte (GB),
terabyte (TB), petabyte (PB), exabyte (EB), zettabyte (ZB),
yottabyte (YB).

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 Representing Numerical
Data
• The Binary Numbering System
– Numbering system
• A way of representing numbers
– Decimal numbering system
• Uses 10 symbols (0-9)
– Binary numbering system
• Uses only two
symbols (1 and 0) to
represent all
possible numbers
– In both systems, the position of the digits determines the
power to which the base number (such as 10 or 2) is raised
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 Representing Numerical
Data

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 Coding Systems for Text-Based
Data
• ASCII (American Standard Code for
Information Interchange)
– Coding system traditionally used
with personal computers
• EBCDIC (Extended Binary-Coded
Decimal Interchange Code)
– Developed by IBM, primarily for
mainframes

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 Coding Systems for Text-Based
Data
• Unicode
– Newer code (32 bits per character is common)
– Universal coding standard designed to represent text-
based data written in any ancient or modern language
– Replacing ASCII as the primary text-coding system

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 Coding Systems for Other Types
of Data
• Graphics Data (still images such as photos or drawings)
– Bitmapped images
• Image made of up of a grid of small dots called pixels
• Monochrome graphic can only be one of two colors
– Requires just one bit for color storage
• Images with more than two colors
– Can use 4, 8, or 24 bits to store the color data for
each pixel
– More bits = more colors

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 Coding Systems for Other Types
of Data

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 Coding Systems for Other Types
of Data
• Audio Data
– Must be in digital form in order to be stored on or
processed by a computer
– Often compressed when sent over the Internet
• MP3 files are 10 times smaller than their uncompressed
digital versions
• Download more quickly and take up less storage space
• Video Data
– Displayed using a collection of frames, each frame contains
a still image
– Amount of data can be substantial, but can be compressed

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 Representing Software
Programs
• Machine language
– Binary-based language for representing computer
programs the computer can execute directly
– Early programs were written in machine language
– Today’s programs still need to be translated into machine
language in order to be understood by the computer

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 Inside the System
Unit
• System Unit
– The main case of a computer
– Houses the processing hardware for a computer
– Also contains storage devices, the power supply, and
cooling fans
– Houses processor, memory, interfaces to connect to
peripheral devices (printers, etc), and other components
– With a desktop computer, usually looks like a rectangular
box

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 Inside the System
Unit

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 Inside the System
Unit
• The Motherboard
– Computer Chip
• Very small pieces of silicon or other semi-conducting
material onto which integrated circuits are embedded
– Circuit Board
• A thin board containing computer chips and other
electronic components
– System Board
• The main circuit board inside the system unit to which
all devices must connect

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 Inside the System
Unit
• External devices (monitors, keyboards, mice, printers)
• Wireless devices (e.g., Bluetooth)
• Power Supply
– Connects to the motherboard to deliver electricity
(personal computer)
– Portable computers use rechargeable battery pack
• Nonremovable batteries more difficult and expensive
to replace

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 Inside the System
Unit
• Drive Bays
– Rectangular metal racks inside the system unit that house
storage devices
• Hard drive, CD/DVD drive, flash memory card reader
• Connected to the motherboard with a cable
• Processors
– The CPU (Central Processing Unit)
• Circuitry and components packaged together and connected
directly to the motherboard
• Does the vast majority of processing for a computer
• Also called a processor; called a microprocessor when talking
about personal computers

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 Inside the System
Unit
– Dual-core CPU
• Contains the processing components (cores) of two
separate processors on a single CPU
– Quad-core CPU
• Contains four cores
– Multi-core processors allow computers to work on more
than one task at a time
– Typically different CPUs for desktop computers, portable
computers, servers, mobile devices, consumer devices,
etc.
• Personal computer CPU often made by Intel or AMD
• Media tablets and mobile phones use processors made
by other companies such as ARM
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 Inside the System
Unit

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 Inside the System
Unit
– The GPU (graphics processing unit)
• Takes care of the processing needed to display images
(including still images, animations) on the screen
• Can be located on
the motherboard,
on a video graphics
board, on in the
CPU package

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 How It Works
Box
GPUs and Transformers: The Ride 3D at Universal Studios
– Uses a 2,000 foot-long track, 14 huge screens, and 34
projectors
– Motion is synchronized with the action
– Images are 3D, 4K
– Used GPUs to see 3D
animations in real time
as they were being
developed

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 Inside the System
Unit
• Processing Speed
– CPU clock speed is one measurement of processing speed
– Rated in megahertz (MHz) or gigahertz (GHz)
– Higher CPU clock speed = more instructions processed per
second
– Alternate measure of processing speed is the number of
instructions a CPU can process per second
• Megaflops (millions), gigaflops (billions), teraflops
(trillions)
– Benchmark tests can be used to evaluate overall
processing speed
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 Inside the System
Unit
• Word Size
– The amount of data that a CPU can manipulate at one time
– Typically 32 or 64 bits
• Cache Memory
– Special group of very fast memory chips located on or
close to the CPU
– Level 1 is fastest, then Level 2, then Level 3
– More cache memory typically means faster
processing
– Usually internal cache (built into the CPU)

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 Inside the System
Unit
• Bus Width, Bus Speed, and Bandwidth
– A bus is an electronic path over which data can
travel
– Found inside the CPU and on the motherboard
– Bus width is the number of wires in the bus over
which data can travel
• A wider bus allows more data to be transferred
at one time

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 Inside the System
Unit
• Bus width and speed determine
the throughput or bandwidth
of the bus
– The amount of data that can
be transferred by the bus in
a given time period

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 Memor
y
• Memory
– Refers to chip-based storage located inside the system unit
– Storage refers to the amount of long-term storage
available to a computer
– Random Access Memory (RAM)
• Computer’s main memory
• Consists of chips arranged on a circuit board called a
memory module which are plugged into the
motherboard
• Stores essential parts of operating system, programs,
and data the computer is currently using
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 Memor
y

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 Memor
y
• Volatile
– RAM content lost when the computer is shut off
– ROM and flash memory are non-volatile
• Measured in bytes
– Amount installed depends on the CPU and
operating system being used
• Most personal computers use SD-RAM
• MRAM and PRAM - non-volatile RAM under
development

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 Memor
y
• Each location in memory
has an address
– Each location
typically holds one
byte
– Computer system
sets up and
maintains directory
tables to facilitate
retrieval of the data

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 Memor
y
– Registers
• High-speed memory built into the CPU
• Used to store data and intermediary results during
processing
• Fastest type of memory
– ROM (read-only memory)
• Non-volatile chips located on the motherboard into
which data or programs have been permanently stored
• Retrieved by the computer when needed
• Being replaced with flash memory

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 Memor
y
– Flash Memory
• Nonvolatile memory chips that can be used for storage
• Have begun to replace ROM for storing system
information
• Now stores firmware for personal computers and other
devices
• Built into many types of devices (media tablets, mobile
phones, and digital cameras) for user storage

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 Cooling
Components
• Fans
– Fans used on most personal computers to help cool the
CPU and system unit
– Heat is an ongoing problem for CPU and computer
manufacturers
• Can damage components
• Cooler chips run faster
• Heat Sinks
– Small components typically made out of aluminum with
fins that help to dissipate heat

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 Cooling
Components
• Cooling Systems
– Liquid cooling systems
• Cool the computer with liquid-filled tubes
– Immersion cooling
• Hardware is actually submerged into units filled with a
liquid cooling solution
– Notebook cooling stand
• Cools the underside of a notebook computer
– Other cooling methods, such as ion pump cooling systems,
are under development

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 Cooling
Components

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 Expansi
on
• Expansion Slots, Expansion Cards, and ExpressCard Modules
– Expansion Slot
• A location on the motherboard into which expansion
cards are inserted
– Expansion Card
• A circuit board inserted into an expansion slot
• Used to add additional functionality or to attach a
peripheral device
– ExpressCard Modules
• Designed to add additional functionality to
notebooks
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 Expansi
on

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 Buse
s
• Bus
– An electronic path within a computer over which data travels
• Located within the CPU and etched onto the motherboard
– Expansion Bus
• Connects the CPU to peripheral (typically input and output)
devices
– Memory Bus
• Connects CPU directly to RAM
– Frontside Bus (FSB)
• Connects CPU to the chipset that connects the CPU to the
rest of the bus architecture

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 Buse
s
– PCI and PCI Express (PCIe) Bus
• PCI has been one of the most common types
• Today, PCI Express bus, which is extremely fast, has
replaced the PCI bus
– Universal Serial Bus (USB)
• Extremely versatile
• Allows 127 different devices to connect to a computer
via a single USB port
– FireWire Bus
• Developed by Apple to connect multimedia devices to a
computer

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 Ports and
Connectors
• Port
– A connector on the exterior of a computer’s system unit to
which a device may be attached
– Typical desktop computer ports include:
• Power connector, Firewire, VGA monitor, Network, USB,
Audio, and HDMI
– Others include IrDA and Bluetooth ports, eSATA ports,
Thunderbolt ports (Apple devices)
– Most computers support the Plug and Play standard

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 Ports and
Connectors

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 Ports and
Connectors
– Portable computers have ports similar to desktop
computers, but often not as many
– Smartphones and mobile devices have more limited
expansion capabilities
• Usually have a USB port, HDMI port, and/or flash
memory card slot
• Flash memory cards often use the Secure Digital (SD)
format
• MiniSD and microSD cars are smaller than regular SD
cards

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 Ports and
Connectors

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 Trend
Box
Tablet Docks
– Used to help with tablet productivity
– Some are just a stand
– Many include a keyboard
– Some include ports (USB,
monitor, etc.) to connect
peripherals
– Some contain a battery

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 How the CPU
Works
• CPU (Central Processing Unit)
– Consists of a variety of circuitry and components packaged
together
– Transistor: Key element of the microprocessor
• Made of semi-conductor material that acts like a switch
controlling the flow of electrons inside a chip
– Today’s CPUs contain hundreds of millions of transistors;
the number doubles about every 18 months (Moore’s Law)

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 How the CPU
Works
• Typical CPU Components
– Arithmetic/Logic Unit (ALU)
• Performs arithmetic involving integers and logical
operations
– Floating Point Unit (FPU)
• Performs decimal arithmetic
– Control Unit
• Coordinates and controls activities within a CPU
core
– Prefetch Unit
• Attempts to retrieve data and instructions before they
are needed for processing in order to avoid delays
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 How the CPU
Works
– Decode Unit
• Translates instructions from the prefetch unit so they
are understood by the control unit, ALU, and FPU
– Registers and Internal Cache Memory
• Store data and instructions needed by the CPU
– Bus Interface Unit
• Allows the core to communicate with other CPU
components

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 How the CPU
Works

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 Summa
ry
• Data and Program Representation
• Inside the System Unit
• How the CPU Works
• Making Computers Faster and Better Now and in the Future

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