Introduction to Computers: Hardware

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Hardware and Data storage

Hardware refers to the physical elements of a computer. This is also sometime called the machinery or the equipment of the computer. Examples of hardware in a computer are the keyboard, the monitor, the mouse and the central processing unit. However, most of a computer's hardware cannot be seen; in other words, it is not an external (внешний) element of the computer, but rather an internal (внутренний) one, surrounded by the computer's casing (tower). A computer's hardware is comprised of many different parts, but perhaps the most important of these is the motherboard. The motherboard is made up of even more parts that power and control the computer.

Computer data storage is referred to as storage or memory, which can save digital data. Examples are RAM, hard disks, CDs, DVDs and removable flash memory cards.

Permanent, or non-volatile, storage devices do not require power to remember the data stored. Mass storage devices, like your hard disk, are non-volatile; a loss of power does not affect their ability to retain (сохранять) data. This category also includes ROM (Read Only Memory).

Temporary or volatile storage is more often called “memory”. A loss of power means that any data stored will be lost irretrievably (безвозвратно). When you are using an application, such as a word processor, the data (the document you are working on) is stored in RAM (Random Access Memory). If you lose power without explicitly saving your work, you will likely lose data.