The motherboard is the central part of the computer that connects all the hardware components and allows them to communicate with each other. RAM temporarily stores data to serve as the computer's working memory. The CPU, or central processing unit, is like the brain that performs calculations and processes data at high speeds. The power supply provides electricity to power all the components. The hard drive stores long-term data like documents, photos, and the operating system. The video card generates the images on the monitor by translating binary information into pixels.

1. COMPUTER COMPONENTS -
WHAT DOES WHAT?

2. It goes without saying, that we are now,
more than ever, reliant on technology for
our day to day activities. We use them to
communicate with friends, and to browse
the limitless supply of information that is
available to us online. But how often do we
take a step back to try to understand how
exactly these incredible feats of engineering,
such as computers, actually work?
While we don’t need to understand the ins
and outs of how our PCs work, it’s
interesting to have a vague idea of what each
of the individual parts within the
mechanism play in making the whole thing
do it’s job; and for the most part it doesn’t
even need to be rocket science!
If your computer is running slowly, or
encountering any number of issues that can
occur naturally over time, understanding
the components can help you diagnose the
issue (although of course we thoroughly
recommend taking it to someone who has a
lot of experience in computing). If you’d like
to know the basics of how computers work,
then allow us to show you!

3. The motherboard is the central part
of the machine which connects all
the hardware. Every part of the PC
goes through the motherboard in
some way, whether directly or
indirectly. It kind of works like the
human central nervous system, in
that it allows the different
components such as the CPU, RAM
and much more to communicate
with each other (more on those
later!) and react to everything else.
Motherboard

4. Random access memory or RAM is a
physical bit of hardware inside a
computer, it temporarily stores data
on it to serve as a computers
working memory. Most often
computers come with a small
amount of RAM which most users
often upgrade to suit their personal
needs, RAM can be a great way to
boost your systems performance.
RAM allows the computer to quickly
store data and retrieve it very
quickly when it is needed, it allows
for quick access to stored data.
RAM - Random
Access Memory

5. Sometimes referred to as a
microprocessor, it is actually a
surprisingly small selection of chips
for the job it does. It takes care of
moving data from one memory
location to another, whilst
simultaneously making decisions
about everything else that is going
on in the rest of the computer.
CPU (or Central Processing
Unit)
If the motherboard is the nervous
system, then the CPU is the brain!
This is the bit that does all the
complicated math that is difficult for
us as humans to comprehend. This
is also the part that determines the
speed at which the computer can do
various tasks, with most modern
domestic CPUs ranging in speeds
between 2.0 and 3.0 GHz. This
correlates with the number of
calculations that the processor can
make in just one second, which is
incomprehensible considering it
takes about that just to blink.

6. This is the bit that provides the juice. As with all electrical
appliances, there needs to be a source of power for it to even turn
on before it can do all this amazing stuff. It goes without saying the
desktops and laptops require slightly different amounts of power;
laptops tend to work from a charging battery pack with a kettle lead
and input into the laptop itself, but have a battery built into the
computer so that it can last a while without a constant source of
electricity which is what makes them so portable. Desktops however
do need a constant source of energy, which usually comes in the
form of the large towers that have complex wiring systems inside
that work as the battery.
Power supply

7. The long term memory of the computer is
the job of the hard drive, sometimes known
as HDD or HD. It keeps hold of all of your
documents, games, music and precious
holiday snaps, whilst also maintaining the
computers main operating system. For
example, it can hold the operating system
for Windows, alongside all of your personal
effects- it is one hard working piece of kit!
While you buy your computer with a certain
sized hard-drive, it really is a personal
matter and can depend on what you use the
computer for. Say for example, if you’re a
professional photographer by trade, the
likelihood is that you are going to need to
store an enormous volume of images on the
computer, both before and after the editing
process. In cases like this, external hard
drives are easy to get hold of, and is a small
investment which can really save the stress
of deciding which files need to go in the
digital rubbish bin!
Just to put into perspective how quickly this
kind of technology advances; Mac released a
computer in the mid 90s with a 160 Mb hard
drive, which laughably held around 50
songs! Which is unbelievable when you think
that most of us carry around a phone of
sorts that can store well over 20 times that.
Hard drive

8. Due to the amount of work that the
video card puts in, with regards to
placement within the computer they
are normally located under a fan to
help keep them cool. It’s the bit that
burns your lap after watching
Netflix for too long!
The video card is, like a few of the
other components mentioned in this
list, reasonably easy to replace once
you know what you’re doing. Just as
a warning, in case you do choose to
pop open your computer to see
what’s going on in there, be sure
that the computer is off and has
been disconnected to any power
source before you do so!
Video Card
The video card (or sometimes
graphics card) takes care of what
you actually see on the monitor by
generating output images. The
images comprise of many tiny dots
known as pixels, that the computer
has to piece together to create the
image that makes the computer
usable- this translation takes place
in the video card. The CPU sends the
binary information to the
video/graphics card via the
motherboard, which then is fed to
the monitor via an internal cable.