1. BCT Section 1.2 Terms
Data Communications, Networks
1. Data Communications The Technology that enables computers to communicate
The transmission of text, numeric, voice or video data
from one machine to another.
2. Sender The computer that is sending the message
3. Receiver The computer receiving the message
4. Channel The media that carries the message.
5. Protocol The rules that govern the orderly transfer of the data sent.
6. Network When computers are connected to other computers, they
can share information.
7. Local Area Network (LAN) Computers connected together in a relatively close
location such as in the same building or department.
The data and software for these computers are stored on
a central computer called the file server.
8. Wide Area Network (WAN) When local area networks are expanded to include
several local area networks within a city, state, region,
territory, country, continent, or the world.
9. Central Processing Unit (CPU) The microprocessor
"Brains of the Computer"
Housed on a tiny silicon chip, Chip contains millions of
switches and pathways that help your computer make
important decisions.
CPU knows which switches to turn on and which to turn
off because it receives its instructions from computer
programs (software).
CPU has two primary sections:
Arithmetic/logic unit
Control unit
10. Arithmetic/Logic Unit (ALU) performs arithmetic computations and logical
operations; by combining these two operations the ALU
can execute complex tasks.
Arithmetic operations include addition, subtractions,
multiplication, and division.
Logical operations involve comparisons.
11. Control Unit The “boss” and coordinates all of the CPU’s activities.
Uses programming instructions, it controls the flow of
information through the processor by controlling what
happens inside the processor.
2. We communicate with the computer through
programming languages.
COBOL, C++, or VisualBasic.net, HTML, Java Script for
example.
12. Random Access Memory (RAM) RAM Memory - Memory on the motherboard that is
short term; where data, information, and program
instructions are stored temporarily on a RAM chips
When the computer is turned off or if there is loss of
power, what ever is stored in RAM disappears.
This memory known as the main memory and is
considered volatile.
The computer can read from and write to RAM.
13. Read Only Memory (ROM) Long Term Memory - Read Only Memory (ROM)
Memory on the motherboard - Where the Specific
Instructions that are needed for the computer to operate
are stored.
This memory is nonvolatile and your computer can only
read from a ROM chip.
The instructions remain on the chip regardless if the
power is turned on or off.
Most common is the BIOS ROM; where the computer
uses instructions contained on this chip to boot or start
the system when you turn on your computer.
14. Basic Controllers On the motherboard, a device that controls the transfer of
data from the computer to a peripheral device and vice
versa.
Examples: keyboards, mouse, monitors, and printers.
Generally stored on one single chip.
15. Serial & Parallel Ports Used to connect our peripheral devices to the computer;
usually one serial and one parallel port on a computer.
Serial devices transmit data one bit at a time.
A modem may be connected to this port.
Parallel devices transfer several bits at a time.
A printer may be connected to this port.
16. Universal Serial Bus (USB) Universal Serial Bus (USB) - a new standard that
supports data transfer rates of up to 12 million bits per
second.
A single USB port can be used to connect up to 127
peripheral devices, Expected to replace serial and parallel
ports in the near future.
17. Motherboard Central to all of this is the motherboard or system board
that mounts into the case, is a circuit board (a thin plate
or board that contains electronic components) that
contains many integral components.
3. 18. ASCII Code ASCII (American Standard Code for Information
Interchange): the most popular and widely used
standardized coding system
19. Byte Byte: eight bits or combinations of ones and zeros
represent a character.
20. Megabyte MB-Megabyte or roughly 1 million bytes
Gigabyte GB-Gigabyte or roughly one billion bytes
