Identifying a Computer's Parts

Identifying a Computer's Parts

Computer is no longer something new and

magical to many people nowadays, because many families now have at

least one computer in their homes. It is without doubt that there are

thousands and millions of computer users in the country, but is it

ever possible for all of them to explain how a computer works? No.

Alright, can they even classify the components of a computer

appropriately? Not quite. They may know how to describe the physical

appearance of a computer and they will probably include two or three

other terms as well, such as monitor, keyboard or a mouse.

Nonetheless, classification of a computer should not be done this way.

In fact, a computer can be broken down into three distinct categories,

namely output, input and CPU. The term 'output' consists of all

components that display words and graphics so that a person can see

them. Many people can easily understand why the monitor is a form of

output device since it is the screen that tells them what the computer

is actually doing. Simply put, without a monitor, the computer itself

is basically useless. Another form of output, which is rarely noticed

by many computer users however, is the printer. Many people have

probably used a printer before, but it is just that they never realize

it is also a form of output. As opposed to 'output', 'input' consists

of components that take in information from the users themselves so

that the computer will know the tasks it is supposed to perform and

accomplish. The keyboard is classified as a form of input because this

is where the users enter commands and text. There are many other forms

of input as well. Nonetheless, many people just don't realize them, or

are too lazy to classify them. For instance, the mouse belongs to

input, since it provides a floating pointer on the screen so that the

users can access commands faster and easier. The scanner is another

form of input, because it acts like a photocopier, except it scans the

image and makes it onto the computer screen instead of onto a piece of

paper. The CPU, Central Processing Unit is probably the most important

category of the three. As the name implies, it is the soul of a

computer, very much alike the human brain. For unknown reasons though,

people often call the CPU a computer. This is absolutely incorrect.

The word computer is merely a general term which must always include

all the three categories in order to operate. Perhaps the constituents

of a CPU itself should be mentioned.