Key Terms

Question 1

Basic Input/Output System (BIOS)

Answer 1

Standard firmware interface for PC

first thing run when the PC is powered on

Question 2

Bit (Binary digit)

Answer 2

Basic unit of Information

either 0 or 1

Question 3

Byte

Answer 3

Unit of digital information
consists of 8 bits (values 0 - 255)
encodes a single text character

Question 4

CISC (Complex Instruction Set Computing)

Answer 4

A CPU design where a single instruction can execute many low-level operations
capable of multi-step operations or addressing modes within single instructions

Question 5

DDR (Double Data Rate)

Answer 5

A computer bus that transfers data on both the rising and falling edges of the clock signal

Question 6

DDR RAM

Answer 6

A class of memory integrated circuits that offers higher transfer rates by more strict control of the timing of the electrical data and clock signals

Question 7

DIMM (dual in-line memory module)

Answer 7

A series of dynamic RAM integrated circuits

Question 8

Gb (Gigabit)

Answer 8

A unit of digital information equal to 10^9 (1 billion) bits

Question 9

GB (Gigabyte)

Answer 9

A unit of digital information equal to 10^9 (1 billion) bytes

Question 10

GHz (GigaHertz)

Answer 10

A unit of frequency defined as 10^9 (1 billion) cycles per second

Question 11

Heat sink

Answer 11

A passive heat conductor that cools a device by dissipating heat into the surrounding medium

Question 12

Hertz (Hz)

Answer 12

A unit of frequency defined as one cycle per second

Question 13

IDE (Integrated Drive Electronics)

Answer 13

The original name for ATA / ATAPI / PATA interface standard for the connection of computer storage devices

Question 14

Kb (Kilobit)

Answer 14

A unit of digital information equal to 10^3 (1 thousand) bits

Question 15

KB (Kilobyte)

Answer 15

A unit of digital information equal to 10^3 (1 thousand) bytes

Question 16

Mac (Macintosh)

Answer 16

Apple computers, running OS X

Question 17

Mb (Megabit)

Answer 17

A unit of digital information equal to 10^6 (1 million) bits

Question 18

MB (Megabyte)

Answer 18

A unit of digital information equal to 10^6 (1 million) bytes

Question 19

MHz (MegaHertz)

Answer 19

A unit of frequency equal to 10^6 (1 million) cycles per second

Question 20

OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer)

Answer 20

refers to either:
- a company that makes a part or subsystem used in another company’s end product
all of the various manufacturers involved in the final assembly of a product

Question 21

PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect)

Answer 21

A local computer bus for attaching hardware devices in a computer (replaced ISA and VESA)

Question 22

PCIe (Peripheral Component Interconnect express)

Answer 22

A high-speed serial computer extension (replaced PCI)

Question 23

PCI-X (Peripheral Component Interconnect Extended)

Answer 23

Enhances the 32-bit PCI Local bus for higher bandwidth

Question 24

POST (Power-On Self-Test)

Answer 24

A process performed by firmware or software routines immediately after a computer or other digital device is powered on

Question 25

RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computing)

Answer 25

A CPU design strategy that states that a simplified instruction set can provide higher performance when combined with a microprocessor architecture capable of executing those instructions using fewer cycles per second

Question 26

SATA (Serial Advanced Technology Attachment)

Answer 26

A computer bus that connects host bus adapters to mass storage devices

Question 27

TB (Terabyte)

Answer 27

A unit of digital information equal to 10^12 (1 trillion) bytes

Question 28

Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI)

Answer 28

A specification that defines a software interface between an OS and platform firmware
meant to replace the BIOS