What is an input device?
A piece of equipment that allows users to enter data into a computer. These device are used to create a digital product.
Can you give 3 examples of input devices?
Scanner
Keyboard
Mouse
Graphics Tablet
Trackball
Touchpad
Webcam
Microphone
QR code reader
Biometric scanner
What is an output device?
A piece of equipment that allows users to receive data from a computer. These device are used to view a product in digital or hard copy form.
Can you give 3 examples of output devices
Monitor
Projector
Speakers
headphones
Printer
What is RAM and what is it used for?
Volatile memory used to store programs and data currently in use.
What is Virtual Memory?
When the RAM becomes full, the overflow of data normally stored in the RAM will be stored in Virtual Memory which is located on the hard drive.
What is ROM and what is it used for?
Non - volatile memory stores the instructions to boot up the computer (BIOS and BOOTSTRAP)
What does volatile mean?
When the power is lost the data is wiped from the memory.
What does non-volatile mean?
When the power is lost the data is saved in memory.
Why do computers need secondary storage?
Secondary storage is a non-volatile form of storage which means data can be stored and accessed later on.
What criteria should be looked at when purchasing secondary storage?
Cost per GB
Capacity
Reliability
Durability
Portability
Speed
What is SSD?
Solid state storage e.g. Solid State Drive, USB flash Drive, SD Card.
What are the pro’s and con’s of SSD?
Pro - Fast access, Silent, Small, no moving parts.
Con - High cost, limited read/write cycles.
What is Magnetic Storage?
The hard drive contains a number of moving mechanical parts such as a spinning platter with a thin magnetic coating. A “head” moves over the platter, writing 0’s and 1’s on the platter
What are the pro’s and con’s of magnetic storage?
Pro - low cost per GB, unlimited read/write cycles.
Con - Slow to read and write data. Moving parts so easy to break if dropped.
What is optical storage?
Optical storage works when lasers write data to the disc and read from it using a series of pits and lands. Examples of magnetic storage include: CD, DVD and Blu-ray
What are the pro’s and con’s of optical storage?
Pro - Portable, reliable (if stored in a case)
Con - easy to scratch, low capacity.
What is cloud storage?
Cloud storage is a form of online storage that enables data to be stored and backed up over a network.
What are the pro’s and con’s of cloud storage?
Pro - data is backed up frequently, you can expand the storage for a fee, you can access from anywhere with an internet connection.
Con - You do not control the security of your data, no internet no connection to data, difficult to migrate data to a new provider.
