Expansion Card
An expansion card is an electronic circuit board that adds more functionality to a desktop computer. Expansion card also known as adapter card. It is a circuit board you install into a computer to increase the capabilities of that computer. Adapter cards come in many different kinds, but the important thing to note is that no matter what function a card has, the card being installed must match the bus type of the motherboard you are installing it into(for example, you can install a PCI network card only into a PCI expansion slot).
A network interface card (NIC) is an expansion card that connects a computer to a network so that it can communicate with other computers on that network. It translates the data from the parallel data stream used inside the computer into the serial data stream of packets used on the network. It has a connector for the type of expansion bus on the motherboard as well as a connector for the type of network. In addition to the NIC, you need to install software or drivers on the computer in order for the computer to use the network.
Cache memory is a high-speed and relatively small memory which Is used to hold the most frequently accessed contents of the main memory. The idea is that if most of the accesses made by a program are to a small subset of the main memory and if that subset can be brought into the cache, most of the program accesses will be done at cache speed. Caches are typically smaller than the main memory.
Plug and play refers to the general ability of users of a computer system to “plug” new devices into the computer and immediately “play” with them (meaning that they are automatically configured and activated without having to restart the computer). Microsoft version of plug and play, which was introduced with Window95, was developed in the same spirit. However, it was also designed to initiate the installation of software drivers for devices that were not supported by the system by default.
Network application use sockets to communicate over a TCP/IP network. A socket represents one end-point of a connection. A socket must be created for communication to take place. Because a socket is bidirectional, data can be sent as well as received though it.
A computer chip is a small electronic circuit, also known as an integrated circuit, which is one of the basic components of most kinds of electronic devices, especially computers. Computer chips are small and are made of semiconductors that are usually composed of silicon, on which several tiny components including transistors are embedded and used to transmit electronic data signals.
In computers, a slot, or expansion slot, are used to install various devices in the computer to expand its capabilities. Some expansion devices that may be installed in these slots include video, network, sound, and disk interface cards. Expansion slots come in three main types which are ISA, PCI AND AGP. Each type is different in appearance and function. Adapter cards are circuit boards that fit into expansion slots in the motherboard.
A system for splitting and connecting computer bus lines, including a ribbon cable with a flat end connector which is piggy-backed to the contact strip of a circuit board. The circuit board is then plugged into a bus slot with the flat end connector insulating selected terminal contacts of the slot from said contact strip. The ribbon connector is connected to the circuit board, the terminal contacts, the contract strip, or both. A control signal selector connected to the other end of the ribbon cable sends signals to one of several circuit boards so as to allow more than one work station to be supported by a single microprocessor.
A serial interface designed to transfer a stream of binary digit one but after another to some serial device like a modem, for example. The serial port was the old standby for connecting miscellaneous peripheral devices to a computer. It was used for everything from external modems to pointing devices. Some modems that connect the system unit to a telephone line use a serial port because the telephone line expects the data in a specific frequency.
A port on the computer in which communication is achieved by simultaneously sending binary data down different wires. A common parallel port on a PC is the printer port, although the USB (a serial port) is taking over this role on modern computer systems.
The Universal serial bus(USB) is a connection between a host computer and a number of peripheral devices.USB connection are capable of moving data faster than the older serial and parallel connections. Because USB connection are also hot swappable, you can safety plug in and unplug USB cables without shutting down your computer. USB allows high-speed, easy connection of peripherals to a PC. When plugged in, everything configures automatically.
A firewire port is similar to a USB port in that it can connect multiple types of devices that require faster data transmission speeds, such as digital video cameras, digital VCRs, colour printer, scanners, digital cameras and DVD drives, to a single connector. A fireWire port allows you to connect up to 63 devices together. You can use FireWire hub to attach multiple devices to a single FireWire Port. A fireWire hub is a device that plugs in a FireWire port on the system unit and contains multiple FireWire ports in which you plug cables from FireWire devices. FireWire supports Plug and Play.
