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In a computer, clock speed refers to the number of pulses per second generated by an
oscillator that sets the tempo for the processor. Clock speed is usually measured in MHz
(megahertz, or millions of pulses per second) or GHz (gigahertz, or billions of pulses per
second).
The CPU requires a fixed number of clock ticks (or clock cycles) to execute each instruction.
The faster the clock, the more instructions the CPU can execute per second. Clock speeds are
expressed in megahertz (MHz) or gigahertz ((GHz).
cache
A CPU cache is a cache used by the central processing unit (CPU) of a computer to reduce the
average time to access data from the main memory. The cache is a smaller,
faster memory which stores copies of the data from frequently used mainmemory locations.
Hard drive
A hard disk drive (sometimes abbreviated as Hard drive, HD,
or HDD) is a device used to permanently store and also retrieve
information. There are many variations, but their sizes are generally
3.5" and 2.5" for desktop and laptop computers respectively. A hard
drive consists of one or more platters to which data is written using a
magnetic head, all inside of an air-sealed casing. Internal hard disks
reside in a drive bay, connect to the motherboard using an ATA, SCSI,
or SATA cable, and are powered by a connection to the PSU (power
supply unit). The images below show the components of a hard drive
inside of both desktop and laptop computers.
Tip: The hard disk was first introduced on September 13, 1956.
As can be seen in the above picture, the desktop hard drive consists of the
following components: the head actuator, read/write actuator
arm, read/write head, spindle, andplatter. On the back of a hard drive is a
circuit board called the disk controller.
Tip: New users often confuse memory (RAM) with disk drive space. See
ourmemory definition for a comparison between memory and storage.
A laser beam reads the CD and is reflected back to a sensor, which converts it into electronic data
a change from pit to land or land to pit indicates a one, while no change indicates a series of zeros.