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Terms 2. CPU. CPU (Central Processing Unit ) The CPU is the brain of the computer. Sometimes referred to simply as the processor or central processor, the CPU is where most calculations take place. In terms of computing power, the CPU is the most important element of a computer system.
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CPU • CPU (Central Processing Unit) • The CPU is the brain of the computer. Sometimes referred to simply as the processor or central processor, the CPU is where most calculations take place. In terms of computing power, the CPU is the most important element of a computer system
Hertz, Megahertz, Gigahertz • Hertz - Commonly abbreviated as Hz, hertz equals one cycle per second, measuring the waves or frequencies of electric changes each second. Hertz is commonly used to measure a computer monitor’s refresh rate and computer processors. • Megahertz (MHz) - One MHz represents one million cycles per second. • Gigahertz (GHz) - One thousand million hertz (1,000,000,000 Hz).
Processor Q/A • Q: Who is the largest manufacturer of CPUs for Windows PCs? What is their latest desktop chip line? • A: Intel (83% market share), with the Pentium 4
Slot 1, Slot A, Socket 7, Socket 478 • CPU socket • is the connector that interfaces between a computer's motherboard and the processor itself. Most CPU sockets and processors in use today are built around the pin grid array (PGA) architecture, in which the pins on the underside of the processor are inserted into the socket, usually with zero insertion force (ZIF) to aid installation. In contrast to this, a couple current and upcoming sockets use a land grid array (LGA) in which the pins are on the socket side instead and come in contact with pads on the processor. • Slot • based processors are cartridge shaped and fix into a slot that looks similar to expansion slots. • General • In general sockets and slots are used so that the Processor and the motherboard of a computer are able to communicate with each other. And it depends on the processor on what type of socket or slot that it might use.
Slot 1, Slot A, Socket 7, Socket 478 • Slot 1, Slot A, and Socket 7 are all various types of CPU (Central Processing Unit) Interfaces. Interfaces are the connection points between the motherboard and any add on or changeable components including processor chips, peripherals, extension cards, etc. There are two main types of interfaces—slots and sockets. • Slot style interfaces accept Single Edge Contact (SEC) cartridges. An SEC is a way to package microprocessors so that there is a slim single edge which connects to the interface, allowing for perpendicular mounting to the motherboard. • Socket style interfaces work on a principle or plug and socket similar to that of a common wall socket. The component to be plugged into the interface will have a Pin Grid Array (PGA)-a square chip package with a pin pattern often of high density. • In the evolution of motherboards and CPU interfaces, the socket style interface was the preference among manufactures until the mid to late 90’s when slots became the preferred interface. Although both are present in the market, the current shift is back toward socket style CPU interfaces.
Socket 7 • is a physical and electrical specification for the x86 processor socket matching the pins on Pentium microprocessors manufactured by Intel, and compatibles made by Cyrix, AMD and others. Any CPU chip conforming to this specification can be plugged into any conforming motherboard. • Socket 7 CPU interfaces were originally developed by Intel in 1995. • Socket 7 became a popular interface among manufacturers with the push to standardize interfaces in the mid 90’s.
Slot 1 • refers to the physical and electrical specification for the connector used by some of Intel's microprocessors, including the Celeron, Pentium II and the Pentium III. • Around 1998, Intel introduced their Pentium II CPU. • Slot 1 has been replaced with newer interface form factors and is not in common use anymore.
Slot A • refers to the physical and electrical specification for the edge-connector used by early versions of AMD's Athlon processor. Slot A provides a lot higher bus rate than socket 7 does. • In 1999, Intel competitor AMD designed a similar interface to Slot 1 known as Slot A. • Like Slot 1, Slot A has had a short life as manufacturers shift back to socket interfaces.
Socket 478 • A type of CPU socket used for intel’s Pentium 4 and Celeron series. Though they are starting to disappear due to the launch of LGA 775. Like the name implies, it has 478 pins. • Socket 7, on the other hand, has only 321 pins
Slot 1, Slot A, Socket 7 Q/A • Q: Match the pictures to the socket/slot types: A B C • 1 - Socket7, 2 - Slot A, 3 – Slot 1 • A: A – 2, B – 1, C – 3
Dual Processor • A computer that contains two CPUs. Dual processor systems (DP systems) have two independent CPU chips and differ from a dual core system (DC system), which has two processors built into the same CPU chip. • Not all operating systems or programs (for example Word) are able to support dual processors.
Quad Processor • A quad processor system is any system with 4 CPUs working in parallel. Typically, all 4 CPUs are of the same type. • Quad processor systems are uncommon for home computer users.
Dual/Quad Processor Q/A • Q: In a dual processor system, with optimized software, what kind of system performance increase are you likely to see? • +75% • +100% • +125% • A: 1) +75%. You will never achieve perfect performance (+100%) because there’s some overhead involved in the communication between processors.
GPU • It is a dedicated graphics depiction device for a PC or game station. Modern GPUs are efficient at manipulating and displaying computer graphics, and their parallel structure makes them more successful than normal CPUs for a range of complex algorithms.
VRAM • Short for video RAM, and pronounced vee-ram. • This is a term generally used in computers to describe RAM dedicated to the purpose of displaying bitmap graphics in raster graphics (such as a graphics card). Video RAM is usually physically separate from the main RAM residing in a computer system. This is not always the case as in some systems the VRAM is shared with the system. • Unlike conventional RAM, VRAM can be accessed by two different devices simultaneously. This enables the RAMDAC to access the VRAM for screen updates at the same time that the video processor provides new data. VRAM yields better graphics performance but is more expensive than normal RAM.
GPU, VRAM Q/A • Q: Name one of the two major manufacturers of GPUs and graphics cards in general. • A: NVidia or ATI
Pictures • ATI Radeon x850 • GeForce 7800 gtx
Pipelining • Pipelining helps your processor work faster. Each time you perform an action on your computer, your processor must complete a sequence of instructions. • Instead of completing one whole task and then starting the next, your computer lets the tasks overlap. This overlap, which is the basis of pipelining, shortens the time dramatically.
Pipelining • A useful method of demonstrating this is the laundry analogy. Let's say that there are four loads of dirty laundry that need to be washed, dried, and folded. We could put the the first load in the washer for 30 minutes, dry it for 40 minutes, and then take 20 minutes to fold the clothes. Then pick up the second load and wash, dry, and fold, and repeat for the third and fourth loads. Supposing we started at 6 PM and worked as efficiently as possible, we would still be doing laundry until midnight.
Pipelining • However, a smarter approach to the problem would be to put the second load of dirty laundry into the washer after the first was already clean and whirling happily in the dryer. Then, while the first load was being folded, the second load would dry, and a third load could be added to the pipeline of laundry. Using this method, the laundry would be finished by 9:30.
Pipelining • Your processor does work in much the same way. Each action has five tasks: fetch instructions from the memory, read registers and decode the instructions, excute the instruction or calculate an address, access an operand in data memory, and write the result into a register. Each task takes a different amount of time, just like doing laundry - so the total length of time is dependent on the longest step. With pipelining, your processor can complete an action in much less time. • A technique used in advanced microprocessors where the microprocessor begins executing a second instruction before the first has been completed. That is, several instructions are in the pipeline simultaneously, each at a different processing stage. • The pipeline is divided into segments and each segment can execute its operation concurrently with the other segments. When a segment completes an operation, it passes the result to the next segment in the pipeline and fetches the next operation from the preceding segment. The final results of each instruction emerge at the end of the pipeline in rapid succession. • Although formerly a feature only of high-performance and RISC -based microprocessors, pipelining is now common in microprocessors used in personal computers. Intel's Pentium chip, for example, uses pipelining to execute as many as six instructions simultaneously. • Pipelining is also called pipeline processing.
Pipelining • A technique used in advanced microprocessors where the microprocessor begins executing a second instruction before the first has been completed. That is, several instructions are in the pipeline simultaneously, each at a different processing stage. • The pipeline is divided into segments and each segment can execute its operation concurrently with the other segments. When a segment completes an operation, it passes the result to the next segment in the pipeline and fetches the next operation from the preceding segment. The final results of each instruction emerge at the end of the pipeline in rapid succession. • Although formerly a feature only of high-performance and RISC -based microprocessors, pipelining is now common in microprocessors used in personal computers. Intel's Pentium chip, for example, uses pipelining to execute as many as six instructions simultaneously. • Pipelining is also called pipeline processing.
Pipelining Q/A • Q: For which of the following tasks is pipelining likely to work best? Why? • Surfing the web • Listening to music • Word processing • Playing a video game • A: 2) Listening to music – pipelining works well on large amounts of linear data, where few decisions have to be made and there is a single clear path to follow.
