Computer Terms RAM and Hard Drive Demystified
When it comes to a computer, there is so much basic computer terminology like RAM, megahertz, gigabytes, etc. that people can find confusingthat leave people confused and asking questions like “What is RAM?”, “What’s hard drive?”.
Having a better understanding of some of terms like these can can make the computer less intimidating, and ultimately get more out of them.
A lot of people I talk to seem to be apologetic about their lack of knowledge. It’s too bad people feel that way; they really shouldn’t.
What I tell them is that while they may not know as much as I do about computers, it’s not their fault at all, and they probably know about stuff I don’t know anything about at all. All you need is someone who takes the time to explain things to you in a way that makes sense.
One term many people confuse is memory (also known as RAM), and hard drive storage space.
RAM stands for Random Access Memory (relax — you don’t have to memorize that). It is a temporary working space the computer uses to get work done, which gets emptied when the computer is turned off.
Think of it like a work bench or table. You have a project you’re working on and you do your project on the bench and when you’re done, you clear everything away.
The hard drive is the main place your computer uses to store information. It looks like a rectangular metal box about 3.5″ wide (or 2.5″ on a laptop), which contains a non-removable disk. It is the disk inside the drive which stores everything.
Think of it as a set of shelves where you store the tools or materials for your project — when you want to work on something you choose the things you need from the set of shelves, put them on the bench and work on the project.
This is like when you run a program; the computer loads the program from the hard drive into memory.
So the larger the space, the more you can store — so to put it another way the more programs you can have installed, the more songs or pictures or videos you can save on your computer.
Many people accidentally call their computer (the big box-like thing hooked up to the screen) a hard drive, but this is based on a misunderstanding. Both RAM and the hard drive are parts located inside of the computer, and most people never actually see these parts.
Most people who own a computer that’s only a few years old have far bigger hard drives than they’ll ever use. Few people ever fill them up, unless they are keeping a lot of larger files such as music or pictures, or especially video files. Saving entire films on your computer can really eat up space very quickly.
If someone tells you need more memory, or or you get an error message about not having enough memory, this usually means you don’t have enough RAM. This can slow your computer down drastically.
Think of the bench idea again: if your table is very small, you can’t fit everything you need on it to get your work done, so you’re constantly wasting time moving stuff off and back onto the bench to get your work done, if you can work at all.
Both RAM and hard drive space are measured with the same terms: kilobytes (KB), megabytes (MB), and gigabytes (GB). This may be one reason people confuse the two terms.
So why is it that you buy a computer one year that has a lot of RAM, and two or three years go by, why do people tell you it doesn’t have enough memory? This is because each year the average size of software, and the amount of memory it requires, gets bigger.
It’s as if the tools you use on your workbench keep growing every year so you eventually have to get a larger bench.
If your computer seems to be running more slowly recently, or you’ve been having odd errors, it could be that you need to add more memory, which doesn’t cost much to do and can add life to your computer. It’s not a cure-all for a slow computer, but it can make a difference.
Remember, basic computer jargon doesn’t have to be hard to understand, just as long as you get an explanation that makes sense!
Digital Book Reader Benefits
So what’s so hot about digital book readers? Digital book readers are now moving fromjust being a gadget that gadget freakswant and into the mainstream. So what would make youlook for a digital book reader? What benefits does an ebook reader get you?
The printed word has been ourchoosen medium for reading for hundreds of years,hugelibraries exist with a book offering a value and feel (literally) all of it’s own. So for digital book readers to attempt to overcome this history they are going to have to offer some excellent benefits.
Proposed Benefits of Digital Book Readers
So what benefits can digital book readers bring to readers that that are unavailable to them with aphysical book?
- Most obviously less bulk!Whilst a digital book reader takes up roughlya similar size as a real book it has the capacity to storethousands of books inside. So when you are on vacation there is no need to pack half a suitcase worth of books, just a book sized digital reader
- Instantaneous downloads. Books are hard copy, they have to be collected from bookshops or posted which means waiting or go get it. Electronic Books (eBooks) of digital book readers are instantly available for download,the result being you can start to readstraight away.
- Storage.Space. If you are an book readerkeen book reader it can be a challenge to store all your books. Often people end up having to give their books away. Wouldn’t it be nicer to instead be able to store them on a small little gadget such as a memory card? That is what an eBook can offer you. No more need for books packed around the house, or giving books away to freinds you may want to read again, just an easy to access and store system that takes up next to no space.
- Price. While a eBook reader can be somewhatpricey the greatlylowerprice of ebooks v physical books mean that if you are buying books on a frequent, or even semi frequent, basis then you will save money.
- Wear and tear. Books traditionally suffer from wear and tear. Folding of the pages, yellowing, water damage, ripsetc are something that anyone who owns a book is aware of. With an eBook though they will never suffer these problems as they are stored in digital format.Whilst it is possible for theeBook reader to suffer damage (though they are strongitems) your ebook library will stay unharmed, and can be transferred to a new book reader if needs be.
- Varied Use. You can~You can also} read other documents on such readers, such as work reports or newspapers. It can greatly increase the functionality of the digital book reader over that of a traditional book.
These are some of the reasons that mostfolkappreciatewith a digital book reader. Otherreasons exist and their importance will be different to you and a friend. It should be noted that at this point the manufacturers and publishers are not pitching eBooks as something to take over completely from traditional books, just an easier way to enjoy the (digitally) printed word.
5 Easy Ways to Avoid Computer Problems
Due to the large number of components working together within a computer system, it is almost impossible to avoid computer errors altogether.
But armed with a little knowledge you can easily avoid many of the common errors and get your computer performance improved in the process.
1. Update your system frequently
Make sure you install the latest Windows updates; these contain valuable security updates and improve the stability of your system.
It is also a good idea to keep your installed software updated with the latest version. Software developers are always looking for internal bugs in their software, and release updates to fix these bugs. These bugs however can affect other files; if a program stops responding and crashes while it has a shared DLL file in memory, the file could then be damaged and cause DLL loading errors.
2. Get rid of old unused junk
Do you think those old programs you never use don’t take up resources? Fact is they are the largest waste of resources on your computer.
First of all, they are wasting hard drive space and at some point in time you are likely to run out of space. Additionally, many programs will automatically update themselves in the background and run other processes, wasting system resources on completely useless tasks.
To get rid of unused programs:
- Click Start, then run… (Windows XP)
- Click Win R (Windows Vista)
In the dialogue box type appwiz.cpl, this takes you to a list of installed programs, go through it uninstall any programs you are not using.
Duplicate files and alot of junk files lying around your computer will also reduce computer speed and strain the hard drive, you see, everytime you open a folder, like my documents, your hard drive will scan its contents so Windows knows whats inside, what size of its content etc. But if the folders are filled with duplicate files and other old junk, this will take a very long time and your computer will become slower as a result, so you should take some steps to get rid of those old files.
Another great way to free up some hard drive space is to use the Windows Disk Cleanup tool:
· Click Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Disk Cleanup
This allows you to get rid of all those temporary files no longer in use, they can be old program files, cookies and internet files and the trashbin, you probably won’t see any drastic performance increase, but you will free up some space and it helps keep your hard drive healthy in the long run.
3. Take proper care of the hard drive
No single component on a computer can be classified as the most important as there are so many parts vital to any computer system, but the hard drive however comes pretty close. This small box stores everything and you need to keep it in shape to prevent it from losing or damaging data.
And deleting programs and moving files around will cause your hard drive to become fragmented as the physical locations become somewhat messy, so you should periodically use Disk Defragmentation to reorganize the locations.
Click on My Computer, and then right click the hard drive you want to defragment and select Properties in the drop down menu. In the pop-up window select Tools and then Defragment to begin the defragmentation process.
4. Take proper care of hardware devices
Your computer is full of hardware, and each of those hardware devices need a driver to function properly with Windows and the installed applications, to put it simple; the drivers tell the software how the hardware works, and if a driver is not found, the hardware will not work.
Therefore it is important to always have the latest drivers installed on your system, but driver rarely auto updates so you need to do it yourself.
To find the drivers you need you will need to visit the manufacturers website and download the correct drivers. To save time and ensure you do get the right drivers you can also get a driver update utility, this type of program will automatically download and install all the latest drivers for your hardware, saving you the tedious task of doing it yourself.
5. Keep malware of your computer
Reports say that close to 90% of home computer are infected with some type of malware, and these unwelcome programs can quickly render your computer completely useless or even worse; affect your personal life. So it is very imoprtant to take the neccessary steps to ensure you are protected from the intrusions.
If you own a computer you will probably have some form of antivirus installed, if you don’t; get one as soon as possible and scan your computer for malware at least once a week. It is also important your antivirus is up to date with the latest virus definitions, this is information about the latest malware dicovered and if your antivirus don’t know them it will not detect them, so keep it updated.
Another crucial software you will need to stay protected is a firewall, a firewall will block all attempts at accessing your computer, successfully keeping hackers and bots away from your computer, passwords and personal files
But software alone is not guaranteed to keep malware off your computer; malware can be deceptive and can hide in seemingly legit files, like hiding viruses in images and email attachments.
Just by applying the 5 steps above you will be miles ahead of most Windows users in terms of both safety and computer maintenance, and your computer will not only perform better as a result, but it will live significantly longer.
So take what you have learned, apply it and watch the positive change happen.
