Technology Terms

According to Dictionary.com, software is "the programs used to direct the operation of a computer, as well as documentation giving instructions on how to use them."  It also defines software as "anything that is not hardware but is used with hardware, especially audiovisual materials, as film, tapes, records, etc."  Hardware, though, is defined by Coolnerds as "the stuff you can actually see and touch, and would likely break if you threw it out a fifth-story window."  Long story short, software is the insides and hardware is the body.

RAM, short for "random access memory," which is a type of memory that is found in printers, computers and other electronic devices. RAM is made up of SRAM (static random access memory) and DRAM (dynamic random access memory).  According to Webopedia, "In terms of speed, SRAM is faster. DRAM needs to be refreshed thousands of times per second while SRAM does not need to be refreshed, which is what makes it faster than DRAM."  ROM, on the other hand, according to Dictionary.com, is a "computer memory in which program instructions, operating procedures, or other data are permanently stored, generally on electronic chips during manufacture, and that ordinarily cannot be changed by the user."

 A hard drive, as stated by Techterms, is "what stores all your data. It houses the hard disk, where all your files and folders are physically located."  This data filer is a little larger than a person's hand and can hold over 100 GB of memory on multiple quickly spinning disks.  These disks maintain the data even after the computer is shut down because the information is recorded magnetically on these disks.  Hard drive is not the only type of memory-container.  This other type of electronic memory is called SSD, or Solid State Drive.  According to elitepcbuilding.com, an SSD is "much faster than your typical hard drive" and "your computer will boot faster and video games and other programs will load quicker" because it does not have spinning disks like a hard drive.

Lastly, the CPU, the Central Processing Unit, of a computer Webopedia.com says "the CPU is where most calculations take place."  Overall, the Central Processing Unit is like the brain of the computer!