The Parts of a Computer

Computers are made up of hardware and software.

Hardware consists of the physical objects (devices) that make up a computer. These commonly include a monitor or VDU (Visual Display Unit); the keyboard; the mouse; and the computer itself (the box), that contains the CPU (Central Processing Unit) and one or more of a floppy disk drive, a hard disk, and a CD-ROM drive.

Some hardware devices are called peripherals. A Peripheral can be defined as any device that is part of a computer but not part of its CPU (the CPU is discussed below). They include devices for entering data into the computer, devices for storing data and information, and devices to display and/or print data taken from the computer.

Peripheral devices for entering data into the computer are called input devices.

Peripheral devices for storing data and information are called secondary or external memory.

Peripheral devices to display data taken from the computer are called output devices.

Software consists of all the programs you run on your computer.