Computer_hardware - Wikiparency

# Computer hardware ## Microsim (three.js) <div class="microsim-player">  <p class="wt-pending"><strong>Microsim staged, not yet on the CDN.</strong> <code>Computer_hardware.html</code> is built and deploy-ready in <code>Microsims for Dissemination/</code>, but the Netlify project still serves the geometry+spintronics set only. The player is disabled until the deploy lands; the explanatory text below is unchanged.</p>   </div> *Peer inside the chassis that houses every Central processing unit in the ALGORITHM hub: this microsim maps the physical bodies — processor, Computer memory, buses, and power — onto the abstract [[Von_Neumann_architecture]] that computer science usually draws as mere boxes and arrows.* > Computer hardware is the collection of physical parts that make up a computer — the processor, memory chips, storage, motherboard, power supply, and the buses that wire them together. Software is a set of instructions; hardware is the matter that stores and executes them. This microsim lifts the lid on a desktop machine so you can orbit the board and watch its **Power On Sequence** send electricity spreading from the power supply through each subsystem in the real order a machine boots, turning a static parts list into a living datapath. ## About this microsim The sim renders a stylized computer interior — motherboard, CPU socket, memory slots, storage, expansion cards, and power supply — as a scene you explore by dragging with the mouse to move the camera around the board. Its two real controls are buttons, not sliders. **Power On Sequence** plays a scripted animation: the power supply energizes, the CPU's reset line releases, firmware runs its checks, memory and buses light up, and control finally hands off to storage — showing *which* part activates *when* rather than presenting everything at once. **Reset View** returns the camera to its default framing after you have orbited away, so you can re-run the sequence from a known vantage point. Because the interaction is orbit-and-trigger, you learn by watching order and connection, not by tuning parameters. ## Related microsims - Central processing unit — the processor the boot sequence wakes first - Computer memory — volatile RAM versus non-volatile storage inside the case - [[Computer_architecture]] — how these parts combine into a working machine - [[Von_Neumann_architecture]] — the stored-program blueprint the layout follows - [[Graphics_processing_unit]] — the expansion card handling parallel rendering - [[Very-large-scale_integration]] — how the chips on the board are fabricated - Sheffer stroke — related ALGORITHM microsim ## Links (Wikipedia order)  `ACM_Computing_Classification_System` · `ACPI` · `ATX` · [[Air_pollution]] · `Alan_Turing` · [[Algorithm]] · [[Algorithmic_efficiency]] · [[Alternating_current]] · `Ampere` · `Analysis_of_algorithms` · `Apple_Inc.` · `Application-specific_integrated_circuit` · `Application_security` · [[Artificial_intelligence]] · `Assembly_language` · `Asynchronous_circuit` · [[Augmented_reality]] · `Automata_theory` · `Automated_planning_and_scheduling` · `Automatic_Computing_Engine` · `BIOS` · `Blaise_Pascal` · `Blu-ray` · `Boolean_algebra` · `Boolean_circuit` · `Booting` · `Bus_(computing)` · `CMOS` · [[Cadmium]] · `Capacitor` · `Case_modding` · `Central_processing_unit` · `Charles_Babbage` · [[Chromium]] · `Circuit_(computer_science)` · `Combinational_logic` · [[Communication_protocol]] · `Compact_disc` · `Compiler` · `Complex_instruction_set_computer` · `Complex_programmable_logic_device` · `Computability_theory` · `Computational_biology` · `Computational_chemistry` · `Computational_complexity` · `Computational_complexity_theory` · `Computational_engineering` · `Computational_geometry` · `Computational_intelligence` · `Computational_mathematics` · `Computational_physics` · `Computational_problem` · `Computational_social_science` · `Computer` · `Computer_Aid_International` · `Computer_History_Museum` · `Computer_accessibility` · `Computer_animation` · [[Computer_architecture]] · `Computer_case` · `Computer_data_storage` · `Computer_fan` · `Computer_graphics` · `Computer_keyboard` · `Computer_memory` · `Computer_monitor` · `Computer_mouse` · `Computer_network` · `Computer_port_(hardware)` · `Computer_program` · [[Computer_science]] · `Computer_security` · `Computer_speakers` · `Computer_vision` · `Computing` · `Computing_platform` · `Concurrency_(computer_science)` · `Concurrent_computing` · `Control_flow` · [[Control_theory]] · [[Copper]] · `Cross-validation_(statistics)` · `Cryptography` · `Cyber-physical_system` · `Cyberwarfare` · `DDR_SDRAM` · `DVD` · `Data_center` · `Data_mining` · `Data_parallelism` · `Database` · `Decision_support_system` · `Dell` · [[Dependability]] · `Difference_engine` · `Digital_Visual_Interface` · `Digital_art` · `Digital_audio` · `Digital_cinematography` · `Digital_electronics` · [[Digital_library]] · `Digital_marketing` · `Digital_photography` · `Digital_radio` · `Digital_signal` · `Digital_signal_(signal_processing)` · [[Digital_signal_processing]] · `Digital_television` · `Digital_video` · `Direct_current` · `Discrete_mathematics` · `Disk_pack` · `DisplayPort` · `Distributed_artificial_intelligence` · `Distributed_computing` · `Document_management_system` · `Domain-specific_language` · `Dynamic_random-access_memory` · `E-commerce` · `ENIAC` · `Educational_technology` · `Electric_battery` · `Electronic_circuit` · `Electronic_component` · `Electronic_design_automation` · `Electronic_hardware` · `Electronic_literature` · `Electronic_publishing` · `Electronic_visual_display` · `Electronic_voting` · `Electronic_waste` · `Embedded_system` · `Emitter-coupled_logic` · `Enterprise_information_system` · `Enterprise_software` · `Entscheidungsproblem` · `Ethernet` · `European_Union` · `Expansion_card` · `Extended_reality` · [[Fault_tolerance]] · `Fax_modem` · `Field-programmable_gate_array` · `Field-programmable_object_array` · [[Finite-state_machine]] · `Flash_memory` · [[Flip-flop_(electronics)]] · `Floating-point_arithmetic` · `Floppy_disk` · `Form_factor_(design)` · `Formal_equivalence_checking` · `Formal_language` · `Formal_methods` · `GUID_Partition_Table` · `Game_controller` · `Game_port` · `Gate_equivalent` · `Generic_Array_Logic` · `Geographic_information_system` · [[George_Boole]] · `George_Stibitz` · `Glossary_of_computer_hardware_terms` · [[Gold]] · `Government` · `Graphics_card` · [[Graphics_processing_unit]] · `Graphics_tablet` · `Green_computing` · `HDMI` · `Hard_disk_drive` · `Hardness` · `Hardware_acceleration` · `Hardware_description_language` · `Hardware_for_artificial_intelligence` · `Hardware_security` · `Harvard_Mark_I` · `Harvard_University` · `Hazard` · `Hazardous_waste` · `Health_informatics` · `High-level_synthesis` · `History_of_computing` · `History_of_computing_hardware` · `History_of_computing_hardware_(1960s–present)` · `Human-centered_computing` · `Human–computer_interaction` · `Hybrid_integrated_circuit` · `IBM` · `IBM_System_z9` · `IEEE_1394` · [[Image_compression]] · `Image_scanner` · `Inductor` · [[Industrial_process_control]] · `Information_retrieval` · `Information_security` · [[Information_system]] · [[Information_theory]] · `Input_device` · `Instruction-level_parallelism` · `Instruction_cycle` · `Instruction_pipelining` · `Instruction_set_architecture` · `Integrated_circuit` · `Integrated_circuit_design` · `Integrated_development_environment` · `Intel_QuickPath_Interconnect` · `Interaction_design` · `Interconnect_(integrated_circuits)` · `Interpreter_(computing)` · `Intrusion_detection_system` · [[Iron]] · [[John_von_Neumann]] · `Knowledge_representation_and_reasoning` · `Laboratory_automation` · `Laptop` · [[Lead]] · `Leibniz_wheel` · `Library_(computing)` · `Light_pen` · `Liquid_cooling` · `List_of_computer_hardware_manufacturers` · `List_of_computer_size_categories` · `List_of_pioneers_in_computer_science` · [[Logic_gate]] · `Logic_in_computer_science` · `Logic_synthesis` · `MOSFET` · [[Machine_learning]] · `Macrocell_array` · `Mainframe_computer` · `Mathematical_analysis` · [[Mathematical_optimization]] · [[Mathematical_software]] · `Memory_card` · `Memory_cell_(computing)` · `Memory_hierarchy` · `Memory_latency` · [[Mercury_(element)]] · `Metastability_(electronics)` · `Microarchitecture` · `Microphone` · `Microprocessor` · `Middleware` · `Minicomputer` · `Mixed-signal_integrated_circuit` · `Mobile_computing` · `Mobile_phone` · `Model_of_computation` · `Modeling_language` · `Modem` · `Motherboard` · `Multi-core_processor` · `Multi-task_learning` · `Multimedia_database` · [[Multiprocessing]] · [[Multithreading_(computer_architecture)]] · `NVM_Express` · `Natural_environment` · `Natural_language_processing` · `Network_architecture` · `Network_interface_controller` · `Network_performance` · `Network_scheduler` · `Network_security` · `Network_service` · `Networking_hardware` · `Nonvolatile_BIOS_memory` · `Northbridge_(computing)` · `Numerical_analysis` · `Open-source_hardware` · `Open_source` · `Operating_system` · [[Operations_research]] · `Optical_disc` · `Optical_disc_drive` · `Optical_mouse` · `Optical_trackpad` · `Outline_of_computer_science` · `Output_device` · `Overclocking` · `PCI_Express` · `PDP-11` · `PS/2_port` · [[Palladium]] · `Parallel_computing` · `Parallel_port` · `Pascaline` · `Peripheral` · `Peripheral_Component_Interconnect` · `Personal_computer` · `Philosophy_of_artificial_intelligence` · `Phone_connector_(audio)` · `Photograph_manipulation` · `Photolithography` · `Pipeline_(computing)` · `Place_and_route` · `Placement_(electronic_design_automation)` · [[Platinum]] · `Plotter` · `Pointing_device` · `Pointing_stick` · `Pollution` · `Polychlorinated_biphenyl` · `Polychlorinated_dibenzodioxins` · `Polynomial` · `Power_MOSFET` · `Power_supply_unit_(computer)` · `Prefetching` · `Printed_circuit_board` · `Printed_electronics` · `Printer_(computing)` · [[Probability]] · `Processor_(computing)` · `Processor_register` · `Programmable_Array_Logic` · `Programmable_logic_array` · `Programmable_logic_device` · `Programming_language` · `Programming_language_theory` · `Programming_paradigm` · `Programming_team` · `Programming_tool` · [[Proposition]] · [[Quality_assurance]] · [[Quantum_computing]] · `Random-access_memory` · `Randomized_algorithm` · `Read-only_memory` · [[Real-time_computing]] · `Recycling` · `Reduced_instruction_set_computer` · `Refreshable_braille_display` · `Register-transfer_level` · [[Reinforcement_learning]] · `Relay` · `Removable_media` · `Rendering_(computer_graphics)` · `Requirements_analysis` · `Resistor` · `Routing_(electronic_design_automation)` · `Runt_pulse` · `SATA` · `Security_hacker` · `Security_service_(telecommunication)` · [[Semiconductor_device_fabrication]] · [[Sequential_logic]] · `Serial_port` · [[Silicon]] · [[Silver]] · `Social_computing` · `Social_software` · `Softcam` · `Software` · `Software_as_a_service` · `Software_configuration_management` · `Software_construction` · `Software_deployment` · `Software_design` · `Software_development` · `Software_development_process` · [[Software_engineering]] · `Software_framework` · `Software_maintenance` · [[Software_quality]] · `Software_repository` · `Solid-state_drive` · `Solid_modeling` · `Sound_card` · `Sound_chip` · `Southbridge_(computing)` · `Static_random-access_memory` · `Statistics` · `Stepped_reckoner` · `Stochastic_computing` · `Stored-program_computer` · `Supercomputer` · `Supervised_learning` · `Switched-mode_power_supply` · `Switching_circuit_theory` · `Synchronous_circuit` · `System_on_a_chip` · `Tablet_computer` · [[Tantalum]] · `Task_parallelism` · `Telephony` · `Tensor_Processing_Unit` · `Theoretical_computer_science` · `Theory_of_computation` · `Three-dimensional_integrated_circuit` · `Thunderbolt_(interface)` · [[Tin]] · `Tom's_Hardware` · `Touchpad` · `Touchscreen` · `Trackball` · `Transaction-level_modeling` · [[Transistor]] · `Turing_machine` · `USB` · `USB_flash_drive` · `Ubiquitous_computing` · `Universal_Turing_machine` · `University_of_Pennsylvania` · `Unsupervised_learning` · `VGA_connector` · `Vacuum_tube` · `Vector_processor` · [[Very-large-scale_integration]] · `Video_game` · `Virtual_machine` · `Virtual_memory` · [[Virtual_reality]] · `Visualization_(graphics)` · [[Voltage]] · `Voltage_regulator_module` · [[Von_Neumann_architecture]] · `Watt` · `Webcam` · `Wireless_sensor_network` · `Word_processor` · `World_Wide_Web` ## Overview Computer hardware comprises the tangible components of a computer system, in contrast to the software and data they process. The modern layout descends from mid-1940s stored-program designs: a central processor connected to a single main memory holding both instructions and data, linked to input/output devices. Miniaturization through the integrated circuit and later very-large-scale integration collapsed room-sized machines onto a handful of chips, yet the functional blocks — compute, memory, storage, interconnect, and power — remain the same. Understanding them is the foundation for computer architecture, operating systems, and performance engineering. ## The architecture inside the case A general-purpose computer is organized around the fetch–decode–execute cycle. The CPU repeatedly fetches an instruction from memory, decodes it, and executes it, communicating with memory and peripherals over shared **buses** (address, data, control). The main subsystems: | Subsystem | Physical part | Function | |---|---|---| | Processor | Microprocessor in socket | Control unit + ALU + registers | | Main memory | DRAM modules (DIMMs) | Fast, volatile working store | | Storage | SSD / HDD | Slow, non-volatile persistence | | Motherboard | Printed circuit board | Chipset and buses interconnecting parts | | Power supply | PSU | Converts AC mains to regulated DC | | Expansion | GPU / add-in cards | Parallel graphics and I/O | Throughput scales with clock frequency $f$ and cycles per instruction: instructions per second $\approx f/\text{CPI}$, so a $3\times10^{9}\,\text{Hz}$ core at $\text{CPI}=1$ retires on the order of $3\times10^{9}$ instructions each second. At power-on the order is fixed: the supply asserts *power-good*, the CPU jumps to its reset vector, firmware runs a power-on self-test, initializes memory and devices, then loads a bootloader from storage — exactly the order the **Power On Sequence** animates. ## Controls -> what each maps to | Control | Maps to | Range / values | Meaning | |---|---|---|---| | Power On Sequence | Boot/power animation | Button (trigger, plays once) | Energizes subsystems in real boot order | | Reset View | Camera framing | Button (trigger) | Restores the default orbit position | | Mouse drag | Camera orbit | Continuous (azimuth / elevation) | Rotates the view around the board | ## Learning objective After playing, a learner can name the major hardware subsystems inside a computer and explain the order in which they activate when the machine is powered on. ## Limits and connections The sim is a schematic, not a wiring diagram: it shows *what* and *when*, not exact voltages, pinouts, or thermal behavior. It connects directly to how these blocks are logically organized and physically fabricated. ## Poster & source <div class="microsim-fallback">  <p><em>Live microsim · <a href="https://wikitube-3d-microsims.netlify.app/Computer_hardware.html">open full</a> · source: Microsims for Dissemination/ALGORITHM_microsims/Computer_hardware.html</em></p> </div>  *Built to the [[WT!Three_js_Microsim_Master_Class|three.js Master Class]].*  ## Wikipedia : Wikitube **Strict pair:** [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_hardware) : [Wikitube](https://en.wikitube.io/wiki/Computer_hardware) ## Previous hub tags Tree parents: [[Graph_theory]] · [[Information_theory]]. Legacy hubs: `ALGORITHM`. --- *Sources: 1 legacy note. Minted wave 1, 2026-07-30 (v1.6 order).*