You may already know that there are a lot of important parts inside a desktop computer,
but what exactly do they do?
In this video, we're going to take a look inside, to show you the various components
that make a computer work.
Every computer has a large circuit board called a motherboard.
This contains some of the most important parts of your computer such as the CPU, also called
the Central Processing Unit or processor.
The CPU is sometimes called the brain of the computer, because it processes information
and carries out commands.
Since it tends to get hot, it's covered by a piece of metal called a heat sink, which
draws heat away from the processor.
The motherboard also contains your computer's RAM, or Random Access Memory.
This is the short-term memory that your computer uses whenever it's performing calculations.
However, you can't store your files there, because the RAM is cleared when you turn off
the computer.
For long-term storage, your computer uses a hard drive, which keeps all of its data
even when the computer is turned off.
Most hard drives use a magnetic platter to store data, but many newer computers have
solid-state drives, which are faster and more durable, but also more expensive.
If you want to upgrade your computer, you can add expansion cards to the motherboard's
expansion slots.
You can add a video card to get better graphics performance, or you can add a wireless card
to connect to your wireless home network.
Of course, your computer's components need electricity to run.
The power supply unit is designed to take the power from the wall outlet and send it
to all of the different components that need power.
A desktop computer is a pretty complex machine, but now that you've seen what goes on inside,
it should be a little less mysterious.