Google IT Support Professional Certification -
Course 1: Technical Support Fundamentals,
Complete Solution
Binary System
The communication that a computer uses, also known as a base-2 numeral system
Byte
A group of 8 bits is referred to as a byte. Each byte can store one character, and we can
have 256 possible values thanks to the base-2 system (2^8)
Character encoding
Assigns our binary values to characters, so that we as humans can read them
UTF-8
Allows us to store a character in more than one byte
Logic Gates
Allow our transistors to do more complex tasks, like decide where to send electrical
signals depending on logical conditions
What is the highest decimal value you can represent with a byte
255
Abstraction
To take a relatively complex system and simplify it for our own use
Hardware Layer
Made up of the physical components of a computer
Operating System
Allows hardware to communicate with the system
Software Layer
How we as humans interact with our computer
User
Interacts with the computer
Ports
Connection points that we can connect devices to that extend the functionality of our
computer
CPU
Central Processing Unit. The brain of our computer, it does all the calculations and data
processing
RAM
Random Access Memory. RAM is our computer's short term memory
Hard Drive
Holds all of our data, which includes all of our music, pictures, applications.
Motherboard
The body or circulatory system of the computer that connects all the pieces together.
Programs
Instructions that tell the computer what to do.
External Data Bus
How data travels through the computer.
, Registers
They let us store the data that our cpu works with.
Memory Controller Chip
A bridge between the cpu and the ram.
Address Bus
Connects the cpu to the mcc.
How does the CPU, the address bus, the memory controller chip, and the external
data bus work together?
The cpu asks, through the address bus, for data that it needs. The MCC looks for the
data in RAM and sends it back over through the External Data Bus.
What is the simplest way to describe the difference between cache and RAM?
Getting something from RAM is like getting food out of a refridgerator, getting something
from cache is like pulling food from your pocket; it stores recently or frequently used
data.
How many levels of cache in a CPU?
Three levels: L1, L2, L3.
Which is the smallest and fastest cache?
L1.
Clock Wire
Computer sends a voltage to the clock wire to let the cpu know that it can start doing
calculations.
Clock Cycle
When you send a voltage to a clock wire.
Clock Speed
The maximum number of clock cycles that it can handle in a certain time period.
Gigahertz to cycles per second?
For example, 3.4 GHz is 3.4 billion cycles per second.
LGA
There are pins that stick out of the motherboard, the cpu has holes.
Pin Grid Array
There are pins that stick out of the cpu, the motherboard has holes.
What is the significance of 32 and 64 bit?
They reference the cpu archiecture and state how much data they process efficiently.
What is the difference between 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows?
The terms 32-bit and 64-bit refer to the way a computer's processor handles
information. The 64-bit of Windows handles large amounts of RAM more effectively than
a 32-bit system.
Volatile
Once we power off our machines, the data stored in RAM is cleared
DRAM
Dynamic Random Access Memory.
DIMM
Dual Inline Memory Module. Have different size of pins on them.
SDRAM
Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory.
DDR SDRAM
Course 1: Technical Support Fundamentals,
Complete Solution
Binary System
The communication that a computer uses, also known as a base-2 numeral system
Byte
A group of 8 bits is referred to as a byte. Each byte can store one character, and we can
have 256 possible values thanks to the base-2 system (2^8)
Character encoding
Assigns our binary values to characters, so that we as humans can read them
UTF-8
Allows us to store a character in more than one byte
Logic Gates
Allow our transistors to do more complex tasks, like decide where to send electrical
signals depending on logical conditions
What is the highest decimal value you can represent with a byte
255
Abstraction
To take a relatively complex system and simplify it for our own use
Hardware Layer
Made up of the physical components of a computer
Operating System
Allows hardware to communicate with the system
Software Layer
How we as humans interact with our computer
User
Interacts with the computer
Ports
Connection points that we can connect devices to that extend the functionality of our
computer
CPU
Central Processing Unit. The brain of our computer, it does all the calculations and data
processing
RAM
Random Access Memory. RAM is our computer's short term memory
Hard Drive
Holds all of our data, which includes all of our music, pictures, applications.
Motherboard
The body or circulatory system of the computer that connects all the pieces together.
Programs
Instructions that tell the computer what to do.
External Data Bus
How data travels through the computer.
, Registers
They let us store the data that our cpu works with.
Memory Controller Chip
A bridge between the cpu and the ram.
Address Bus
Connects the cpu to the mcc.
How does the CPU, the address bus, the memory controller chip, and the external
data bus work together?
The cpu asks, through the address bus, for data that it needs. The MCC looks for the
data in RAM and sends it back over through the External Data Bus.
What is the simplest way to describe the difference between cache and RAM?
Getting something from RAM is like getting food out of a refridgerator, getting something
from cache is like pulling food from your pocket; it stores recently or frequently used
data.
How many levels of cache in a CPU?
Three levels: L1, L2, L3.
Which is the smallest and fastest cache?
L1.
Clock Wire
Computer sends a voltage to the clock wire to let the cpu know that it can start doing
calculations.
Clock Cycle
When you send a voltage to a clock wire.
Clock Speed
The maximum number of clock cycles that it can handle in a certain time period.
Gigahertz to cycles per second?
For example, 3.4 GHz is 3.4 billion cycles per second.
LGA
There are pins that stick out of the motherboard, the cpu has holes.
Pin Grid Array
There are pins that stick out of the cpu, the motherboard has holes.
What is the significance of 32 and 64 bit?
They reference the cpu archiecture and state how much data they process efficiently.
What is the difference between 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows?
The terms 32-bit and 64-bit refer to the way a computer's processor handles
information. The 64-bit of Windows handles large amounts of RAM more effectively than
a 32-bit system.
Volatile
Once we power off our machines, the data stored in RAM is cleared
DRAM
Dynamic Random Access Memory.
DIMM
Dual Inline Memory Module. Have different size of pins on them.
SDRAM
Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory.
DDR SDRAM
