Syllabus Detail

  • Types of processing; distributed, sequential, parallel, multi-core. 12 ATAR 

 

Background

  • A processor can be seen as the brains of a computer
  • The CPU (central processing unit) is in charge of prioritizing tasks as well as processing the information
  • In technical terms, the processor is the logic circuitry that processes information

 

Distributed & Parallel Processing

  • Distributed processing is a term used to describe a variety of systems that use more than one computer (or processor) to run specific programs
  • Parallel processing refers to a single computer that uses more than one CPU (central processing unit) to run applications and tasks
  • Distributed processing can be done through local area network's; wherein special, complex software is able to detect CPU's that aren't in use across computers on the network and utilizes them to run other software

 

Sequential Processing

  • Seqential processing is when the processing occurs in the order that the tasks were received
  • For example, applications such as a word processor would send tasks through to the CPU
  • The tasks would be processed in the order that they were sent through with sequential processing, generally:
    • Opening the document
    • Editing the document
    • Saving the document
  • A task cannot be processed until the task preceding it has completed

 

Multi-core Processing

  • Multi-core processing occurs in computers with multiple processing "cores"
  • Each of these cores acts as an individual processing device
  • Often, modern computers run on dual-core and quad-core processors
  • Dual-core refers to CPU's with two cores, whilst quad-core CPU's contain four cores
  • Multi-core processing allows for tasks to be run simultaneously, meaning that more than one task can be processed at a time

 

Step 5 - Further Research

  1. Computer Processing for Dummies here
  2. Computer Processing by Teach-CT here

 

Step 6 - Worksheet and Practice (yet to be added)

 

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