How Does Circuitry Work?

[lrokwild]

This could be a an extremely complex question to answer so I guess I will narrow my curiosity in hopes to eventually piece bits of information together to ultimately understand circuitry and more specifically computer circuitry.

 

I know how a Hard Drive works. It consists of a band of thin magnetic metal tightly wound into a condensed coil. Then data is stored by arranging the electrons. +1 = Proton and 0 = Neutron. So I grasp the general idea of how you store information onto this coil of magnet. I think the electrons are manipulated with electric impulses so that they remain aligned on the magnetic strip for recall later. I think you then write a very complex code to use the 1s and 0s to make other things. This is where I get lost.

 

For one, how exactly do you manipulate electrons so precisely? And secondly, how do you extract this information and turn it into other types of software.

 

Id love to understand this concept better if any one cares to probe deeper into this subject and give me an informational explanation.

[insane_alien]

actually the hard drive works by magnetising or demagnatizing a tiny tiny portion o the harddrive. i it is magnetized(in any way) it reads as a one if it isn't its 0

[5614]

Electric pulses will create a magnetic field which can be used to very precisely manipulate electrons.

 

Basic answer:

http://www.newton.dep.anl.gov/newton/askasci/1995/compsci/CSI36.HTM

 

Lots of in depth stuff:

http://www.newton.dep.anl.gov/askasci/comp99/CS098.htm

 

Have a read through that and if you still have a specific question then ask here... I don't know how much more details I can give (after those 2 links) but I can try, and there'a always lots of other people who can answer!

[lrokwild]

thank you guys/gals, i will take a look!

[Apeofman]

This could be a an extremely complex question to answer so I guess I will narrow my curiosity in hopes to eventually piece bits of information together to ultimately understand circuitry and more specifically computer circuitry.

I think the scope of your question needs narrowing a little. Are you interested in the general idea as to how a particular part such as the disk drive mentioned works, in which case it's best to ask about the device you would like to understand. Or are you more interested in the actual circuitry, the workings of capacitors, resistors, and other components that give the device it's functionality.

[lrokwild]

Yes, Yes, Yes, I just want to know it all, man.....I cant grasp how you control electricity with such precision with the use of transistors and the likes. Magnetic fields have something to do with it...I understand how you can align electrons and "suspend" them.... but where do you go from there....im missing a huge part of this picture and it has puzzled me for years!

[5614]

Using magnetic fields you can align electrons.

 

The hard drive reader can then measure magnetic flux which it interprets as 0 or 1.

 

If it is 1 it sends an electrical pulse, if it is a 0 then it does not send an electric pulse. This is the basic of how a computer works. A series of sending 0s and 1s in a very specific order.

 

I understand how you can align electrons and "suspend" them.... but where do you go from there

Once you have the data stored you read it (those links I gave last post are good) and then you send the read data to the processor and then the data is sent on it's way to becoming part of the output (ie. audio or visual outputs).

[lrokwild]

Ok, so how does the reading head take the data being read off the HD and run it into the circuit board. Then how do we create these apparatuses to encode this 1010000101010111010 information into something new and more understandable? Is it the same way we create language? .... Then once the new language is formed I take it that it is used to send electricity to an audio or visual device. That concept I can grasp....your just lighting certain parts of a screen....but I just cant understand how such a complex arrangement of 1s and 0's could possibly create all the software we have today. That blows me away!

 

But im starting to piece this concept together and begining to understand how it all works....thank you guys!

[Apeofman]

You can try this Wiki link for lessons about electronics.

 

Electronic circuitry has many similarities with hydraulic systems.

Conductor .. Water pipes

Resistors ... Narrow water pipes

Capacitor ... Reservoir

Battery ...... Reservoir

etc.

[lrokwild]

Yeah, I think I grasp how the idea works...iv been reading up.... pretty cool.... seems the circuit board uses all of those pieces to effectively channel and store bits of the 1's and 0's and then arranges them in a specific way to make up circuit board language...which is where I get lost again but its coming together none the less!

[RyanJ]

http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/ May eventually prove of interest too you - some interesting reads can be found there on a lot of topics

 

Cheers,

 

Ryan Jones

[lightwave]

Data 1's and 0's which is binary arithmetic, are stored on a rotating disk using a magnetic 'head' which writes magnetic domains to the disk. It's all done with high speed and high density so that thousands of megabytes can be stored on a hard drive that may contain only 2 disks and therefore 4 surfaces.

[lightwave]

Oops.. pressed button twice.

[lrokwild]

I actually watched a movie on how the very first computer was invented. I get how a circuit board is basically just a string of wires that are used to conduct electricity in pulses that allow you to recognize what’s on your hard drive. Back in the day the hard drive was a huge interlinking web of magnets and wires. So anyways...i get it....now ill move onto software....anyone have any information on the language that controls the binary...well not controls....but the "next in line" or what ever.

[5614]

It is the job of the OS (Operating System) to ensure that all of the software can communicate with the hardware.

 

This:

http://computer.howstuffworks.com/operating-system.htm

might be a bit of use.

[ski_power]

how does it know when a series of 101010101010100111110001010101000 is a complete file and does not accidently read into another part of another file. How HOw HOw? I mean in a huge collection of 0 and 1 how would YOU know which part made what file?

[The Thing]

Try googling bits and bytes. That will tell you all about how computers change 10001010111010101 to human understandable language.

[lightwave]

Data is passed in 'packets'. Each packet has an identifier and a start and stop portion to the packet. Recievers know when a packet starts and stops and whose it is from the identifier.

 

When a microprocessor recieves data (or instructions) it arrives at specific times identifed by the 'clock' and in specific sequences. The processor knows which is data and which is instructions, because the previous instruction told it what to expect next.

 

A microprocessor is essentially an extremely fast adder/subtractor and data mover.

 

If you study one of the more simple microprocessors like PIC you'll get an understanding of how a microprocessor works.

 

Wikipedia is good for learning the basics. Try there.

[5614]

Yeah, that's a good suggestion, try reading up on how PICs and ICCs (integrated circuit chips) work to understand computers better.