Definition
A system is a set of interacting components working together toward a common objective, taking an input, processing it, and producing an output.
Natural systems (the solar system, the human body) occur in nature; artificial systems (a computer, a car) are designed and built by people.
Remember
Every system needs three things to function: input, a process that acts on it, and an output — remove any one and the system can't do its job.
Definition
Computing systems include computers, software systems, and computer networks — hardware, the instructions that run on it, and the connections between multiple computers.
Definition
In the Von Neumann architecture, both program instructions and data share the same memory and the same pathway (bus) to the CPU.
Main components: CPU (processes instructions), Memory (stores program and data), Input/Output devices (interact with the outside world), and the Bus (carries data between them).
Rule
The instruction cycle has four steps: Fetch (get the next instruction from memory), Decode (work out what it means), Execute (carry it out), Store (write the result back to memory).
Remember
Advantage: a single, simple design — the same memory and pathway serve both instructions and data, keeping the hardware straightforward.
Disadvantage: the Von Neumann bottleneck — instructions and data compete for the same one pathway, which limits how fast the CPU can be fed, no matter how fast the CPU itself is.
Quick Recap
- ●System: input process output, working toward one objective
- ●Natural systems occur in nature; artificial systems are designed by people
- ●Von Neumann: instructions and data share one memory and one bus to the CPU
- ●Instruction cycle: Fetch Decode Execute Store
- ●Von Neumann bottleneck: one shared pathway limits how fast the CPU can be fed
