Computer - Memory Units
Memory unit is:
- the amount of data that can be stored in the storage unit.
- that in which storage capacity is expressed in terms of Bytes.
Following are the main memory storage units:
|1||Bit (Binary Digit)||A binary digit is logical 0 and 1 representing a passive or an active state of a component in an electric circuit.|
|2||Nibble||A group of 4 bits is called nibble.|
|3||Byte||A group of 8 bits is called byte. A byte is the smallest unit which can represent a data item or a character.|
A computer word, like a byte, is a group of fixed number of bits processed as a unit which varies from computer to computer but is fixed for each computer.
The length of a computer word is called word-size or word length and it may be as small as 8 bits or may be as long as 96 bits. A computer stores the information in the form of computer words.
Few higher storage units are following
|1||Kilobyte (KB)||1 KB = 1024 Bytes|
|2||Megabyte (MB)||1 MB = 1024 KB|
|3||GigaByte (GB)||1 GB = 1024 MB|
|4||TeraByte (TB||1 TB = 1024 GB|
|5||PetaByte (PB)||1 PB = 1024 TB|