Computer Architecture

A Computer Architecture is an architectural discipline that describes a computer system by specifying its parts and their relations.

Example(s):
- a von Neumann Architecture.
- a GPU Architecture.
- ...
See: Electronics Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Central Processing Unit, Computer Memory, Cluster Computing, Non-Uniform Memory Access.

References

(Wikipedia, 2014) ⇒ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/computer_architecture Retrieved:2014-8-7.
- In electronics engineering, computer engineering and computer science, computer architecture is a set of disciplines that describes a computer system by specifying its parts and their relations.
  For example, at a high level, computer architecture may be concerned with how the central processing unit (CPU) acts and how it uses computer memory. Some fashionable (2011) computer architectures include cluster computing and non-uniform memory access.
  Computer architects use computers to design new computers. Emulator|Emulation software can run programs written in a proposed instruction set. While the design is very easy to change at this stage, compiler designers often collaborate with the architects, suggesting improvements in the instruction set. Modern emulators may measure time in clock cycles: estimate energy consumption in joules, and give realistic estimates of code size in bytes. These affect the convenience of the user, the life of a battery, and the size and expense of the computer's largest physical part: its memory. That is, they help to estimate the value of a computer design.