You plug it in. You unplug it. You probably have several of them sitting around right now.
But have you ever stopped to wonder why it's called USB?
USB is one of those everyday technologies that most of us use without giving much thought to what the name actually means or why it became so common.
Over the years, USB has become a familiar part of using computers and other electronic devices. It gives us a simple way to connect different devices, move information, and get things working together.
But there’s more to the name than you might expect.
Understanding where the name USB comes from and what it was designed to do gives you a little more insight into a technology you've probably used countless times.
Watch the video and finally understand the name behind the connection.
What makes a computer work?
It comes down to two essential parts: hardware and software.
Hardware is the physical side of a computer: the parts you can see and touch.
Software is the digital side: the programs and instructions that run on the computer.
They’re very different, but every click, command, and program you use depends on them working together.
You probably interact with hardware and software every day without thinking about which is which.
Watch the video below for a simple introduction to hardware, software, and how they work together.
You probably think of programming as a newer type of job, but the idea has been around for a lot longer than you might realize.
Long before laptops and smartphones, people were creating machines that could follow instructions, repeat actions, and make work easier.
These early machines introduced ideas that would eventually influence the technology we use today. While they looked very different from modern computers, they showed that machines could be designed to carry out specific instructions.
So how did these early machines lead to the programmable computers we rely on today?
Watch the video to explore where programming began.
