An opening in a
computer where a
circuit board can be inserted to add new capabilities to the computer. Nearly all
personal computers except portables contain expansion
slots for adding more
memory,
graphics capabilities, and
support for special
devices. The
boards inserted into the expansion slots are called
expansion boards,
expansion cards , cards , add-ins , and
add-ons.
Expansion slots for PCs come in two basic sizes: half- and full-size. Half-size slots are also called 8-bit slots because they can transfer 8 bits at a time. Full-size slots are sometimes called 16-bit slots. In addition, modern PCs include PCI slots for expansion boards that connect directly to the PCI bus.
