UNIT 1.

HARDWARE
#013A039 -Presented by: ANUSHKA K.C.

1.4(a) PROCESSOR COMPONENTS

Control Unit,
Memory Unit, and Arithmetic Logic Unit

1.4.1(i)Control Unit
All computers follow instructions that are given to it in a program.

These instructions are in a particular order in the program, and following them, and carrying them out, will mean that the computer has accomplished whatever task it was meant to do. Something, in the computer, has to manage the instructions and make sure that all the other parts of the processor do what they should be doing. This is the job of the control unit. The control unit has three jobs : 1. It has to decide which instruction to carry out next and then go and get it. 2. It has to decipher the instruction, in other words it has to work out what needs to be done to carry the instruction out. 3. It has to tell other parts of the processor what they should do so that the instruction will be carried out.

1.4.1(ii)Arithmetic Logic Unit(ALU)

The ALU includes the accumulator which is where things are actually

done in the processor. 1. The ALU contains circuitry that allows it to add numbers together (do arithmetic). 2. It allows for logic decisions to be made (If the value is negative then , the part of the processor that makes the decision is the ALU). 3. The third task of the ALU is to act as the gateway between the processor and the other parts of the computer system. All input and output to and from the processor goes into the ALU and waits there while the control unit decides what to do with it.

1.4.1(iii)Memory Unit
The third part of the processor is where everything that the processor is going to use is stored. This includes all the program instructions and all the data needed to carry out those instructions. One of the jobs of the control unit is to be able to find the information stored there when it is to be used. The parts of the operating system, which the computer is using at the time, also need to be stored in memory.

1.4.(b) Types of Primary Memory

There are two types of primary memory in a computer: a. RAM: Random Access Memory b. ROM: Read Only Memory

Differences between RAM & ROM

RAM Random Access Memory or RAM is a form of data storage that can be accessed randomly at any time, in any order and from any physical location., allowing quick access and manipulation. RAM allows the computer to read data quickly to run applications. It allows reading and writing. ROM Read-only memory or ROM is also a form of data storage that can not be easily altered or reprogrammed. Stores instructions that are not necessary for re-booting up to make the computer operate when it is switched off. They are hardwired. ROM stores the program required to initially boot the computer. It only allows reading.

RAM is a type of volatile memory. Data in RAM is not permanently written. When you power off your computer the data stored in RAM is deleted.

ROM is a type of non- volatile memory. Data in ROM is permanently written and is not erased when you power off your computer.

1.4 (c) Secondary Storage Media

The memory that is available in the processor is limited in size

and volatile. Thus a memory which is less temporary in nature and does not have the same restrictions as far as size is concerned and is outside the processor is called secondary storage. There are a number of different types of secondary storage that can be categorized according to Means by which the data is stored, optically or magnetically The technique used for storage of the data, sequential storage or direct access storage The capacity of the medium, how much can be stored on it Portability of the medium, can it be moved around easily Access times to the data stored.

1. Magnetic tape
Magnetic tape is still widely used, particularly in the form

of tape streamers. The data in magnetic tape is stored in such a way that it can only be accessed sequentially. This makes it largely unsuitable for most data handling applications because of the time necessary to find a particular item of data. However, large volumes of data can be held and The medium is freely transportable. These qualities make it valuable for producing back up copies of files stored on a computer system.

2.Magnetic floppy disk

Floppy disks hold a relatively small amount of information.

Most software is too large to be stored on a floppy disk, as are commercial files of data. However, a floppy disk is very portable, allowing for easy communication of data from one stand-alone computer to another. It is also readily available, almost all microcomputers having a floppy disk drive. It is also convenient for storing those files that are particularly confidential because the files cannot be broken into if they are being carried by the owner, or locked away in a safe. Despite being direct, access times are slow because of the limited speed of rotation possible and the relatively crude nature of the read heads.

3.Magnetic hard disk

Data is stored in the same way as on a floppy disk. The

differences being that the hard disk is made of a rigid material rather than a floppy plastic, and it is contained in a sealed unit. These differences mean that the hard disk can rotate faster, the heads can get closer to the surface meaning that the storage density can be greater, Consequently that the amount that can be stored is greater and that the access times are much faster. The hard drive is likely to be the main secondary storage for a computer system, having very large storage capacities. Although they can be portable, it is more likely that they will be fixed to the chassis of the machine because of the tolerances that they have to work to.

4.CDROM
A CDROM is different from the storage devices so far

mentioned because it is not magnetic. A CDROM is an optical storage device, using the reflection of a laser off a pitted surface to store information. Large quantities of data can be stored on the surface and it is completely portable from one machine to another. In addition, most computer systems can now be relied on to have a CD drive, and a CD is not alterable by the user. For these reasons, manufacturers have tended to use CDs to produce software and large data files like encyclopedias.

5. CD Rewriteables.
It is now possible to write to CDs by using a special

peripheral device called a CD writer and a special CD, But it is important to remember that these are not CDROMs, which cannot be changed. They tend to be used for things like making a back up copy of files, or archiving for long term storage.

6. Solid state storage.

Solid-state storage is a nonvolatile, removable storage

medium that employs ICs or integrated circuits (all confined entirely within the solid materi.al) rather than magnetic or optical media. It is the equivalent of large-capacity, nonvolatile memory. Examples include: flash memory Universal Serial Bus (USB) devices and various proprietary removable packages intended to replace external hard drives.

7.Others
There are many other types of secondary storage,

two of which are worth a mention:

Zip drives are a more robust version of a floppy disk, having a faster access speed and a greater capacity. They have become fairly popular for backing up work on microcomputers. DVD is a relatively new technology that will probably replace CDROM as it can store much larger quantities of data and allow access at high speed.

STORAGE DEVICES

Speed of access to data.

Notice that there are no figures quoted for access times. There

is little point in doing this because access times vary according to the manufacturer and the point of development so far reached. If the author were to quote a number, not only would it be wrong as far as this work is concerned because there is such a wide range, but it would certainly be out of date by the time you read it. In general terms the tape streamer is the slowest access because of the way that the data is stored sequentially, then comes the floppy disk which suffers because of the nature of the medium. Access times from CDROM and hard drives are faster than the other two, but because there is such a range of both types of drive available, it is impossible to say that one is faster than the other.

Capacity.
Again, much depends on the type of drive or size of

medium being used. Tape streamers come in different sizes, but tend to be comparable in capacity with smaller hard drives. Of the different types of disk, a reasonable analogy is that a floppy would store the text from a book, a CDROM would store a multi volume encyclopedia, while a hard drive could store a library.

Uses.
Obviously, no list of uses will be complete. However,

there are some obvious uses for each storage type which take into account the advantages and disadvantages of each.

A Tape Streamer is used for making backups of files held on computer systems. This makes use of the fact that it can store a large amount of data, but the disadvantage of the access being slow does not matter because it is rare that a backup file would be used anyway.

A floppy disk has the advantage that it can be written onto and taken away from the computer. Because of this it can be used for storing confidential files. Add to this the fact that all computers can be relied on to have a floppy disk drive and it becomes a sensible way of transferring information from one machine to another. A hard drive has the advantages of being fast to access and also stores massive amounts of data. These advantages mean that it is going to be used for storing software and user files. The disadvantage of being attached to one machine is not important if the same users always use the same machines, some other method of sharing will have to be devised if this is not true. A CDROM cannot be altered. This disadvantage can be turned into an advantage if the owner does not want the contents of the storage to be altered. Examples of files stored on CDROM are software for import to a system and large reference files like encyclopedias.

1.4 (e) and (f) Common Peripheral Devices

Any hardware device that is part of the computer

system but is not part of the processor itself is called a peripheral device. Peripheral devices can be categorized under four headings.

1. Communication devices. These devices allow for communication between machines.

2. Storage devices. These devices, which provide for secondary storage in a computer system. 3. Input devices. There are too many different input devices to expect familiarity with all of them. There are some devices that are so common that any candidate taking an exam in computing can be expected to have experience of using them, e.g. mouse, keyboard. Additionally, candidates should be encouraged to learn about a variety of contemporary devices so that they can use them when answering questions that ask for a hardware configuration for a specific application.

INPUT DEVICES
a) Keyboard. A standard keyboard uses keys that stand for the different characters that the computer recognizes in its character set. Most keyboards contain the letters of the alphabet, but not all do, for instance most calculator keyboards are very different, as are the keyboards for use at ATM machines. The characters needed for specialist use machines are determined by the use to which the machine is to be put. Keyboards are the most common form of input device to a system because they are universally available and understood.

b) Mouse. A mouse is a device designed to be used with a pointer on the screen. It is particularly useful because it mimics the natural human reaction of being able to point at something. A mouse is really two input devices in one. One is the movement around the screen created by actually moving the mouse in a physical way, and the other is the ability to select, which is done by using a switch (the mouse buttons). Variations have been developed which use the same basic principles but are designed for particular applications. An example is the tracker ball used in many laptop computers. This is like an upside down mouse where the user moves the ball directly rather than moving an object around a flat surface. This is necessary because when using a laptop there may not be a flat surface available.

c) Barcode readers. A barcode reader is a laser scanner that reads the reflected laser light from a series of dark and light colored lines of varying thickness. The different widths of pairs of lines make up a code that can be converted into a number. This number can then be used as the key field relating to a file of items that have been bar-coded. Barcodes are particularly useful because they do not rely on human beings to input the data, although, if the barcode is damaged so that the laser scanner cannot read it properly, the digits represented by the code are printed underneath so that they can be input by a user at a keyboard. Barcodes are used where the data does not change, and so can be printed on original packaging.

d) MICR (magnetic ink character reader). This is a device that reads characters that are printed on an original document at the time of it being created. The characters are printed using magnetic ink. The value is that the characters are readable by humans and by machines. The only common use for such characters is the data printed on the bottom of cheques containing account identification.

e) OCR (optical character reader). This is a device that reads characters and can distinguish between the different characters in a given character set. It works by comparing the shape of a scanned character with a library of shapes that it is intended that it should recognize. OCR tends to be an unreliable form of input and works more effectively when it is restricted to having to recognize a standard character set produced by printing rather than by using hand writing. OCR is used for reading post codes on printed documents and also for reading documents for blind people, the contents of which can be output using a voice synthesizer.

 f)

OMR (optical mark reader). This device can recognize the presence of a mark on a sheet of paper. The position of the mark conveys information to the machine. For example a school register may consist of a list of names of pupils in a class together with two columns of small rectangles, one for present and one for absent. The same action (shading in a rectangle) stands for both being present and being absent. The difference is the position that the mark occupies on the paper. Printing in the sensitive areas of the sheet is done using a special type of ink which the optical scanner does not see, that is why OMR documents tend to be printed in a light blue or pink color. The other standard use for OMR documents is as multi choice examination answer sheets.

The big advantage of both OCR and OMR is that data can be input to a computer system without having to be transcribed first, thereby cutting down the number of errors on data input.

g) Scanners. A scanner is a device that converts a document into a series of pixels (picture elements these are small squares that, when put together, form a picture). The larger the number of pixels, or conversely the smaller each individual pixel, the better the definition of the final picture. There are different types of scanner, but all use the same principle to create the image. A typical use for a scanner would be to input a picture of a house so that it could be included with the details of a house that is for sale in an estate agents publication. A scanner is an input device, not to be confused with a plotter which is an output device.

h) Graphics Tablet. A graphics tablet is a flat surface on which a piece of paper is placed. The user can then draw on the paper and the tablet will sense where the pencil is pointing and transfer the line to the screen. i) Microphones. Used to input sound to a computer system.

INPUT DEVICES

4. Output Devices
There are too many output devices to be able to write

notes on all of them. Again, the same thing is true about output as is true about input, that it is important to know about those devices stated in the syllabus and also a range of devices that will allow for sensible decisions about peripheral devices to be made for a given scenario in a question.

 a) Screens. Monitor screens are categorized according to the obvious

color/monochrome, also according to the number of pixels that there are on the screen. The more pixels there are, the better the picture will be, known as the screen resolution. The more pixels that there are on the screen, the higher the resolution is said to be. A particular type of screen, called a touch screen, acts as both an input device and an output device.

 Information is output by the system onto the screen and the user is

invited to answer questions or make choices by pointing at a particular area of the screen. The device can sense where the user is pointing and can report the position to the processor. The processor can then deduce what the users reply was according to the position that was pointed to. Touch screens are particularly useful in areas where keyboards are not appropriate, e.g. where the device may suffer from vandalism. They are also useful for users who would find difficulty using other input devices, e.g. very young children who want to be able to draw on a screen.

 b) Printers. A printer is a device which provides the user with an

output from the system which is permanent. This output is known as hard copy, so a printer is a device which produces hard copy. There are many different types of printer: The first type is a dot matrix printer. These tend to be slow, and the output is particularly poor quality. The big advantage is that the output is produced by using pins to strike at the surface of the paper. Because of the physical nature of the way that the printout is produced, it is possible to obtain multiple copies by using carbon paper or self carbonating paper. A good example of this is the receipt that a shopper is presented with if buying something using a credit card, there are two copies produced, back to back, one for the shop to keep and one for the buyer to take away with them.

Ink jet printers, which produce output by spraying ink on to the paper could not produce the two copies that the dot matrix can, but it can produce much better quality and in color, at low cost. This makes ink jet printers ideal for home use. Laser printers can produce very high quality work at high speed. The cost is more than with the other types but used where it is necessary to give a good impression, for instance sending letters from a solicitors office to clients. Plotters are a type of printer designed for drawing lines and geometric designs rather than for producing characters. The image is created by pens being moved across a piece of paper, under the command of the processor. Plotters tend to be used for drawing blueprints, perhaps in an architects office to produce detailed drawings of buildings for builders to follow.

 c) Speakers: Used to output sound from a computer system. Speakers

are one of the most common output devices used with computer systems. Some speakers are designed to work specifically with computers, while others can be hooked up to any type of sound system. Regardless of their design, the purpose of speakers is to produce audio output that can be heard by the listener. Speakers typically come in pairs, which allows them to produce stereo sound. This means the left and right speakers transmit audio on two completely separate channels. By using two speakers, music sounds much more natural since our ears are used to hearing sounds from the left and right at the same time. Surround systems may include four to seven speakers (plus a subwoofer), which creates an even more realistic experience.

OUTPUT DEVICES