Introduction to

Computers
And How to Purchase, Install, and
Maintain a Personal Computer
Objectives
Define the term computer and discuss the four basic
computer operations: input, processing, output, and
storage
Define data and information
Explain the principal components of the computer and
their use
Describe the use of floppy disks, hard disks, and other
storage media
Discuss computer software and explain the difference
between system software and application software
Objectives cont
Identify several types of personal computer
application software
Discuss computer communications channels and
equipment and the Internet and World Wide Web
Explain how to purchase, install, and maintain a
personal computer
Define e-commerce
What is a computer?
Computer
an electronic device, operating under the control of
instructions stored in its own memory unit
this memory unit can
accept data input
manipulate data process
produce information output
store results for future use - storage
What does a computer do?
Computers perform four general operations
input, process, output, and storage
Information processing cycle
inputting, processing, outputting, and storing make-up this cycle
Processing requires data
data collection of raw facts, figures, and symbols given to a
computer during the input operation
Manipulate data to create information
information data that is organized, meaningful, and useful
Why is a computer so powerful?
Power is derived from the computers capability
to perform the information processing cycle with
speed, reliability, and accuracy
The computers capacity to store huge amounts of
data and information
The computers ability to communicate with other
computers
How does a computer know
what to do?
It must be given a detailed set of instructions
These instructions are called a computer program
or software
Executes one program instruction after another
until the job is complete
What are the components
of a computer?
Six primary components
input devices
the processor
memory
output devices
storage devices
communications devices
the processor, memory, and storage device are
housed in a box-like case called the system unit
Input Devices
Input device any hardware component the
allows you to enter data, programs, commands,
and user responses into a computer
primary input devices
keyboard
mouse
other input devices
digital camera
scanner
microphone
Input Devices cont
The Keyboard
desktop computer keyboard typically has 101 to 105 keys
handheld computers use an onscreen keyboard and use a stylus to
select keys
The Mouse
a pointing device that fits under the palm of your hand
control the movement of the pointer on the screen and make
selections from the screen
one to five buttons
bottom is flat and contains a mechanism or ball that detects
movement
notebooks have a pointing device built into the keyboard
Processor
Processor or central processing unit (CPU)
interprets and carries out the basic instructions
that operate a computer
made up of the control unit and arithmetic/logic unit
control unit interprets the instructions
arithmetic/logic unit performs the logical and arithmetic
processes
42 million transistors and performs operations 10
million times in a tenth of a second
Memory
Memory or random access memory (RAM) electronic
components that store instructions waiting to be executed
by the processor, data needed by those instructions, and
the results of processed data
consists of one or more chips on the motherboard
motherboard or system board main circuit board to which
electronic components are attached
memory is measured in kilobytes or megabytes
1 kilobyte (K or KB) = 1,000 memory locations
1 megabyte (M or MB) = 1,000,000 memory locations
memory location or byte stores one character
Output Devices
Output devices make information from
processing available for use
can be presented in many forms
printed report or displayed on a screen
printers and display devices are common output
devices for word processing, spreadsheets, and
database management
Output Devices cont
Printers
two kinds of printers
impact printers strikes an inked ribbon against the paper
(dot matrix printer)
Nonimpact printers form characters by means other than
striking a ribbon against paper (ink-jet printers or laser
printers)
advantage print higher-quality text and graphics, better job
printing different fonts, quieter, can print in color

Output Devices cont
Display devices an output device that visually conveys
text, graphics, and video information
monitor plastic or metal case that houses a display device
two types of monitors CRT and LCD
cathode ray tube (CRT) television- like, most common
LCD or flat panel monitor uses a liquid display crystal, similar to a
digital watch
surface of screen is composed of individual picture elements
called pixels
resolution of 800 x 600 = 480,000 pixels
each pixel can be illuminated to form parts of a character or grpahic
shape on the screen

Storage Devices
Storage devices used to store instructions, data,
and information not being used in memory
six types of storage devices
floppy disks
zip disks
optical discs
tape
miniature storage media
Storage Devices cont
Floppy disks or diskette
portable, inexpensive storage medium that consists of a thin,
circular, flexible plastic disk with a magnetic coating enclosed in
a square-shaped plastic shell
typically can store up to 1.44 megabytes of data or 1,474,560
characters
a portable storage medium
portable means you can remove the medium from one computer
and carry it to another computer
floppy disk drive device that can read from and write to a
floppy disk

Storage Devices cont
Floppy disks cont
a type of magnetic disk, which uses magnetic patterns to store
items on its surface
read/write storage media
can access (read) data from and place (write) data on a magnetic disk
must be formatted
formatting process of preparing a disk for reading and writing
by organizing the disk into storage locations called tracks and
sectors
track a narrow recording band that forms a full circle on the surface of
the disk
sector capable of holding 512 bytes of data
80 track per side and 18 sectors per track
access time time required to access and retrieve data
Storage Devices cont
Zip Disk portable magnetic media
can store up to 750 MB
can be built-in or external
make it easier to transport many files or large items
graphics, audio, or video files
back up important data and information
backup a duplicate of a file, program, or disk that you can
use in case the original is lost, damaged, or destroyed

Storage Devices cont
Hard disks consists of one or more rigid metal
platters coated with a metal oxide material that
allows data to be recorded magnetically
data is recorded on a series of tracks
spin 5,400 to 7,200 revolutions/minute
number of platters vary
storage capacity one billion characters to more than
200 billion characters
1 billion bytes = 1 gigabyte (GB)
Storage Devices cont
Optical discs storage medium that consists of a
flat, round, portable, metal storage medium
4.75 inches in diameter
less than 1/20 of an inch thick
Two types of optical discs
CD
DVD
Variety of formats
CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-ROM, DVD+RW
Storage Devices cont
CD-ROMs or compact disc read-only memory- type of
optical disc that uses laser technology for recording
can contain audio, text, graphics, and video
can only read, cannot erase or modify the content
holds 650 MB 1 GB of data
CD-R or compact disc-recordable multisession optical
disc that you can record your own items on
can read from many times
can write on each part only one time
cannot erase
Storage Devices cont
CD-RW or compact disc-rewritable an erasable disc
you can write on multiple times
write and rewrite data, instructions, and information multiple
times
DVDs technology that can be used to store large
amounts of text and even cinema-like videos
DVD-ROM or digital video disc-ROM high capacity optical
disc
store 4.7 GB to 17 GB
read-only
Storage Devices cont
DVD+RW or DVD-rewriteable can erase and
record multiple times
major use
edit videos from a video camera or VCR, stored and edited on
your computer, and then written to a DVD+RW disc
Tape magnetically coated ribbon of plastic housed
in a tape cartridge capable of storing large amounts of
data and information at a low cost
primarily used for long-term storage and backup
Storage Devices cont
Miniature Storage Media rewritable media in
the form of a flash memory card
solid-state device that consists entirely of electronics
and contain no moving parts
used with PDAs, digital cameras, music players, and
smart phones
used to store digital images, music, and documents
Communications Devices
Communications device hardware component
that enables a computer to send (transmit) and
receive data, instructions, and information to and
from one or more computers
widely used communication device is the modem
communications occur over transmission media
cables, telephone lines, cellular radio networks, and
satellites
some are wireless
Computer Software
two types of software
system software
application software
System software programs to control the operations of
computer equipment
operating system set of programs that tell the computer how to
perform the functions of loading, storing, and executing an
application program and how to transfer data
booting when a computer is turned on, the operating system is
loaded into the computers memory from auxiliary storage
graphical user interface (GUI) visual cues or icon symbols
Computer Software cont
Application Software programs that tell a
computer how to produce information
examples personal information manager, accounting,
computer-aided design, desktop publishing, picture and
video editing, and educational
commonly used applications word processing,
electronic spreadsheet, and presentation graphics
software package Microsoft Office
Computer Software cont
Word processing software used to create, edit,
format, and print documents
advantage users can easily make changes to the
document
Electronic spreadsheet software user can add,
subtract, and perform user-defined calculations on
rows and columns of numbers
eliminates tedious recalculations, easily converted into
a graphic form
Computer Software cont
Database software user can enter, retrieve, and
update data in an organized and efficient manner
Can access data in different ways and create custom
reports
Presentation graphics software allows users to
create documents called slides to be used in
presentations
Networks and the Internet
Network collection of computers and devices connected
via communications media and devices such as cables,
telephone lines, modems
users can share resources, such as hardware devices, software
programs, data, and information
saves time and money
LAN or local area network network that connects computers in
a limited geographic area
computer lab, offices, groups of buildings
WAN or wide area network network that covers a large
geographical area
districts offices of a national corporation
Networks and the
Internet cont
The Internet worldwide collection of networks
that links together millions of computers by
means of modems, telephone lines, cables, and
other communications devices and media
world largest network
use the Internet for a variety of reasons
Sending messages (e-mail), accessing information,
shopping, meeting and conversing with people, and
accessing sources of entertainment and leisure
Networks and the
Internet cont
Connect to the Internet in one of two ways
through an Internet service provider
through an online service provider
Internet service provider (ISP) organization that supplies
connections to the Internet for a monthly fee
Online service provider (OSP) provides access to the
Internet, but it also provides a variety of other specialized
content and services
Networks and the
Internet cont
The World Wide Web or the Web contains
billions of documents called Web pages
most popular segment of the Internet
Web page document that contains text, graphics,
sound, and/or video and has built-in connections, or
hyper-links, to other Web documents
Web site related collection of Web pages
Web browser software program used to access and
view Web pages
Networks and the
Internet cont
Uniform Resource Locator or URL unique Web page
address
consists of a protocol, domain name, and sometimes the
path to a specific Web page or location in a Web page
URLs begin with http://
http stands for hypertext transfer protocol
domain name identifies the Web site, which is stored on a Web
server
Web server computer that delivers (serves) requested Web
pages
Networks and the
Internet cont
Electronic Commerce or e-commerce
conducting business activities online
Three types of e-commerce
Business to consumer (B2C) sale of goods to the
general public
Consumer to consumer (C2C) one consumer selling
directly to another
Business to business (B2B) goods and services to
other businesses