Introduction to Computers

By Shivam Rajput
BBA 1st year
What is a Computer?
● An electronic device
○ Desktops, Notebooks, Mobile Devices, Calculators etc.
● Require instructions to operate
● Comprises of
○ Hardware
○ Software
Basic operations of Computers
● Input – accept data for processing
● Process – process data according to specified instructions/rules
● Output – produce results
● Storage – store results for future use
Computers are powerful?
● Performs information processing with
○ High speed
○ Reliability
○ Accuracy
● Store huge amount of data and information
● Communicates with other computers
Computer Data and Information
● Data
○ Collection of unprocessed information
○ Examples: text, numbers, images, audio, video
● Information
○ Outcome of processed data
○ Conveys meaning and is useful
○ Can be stored in memory
Computer Users
● People that use computers
○ Computer users, end users, or simply users
● Green computing
○ Users and manufacture contributing to reduce environmental impact of computing
○ Reduced electricity and waste generated
Hardware Components
● Input devices
● Processor
● Memory
● Output devices
● Storage devices
● Communication devices
System Unit and Peripherals
● System Unit
○ Processor, Memory and Storage devices
● Peripherals
○ Input and output devices
○ Also storage and communication devices
Input Devices
● Keyboards
● Mouse
● Touchpads
● Stylus
● Touchscreen
● Microphone
● Camera
System Unit
● Motherboard
○ main circuit board of the system unit.
○ Other electronic components are attached to it
○ Such as sound card, video card
● Processor, also called the Central Processing Unit
● Memory – RAM, measured in bytes
Storage Devices
● Hard disks
● Portable Hard disks
● Flash memory storage
○ Memory cards
● Optical disks – CDs, DVDs, Blu-ray disks
● Cloud storage – internet service that provide
storage (free/paid)
Output Devices
● Printers
● Headphones
● Speakers
● Data Projectors
● Monitors etc.
Communication Devices
● Enables computers to exchange information (send and receive)
● Transmission media
○ Cables, telephone lines, cellular radio networks, and satellites
○ Wireless - no physical lines or wires eg. Satellites, cellular radio networks.
Computer Software
● Also called program
● Usually comes with a user interface Graphic User Interface (GUI)
● Installing and Uninstalling
● Divided into System and Application Software
System Software
● Programs that control the operations of a
computer
● Operating Systems – coordinates all the activities
among computer hardware devices
○ Microsoft Windows (Microsoft)
○ Mac OS (Apple)
● Utility Program – allows users to perform
maintenance
Application Software
● Includes all applications designed to
○ make users more productive
○ Assist with personal task
● Examples
○ Word Processing: create, edit, format, print
○ Presentation: create visual aids
Application Software
● Examples
○ Spreadsheet: organize data in rows, columns and perform calculation on data
○ Database: organize data to allow easy access, retrieval and usage of data
○ E-Mail: create, send, receive, forward, store, print, and delete email messages.
Network and the Internet
● Network
○ A collection of computers and devices connected
together
○ Often wirelessly via communication devices and
transmission media
○ Allows users to share resources – hardware, software,
data, information
○ Saves time and money
Types of Networks
● Local Area Network (LAN)
○ Connects computers and devices in a limited
geographical area
● Wireless LAN (WLAN)
○ Similar to LAN but uses no physical wires. Connects
to a LAN.
● Wide Area Network (WAN)
○ Covers a large geographical area
The Internet
● Worldwide collection of networks
● Links businesses, governments, agencies, educational and financial
institutions, and individuals
● Internet Service Provide (ISP)
○ Access provider: individual/business that provides access to Internet for free or fee.
World Wide Web (WWW)
● A popular Internet service
● Contains billions of documents called Web pages
● A web page
○ Contains text, graphics, animation, audio, and video and links to other web pages
World Wide Web (WWW)
● Website
○ A collection of web pages
○ Can be accessed using a Web browser
● Web Address or Uniform Resource Locator (URL)
○ A unique address assigned to web page
Searching the Web
● Primary use of the web
○ Search for specific information
● Search engines
○ program that finds websites, web pages, images etc
related to a specific topic
● Subject Directory
○ Classifies web pages in organized set of categories or
groups such as sports, entertainments etc.
Computer Viruses and Malware
● Computer Virus
○ Damaging computer program
○ Alters the way computer works without permission
● Worm
○ Computer program that copies itself repeatedly, using up resources
Computer Viruses and Malwares
● Trojan horse (after Greek myth)
○ Hides within or looks like a legit program
○ Certain actions trigger the Trojan horse
● Rootkit
○ Program that hides in a computer and allows someone to remotely control the computer
Computer Viruses and Malware
● Malware
○ Virus, Worm, Trojan horse, rootkit
● Antivirus programs
○ Protects the computer from malware
○ Identifies and removes malware
Thanks