TOPIC 1

INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTER AND ITS

COMPONENTS
INTRODUCTION
This topic will introduce computer and its components. A computer is a machine
which manipulates data according to a list of instructions. Computer systems and
its operating system as well as the hardware and software will also be introduced
in this unit.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
The objectives of this topic are to:
1. Understand the computer and its components.
2. Know the computers operating system and its hardware and software.

LEARNING OUTCOMES
After completing this unit, the students should be able to:
1. Understand the personal computer (PC), its operating system and its
hardware and software

1.1 INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTER SYSTEM

A general purpose computer has four main sections: the arithmetic and logic unit
(ALU), the control unit, the memory, and the input and output devices
(collectively termed I/O). These parts are interconnected by busses, often made
of groups of wires. Figure 1.1 summarizes the concepts.
The control unit, ALU, registers, and basic I/O (and often other hardware closely
linked with these) are collectively known as a central processing unit (CPU).
Early CPUs were composed of many separate components but since the mid1970s CPUs have typically been constructed on a single integrated circuit called
a microprocessor.

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Figure 1.1: An Idealized Personal Computer Internal Hardware Component

Basic knowledge of this internal hardware component of Personal Computer will
enable us to visualize the operation of any computer systems. Even though it
might look different from the usual specification given out by computer shop
today, this is the foundation of any Personal Computer available today. The next
section will expand this basic Internal Hardware Component knowledge into the
existing Personal Computer specification.
Exercise 1.1
Q1. Using the Internet, find more information regarding the history of PC and
its operating system.
Q2. DDR3 is currently the new RAM for Personal Computer available in the
market. List two advantages of this new RAM compared with SD RAM.
Q3. Compare and contrast Window XP over Window Vista.

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1.2 INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTER COMPONENTS

Now days, Personal Computers can be assembled or built with different
components according to our needs. We are now able to choose components
according to our personal requirement if we know them. Users with detailed
knowledge of all the computer components will get the best specification suitable
to their daily task. As an example, a student developing a Three Dimensional
(3D) Games will choose or assembled Personal Computer with a powerful CPU,
higher RAM and hard disk capacity and the best available video card and sound
systems. There is no limit to the combinational complexity that can be obtained
once we understand the functionality of each component.
Basic Personal Computer (PC) can be grouped into System Unit and other
components connected to it. System Unit is usually wrongly called as CPU or
Hard Disk. CPU and Hard Disk drive are only two of the components within the
System Unit. Table 1.1 provides the overall mapping of PC components.

Table 1.1: The overall mapping of PC components

Items
System Unit

Monitor

Component(s)
Casing, Power Supply,
Motherboard
installed
with CPU, RAM and
Drive Controller, Hard
Disk Drive (HDD) , CDROM Drive, Floppy Disk
Drive (FDD), Video Card
Stand alone component

Notes
All these components
are assembled as
System Unit. HDD,
CD-ROM Drive and
FDD are connected to
the motherboard using
IDE cables.
Monitor is connected
to the System unit
(video card)

Keyboard

Stand alone component

Mouse

Stand alone component

Printer

Stand alone component

Scanner

Stand alone component

Keyboard is connected
to the motherboard
USB connector
Mouse is connected to
the motherboard USB
connector
Printer is connected to
the motherboard USB
connector
Scanner is connected
to the motherboard
USB connector

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1.2.1 System Unit

System Unit consists of several components:

Casing or computer Case

Casing or computer case is used to place components such as Power

Supply, motherboard installed with: Central Processing Unit (CPU) and
Random Access Memory (RAM), Hard Disk, Floppy Disk Drive (FDD) and
Compact Disk (CD) Drive. Two models of casings are available in the market:
tower and desktop model.
Tower model stands upright in a vertical position that allows easy placement
on the floor. Three towers design are available: mini-tower (2 CD ROM Drive
slots), mid-tower (3 CD ROM Drive slots), and full tower case (5 CD ROM
Drive slots). The selection on type of tower design usually depends on the
number of components required for each PC. For example, a user who
required, two CD ROM Drives, two hard Disk Drive and two CPU installed
with the motherboard will choose full tower case.

Figure 1.2: Example of PCs with mini tower model casing

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The desktop model sits on a desk horizontally. The monitor can be set on top
of the casing and can be a space saver.

Figure 1.3: Example of PC with desktop model casing

Power Supply

Computer power supply comes with the case. Two types of power supply
available are AT Model and ATX model. AT power supply is an old model
and has been replaced with ATX model which enable the computer to be
shutdown using the operation system such windows XP. The old power
supply model (AT), required the user to physically push the on/off button to
shut down the computer.

Figure 1.4: ATX Power Supply

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Motherboard

This is where the core components of the computer reside. The cards for
video, sound, networking and more are also mounted into this board. Figure
1.5 shows the example of motherboard.

Figure 1.5: Motherboard

The major components on the motherboard include the chipset, CPU socket,
expansion sockets, Input/Output (I/O) support, Basic Input Output System
(BIOS), RAM sockets, power supply socket, Complementary Metal-oxide
Semiconductor (CMOS) chip, dipswitches and jumpers, and the memory
cache.

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Central Processing Unit (CPU)

This is the brain of the personal computer. It performs commands and

instructions and controls the operation of the computer. Two main
manufacturers of CPU in the market now are Intel Corporation and Advanced
Micro Devices (AMD) Corporation. Every year, both of them produces new
CPU model and specification which offer new design and faster processing
power. Four common specifications for CPU are: Processor type, Processor
speed (in Gigahertz (GHz)), Bus speed (Megahertz (MHz)): and L2 Cache
Size (in Kilobytes (KB)). As an example, a PC specification which related to
the PC in the market is listed in Table 1.2. Figure 1.6 shows an example of
Intels Pentium II CPU.
Table 1.2: Example of CPU specification for a PC
CPU
Specification
Processor
Type
Processor
Speed
Bus Speed

Values

Explanation

Xeon

This is one of the Intel Corporations

Family of CPU
The CPU speed of 1.4 Gigahertz

1.4 GHz
400 MHz

L2 Cache Size 256 KB

The Bus Speed must be supported by the

motherboard
Higher size of L2 Cache enhanced the
processing ability of the CPU

Figure 1.6: Intels Pentium II CPU

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Random Access Memory (RAM)

The RAM in PC system is mounted on the motherboard. This is memory that

must be powered on to retain its contents. Random Access Memory (RAM) is
considered temporary, or volatile memory. The contents of RAM are lost
when the computer power is turned off. RAM chips on the computer hold the
data and programs that the microprocessor is processing. In other words,
RAM is memory that stores frequently used data for rapid retrieval by the
processor.
A computer with higher RAM can hold and process large programs and files.
The amount and type of memory in the system can make a big difference in
the system performance.
There are two classes of RAM that are commonly used today. Static RAM
(SRAM) and Dynamic RAM (DRAM). SRAM is relatively more expensive, but
it is fast. It will maintain data only as long as voltage is available. SRAM is
used for cache memory. DRAM is inexpensive and somewhat slow, but very
dense for the size. DRAM stores data in tiny capacitors that must be
refreshed to maintain the data. Once the power is turned off, the data is lost.
The current type of RAM available in the market is Double Data Rate
3(DDR3) Synchronous Dynamic (SD) RAM. The advancement in the
development of RAM and other PC components are very fast and one model
of RAM or other components usually lasted less than two years. Table 1.3
gives further explanation of DDR3 SDRAM.

Table 1.3: Example of DDR3 SDRAM specification for a PC.

RAM
Specification
RAM Type
Capacity

Values

Explanation

DDR3
SDRAM

New generation of RAM called Double

Data Rate 3 Synchronous Dynamic
RAM.
Allows for RAM capacities of 512
Megabyte (MB) to 8 Gigabyte (GB)

512
Megabyte

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Cache Memory

Cache is a specialized form of computer chip that is designed to enhance

memory performance. Cache memory stores frequently used information and
transfers it to the processor much faster than RAM. Most personal computers
have two separate memory cache levels: Level 1 (L1) cache is located on the
CPU and Level 2 (L2) cache is located between the CPU and DRAM Cache
Memory.
L1 cache is faster than L2 because it is located within the CPU and runs at
same speed as the CPU. It is the first place the CPU looks for its data. If data
is not found in L1 cache, the search will then continue with L2 cache, and
then on to RAM. As an example, Intel XEON CPU has L2 Cache size of 256
Kilobit as part of the CPU which can be used to speed up the processing time
of the computer.

Drive controllers

The drive controllers control the interface of your system to hard disk drives
and the CD ROM Drives. The controllers let your hard drives and CD ROM
Drives work by controlling their operation. On most PCs, they are included on
the motherboard and each of their feature(s) is described in the motherboard
manual which comes with the PC when we purchased them. Additional
controllers for faster or other types of drives such as Small Computer System
Interface (SCSI) can also be added to the motherboard when SCSI Hard Disk
is added to the PC.

Hard disk drive(s)

Hard Disk Drive (HDD) is used to stored data and the Operating System on
the PC. It has a more complex design and provides a greater speed of
access. The HDD has a much larger storage capacity than the floppy for longterm storage. Typically, the HDD is installed inside the Casing as an internal
drive and cannot be seen outside the System Unit.

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Figure 1.7: Hard Disk Drive (Internal)

Every motherboard can support up to four hard disk drives if CD ROM drive is
not installed (One master and one slave at IDE1 and IDE2). Otherwise, three
Hard Disk Drives can be installed with one CD ROM Drive (One master and
one slave HDD on IDE1) and one master HDD on IDE2 and one slave CDROM Drive on IDE2. The setting for this configuration is usually available in
the motherboard manual supplied with each PC. Table 1.4 gives example of
hard disk drive specification.

Table 1.4: Example of Hard Disk Drive specification for a PC

Hard Disk Drive Model
Specification
Model
Quantum
Capacity

Explanation

80 Gigabyte (GB)

A common type of Hard Disk

Drive installed with PC
The Hard Sizes is getting bigger
as the technology for this
component improves over time

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CD-ROM Drive and DVD-ROM Drive

This is normally a read only drive where files are permanently stored. There
are now read/write CD-ROM and DVD-ROM drives that use special software
to allow users to read from and write to these drives. CD-ROM Drive with
writable capability has become important for data backup purpose. Exiting
CD-ROM Drive can be used to backup data up 700 Megabytes (MB) of data
in a single CD. Slowly, CD-ROM drive is replacing the functionality of Floppy
Disk Drive (FDD). Figure 1.8 shows example of CD-ROM drive.

Figure 1.8: CD-ROM Drive (Internal)

Floppy Disk Drive (FDD)

A Floppy Disk Drive uses floppy disk which is a small disk storage device that
today typically has about 1.4 Megabytes of memory capacity.
The
introduction of cheaper Thumb Drives (storage size can varies from 128 MB
to 1 GB) has slowly replaced the usage of floppy disk as the common device
for storing data for backup purpose.

Figure 1.9: Floppy Disk Drive (FDD)

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Video Cards

The video card or video adapter is the interface between the computer and
monitor. The video card tells the monitor which pixels to light up, what color
the pixels should be and the intensity of the color. The video card is either an
expansion card (installed into one of the motherboard expansion slots) or it
can be built into the motherboard. The display capabilities of a computer
depend on both the video adapter and the monitor.
A 64-bit AGP video card with 4 MB of RAM should be enough, but more
graphic intensive games may perform better with a video card having 32 MB
or more video RAM. Some video cards even include a graphics coprocessor
for performing graphics calculations. These adapters are referred to as
graphics accelerators. A newer form of VRAM is WRAM (Windows RAM).
The Pentium IV has an Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP) expansion slot for
installing a video card. AGP is designed exclusively for video cards. An AGP
card allows game and 3D applications to store and retrieve finer, more
realistic textures in system memory rather than video memory, without
incurring any performance problems. A significant advantage of the AGP is
that the PCI bus is relieved of handling graphics data, so that the PCI slot can
concentrate on other demanding duties. AGP also doubles the PCI transfer
speed. Figure 1.10 shows the example of AGP video card.

Figure 1.10: AGP Video Card

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Monitor

This device which operates like a TV set lets the user see how the computer
is responding to our commands. Monitors are available in different types,
sizes, and characteristics. Understanding the characteristics of a good
monitor will help determine which is best suited for a specific system. Some
key monitor-related terms are: pixels, dot pitch, refresh rate, colour depth,
resolution, and size.
Pixels are picture elements. The screen image is made of pixels (tiny dots),
which are arranged in rows across the screen. Each pixel consists of three
colors: red, green, and blue (RGB).
Dot pitch is a measurement of how close together the phosphor dots are on
the screen. The finer the dot pitch, the better image quality you will have.
Look for the smaller number. Most monitors today have a 0.25mm dot pitch.
Some have a 0.22mm dot pitch, which gives a very fine resolution.
The refresh rate is the rate per seconds that the screen image is refreshed.
Refresh rates are measured in Hertz (HZ), which means times per second.
The higher the refresh rate, the more steady the screen image will be. It may
look like a steady picture, but actually it flickers every time the electron beam
hits the phosphor-coated dots. Refresh rate is also called vertical frequency
or vertical refresh rate.
Colour Depth refers to the number of different colors each pixel can display.
This number is measured in bits. The higher the depth, the more colors that
can be produced.
Resolution varies based on the number of pixels. The more pixels in the
screen, the better the resolution. Better resolution means a sharper image.
The lowest screen resolution on modern PCs is 640 x 480 pixels, which is
called VGA (Video Graphics Array). There are now SVGA (Super Video
Graphics Array) and XGA (Extended Graphics Array) with resolutions all the
way up to 1600 x 1200.
Monitor screen sizes are measured in inches, just like televisions. The most
common sizes are 14," 15," 17," 19," and 21" screens, measured diagonally.
Note that the visible size is actually smaller than the measurement size. Have
this in mind when shopping for a monitor for the computer.

Keyboard

Keyboard is used for entering commands into the computer.

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Some other devices are also important in personal computer. The following items
summarize the devices:
n A Modem is a device that converts the digital data used by computers into
analog signals that are suitable for transmission over a telephone line and
converts the analog signals back to digital signals at the destination
n A Network Interface Card (NIC), also known as a network adapter, is used
to connect a local computer to a group of other computers so they can
share data and resources in a networked environment.
n Universal Serial Bus (USB) port allows user to connect up to 127 external
PC peripherals, including USB keyboards, mice, printers, modems,
scanners, and external disk drives. Figure 1.11 shows example of USB
port.
n A FireWire, also known as i.LINK or IEEE 1394 is a high-speed, platformindependent communication bus that interconnects digital devices such as
digital video cameras, printers, scanners, digital cameras, and hard drives.
Figure 1.12 shows example of FireWire.
n

Figure 1.11: USB Port

Figure 1.12: FireWire

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Exercise 1.2
Q1. Using the Internet, find more information regarding the personal computer
(PC) and its components.
Q2. What is the difference between DVD ROM and CD ROM?
Q3. Compare and contrast handy drive over hard drive.

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1.3 OPERATING SYSTEM

An operating system (OS) is the software that manages the sharing of the
resources of a computer and provides programmers with an interface used to
access the resources. An operating system processes system data and user
input, and responds by allocating and managing tasks and internal system
resources as a service to users and programs of the system. At the foundation of
all system software, an operating system performs basic tasks such as
controlling and allocating memory, prioritizing system requests, controlling input
and output devices, facilitating networking and managing file systems. Most
operating systems come with an application that provides a user interface for
managing the operating system such a command line interpreter or graphical
user interface. The operating system forms a platform for other system software
and for application software as shown in Figure 1.13.

Figure 1.13: Operating System as a platform for other applications

and devices
Operating system is also the most important program that runs on a computer.
Every general-purpose computer must have an operating system to run other
programs. Operating systems perform basic tasks, such as recognizing input
from the keyboard, sending output the display screen, keeping track of files and
directories on the disk, and controlling peripheral devices such as disk drives and
printers. Some of the examples of operating system are listed in Table 1.5.

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Table 1.5: Examples of Operating System

UNIX System V, AIX, HP-UX, Solaris (SunOS), IRIX,
Unix/BSD
List of BSD operating systems
Operating
system

GNU/Linux

List of Linux distributions, Comparison of Linux

distributions

Microsoft
Windows

Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows NT, Windows XP,

Windows Vista, Windows CE, Windows 7

DOS

86-DOS (QDOS), PC-DOS, MS-DOS, FreeDOS

Mac OS

Mac OS classic, Mac OS X

Exercise 1.3
Q1. Using the Internet, find more information regarding the operating systems.
Q2. Operating system (OS) is also known as a heart of a computer. What
happen if OS is mal-function or does not working?
Q3. Compare and contrast Unix Operating System over Window Operating
System.

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1.4 HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE

The term hardware covers all of those parts of a computer that are tangible
objects. Circuits, displays, power supplies, cables, keyboards, printers and mice
are all hardware. Unit 1.2 already discussed these.
Software refers to parts of the computer which do not have a material form, such
as programs, data, protocols, etc. When software is stored in hardware that
cannot easily be modified (such as BIOS ROM in an IBM PC compatible), it is
sometimes called "firmware" to indicate that it falls into an uncertain area
somewhere between hardware and software.
Practical computer systems divide software systems into three major classes:
system software, programming software and application software, although the
distinction is arbitrary, and often blurred.

System software helps run the computer hardware and computer system.
It includes operating systems, device drivers, diagnostic tools, servers,
windowing systems, utilities and more. The purpose of systems software
is to insulate the applications programmer as much as possible from the
details of the particular computer complex being used, especially memory
and other hardware features, and such as accessory devices as
communications, printers, readers, displays, keyboards, etc.

Programming software usually provides tools to assist a programmer in

writing computer programs and software using different programming
languages in a more convenient way. The tools include text editors,
compilers, interpreters, linkers, debuggers and so on. An Integrated
development environment (IDE) merges those tools into a software
bundle, and a programmer may not need to type multiple commands for
compiling, interpreter, debugging, tracing, and etc., because the IDE
usually has an advanced graphical user interface or GUI.

Application software allows end users to accomplish one or more specific

(non-computer related) tasks. Typical applications include industrial
automation, business software, educational software, medical software,
databases and computer games. Businesses are probably the biggest
users of application software, but almost every field of human activity now
uses some form of application software.

We can buy software at the computer shops. Some examples of software include
Microsoft Visual C++, Adobe Dreamweaver, Micromedia Flash and Adobe
Illustrator.

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Exercise 1.4
Q1. Using the Internet, find more information about hardware and software.
Q2. Give 5 examples of hardware and software.
Q3. Compare and contrast hardware over software.

SUMMARY
In this topic, we have reviewed about PC and its components. An operating
system of a computer is also reviewed. The hardware and software of a
computer are also reviewed.
REFERENCES
1. The Complete Idiots Guide to Computer Basics, 4th Edition, Joe Kraynak,
Alpha Books, 2007.
2. PCs for Dummies, 11th Edition, Dan Gookin, Wiley Publishing, Inc. 2007.
3. PC Hardware: A Beginners Guide, Ron Gilster, Osborne, 2001.

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