The Computer

The computer is an electronic device that accepts data, stores and processes it into information. It
consists basically of hardware and software. Hardware refers to the physical, tangible
components of the computer system such as the mouse, VDU, keyboard etc. Software refers to
the programs and their associated files that direct and control the operations of the computer such
as operating system software and applications software. A program is a set of instructions that
direct the operations of the computer system.

The computer is the most common IT component and as such we are going to take a closer look
at its structure and function. Below is a block structure of the contemporary computer.

As shown above, a computer receives data as input, processes it and gives information as output.

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Input

Input operations on the computer are carried out via the use of input devices. An input device is
any device that is used to enter data into the computer such as the keyboard, mouse etc.

Output

Output, which is the result of a processing activity, comes in 4 possible ways, i.e. softcopy,
hardcopy, sound and movement. Softcopy is output that is intangible in nature and it is displayed
on the visual display unit (VDU). Hardcopy output refers to printed material, which is tangible.
Sound can neither be seen nor touched but can be heard.

The Processor

The processor is also called the central processing unit (CPU) and is responsible for transforming
data into information.

The CPU may sometimes be referred to as the heart of the computer in that it is responsible for
co-ordinating and controlling the activities of all computer peripherals. A peripheral device is
any device that is external to and is connected to the processor. The CPU is also responsible for
monitoring the movement of data throughout the computer system as well as execution of
programs and instructions. The CPU has the following 3 functional units: control unit, arithmetic
and logic unit and memory unit.

1) Control Unit (CU)

It co-ordinates and controls the flow of data and instructions throughout the computer system
from input to output devices via the processor itself.

2) Arithmetic and Logic Unit (ALU)

It is responsible for making mathematical computations on data such as multiplying, dividing,

adding and subtracting. In situations where a decision has to be made, the logic section of the
ALU will make appropriate decisions based on a set of given conditions.

3) Memory Unit (MU) / Primary Memory

It supports as a temporary store, holding data and instructions before, during and after processing
but does not take part in the actual processing itself. Hence, it is argued that it does not form part
of the processor. It should be noted that, conventionally, the memory unit is considered to be an
integral component of the processor.

The primary store is volatile, meaning that it can only hold data for as long as there is a constant
power supply and will lose everything when power supply is cut off.

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Auxiliary storage

This is non-volatile backing storage that provides long-term storage of data that will need to be
retrieved and used later. With main memory volatile as it is, data can only be stored permanently
on auxiliary storage devices, which are also called secondary storage devices e.g. hard disk,
diskette, CDs etc.

STORAGE DEVICES

A storage device is any device that can store information that will subsequently be retrieved for
use later. Factors that may be considered when acquiring storage devices are:

1) Storage capacity

2) Access facilities (sequency eg random)

3) Size

4) Robustness (strength)

5) Relative cost

Storage devices can broadly be classified into Primary storage and Secondary storage devices as
follows:

PRIMARY STORAGE DEVICES

Memory chips are normally assembled into electronic circuit boards which may be fitted onto
slots on the motherboard. The memory chips in turn have slots for the same purpose in case there
is need to expand memory further.

Primary memory exist in two main categories namely RAM and ROM

a) RAM

Stands for random access memory or read and alter memory. Data store in RAM can be altered.
It is the most common type of semi-conductor memory and is volatile ( i.e data is not stored
permanently in RAM and will be lost when power is off. RAM consists of a matrix of cells each
of which is represented of a single bit. When charged the cell may represent binary 1 and 0 when
uncharged. RAM has 2 types namely:

i) Dynamic RAM

Dynamic RAM has cells whose charge leak despite the availability of constant

power supply and hence need to be constantly topped up or refreshed.

ii) Static RAM

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 Static RAM has cells that do not need to be refreshed in order to maintain

their charge as long as there is constant power supply.

b) ROM

Stands for read only memory. Data store on ROM can only be read but not altered. It is non-
volatile memory whose cell states are set permanently during manufacture. Instructions stored on
ROM are said to be ‘hard wired’ and are often referred to as ‘firmware’. It is mostly used to store
data and instructions that the computer needs from the time it is switched on i.e. OS programs.
ROM exists in the following variations:

i) PROM

Means Programmable Read Only Memory. PROM can store instructions programmed
by the user. However, once programmed, data is stored permanently and can no
longer be erased.

ii) EPROM

Means Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory. It also can be programmed by

the user but has the advantage that it can be erased and re-programmed. However, it
must be removed from the computer in order to be erased using a special device
called an ‘EPROM eraser’. Programming is done using an ‘EPROM programmer’.

iii) EAROM

Means Electronically Alterable Read Only Memory. Erasure and programming on

these memory devices can be achieved without removing them from the computer.
However, the process is very slow, hence, EAROM use is very limited. For this
reason they are sometimes called Read Mostly Memory.

iv) EEAROM

Means Electronically Erasable Read Only Memory. It is another name for EAROM.

SECONDARY / AUXILIARY STORAGE DEVICES

Secondary storage devices can be broadly classified into magnetic and optic storage devices as
follows:

MAGNETIC STORAGE DEVICES

1) MAGNETIC DISK

Consists of a circular piece of thin plastic or aluminium alloy, which is coated with magnetic
recording film. Examples of magnetic disks are floppy disk and hard disk.

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a) FLOPPY / STIFF DISK (DISKETTES)

Consists of a thin circular piece of Mylar plastic coated with ferric oxide enclosed in a protective
jacket. An oval slot is cut in the envelope to give access to the read / write head of the disk drive.
Diskettes can be single or double sided and generally have a capacity of 1.44 MB.

b) HARD DISKS (HDD – HARD DISK DRIVES)

They are also called Winchester disks. They consist of one or more disk platters permanently
sealed inside a casing. Each disk normally consist of tracks which are invisible concentric circles
formed on the surface of a magnetic disk on which data is recorded. The tracks are divided into
arcs called sectors each of which can be accessed directly and can be written to or read from by
the read / write head.

The read/write heads don’t actually touch the disk but ‘float’ on a very thin cushion of air above
the surface. Any tiny particle of dust on the surface of the disk or accidental jolting of the disk
which causes the head to come into contact with the surface of the disk surface ( a ‘head crush’)
can cause damage to the disk and loss of data. The time required to access and retrieve data
depends on 3 factors:

i) Seek time –the time it takes to position the read/write head over the correct track

ii) Latency – the time it takes to rotate the disk until the correct sector is under the
read/write head

iii) Data transfer rate – time taken to transfer data from disk to main memory

2) MAGNETIC TAPE

Iron oxide and chromium oxide can be induced to hold a positive or negative magnetic field.
This is the basis of operation of magnetic core storage and data storage on tape depends on the
presence of patterns of magnetised areas. Data on tapes can be distorted if the tapes are brought
close to another magnet through the distortion of patterns of the magnetised areas. Data is written
in frames across the tape with one frame representing a byte. The frames form tracks across the
length of the tape.

3) DATA CATRIDGES

Are special magnetic tape contained in a sealed cartridge which is opened only when the
cartridge is in the tape drive. They are more robust than magnetic tape.

OPTIC STORAGE DEVICES

1) COMPACT DISK (CD)

CD’s can be divided into 3 basic classes: read only CD’s, WORM, and erasable CD’s

a) CD-ROM (COMPACT DISK READ ONLY MEMORY)

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It is a digital optical storage system that stores digital data by means of burning tiny holes in the
surface of the disk using a laser beam. The holes represent 1’s and 0’s. These are then read with
a laser beam in the optical disk reader.

b) WORM DISKS

Once written the disk cannot be erased and re-written but can only be read. Hence, the name
‘write once read many’. They are used for archiving large amounts of data.

c) ERASABLE DISKS

This disk can be written to, erased and re-written again just like the floppy disk except that they
have a much bigger storage capacity than diskettes. The heat of a laser beam is used to change
the magnetic field of the disk so that billions of spaces can be created all with a + or – load
which function like the holes in the CD.

OTHER STORAGE DEVICES

1) RAMDISKS

This is an extra memory chip (not a disk), which the user can access in the same way as ordinary
disks i.e. it could be referred to as Drive D. It provides the advantage of faster access to
information stored on it. However, when the computer is switched off the information stored on
it will be lost and therefore it must be copied to a floppy disk or hard disk before the end of the
session if it needs to be retained.

2) FLASH MEMORY

These are memory sticks that are attached to the USB port of the computer to read the
information stored on them. The port in turn connects the memory stick to the CPU of the
computer.

STORAGE CAPACITY

Storage capacity in computers is measured in kilobytes as follows:

1KB = 1024 X 100 bytes

1MB = 1024 X 103 bytes

1GB = 1024 X 106 bytes

1NB = 1024 X 109 bytes

1TB = 1024 X 1012 bytes

Computer Input Devices

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These are electronic devices that enable users to enter the data they need to be processed into a
computer system such as touch screens, keyboard etc.

1) Mouse

This is a pointing device, which is used to control the pointer on the screen through the rolling
motion of a ball. The mouse can be moved in all directions thus enabling the user to position the
pointer on a particular item or icon on the computer screen. This item or icon is then selected by
clicking a button on the mouse.

The mouse is very popular in modern computers that use Windows and other Graphical User
Interface (GUI) applications.

2) Keyboard

It is an input device with keys for alphanumeric characters (numbers, letters and special
characters such as: $, *, @ etc) and special commands such as del, space, and shift etc. Input is
provided to the computer by pressing the relevant keys.

It is the most common input device.

3) Trackball

It is an input device with a ball on top. Unlike the mouse, a finger can be used to move the ball
without moving the base holding it. As the ball rolls, its movements translate into corresponding
movements of the pointer on the screen. A button is clicked once the pointer is pointing at the
required item. A trackball can be thought of as an overturned mouse.

4) Joystick

It consists of a gear lever movable in the directions left, right, up and down. These movements
are translated into movements of the pointer on the screen. It’s mostly used in computer games.

5) Light Pen

It is a device shaped like a pen, incorporating a light sensor so that when it is held close to the
screen over a character or part of a graphic, the object is detected and can be moved to create or
modify graphics.

6) Wand / Magnetic Pen

It is an input device shaped like a shaving stick. Data encoded on magnetic tape can be read and
converted into electrical signals by passing the ‘head’ of the wand over the tape.

7) Touch pad

It is a pressure sensitive flat material used to input data by dragging one’s finger across the flat
surface thus directing the pointer on the screen. It is used on a majority of portable computers
such as laptops.

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8) Touch-sensitive screen

It is a pressure sensitive screen which is used to input data into the computer by touching the
item of interest on the screen. It works as both an input and output device.

9) Graphics Tablet / Digitiser

This is a flat, square or rectangular slab of material onto which a stylus is placed. The computer
can detect the position of the stylus or pen and the x- and y- coordinates are transmitted to the
system. They can be used in tracing drawings.

10) Scanner

It is a device that shines a bright light onto the image being read while a head called a scan head
moves from the top of the document to the bottom at a constant rate collecting data by measuring
the intensity of light that is reflected back from the document. This information can then be store
in the computer.

11) Electronic Point Of Sale Terminals (EPOST/EPOS)

It is an electronic cash register that is linked to a computer or records data onto cartridge or
cassette. In its simplest it may simply transfer the details of a transaction to a computer for
processing. The more complex ones can check the customer’s creditworthiness, obtain prices
from the relevant file, or even debit the customer’s bank or credit account and such a transaction
is called Electronic Funds Transfer at Point Of Sale (EFTPOS).

12) Document Readers

i) Optical Character Readers (OCR)

These are scanners that can read typewritten, computer printed, and in some cases hand
written characters from ordinary documents, by scanning the shape of each character and
comparing it with a predefined shape held in its memory. The most common
fonts/typeface are OCR-A, which is an American standard, and the OCR-B, which is
common in Europe and Japan.

ii) Optical Mark Readers (OMR)

It is a scanning device, which can detect marks made in preset positions on a special
form. It is frequently used to score multiple-choice tests.

iii) Magnetic Ink Character Readers (MICR)

These are input devices, which capture human readable characters pre-printed in special
ink mixed with iron oxide. Before being read the document pass through a magnetic field,

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 which magnetises the pre-printed characters. The reading head recognises each character
by its magnetic filed pattern, codes it and provides input into the computer.

13) Speech Input Unit / Microphone

It is a device that takes the spoken word as its input, and converts them to a form that can be
understood by a computer i.e. the unit can uniquely code as a sequence of bits each spoken word,
interpret the word and initiate action based on the word.

Computer Output Devices

An output device is any device that displays information in a way that is readable and
understandable by the user.

Computer output can be in any of the following forms:

a) Hardcopy – printed paper

b) Softcopy – screen display

c) Sound – output from speakers

d) Movement – output produced by devices that turn electrical pulses into actual movement
of their components such as actuators.

1) Actuators

These are output devices that receive electrical signals as input, process and produce movement
corresponding to the signal as output e.g. a robot. Instead of producing movement an actuator
can also alter its environment in some way like switching off lights upon receipt of an electrical
signal. In other words actuators translate electrical signals into action.

2) Speakers

These are electronic output devices with sound cards that are capable of converting or translating
digital signals that represent sound into audible sound.

3) Visual Display Unit (VDU) / Monitor / Cathode Ray Tube (CRT)

It is the screen of the computer that displays the results of a computer process. It is divided into
rows and columns of dots called pixels, which are used to form images on the screen. The
number of pixels that can be displayed vertically and horizontally gives the maximum resolution
of the monitor and determines the quality of the display. The higher the resolution, the better the
quality of display.

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Some popular resolutions are 800*640 pixels, 1024*768 pixels, and 1280*1024 pixels.

Screen Operating Modes

Scrolling – moving the lines displayed on the screen up or down one line at a time.

Paging – moving the document displayed on the screen up or down one page at a time.

4) Graph Plotter

It is an output device with precision motors that are controlled by a computer. The motors move
an arm across the paper in the x-direction and a pen unit up and down the arm in the y-direction.
An electromagnet is used to lift and drop the pen as it writes on paper.

5) Printers

Printers are computer controlled electronic devices that produce output as printed sheets of paper
i.e. hardcopy. They can either be impact or non-impact printers.

a) Impact Printers

An impact printer is one whose print head hits against paper when printing and has an ink ribbon
between the head and paper.

Advantages of impact printers

- Less expensive

- Can make multiple copies with multi-part paper

Disadvantages of impact printers

- Noisy

- Poor print quality

- Poor graphics or non at all

b) Non-Impact printers

These are printers that do not make contact with paper but print by using any other techniques
such as spraying ink or toner powder.

Advantages of non-impact printers

- Quiet

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 - Can handle graphics and often a wider variety of fonts than impact printers

Disadvantages of non-impact printers

- More expensive

- Slower

Factors to consider when choosing a printer

- Volume of output

- Quality of output (letter quality, near letter quality, draft)

- Speed

- Can it print graphics

- Are multiple copies needed

- Is colour needed

- Noise

Impact Printers

i) Dot-matrix Printer

Has a print head that consists of a matrix of needles that, when printing, protrude to form a letter
and the head strikes against a ribbon and the ribbon is pressed against paper, thus a character is
printed. Only the appropriate needles protrude to form a character. It is character printer whose
speed is measured in characters per second.

Advantages

- Cheap

- Easy to maintain

Disadvantages

- Produce a lot of noise (why?)

- Relatively slow

ii) Daisy Wheel Printer

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It consists of a disc that has petals extending on its edges. At the end of these petals are
engravings of characters. The daisy wheel rotates in front of a print hammer to position a
character before the print hammer which then strikes the petal from behind and the petal in turn
strikes against the ribbon and ribbon against paper, thus a character is printed.

Advantages

- Produces letter quality print (fully formed characters)

Disadvantages

- It is slow due to the rotational delay

- It is inflexible i.e. cannot provide a variety of fonts

iii) Drum Printer

It consists of a cylindrical drum with engravings of characters on its surface. The drum rotates in
front of a ribbon positioned between the paper and the drum. When the appropriate character is
in position the appropriate print hammer strikes i.e. the hammers are arranged in a line. It is a
line printer.

iv) Thimble Printer

It consists of a hub with spokes attached to it at 90-degree angles. At the tip of each spoke is an
engraving of a character. The wheel rotates in front of a ribbon and a print hammer and when the
appropriate character is in position the print hammer strikes.

It is a line printer.

v) Ball Printer

It consists of a round spherical shape whose face is engraved with characters. Mode of operation
is similar to the drum printer save for the fact that it uses one print hammer. It is a line printer.

vi) Chain Printer

It consists of a chain of metal elements with engravings of characters. The chain rotates in front
of a wheel like a fan belt. When the appropriate character is in position the print hammer strikes.

Advantage

- It is a relatively high speed printer

Disadvantage

- It is expensive to maintain

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Non-Impact Printers

i) Laser Printer

It prints by shining laser beam onto a photo conductive drum such the drum becomes electrically
charge at the positions where the light strikes it thus attracting toner which in turn is fixed on to
paper by heat and pressure to produce a printed page. It is microprocessor in its own right with
memory to store data prior to printing.

Advantages

- It is a very high speed printer (speed measured in lines per minute)

- Has memory (RAM) for storing data prior to printing

Disadvantages

- Expensive to buy

ii) Inkjet Printer

It prints by shooting a steady stream of tiny droplets of ink towards the paper from an array of
nozzles. The computer controls which droplets are charged with electricity so that they are
attracted towards paper and form characters.

Advantages

- It has very high printing speeds

- Can be used to combine different fonts

- Can be used to produce graphics and logos

- They are quiet

Disadvantage

- Expensive to buy

- Expensive to maintain

- Cannot use multi-part paper

- Ink can smear

iii) Electrostatic Printer

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This printer forms characters by means of wires, which form a charged image on paper. As the
paper is moved through a container with suspended ink droplets, the ink adheres to the charges
forming an image on the paper.

iv) Thermal Printer

It operates by selectively activating a series of printing elements to form each character. These
elements burn the characters onto heat sensitive paper.

v) Xerographic Printer

It produces printed papers by combining a computer with office copier techniques to give sharp
character images on letter size paper thereby reducing paper consumption. It is a line printer.

vi) Magnetic Printer

It features charged particles that use a dot matrix device to form writing images. These dots are
placed on a belt that passes through toner containing suspended black ink particles. The ink
adheres to the belt, which in turn is pressed against heated paper causing characters to fuse to the
paper.

Brief History of Computers

When the human race started doing some trade, it felt a need for a calculating device. The first
calculating device, which was used 2000 years ago was called abacus and the improvements in
the calculating device in that age were slow. The next change came after about 1600 years.
Following this, the changes were frequent and the mechanical desk calculator was developed
around 1800 A.D. In 1833, Prof. Charles Babbage, the father of the computer, developed a
machine called analytical engine, which was the vase for the modern digital computer.

Generations of Computer

The history of computer development is often referred to in reference to the different generations
of computing devices. A generation refers to the state of improvement in the development of a
product. With each new generation, the circuitry has gotten smaller and more advanced than the
previous generation before it. As a result of the miniaturization, speed, power, and memory
of computers have proportionally increased.

Each generation of computer is characterized by a major technological development that

fundamentally changed the way computers operate, resulting in increasingly smaller, cheaper,
powerful and more efficient and reliable devices.

1st generation

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The used electronic valves and relays and existed in the 1940’s. Coding of programs was done
using machine code.

2nd generation

These computers existed in the 1950’s and they used transistors and resistors, thus, were more
reliable. They were as large as a room and made use of the stored program concept. They used
semi-conductor cores for memory chips. And were reduced in size and increased in processing
power. Coding of programs was done using assembly language/ low-level language. Assembly
languages were developed to eliminate the need to use binary codes for each instruction. They
are mnemonic codes such as ADD for ‘add’, SUB for ‘subtract’ etc. It is used when a
programmer needs to write a program that will execute very quickly or use as little memory as
possible.

3rd generation

These were evident in the 1960’s and 1970’s and were more compact and reliable and they used
integrated circuits. Programs were coded using high-level language.

4th generation

Existed in from the 1970’s onwards and used very large-scale integrated circuits and more
sophisticated micro-electric devices. Program coding was done using very high-level languages,
query languages etc. A query language is a non-procedural language where the programmer
specifies WHAT needs to be done but not HOW.

5th generation

These reside in the realms of science fiction and are expected to be able to converse with
humans, and mimic human senses, manual skills, and intelligence.

COMPUTER CLASSIFICATION

Computers can be classified by purpose, size and design mode as follows:

a) BY PURPOSE

We have general purpose and special purpose computers.

1) General Purpose

These are manufactured for wide range of applications some of which may not be related e.g. the
PC (Personal Computer).

2) Special Purpose

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These are manufactured for a particular application and cannot perform any task other than that
for which it was manufactured e.g. calculator, artificial heart pump.

b) BY SIZE

1) Personal computers (PC)

These are small and portable. Generally, most PC’s can fit on top of desks (hence they are called
desktops) and are very affordable. A PC can only obey up to 1 million instructions per second. It
makes use of a single user operating system; hence one user operates it at a time. Secondary
storage used besides the hard disc is floppy disk.

2) Miniframe

Are larger computers whose CPU reside in a box that may be the size of a chest of drawers. They
can support up to 40 users each at his own terminal (use multi-user operating system). They can
obey up to 10 million instructions per second. Secondary storage include reel-to-reel tapes, disk
packs etc. They require considerable amount of power compared to PC’s. Storage capacity is
measured in gigabytes (Gigs)

3) Mainframes

These are very large computers that can take up space the size of an entire room. They can
support up to 100 users at a time and can obey up to 100 million instructions per second. They
are very expensive to buy and energy overhead costs are very high. Storage capacity is measured
in nanobytes.

NB: It is difficult to draw a line between a mainframe and a miniframe because one
manufacturer’s least powerful mainframe is another manufacturer’s most powerful miniframe.

c) BY DESIGN MODE

1) Digital computers

These are computers that use logic gates, which respond to electronic pulses such that when they
are not charged they represent a 0 and a 1 when charged. Data is recorded and manipulated in
this format e.g. 15 in binary is 00001111 e.g. PC’s

2) Analogue computers

These computers measure physical quantities e.g. weight, humidity etc.

Examples are electronic thermometers, scale etc.

3) Hybrid computers

It is a computer capable of measuring physical quantities and representing and manipulating data
in binary notation.

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WHAT IS SOFTWARE

Refers to the instructions or programs and their associated files that allow computer systems to
operate.

Software gives life to hardware. Software can be classified into 2 main categories namely:

1) Systems software

2) Applications software

a) SYSTEMS SOFTWARE

Is a program or suit of programs that manages the computer’s resources. It is mainly made
up of an operating system (OS). Examples of operating systems are, UNIX, Windows NT,
Windows 2000, and the famous MS-DOS (Microsoft Disc Operating System ).

On a microcomputer system the OS is usually held on the hard disk, otherwise it’s held on a
diskette called a system disk. On all computers a small program held on ROM called the
‘loader’ will tell the computer where to look for the OS and give instructions for loading at
least part of it into memory. Once loaded more instructions can be executed to load the rest
of the nucleus. This method of ‘pulling itself by its own bootstraps’ is where the expression
‘booting’ comes from. Booting is the process of loading the OS.

OPERATING SYSTEMS (OS)

An operating system (systems software) is a collection of programs designed to run the

operations of a computer with a minimum user intervention. An operating system is composed of
four distinct programs, which are

 Control Programs

 Services Programs and

 Translation Programs

 Supervisory Programs

Control Programs

This monitor the data and instruction flow throughout the computer system as well as the
functions of operating system program which are currently at work.

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Services Programs

These are programs that assist the user to perform functions of a routine nature. They support
programmers when writing, storing, and running their programs. The main programs are:

Loaders – programs responsible for loading programs into main memory

Linkers – programs responsible for linking program modules together

Editors – programs that enable modification of a program code. An example of an

editor is the MS-DOS edit which permits the writing of batch files.

Other utilities programs include the following:

Sort - This is a program designed to arrange a record into a desired sequence e.g.
alphabetic order. Sorting is done by reference to a record key.

File Copying - The production of a duplicate copy of an existing file onto a storage device or
into some other directory .A file can also be occupied into some directory but the duplicate file
should have a different file name.

File Maintenance - A program designed to assist insertion and deletions of records in any file.
Also helps in the management of files e.g. deleting unwanted files or moving files from one
directory to another.

Tracing &Debugging - This utility helps a user to locate errors in a program and weed them
out. Other utilities include saving, merging.

Supervisory Programs - These programs act as the overall manager and, hence, are sometimes
referred to as The Executive Manager, Monitor or Kernnel. They monitor the activities of the
operating system itself and are also responsible for decision making for instance, when there is
an interrupt such as a device failure or a power failure.

Translation Programs

This software converts source programs from high level language into machine executable code.
Depending on how they achieve the task above they can be classified into compilers or
interpreters.

a) Compilers

Require the programmer to complete the coding of a program in high level language ( source
code ) before translating it into machine code ( object code ) for execution. The object code is

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stored permanently for future use when the same program needs to be run again e.g. PASCAL
and COBOL compilers.

b) Interpreters

These translators convert high level language code into machine code as the programmer types
the program such that any mistake is corrected as soon as it occurs. Unlike compilers,
interpreters don’t produce a permanent object code but convert program lines into object code
one line at a time

as the program is executed. Hence, the program is translated into machine code each time it’s
run. e.g. Visual Basic.

Supervisory Programs

These programs act as the overall manager and as a result are sometimes referred to as the
executive, monitor, kernel, supervisor or nucleus. They monitor the activities of the OS itself and
are also responsible for decision-making for instance when there is a device failure or power
failure.

MODES OF OPERATION OF OS

OS vary considerably in their processing capabilities. Hence, the processing capability of an OS

determines the type of processing that can be implemented in a computer system as follows:

1) Single Program Operation / Single User OS

The OS supervises the loading and running of one program at a time, and the input and
output of data from and to peripheral devices. This type of operating system enables the
exclusive use of a computer by a single user. It is an interactive operating system and is used
mostly on PCs. This user issues an instruction and the computer executes the instruction and
gives responses thereof. It can obey only one instruction at a given time.

2) Multiprocessing

The execution of a program or programs sharing all or part of the same memory by
multiple processors. It is the simultaneous execution of 2 or more sequences of
instructions by multiple CPU under common control.

3) Multiprogramming

The execution of 2 or more programs concurrently by a single processor. The OS has to

allocate resources to each program, allowing each one a small amount of processor time
before moving on to the next one. The various types of multiprogramming systems that
exist are:

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 i) Multi – user system / Time – sharing system

The simultaneous running of different programs by several people from different

workstations. This is a system in which the C.P.U. allocates time slices to the various
terminals connected to it. The CPU serves each user exclusively only for a fraction of a
second before going to the next user etc in round robin fashion.

Each user has the impression that his working independently on his computer though they are
using the same computer.

ii) Multitasking

The concurrent execution of 2 or more related tasks between which

communication is possible. It is the breaking down of a single job into stages
called tasks which can be executed simultaneously. In this situation several
users can run their programs with each user having the illusion that he is
working independently.

4) Batch Processing

Is processing in which one or more programs are submitted to the computer as a job and put
in a queue until it is their turn to be run. It is processing where transactions are accumulated
in batches for processing after a pre-defined period of time. The CPU is characterized by
numerous idle times and is overloaded with jobs when processing falls due. It is very useful
for applications such as payroll processing. The major disadvantage is that responses are not
instant as the results are to be obtained after the processing session. Another hindrance is that
the processor is not fully utilised. The benefits obtained are jobs may be processed to some
degree offline e.g. sorting. This relieves the burden on the processor.

5) Real – Time Processing

Is processing in which results are produced at a speed commensurate with the actual
happening of the transaction. Data input to the computer is processed immediately.

It makes use of a central computer connected by remote terminals. It is interactive and the
master file is updated immediately.

6) Centralised Processing

The central hub is overloaded with jobs. It is characterized by delays hence difficult to handle
prompt queries. There is one processing centre where a number of terminals are connected to
one computer. Usually applied in business where the satellites sub-branches send there
processing to be done at their headquarters and results are communicated thereof. The major
disadvantage is that if the central computer breaks down or employees at the processing site
go on strike then there is no processing at all.

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 7) Distributed Processing

This is the reverse of centralized processing and is a situation where each branch does its
own processing. Usually processing is specialized per branch e.g. one branch may
process payroll another specializes in processing accounts. This permits specialization
and efficiency in processing. The data produced at each centre may be available to other
centres as per need and can be communicated through communications links. If there is a
failure at one site, it is less likely to affect other branches in the organization.

8) Online Processing

This is a situation where people and equipment are in direct communication with the
CPU and jobs are sent to the computer CPU via terminals for processing. If the CPU is
free it processes the job immediately and gives the necessary responses and if not, the job
is placed in a queue for processing later. Because of queuing online processing is
characterized by delays. Database is not a pre-requisite and speed is not the essence. This
makes it much different to real time processing.

9) Offline Processing

This is a situation where processing is done without the aid of a processor. Activities that
may be carried out off-line include sort, verification and validation.

10) Integrated Processing

This combines at least 2 or more types and rolls them all into one system.

Qn. Explain the concept of distributed processing and decentralised processing and how they
differ from each other. (8)

Qn. Explain six (6) functions of an operating system (12)

FUNCTIONS OF AN OPERATING SYSTEM

1) Resource allocation and scheduling – loading of programs into memory and removing
them from memory as required by the user. The allocation of CPU time, memory and
Input/Out put resources to different processes running concurrently.

2) Memory management – this is the partitioning of all or some of the computer’s memory so
that different programs will be running in different partitions. The OS decides on how these
partitions are organised.

3) Backing store management – supervising the creation, updating and deletion of files.

4) Input / Output control – controlling reading from and writing to peripheral devices.

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5) Interrupt handling – dealing with error control signals

6) Operator Interface – the OS accepts commands from the operator and responds to them

7) Security – most multi-user systems provide the ability to assign login codes and passwords
to different users.

8) Accounting Facilities – keeping records of facilities used by each person such as processor
time, number of pages printed and disk space used.

9) Utilities – programs for performing tasks of a routine nature such as editing files, sorting
records etc.

PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES

Programming languages are classified into low level, high level and 4th generation languages.

1) Low Level Languages

Low level languages can be further subdivided into machine code language and assembly
language.

Machine Code – the commands are written in binary representation and they directly control the
computer. They run fast and are efficient because no code conversion is needed. However, they
are difficult to to code and debug and are machine specific.

Assembly languages – the commands are written using simple mnemonics and is easier to work
with than machine code. However, to be executed the instructions must be translated into
machine code by an assembler. They are also machine specific.

2) High Level Languages ( 3rd generation languages )

These were developed to overcome the limitations of machine languages. They are problem
oriented and are sometimes referred to as procedural languages. They use English-like
statements and should be translated to machine code using a compiler or interpreter. High level
languages can be classified into

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 - commercial languages e.g. COBOL

- scientific languages e.g. FORTRAN, BASIC and PASCAL

- special purpose e.g. SQL

3) 4th Generation Languages

Need fewer lines of code for instructions as compared to 3GLs. They are easy to learn and use
statements very close to natural language. They are used by users to develop simple systems.

4GLs have the following features:

- Query language

- report generator

- application generators

- screen painter

GENERAL SOFTWARE TRENDS

In general software is becoming easier to use, more graphical and loaded with more features. It
now also requires more powerful hardware especially main memory and secondary storage.
Some of the features being incorporated into software to make it more user friendly are as
follows:

Graphical User Interface (GUI) – these are human computer interfaces that are based on
graphics.

Windows – allow a user to open, view and work with more than one file.

Data linking – the linking of data between files developed by different programs. In windows
applications data links are in real-time mode and are called hot links. In non-windows
applications data links are updated when you exit the application and are called warm links.

Ease of use – as a result of GUI software is now easy to install and use.

Hardware demands – software that uses graphics requires special graphic cards and monitors
which cost more, as well as high speed, hence expensive processors with large word sizes.

APPLICATIONS SOFTWARE

These are written to meet specific user requirements. Application software can be divided into
general-purpose (application packages) and function-specific.

 People in different industries at different levels can use general-purpose software.

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  Function-specific addresses certain specific functions within an organization, for example
Accounting package.

Application packages/ off the shelf' packages

These are pieces of software which have been created by a software manufacturer, tested,
documented and copied many times. Application packages tend to be generalist in nature i.e.
used by many different organizations for word processing and spreadsheet work.

Application packages can be classified into the following categories:

1) Word-processing software is a collection of software that permits the user to create, edit and
print text documents. Most word processing packages come with spell-checkers, grammar
checkers and thesaurus programs for creating drawings and table of contents. Word, WordPerfect
are examples of word processing software.

2) Spreadsheet software is used mainly for mathematical calculations allows managers to

prepare budgets, tax analysis, sales and profit projections. Managers can design templates, which
contain formulas used to create columns or row averages. Spreadsheets allow managers to
simulate various solutions. A user may enter a number of different values and see the effect on
the results such as profit margins. MS Excel and Lotus 1-2-3 are examples of spreadsheets.

This is software with pages that have 2 dimensional tables concerned with the manipulation of
numeric data and text. The pages consist of a matrix of cells, which form at the intersection of
rows and columns.

3) Presentation graphics software; Presentation graphics software lets managers prepare slides
containing charts, text and images. Presentation graphics software usually provides libraries of
clip art images that can be cut and paste into a slide to make the slide more attractive and
informative. Examples of Presentation packages include MS PowerPoint.

4) Database management software is software that allows users to prepare reports based on
data found in different records on the database. Database management software is an important
managerial decisions support tool for managers at all levels of an organization. Examples of
database management packages include MS Access, Dbase IV, e.t.c.

Whenever managers are confronted with a decision of buying application software, they need to
consider the following:

 Relevance of the software to the task at hand.

 Sophistication; simple programs are usually easy to learn, cost less and are appropriate
for those who use the software infrequently.

 Ease of use; user-friendliness.

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  The readability and clarity of the documentation, or manual for the software package, the
clarity of the menus and prompts displayed on the screen, on-line help that explains the
prompts and commands, tutorials that teach you how to use software, a graphical user
interface with its point-and-click environment.

 Easiness of installation, continued support and compatibility with other existing software
and hardware.

 Memory requirements; software packages vary in the amount of main memory they
require.

Integrated packages

An integrated package consists of a number of modules, which either act totally independently or
can be linked together to perform joint functions e.g. Microsoft Office etc

Advantages of integrated packages

i) Easy to learn

ii) Cheaper

iii) Faster

iv) More flexible

Disadvantages of integrated packages

i) May not meet the user’s requirements

ii) Less easy to update

Advantages of Packaged Software

 The software tends to be relatively cheap as the cost of development can be spread over a
large number of users.

 They are likely to be available almost immediately

 Any system bugs should have been discovered by other users and eliminated.

 They come with good training programmes and documentation.

Drawbacks of Packaged Software

 The software can be highly complex and will usually include large sections that you will
never use (the average Word user is reputed to only use about 10% of the available
facilities).

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  It tends to be a compromise. By its nature it is designed for many different types of users,
each of whom will have different requirements.

 As the software tends to be large and complicated it may take a long time to learn
properly (some of the most asked for additions to later versions of Word were ones that
already existed in the previous version - it was just that the users did not know that they
existed because the application was so big).

 You may have to alter the way that you work in order to fit in with the way that the
software has been designed.

 As the same system can be bought by your competitors it is very difficult to gain any
competitive advantage from it's use.

Bespoke software

Bespoke refers to software that has been custom made for a company, because generic software
does not have the functionality they need.

Advantages of Bespoke Software

 It has been specifically designed for your particular requirements and can be tailored to
fit in exactly with the way that your business or organization wishes to operate.

 It can be customized to interface with other software that you operate with the potential
to provide you with a fully integrated IT infrastructure across your whole organization.

 The software can be tuned to your specific needs thus providing you with performance
benefits that are just not feasible with packaged software.

 Users will usually find it easier and more intuitive to use as it should not contain
unnecessary or superfluous facilities and should operate in the way that they are used to
working.

 It can incorporate business processes that are specific to you and which do not exist in
any packaged solution.

 It is much more flexible than packaged software and can be modified and changed over
time as your requirements and business practices change.

 You will (usually) receive much better support and can in many cases talk directly to the
developers concerned.

 If you are lucky and find a good developer then they can significantly add value to your
company by suggesting alternatives, improvements and by acting as a source of IT advice
and information.

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  The use of professionally developed bespoke software applications can give you a
significant business advantage over your competition.

Drawbacks of Bespoke Software

 If you do not have the source code you are dangerously exposed and are wholly
dependent upon the developers continuing existence and good will. To avoid this
problem make sure you choose a developer who provides you with the source code.

 If the software is not developed to professional Best Practice standards it may be

unstable, unreliable and full of bugs (but then again so is some packaged software!).
Selecting a developer who works to Best Practice should counteract this.

 The investment required will usually be much higher than with packaged software. This
is usually the biggest reason for not going down the custom route - you need to undertake
a business justification exercise and compare the costs against the expected benefits and
commercial advantages.

End user computing (EUC)

This is a process by which the user develops applications, with or without the assistance of IT
personnel in an environment that allows access to a computer, data and relevant software. More
users are now becoming involved in the development work of systems.

It can be argued that end-users are the most qualified people for the development work. EUC
speeds up the process of developing new systems.

Reasons for EUC

1) The need to have flexible systems that meet the unique requirements of each user

2) The need by users to have instant responses to their queries and concerns

Application and support

To support EUC the following tools and methods are used:

1) 4th generation languages

2) Prototyping

3) Software packages

4) Information centers

4th Generation Languages

These are very high-level programming languages in which the programmer states what he needs
done without specifying how it has to be done. 4GLs require less lines of code than 3GLs like

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COBOL. They are designed to be used interactively and dialogue between user and software
enables errors to be corrected as the application development takes place.

Merits of 4GLs

1) Easy to use

2) Good documentation

3) Self-documentation

4) On-line help

5) Interactive use

6) Robust

Prototyping

A prototype is a smaller, working version of the actual system that has all the features of the
actual system and is used to test system effectiveness at minimal cost.

Information centers

These exist to assist end-users in writing their own applications using 4GLs by providing general
technical assistance and support services to end-users during their development of applications.

Advantages associated with EUC

1) Reduce time and costs of accomplishing a task

2) Easier to acquire and understand user requirements as end-users are heavily involved in
the design of the new system.

3) Can increase individual performance and job satisfaction

4) Increased computer literacy among users

Disadvantages associated with EUC

1) A drop in standards and controls

2) Inaccuracy of specification requirements

3) Reduction in quality assurance and stability of the system

4) Possible duplication of operations by different staff in the company

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The impact of modern technology

The introduction of computers into industry and commerce has caused major changes in patterns
of employment, causing hardships to some and bringing new opportunities to others. The past 2
decades have seen the following changes taking place:

1) Put many people out of work

2) Changed the nature of many people’s work

3) Resulted in de-skilling of some jobs

4) Made some people’s jobs more interesting

5) Resulted in high unemployment rate

6) Enabled some organizations to operate more efficiently

7) Resulted in increase in the number of bankruptcies

8) Created many new job opportunities

9) Forced people to learn new skills

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