Computer

 The word computer is derived from the word compute.

Compute means to calculate. The computer was originally
defined as a super fast calculator.

 Is an electronic device that manipulate/process data and

transfer it into information.
Computer Classification

Computer

Software Hardware

System Input Units

Application Output Units

CPU

Memory
 Quiz 1
1. Fill in the blanks.
a. The primary storage unit is also called as …………………
b. Arithmetic logic unit is a part of …………………………
c. The unit of the computer which gives t h e results of the process and
computations is the ……………
2. Answer in brief
a. Define a system.
..........................................................................................................
b. Write the functions of the input unit.
......................................................................................................
 Computer - Applications
Computer is used in business organizations for −
 Payroll calculations
 Budgeting
 Sales analysis
 Financial forecasting
 Managing employee database
 Maintenance of stocks, etc.
Banks provide the following facilities −
 Online accounting facility, which includes checking
current balance, making deposits and overdrafts,
checking interest charges, shares, and trustee
records.
 ATM machines which are completely automated are
making it even easier for customers to deal with
banks
Insurance companies are maintaining a database of
all clients with information showing −
 Procedure to continue with policies
 Starting date of the policies
 Next due installment of a policy
 Interests due
 Survival benefits
 Bonus
The computer helps in the education system.
 The computer provides a tool in the education system
known as CBE (Computer Based Education).
 CBE involves control, delivery, and evaluation of learning.
 Computer education is rapidly increasing the graph of
number of computer students.
 There are a number of methods in which educational
institutions can use a computer to educate the students.
 It is used to prepare a database about performance of a
student and analysis is carried out on this basis.
In marketing, uses of the computer are following −
Advertising − With computers, advertising professionals
create art and graphics, write and revise copy, and print
and disseminate ads with the goal of selling more
products.
Home Shopping − Home shopping has been made
possible through the use of computerized catalogues that
provide access to product information and permit direct
entry of orders to be filled by the customers.
Also, used in the following :
Healthcare
Engineering Design
Military
Communication
Government
…….
CLASSIFICATION OF COMPUTERS

Analog computers

Digital Computers

Hybrid Computers
 Computer - Types
Computers can be classified by their speed and computing power.
Type Specifications
PC (Personal It is a single user computer system having moderately powerful
Computer) microprocessor
It is also a single user computer system, similar to personal
Workstation
computer however has a more powerful microprocessor.
It is a multi-user computer system, capable of supporting hundreds
Mini Computer
of users simultaneously.
It is a multi-user computer system, capable of supporting hundreds
Main Frame of users simultaneously. Software technology is different from
minicomputer.
It is an extremely fast computer, which can execute hundreds of
Supercomputer
millions of instructions per second.
Advantages of Computers
High Speed
Accuracy
Storage Capability
Reliability
Automation
Reduction in Paper Work and Cost
Disadvantages of Computers
No I.Q.
Dependency
Environment
No Feeling
Organization of human being & computer
Similarities and Difference between
Human and Computer
 Computer - Input Devices
Following are some of the important input devices which are
used in a computer −
 Keyboard - Mouse
 Joy Stick - Light pen
 Track Ball - Scanner
 Graphic Tablet - Microphone
 Optical Character Reader(OCR)
 Bar Code Reader
 Computer - Output Devices

Following are some of the important output devices used in a

computer.

 Monitors
 Graphic Plotter
 Printer
The computer as a data processor
 Storage Drives
SHAPE NAME Capacity Drive Letter (usually) Characteristics

3 ½ Diskette 1.44 Megabytes A: or B: Recordable, Very slow, Tend to lose information

easily, Very cheap, Exchangeable, Easy to carry.

Hard Disk Between 1 and 16 Shape Recordable, Very fast, Boot disk, Safe, Very
Drive Gigabytes Expensive.

ZIP or Between 100 D:, E:, F: etc... (The PC Recordable, Fast, Safe, Very Expensive,
LS-120 Megabytes and 1 assigns them the next Exchangeable, Easy to carry.
Gigabyte (1000 available letter while
Megabytes) booting)

CD-ROM 650 Megabytes D:, E:, F: etc...(The PC Some Recordable (expensive), Capacity for Audio,
assigns them the next Very Fast,
(0.65 Gigabytes)
available letter while Very Safe, Cheap , Easy to carry.
booting, usually the last
one)

DVD-ROM Up to 17 Gigabytes D:, E:, F: etc... (It takes New, Capacity for Audio and Video, Very Fast,
non-used letters by other Very Safe, Very Expensive, Easy to carry.
(Up to 17000
drives, usually the last
Megabytes)
available one)
The PC motherboard
The program and data in memory
 Functionalities of a Computer
If we look at it in a very broad sense, any digital computer carries out
the following five functions −
Step 1 − Takes data as input.
Step 2 − Stores the data/instructions in its memory and uses them as
required.
Step 3 − Processes the data and converts it into useful information.
Step 4 − Generates the output.
Step 5 − Controls all the above four steps.
Computer
Computer - Components
 Computer - Memory
Memory is just like a human brain.
It is used to store data and instructions.
Computer memory is the storage space in the computer,
where data is to be processed and instructions required for
processing are stored.
The memory is divided into large number of small parts
called cells.
Each location or cell has a unique address.
 Computer - Memory
Memory is primarily of three types :-

 Primary Memory/Main Memory

 Secondary Memory
 Cache Memory
 Primary Memory (Main Memory)
Primary memory holds only those data and instructions on which the
computer is currently working.
It has a limited capacity and data is lost when power is switched off.
It is generally made up of semiconductor device.
These memories are not as fast as registers.
The data and instruction required to be processed resides in the main
memory.
It is divided into two subcategories RAM and ROM.
 Primary Memory (Main Memory)

Characteristics of Main Memory

 It is known as the main memory.
 Usually volatile memory.
 Data is lost in case power is switched off.
 It is the working memory of the computer.
 Faster than secondary memories.
 A computer cannot run without the primary memory.
 Secondary Memory
This type of memory is also known as external memory or non-volatile.
It is slower than the main memory.
These are used for storing data/information permanently.
CPU directly does not access these memories, instead they are accessed via
input-output routines.
The contents of secondary memories are first transferred to the main
memory, and then the CPU can access it.
For example, disk, CD-ROM, DVD, etc.
 Secondary Memory

Characteristics of Secondary Memory

 These are magnetic and optical memories.
 It is known as the backup memory.
 It is a non-volatile memory.
 Data is permanently stored even if power is switched off.
 It is used for storage of data in a computer.
 Computer may run without the secondary memory.
 Slower than primary memories.
 Cache Memory

Cache memory is a very high speed semiconductor memory

which can speed up the CPU.
It acts as a buffer between the CPU and the main memory.
It is used to hold those parts of data and program which are most
frequently used by the CPU.
The parts of data and programs are transferred from the disk to
cache memory by the operating system, from where the CPU can
access them.
 Cache Memory
Advantages
 Cache memory is faster than main memory.
 It consumes less access time as compared to main memory.
 It stores the program that can be executed within a short period of
time.
 It stores data for temporary use.
Disadvantages
 Cache memory has limited capacity.
 It is very expensive.
Computer - Memory Units
Memory unit is the amount of data that can be stored in the storage unit. This storage capacity
is expressed in terms of Bytes.
Unit & Description
Bit (Binary Digit)
A binary digit is logical 0 and 1 representing a passive or an active state of a component in an electric circuit.

Nibble
A group of 4 bits is called nibble.

Byte
A group of 8 bits is called byte. A byte is the smallest unit, which can represent a data item or a character.

Word
A computer word, like a byte, is a group of fixed number of bits processed as a unit, which varies from computer to
computer but is fixed for each computer.
The length of a computer word is called word-size or word length. It may be as small as 8 bits or may be as long as 96 bits.
A computer stores the information in the form of computer words.
The following table lists some higher storage units

Unit & Description

Kilobyte (KB)
1 KB = 1024 Bytes
Megabyte (MB)
1 MB = 1024 KB
GigaByte (GB)
1 GB = 1024 MB
TeraByte (TB)
1 TB = 1024 GB
PetaByte (PB)
1 PB = 1024 TB
Classes of Computers
Computer is electronic device that performs computation.

Type

Size

Information Embedded function

Servers Workstations
appliances computers

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 Computer – Software

Software is a set of programs, which is designed to perform a well-

defined function. A program is a sequence of instructions written to
solve a particular problem.

There are two types of software −

 System Software
 Application Software
 Computer – Software (cont.)

Types of programming languages

a) Machine Language
b) Assembly Language
c) High Level Language
Computer – Software (cont.)
 Computer – Software (cont.)
PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT PROCESS
The stages in the development of a computer program are :

Problem Definition
Program Design
Coding
Debugging
Testing
Documentation
Maintenance
 Computer – Software (cont.)
Write an algorithm and develop a flowchart to convert the
temperature input in Celsius scale to Fahrenheit scale.

Solution :

First write a detailed stepwise algorithm to do the conversion

Step 1: Start.
Step 2: Input temperature in Celsius (C).
Step 3: Convert to Fahrenheit (F) using the formula F = 9/5 * C + 32.
Step 4: Print the temperature in Fahrenheit (F).
Step 5: Stop.
 Computer – Software (cont.)
Flowchart
Computer – Software (cont.)
 Computer – Software (cont.)
Write an algorithm and flowchart to read two
numbers A and B and compare them. If
A is greater than B print, A is greater than B
else print B is greater than A.

Algorithm :
Step 1: Start.
Step 2: Input values of A and B.
Step 3: Compare values of A and B (Is A > B?).
Step 4: If yes then print “A is greater than B”.
Step 5: If no, the print “B is greater than A”.