Extended Learning Module A Computer Hardware and Software

A Quick Tour of Technology Categories of Computers by Size Software: Your Intellectual Interface Hardware: Your Physical Interface The Complete Computer At Work A-2

Introduction Information technology (IT) – computer-based tool that people use to work with information and support the information and information-processing needs of an organization. Hardware – the physical devices that make up a computer. Software – the set of instructions that your hardware executes to carry out a specific task for you. A-3

A Quick Tour of Technology Six categories of hardware Input device Output device Storage device Central processing unit (CPU) Telecommunications device Connecting device A-4

A Quick Tour of Technology Software types include: Application software - solves specific problems or perform specific tasks. System software - handles tasks specific to technology management. Operating system software - controls application software and manages hardware devices. Utility software - provides additional functionality to the operating system. A-5

Categories of Computers By Size Personal Digital Assistants, Notebook Computers, and Desktop Computers Personal digital assistant (PDA) - small hand-held computer that surfs the Web and performs simple tasks. Notebook computer - a fully functional computer that runs on battery power. Desktop computer - the most popular choice. A-6

Categories of Computers By Size Minicomputers, Mainframe Computers, and Supercomputers Minicomputer – used in a small to medium-size business environment. Mainframe computer – used in a large business environment. Supercomputers - the fastest, most powerful, and most expensive type of computer. A-7

Software: Your Intellectual Interface Application Software Application software is used to meet specific information-processing needs, including such things as: Payroll Customer relationship management Project management Training Word processing and many others. A-8

Software: Your Intellectual Interface Application Software Personal productivity software - performs personal tasks, including such things as creating: Memos Graphs Slide presentations Team Work Buying Personal Productivity Software Suites A-9

Software: Your Intellectual Interface Application Software Vertical market software - unique to a particular industry. Examples include: Patient-scheduling software Nursing allocation software Horizontal market software - general enough to be suitable for use in a variety of industries. Examples include: Inventory management software Payroll software A-10

Software: Your Intellectual Interface System Software Operating system software - controls application software and manages how hardware devices work together. Microsoft Windows 2000 Pro Microsoft Windows 2000 ME Microsoft Windows XP Home Microsoft Windows XP Pro Mac OS Linux A-11

Software: Your Intellectual Interface System Software Team Work Evaluating Utility Software Suites Utility software - adds additional functionality to the operating system. Anti-virus software Crash-proof software Uninstaller software Disk optimization software A-12

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Binary digit (bit) - the smallest unit of information. ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange) - the coding system that most personal computers use to represent, process, and store information. Byte - a group of eight bits represents one natural language character. A-13

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Common Input Devices Input device - a tool you use to capture information and commands. Examples include: Keyboard Point-of-sale (POS) Microphone Mouse Trackball Pointing stick Touch pad Touch screen Bar code reader Optical mark recognition (OMR) Scanner A-14

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Common Output Devices Output device - a tool you use to see, hear, or otherwise accept the results of your information-processing requests. A-15

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Common Output Devices CRTs – look like television sets. Flat-panel displays – thin, lightweight monitors that take up much less space than CRTs. A-16

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Common Output Devices Resolution of a screen – number of pixels it has. Dot pitch – the distance between the centers of a pair of like-colored pixels. Resolution of a printer - the number of dots per inch (dpi) it produces, which is the same principle as the resolution in monitors. A-17

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Common Output Devices

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Common Output Devices Inkjet printers – make images by forcing ink droplets through nozzles. Laser printers – form images using an electrostatic process. Multifunction printers – scan, copy, and fax, as well as print. On Your Own Finding a Printer to Meet Your Needs A-19

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Characteristics of CPUs and RAM Speed measured in megahertz (MHz) and gigahertz (GHz). Contains control unit and arithmetic/logic unit (A/L unit) RAM Capacity measured in megabytes (millions of characters) A-20

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Characteristics of CPUs and RAM

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Common Storage Devices Common storage devices include: Floppy disk High-capacity floppy disk Hard disk CD-ROM CD-R (compact disc – recordable) CD-RW (compact disc – rewritable) DVD-ROM DVD-R DVD-RW, or DVD-RAM, or DVD+RW (all different names by different manufacturers) A-22

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Telecommunications Devices Network - two or more computers connected so that they can communicate with each other and possibly share information, software, peripheral devices, and/or processing power. Telephone modem - a device that connects your computer to your phone line so that you can access another computer or network. A-23

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Telecommunications Devices Types of modems include: Telephone modem Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) modem Cable modem Satellite modem A-24

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Telecommunications Devices Communication software includes: Connectivity software – enables you to use your computer to “dial up” or connect to another computer. Web browser software – enables you to surf the Web. E-mail software – enables you to electronically communicate with other people by sending and receiving e-mail. A-25

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Connecting Devices Connecting devices enable your hardware to communicate with each other. Busses – system and expansion. Expansion – slots and cards. Ports and connectors – USB, serial, parallel, and IrDA A-26

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Connecting Devices

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Parallel port Serial port USB port Keyboard and mouse ports A-28

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Connecting Devices

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Connecting Devices Popular connectors include: USB (universal serial bus) –the most popular means of connecting devices to a computer. Serial connector – usually has 9 holes but may have 25, which fit into the corresponding number of pins in the port. Parallel connector – has 25 pins, which fit into the corresponding holes in the port. A-30

Hardware: Your Physical Interface Connecting Devices IrDA (infrared data association) ports –are for wireless devices that work in essentially the same way as the remote control on your TV does. A-31