HANDOUTS

Department of Computer Science
Aligarh Muslim University

B Sc (Hons) – Computer Applications : 1st Semester
Course Title :Fundamentals of Information Technology
Course Number : CCB – 152
Handout – 1
Introduction to Information Technology
Information Technology means anything related to computing technology, such as

networking, hardware, software, the Internet, or the people that work with these
technologies.
As per the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA), IT is "the study,

design, development, implementation, support or management of computer-
based information systems, particularly software applications and computer
hardware."
Information Technology (IT) is the use of computers to store, retrieve, transmit, and
manipulate data or information. IT is considered to be a subset of information and
communications technology (ICT). An information technology system (IT system) is
generally an information system, a communications system, or, more specifically
speaking, a computer system – including all hardware, software,
and peripheral equipment – operated by a limited group of users.
Many companies now have IT departments for managing the computers, networks, and
other technical areas of their businesses.
Since we live in the "information age," information technology has become a part of our
everyday lives.
IT jobs include :
 Network and Computer Systems Administrators

 Computer and Information Systems Managers
 Information Security Analysts
 Computer Network Architects
 Computer user support specialists
 Computer technical support specialists
 Computer forensic investigator
 Computer systems engineer
 Computer Systems Analysts
 Computer Programmers
 Data warehouse analyst
 Cloud architect
 Data solutions architect
 Software and hardware engineer
 IT project manager
 IT consultant
 Health IT specialist
 Database Administrators
 Information technology vendor manager
 Mobile application and Web Developers.
Advantages and impact of IT
Nowadays, almost in all sectors, there is extensive use of Information technology.No

field is left where IT is not being used. There are lot of advantages of IT:
 Ease of access to information

 Saves time
 Better learning techniques
 Improved banking
 Better Communication / Remote Access
 Protecting and Storing Information
 & more ……
Impact of IT:
Although the benefits of information technology make it seem ideal, there are also some
disadvantages of information tech that are listed below.
 Data Security
 Crime and Terrorism
 Privacy Concerns
 Social Disconnect
 Digital Media Manipulation
 Job Insecurity
 Fake Personas
 Addiction
 & more….
Application of IT
Due to speed, accuracy, reliability and versatility of computer made it an integrated part
of the all business organizations.
Information technology can be used in business organizations for payroll calculations,

budgeting, sales analysis, financial forecasting, managing employee database,
maintenance of stocks etc
People use computers in a wide variety of ways:
 Banking
 Education
 Industries
 Entertainments
 Health Sector (Hospitals)
 Data Processing
 Government
 Training
 Home
 & more …….
 In business, computers track inventories with bar codes and scanners, check the
credit status of customers, and transfer funds electronically (Banking).
 In homes, tiny computers embedded in the electronic circuitry of most

appliances control the indoor temperature, operate home security systems, tell
the time, and turn videocassette recorders on and off.
 In automobiles regulate the flow of fuel, thereby increasing gas mileage.
 In entertainment, creating digitized sound on stereo systems or computer-

animated features from a digitally encoded laser disc.
 In education, Computer programs, or applications, exist to aid every level of
education, from programs that teach simple addition or sentence construction to
advanced calculus. Educators use computers to track grades and prepare notes;
with computer-controlled projection units, they can add graphics, sound, and
animation to their lectures.
 In scientific research to solve mathematical problems, display complicated data,

or model systems that are too costly or impractical to build, such as testing the
airflow around the next generation of space shuttles.
 In military, military employs computers in sophisticated communications to

encode and unscramble messages, and to keep track of personnel and supplies.
 Health Sectors (Hospitals)
Past, Present and Future of Information Technology?

Introduction to Computer
A computer is an electronic device that can accept data (Input), process them, output the
results (information) that is useful to people and store the results for later use.
A computer converts data into information that is useful to people.
A complete computer system consists of four basic parts: Data, Hardware, Software and
Users
Input Output
Central Processing Unit
Control + Arithmetic
Program Data
Secondary Memory Memory
Storage
Memory
 Hardware is the physical devices that make up the computer. Hardware is any
part of the computer you can touch.
 Software (Program) is a set of instructions that make the computer perform tasks.
In other words, Software tells the computer what to do.
 Users (Live ware) are people who operate the computer.
 Data consist of individual facts or bits of information, which by themselves may
not make much sense to a person. Data are readily available to an organization.
Every transaction that occurs supplies data.
Program Memory contains the program that is to be executed.
Data memory contains the data that is to be by used and manipulated the program.
Program is a list of instructions for a computer to perform a useful task.
Characteristics of Computer
 Speed – Computer can work with high speed. Computer can perform millions of
instruction and even more per second.
 Accuracy – The accuracy of computer is very high, a computer performs each and
every calculation with the same accuracy. Errors can occur in a computer but these
are mainly due to human rather than technological weakness.
 Storage – A computer can store large amounts of information in its memory. The
information can be retained as long as desired by the user and can be recalled
(retrieved) as and when required.
 Diligence – A computer is free from tiredness, lack of concentration, fatigue, etc.
As compared to human being, it can work for hours with the same efficiency and
accuracy.
 Versatility – Computers are used in every fields such as accounting, generating
pay-slips, keeping track of the records of students, oil refineries, aviation, weather
forecasting etc.
Computer Hardware
As we know physical / mechanical components of computer which we can touch are

called hardware. Hardware can be categorized in to four types:
1. Processing Devices
2. Memory Unit
3. Input and Output Devices
4. Storage Devices
Software“Computer Software - Tells the computer what to do”
“SOFTWARE RUNS THE MACHINE”
Computer software, also called software, is a set of instructions and documentation that
tells a computer what to do or how to perform a task. Software includes all different
programs on a computer, such as application software (Word Processor) and system
software (Operating System). Software is a set of instructions that the computer follows.
Software are classified into two categories – System Software and Application Software.
Firmware
Firmware is a software program or set of instructions programmed on a hardware device.
Simply software coded on hardware is called firmware. Firmware is a tangible electronic

component with embedded software instructions, such as a BIOS.
Handout –2
Generations of Computers
The word “Generation” for computers indicates a step in technology. Nowadays, a

computer can be used to type documents, send email, play games, and browse the Web.
It can also be used to edit or create spreadsheets, presentations, and even videos. But the
evolution of this complex system started around 1940 with the first Generation of
Computer and evolving ever since.
 First Generation (1940-1956) – The computers produced between 1940- 1956 are
called the first generation computers. These machines were based on “vacuum
tube”. ENIAC is the example of 1st generation computer. ENIAC stands for
“Electronic Numeric Integrated And Calculator” and . UNIVAC (Universal
Automatic Computer)
1st generation computers were very big in size, weight was about 30 tones. These
computers were costly. As the invention of first generation computers involves
vacuum tubes, so another disadvantage of these computers was, vacuum tubes
require a large cooling system.
 Second Generation (1956-1964) – 2nd generation computers were based on

transistors instead of vacuum tubes. Honeywell 400 UNIVAC 1108 are examples
of 2nd generation computers. Due to the presence of transistors instead of vacuum
tubes, the size of electron component was decreased. Therefore size was reduces
drastically compared to 1st generation computers.
 Third Generation (1964-1971) – 3rd generation computers were based on
integrated circuits (IC). IC was a single component containing number of transistors.
Examples of 3rd generation include PDP 11, IBM 360, IBM 370.
3rd generation computers were cheaper as compared to second-generation
computers. They were fast and reliable. IC not only reduce the size of the computer
but it also improves the performance of the computer as compared to previous
computers.
 Fourth Generation (1971-1981) – 4th generation technology was is based on
Microprocessor. A microprocessor is used in a computer for any logical and
arithmetic function to be performed in any program. In microprocessor, entire
CPU circuitry is placed on a single chip. Examples of 4 th generation computers
include DEC 10, IBM 4341.
Graphics User Interface (GUI) technology was exploited to offer more comfort to
users during 4th generation.
 Fifth Generation (1981 onwards) – 5th generation is based on artificial
intelligence. The aim of the fifth generation is to make a device which could
respond to natural language input and are capable of learning and self-
organization. This generation is based on ULSI(Ultra Large Scale Integration)
technology resulting in the production of microprocessor chips having ten million
electronic component.
Examples include desktop, laptop, notebook and more. These computers are more
reliable and faster. 5th generation computers are more user-friendly with
multimedia features.
1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th
Generation Generation Generation Generation
Generation
Duration 1940-56 1956-64 1964-71 1971-81 1981-
Present
Internal Vacuum Transistors Integrated Microprocessor Artificial
Components Tubes Circuits Intelligence
(ICs)
Size of Computer Very Smaller than Much Micro Tiny
Large 1stgeneration smaller Computers Computers
then
previous
generations
Storage Devices Magnetic Magnetic Magnetic Hard Disk and Hard Disk,
Tape Tape Tape Floppy Disk Floppy and
Optical
Storage
Programming Machine Assembly High Level Level Natural
Language Language Language Languages Languages Language
such as such as C, C++ such as
BASIC, etc SQL ,
PASCAL PROLOGG
etc
Famous Computers ENIAC, IBM 400, IBM 360, IBM 3033, Pentium
UNIVAC, IBM 1600, IBM 370, IBM System Series,
IBM 705 UNIVAC III UNIVAC 36, CRAY - I Laptop,
etc etc 9000 etc etc Palmtop etc
Types of Computers
The Shapes / Sizes of Computer Today
Computers can be broadly classified into our categories based on their speed, amount of
data that they can hold, and price.
 Supercomputers
 Mainframe Computers
 Minicomputers
 Microcomputers, or Personal Computers
Supercomputers
Among the four categories, the supercomputer is the fastest, most powerful and most
expensive computer. Super computers were first developed in the 1980s to process large
amount of data and to solve complex scientific problems. Super computers use parallel
processing technology and can perform more than trillion calculations in a second. Some
examples of super computers include CRAY-1, CRAY -2, ETA A-10, PARAM (Indian Super
Computer).
Mainframe Computers
Mainframe computers are large computers but smaller than super computers. These are
very expensive and need very large clean room with air conditioning and therefore very
costly to deploy. As with super computers, mainframe can also support multiple
processors. For example, the IBM S/390 mainframe can support 50000 users at the same
time. Users can access mainframe by either using terminal or via PCs. Basically there are
two types of terminals – Dumb Terminal and Intelligent Terminal.
Mainframes are being used as e-commerce servers, handling transactions over the
Internet.
Minicomputers
As the name suggest, minicomputers are smaller, cheaper and slower than mainframe.
They are called minicomputer because they were the smallest computers of their times.
Also known as midrange computers, the capabilities of minicomputers fall between
mainframe and PCs. As with mainframes, minicomputers can also be used as servers in a
networked environment, and hundreds of PCs can be connected to it. Minicomputers are
widely used in business, education, hospitals and government organizations.
Microcomputers, or Personal Computers
Microcomputers are more commonly known as personal computers, are very small and
cheap. The first microcomputer was designed IBM in 1981 and was named IBM –PC. PCs
can be classified into – Desktop PCs, Laptops, Handheld PCs (such as PDAs).
Number System
As we know that data is stored in computer in the form of 0s and 1s. This is because
computers understand only binary language (which consists of just two digits 0 and
1). Therefore, for computer, all data and information is reduced/converted to numbers
whether the user stores songs, picture, number, or documents, all information is
treated as binary numbers.
Some important terms in the binary number system
Term Size (bits) Example

Bit (Binary Digit) 1 0
Nibble 4 1010
Byte 8 1010 0011
Word 16 1010 0011 1010 0011
Base or Radix of a Number
The general idea behind positional numbering systems is that a numeric value is
represented through increasing powers of a radix (or base).
System Radix Allowable Digits
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Decimal 10 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
Binary 2 0, 1
Octal 8 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
Hexadecimal 16 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, A, B, C, D, E, F
Binary representation with two bits
Number of bits:2
Data values that can be represented = 2 2 = 4
Decimal values Binary values
0 00
1 01
2 10
3 11
Binary representation with three bits
Number of bits:3
Decimal values Binary values Decimal values Binary values
0 000 4 100
1 001 5 101
2 010 6 110
3 011 7 111
Binary representation with four bits
Number of bits:4
Decimal values Binary values Decimal values Binary values
0 0000 8 1000
1 0001 9 1001
2 0010 10 1010
3 0011 11 1011
4 0100 12 1100
5 0101 13 1101
6 0110 14 1110
7 0111 15 1111
Binary system is best suited to be used with computers, as mechanical and electronics
relays recognize only two states of operation - on/off or closed /open. In the binary
number system, character 1 = on = closed circuit = true and character 0 = off = open
circuit = false.
Binary numbers can be easily translated into electrical impulses.
You are very much familiar with how decimal number operate. The same concept is
applied to binary numbers (base 2), octal numbers (base 8), and hexadecimal number
(base 16).
Suppose we have a decimal number 123. How did you get its value?
Hundreds (10 2 ) Tens (10 1 ) Ones (10 0 )

Decimal 1 2 3
Here 123 = 1 x 100 + 2 x 10 + 3 x 1
Or 123 = 1 x 10 2+ 2 x 10 1 + 3 x 10 0
The same concept is applied in binary number system.

Table : Some Number to Remember
Converting a Binary Number into Decimal Equivalent
In binary number, all the columns are powers of 2. Given below table shows five least
significant digit place holders.
Sixteen’s Eight’s column Four’s column Two’s column One’s column

column
24 23 22 21 2 0
Example : Convert 1101 into decimal number.
Use above table to form the decimal number
Decimal number = 1 x 23+ 1 x 2 2 + 0 x 2 1+ 1 x 2 0
=1x8+1x4+0x2+1x1
= 8 + 4 + 0 +1
= 13
Example: ( 10110 ) 2 = ( ? ) 10
1 x 2⁴ + 0 x 2³ + 1 x 2² + 1 x 2 1 + 0 x 2⁰ = 16 + 0 + 4 + 2 + 0 = 22
Converting a Decimal Number into Binary Form
To convert a decimal number into its binary equivalent, simply divide the decimal
number by 2 and then write down the remainder, repeat this process until the number
can not be divided by 2 anymore.
Example : Convert decimal 147 or (147) 10into its binary equivalent.
Handout –3
Octal Numbers
The base of octal number system is 8 and uses digits 0 – 7. For example, the octal
number 176 is equal to the decimal number 126.
(176)₈ = 1 x 8² + 7 x 8 1 + 6 x 8⁰ = 64 + 56 + 6 = (126)₁₀
Table : Decimal, Binary and Octal number system.
Fourth digit Third digit Second digit First digit

Decimal 10 3 10 2 10 1 10 0
Binary 23 22 21 20
Octal 83 82 81 80
Example : Convert (123) 8 into its decimal equivalent.
Decimal number = 1 x 8 2+ 2 x 8 1+ 3 x 8 0
= 64 + 16 + 3
= 83
Example :Convert (10567) 8 into its decimal equivalent.
(10567) 8 = ( ? ) 10
Converting a Decimal Number into Octal Form
Example:
Example : Convert 1792 to its octal equivalent
(1792) 10= (3400) 8

Find out (786) 10 = ( ?) 8
Find out (9890) 10 = ( ?) 8
Converting an Octal Number into Binary Form
To convert an octal number into its binary equivalent, replace each octal digit with
binary equivalent.
Example : (63) 8 = ( ?) 2
Binary equivalent 6 = 110
Binary equivalent of 3 = 011
Now merge 110011
(63) 8 = (110011) 2
Find out (175) 8 = ( ?) 2
Converting a Binary Number into Octal Form
To convert a binary number into its octal equivalent, divide the binary number into
groups of 3 bits starting from LSB.
Example : (1101100) 2 = ( ?) 8
1 101 100
Now convert each group of binary bits into its equivalent octal number, thus
1 5 4
So
(10100110) 2 = (154) 8
Find out (1101100) 2 = ( ?) 8

Hexadecimal Number
The hexadecimal number system is the base 16 number system. Its uses sixteen
distinct symbols – symbols 0 – 9 represent values from zero to nine, and A, B, C, D,
E, F (or a – f) represent values 10 – 15.
Decimal 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Binary 0000 0001 0011 0100 0101 0101 0110 0111
Hexadecimal 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Decimal 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
Binary 1000 1001 1010 1011 1100 1101 1110 1111
Hexadecimal 8 9 A B C D E F
Figure: Hexadecimal number and its binary and decimal equivalent
Example : Convert A2B 16 to an equivalent binary number.
We can put equivalent number directly from the table
A = 1010
2 = 0010
B = 1011
Now put value
(A2B) 16 = (101000101011) 2
OR
First, convert the given hexadecimal to the equivalent decimal number.

A2B16 = (A × 162) + (2 × 161) + (B × 160)
= (A × 256) + (2 × 16) + (B × 1)
= (10 ×256) + 32 + 11
= 2560 + 43
= (2603) 10
Now we have to convert (2603)10 to binary
The binary number obtained is 1010001010112

Hence, (A2B) 16 = (101000101011) 2
Example : Convert 3016 to an equivalent binary number.

First, convert the given hexadecimal to the equivalent decimal number.
3016 = (3 × 161) + (0 × 160)
= 48 + 0
= (48) 10
Now we have to convert (48) 10 to binary.
Therefore,
Hence, (30) 16 = (110000)2
Decimal Fractions to Binary
The conversion of a decimal fraction to binary is accomplished by a method similar to

that used for integers. However, multiplication is used instead of division, and integers
are accumulated instead of remainders.
Example: Convert (0.6875)₁₀ to binary. First, 0.6875 is multiplied by 2 to give an integer

and a fraction. The new fraction is multiplied by 2 to give a new integer and a new
fraction. This process is continued until the fraction becomes 0 or until the number of
digits has sufficient accuracy.
Fraction Integer . fraction Coefficient Weight / Ranking

Multiplication Integer Part
(*)
0.6875 x 2 1.3750 1 a ₋₁
0.3750 x 2 0.7500 0 a₋₂
0.7500 x 2 1.5000 1 a ₋₃
0.5000 x 2 1.0000 1 a₋₄
Answer: (0.6875)₁₀ = ( 0 . a₋₁+ a₋₂+ a₋₃+ a₋₄)₂= (0.1011) 2

0.6875 × 2 = 1 + 0.375
0.375 × 2 = 0 + 0.75
0.75 × 2 = 1 + 0.5
0.5 × 2 = 1 + 0
Hence,
(0.6875) 10 = (1011) 2
0.375 × 2 = 0 + 0.75
Decimal Fractions to Octal
To convert a decimal fraction to octal, a similar procedure is used. Multiplication is by

8 instead of 2, and the coefficient found from integers may range in values from 0 to 7
instead of 0 and 1.
Example: Convert (0.513)₁₀ to octal.
0.513 X 8 = 4.104
0.104 X 8 = 0.832
0.832 X 8 = 6.656
0.656 X 8 = 5.248
0.248 X 8 = 1.984
0.984 X 8 = 7.872
The answer, to seven significant figures, is obtained from the integer part of the
products : (0.513) 10 = (0.406517…) 8
Example : (35.6875) 10 = ( ? ) 2
Example : (126.513) 10 = ( ? ) 2
Workout above problems.
Answers : (35.6875) 10 = (100011.1011) 2

(126.513) 10 = (176.406517…) 8
Octal and Hexadecimal Numbers
The conversion from and to binary, octal, and hexadecimal plays an important part in
digital computers. Since 2³ = 8 and 2⁴ = 16, each octal digit corresponds to three binary
digits and each hexadecimal digit corresponds to four binary digits.
The conversion from binary to octal is easily accomplished by partitioning the binary
number into groups of three digits each, starting from the binary point and proceeding
to the left and to the right. The corresponding octal digit is then assigned to each group.
Example: ( 10110001101011 . 111100000110 ) 2 = (26153.7406) 8
2 6 1 5 3 . 7 4 0 6
Conversion from binary to hexadecimal is similar, except that the binary number is
divided into groups of four digits:
Example: (10110001101011 .11110010 ) 2 = (2C6B.F2) 16
2 C 6 B . F 2
Conversion from octal or hexadecimal to binary is done by a procedure reverse to the
above. Each octal digit is converted to its three-digit binary equivalent. Similarly, each
hexadecimal digit is converted to its four-digit binary equivalent. This is illustrated in
the following examples:
(26153.7406) 8 = ( 10110001101011 . 111100000110 ) 2
2 6 1 5 3 . 7 4 0 6
(2C6B.F2) 16 = (10110001101011 . 11110010 ) 2

2 C 6 B . F 2
Course Title : Fundamentals of Information Technology
Handout – 4
Factors affecting Processing speed:
 Registers – (for example 64-bits register).

 RAM – (for example 1 GB).
 Computer's Internal Clock– (for example 4000 MHz or 4 GHz).
 The Data Bus- (for example 32-bit bus can transfer 4 bytes at a time) .
 Cache Memory (the more capacity the higher CPU performance).
 Computing Power – (for example - millions of instructions per second (MIPS)
PC and its Main Components
A number of components are required to make a PC, such as motherboard, Central

Processing Unit (CPU), Visual Display Unit (VDU), Video Card, Graphic Card,
Random Access Memory (RAM), Storage: Devices, etc
Motherboard - serves as a single platform to connect all of the parts of a computer

together. It connects the CPU, memory, hard drives, optical drives, video card, sound
card, and other ports and expansion cards directly or via cables. It can be considered
as the backbone of a computer. Buses are used to connect peripheral devices.
Major brands of motherboard are Intel, ASUS, ABIT, Gigabyte.

Central Processing Unit (CPU) consists of the following features −
 CPU is considered as the brain of the computer.

 CPU performs all types of data processing operations.
 It stores data, intermediate results, and instructions (program).
 It controls the operation of all parts of the computer.
Major brands of CPU are Intel, AMD Ryzen, Latest Processor - Intel Core i9-
10900K Processor DirectX 12.00 (speed 2.3 GHz to 5.4 GHz)
Visual Display Unit (VDU) / Monitor
Types – LED, LCD, Plasma, Cathode Ray Tube
Resolution is the main criteria for selecting monitor. The manufacturer uses a format
that references horizontal and vertical pixels to specify the resolution of the display
device. For example, 1024x768 refers to a display with a width of 1,024 pixels and a
height of 768 pixels.
Important Note
Does monitor size affect resolution?

No. The pixel resolution is determined by the number of horizontal and vertical pixels
the monitor can display. That is not related to its size. Yes, given the pixel resolution,
the size affects the pixel density.
Video Card & Graphics Card
Video Card controls the display setting of the PC system whereas. Graphics Card is
used primarily for gaming consoles. Video Card is used for video editing, multimedia
projects.
Computer Memory:
Memory is used to store information (Program and Data) that the computer is
currently using. It is called Primary memory or Main memory or Internal Memory.
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, which
varies from zero to memory size minus one. For example, if the computer has 64k
words, then this memory unit has 64 * 1024 = 65536 memory locations. The address
of these locations varies from 0 to 65535. Computer memory is system's short-term
data storage; it stores the information your computer is actively using so that it can
be accessed quickly.
The memory unit supports two basic operations: read and write. The read operation
reads previously stored data and the write operation stores a new value in memory.
The read and write signals come from the control bus.
Computer memories are of two types – Primary Memory and Secondary Memory
(Storage Media).
Primary Memory
No computer can work without primary memory. It is user for both read / write
purposes. Primary memory is largely volatile in nature.
Volatile memory is a type of storage whose contents are erased when the system's
power is turned off or interrupted. For example, RAM is volatile. When you are
working on a document, it is kept in RAM, and if the computer loses power, your
work is lost.
We have to store important data / information permanently so we require secondary

storage such as hard disk. Hard disk storage is non volatile in nature. Therefore, it
stores data / program permanently.
Primary memories include –

 Register
 Cache Memory
 Random Access Memory (RAM) and
 Read Only Memory (ROM).
Figure: Data Access

Register
A register is a temporary storage area built into a processor (CPU). In the Computer
Architecture, registers are special types of computer memory which are performed
their tasks quickly such as (Fetching, transferring, and storing) data and instructions.
Register memory is smaller compare to other computer memory like as Main
Memory, Secondary Memory, and Cache Memory.
Figure: Types of Registers
All computers required these registers to manipulate data, and store memory
addresses
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.
Figure: In-built Cache Memory

Characteristics of Cache Memory:
 Cache is volatile memory
 Cache memory is faster than RAM
 It consumes less access time as compared to RAM

 Cache memory has limited capacity
 It is very expensive.
Random Access Memory (RAM)
This means that any location in memory may be accessed in the same amount of time
as any other location. Memory access means any of the two things – either CPU is
reading from a memory location or CPU is writing to a memory location.
Characteristics of RAM:
 RAM is volatile memory
 RAM is read and write memory
 RAM is small, both in terms o its physical size and in the amount of data it can
hold
 Data in RAM can be accessed randomly but it is expensive.
Figure : Random Access Memory (RAM)

RAM is of two types : Static RAM (SRAM) and Dynamic Ram (DRAM)
SRAM (static RAM) is random access memory (RAM) that retains data bits in its
memory as long as power is being supplied. Unlike dynamic RAM (DRAM), which
stores bits in cells consisting of a capacitor and a transistor, SRAM does not have to
be periodically refreshed. Static RAM provides faster access to data and is more
expensive than DRAM. SRAM is used for a computer's cache memory.
DRAM, unlikely SRAM, must be continually refreshed (charged) in order to maintain

the data. DRAM is used for most system memory because it is cheap and small.
DRAM is less expensive than SRAM. DRAM is used as Ram and consumes less
power.
Read Only Memory (ROM)
ROM stands for Read Only Memory. The memory from which we can only read but
can not write on it. The information is stored permanently is such memories during
manufacture.
A ROM stores such instructions that are required to start a computer. This process is
called bootstrap (booting). ROMs are not only used in computer but also in
microwave oven and washing machine.
Figure : Read Only Memory

There are various types of ROMs:
PROM (Programmable Read Only Memory) – is a read only memory and can be
modified only once by a user. It can be programmed only once and can not be erased.
EPROM (Erasable and Programmable Read Only Memory) – EPROM can be erased
by exposing it to ultra violet light for a duration of upto 40 minutes.
EEPROM (Electrically Erasable and Programmable Read Only Memory) – The

EEPROM is programmed and erased electrically. It can be programmed and erased
ten thousand times.
Characteristics of ROM:
 Non- volatile in nature
 Cheaper than RAMs
 More reliable than RAMs

 These are static and do not require refreshing (Charging)
 Its contents are always known and can be verified.
Secondary Memory / Storage
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.
The purpose of secondary storage is to store data and programs on a long-term
basis.
Figure : Hard Disk
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.

Differentiate between Primary and Secondary Memory
Sr No. Primary Memory Secondary Memory
1 Primary memory is largely Secondary memory is permanent

temporary (volatile) (non-volatile)
2 Primary memory is directly Secondary memory is not directly

accessible by processor / CPU accessible by processor / CPU
3 Nature of Parts of Primary memory It is always Non-volatile in nature.

varies, RAM- volatile in nature.
ROM- Non-volatile.
4 Primary memory devices are more Secondary memory devices are less
expensive than secondary storage expensive if compared with primary
devices memory devices
5 The memory devices used for The memory devices used for primary
primary memory are memory are magnetic and optical
semiconductor memories. memories
6 Storage capacity of primary Storage capacity of secondary

memory is small memory is large
7 Primary memory has fast access Secondary memory has low access
time time
8 Primary memory supports random Secondary memory supports

access sequential and direct access
9 Examples: RAM, ROM, Cache Examples: Hard Disk, Floppy Disk,

memory, PROM, EPROM, Magnetic Tapes, etc.
Registers, etc.
Handout – 5
Secondary Storage – Storage Media
The purpose of Storage devices is to hold data – even when the computer is turned off
– so the data can be used whenever it is needed. Storage involves two processes:
 Writing, or recording, the data

 Reading the stored data, then transfer it into the computer memory.
The physical materials on which data is stored are called storage media.
The hardware components that write data to, and read data from, storage media are
called storage devices.
For example, a disk is storage medium; a disk drive is a storage device.
The two main categories of storage technology used today are: Magnetic storage and
Optical storage. A third category of storage is Solid-State Storage.
Hard Drive
A hard disk drive (HDD), hard disk, hard drive, or fixed disk is an electro-
mechanical data storage device that stores and retrieves data. It is located within
a drive unit. Hard disk is a non-volatile storage device that contains platters and
magnetic disks rotating at high speeds.
Table : Storage Capacity
Unit Abbreviation Approximate Size

bit b Binary digit, single 1 or 0
nibble - 4 bits
byte / Octet B 8 bits
kilobyte KB 1024 bytes or 10 3 bytes or 210 byte
megabyte MB 1024 KB or 10 6 bytes or 220 byte
gigabyte GB 1024 MB or 10 9 bytes or 230 byte
terabyte TB 1024 GB or 10 12 bytes or 240 byte
petabyte PB 1024 TB 10 15 bytes or 250 byte
exabyte EB 1024 PB or 10 18 bytes or 260 byte
zettabyte ZB 1024 EB or 10 21 bytes or 270 byte
yettabyte YB 1024 ZB or 10 24 bytes or 280 byte
But recently TB has been used as standard unit in HD.
How data is organized on a magnetic disk ?

Before a magnetic disk can be used, it must be formatted (or initialized)—a process that
magnetically maps the disk's surface and determines how data will be stored. (It is also
called mapping).
During formatting, the drive creates concentric rings called tracks on each side of the
disk, and then divides each track into short segments called sectors. The Operating
System groups sectors together, into storage units called clusters (A cluster is a group
of sectors that the operating system sees as a single unit). Further, track 1 of all platters
forms cylinder 1, track 2 of all platters forms cylinder 2 and so on.
When a disk is formatted with the FAT file system, four areas are created on a disk's:
 Boot sector – stores the master boot record, a small program that runs when you
start (booting) the computer
 File Allocation Table (FAT) – a log that records each file's location and each
sector's status
 Root folder (master folder) – enables the user to store data on the disk in a logical
way. A folder is a tool for organizing files on a disk.
 Data area – the portion of the disk that actually holds data.
Figure : Hard Disk – Sector, Track, Cylinder
Numerical : Consider a disk pack with the following specifications- 16 surfaces, 128
tracks per surface, 256 sectors per track and 512 bytes per sector.
What is the capacity of disk pack?
Given-
Number of surfaces = 16
Number of tracks per surface = 128
Number of sectors per track = 256
Number of bytes per sector = 512 bytes
Capacity of disk pack

= Total number of surfaces x Number of tracks per surface x Number of sectors per
track x Number of bytes per sector
= 16 x 128 x 256 x 512 bytes
= 228 bytes
= 256 MB
Magnetic Tape / Tape Drive
Magnetic tape stores records, or group of related data, sequentially (one after another).
To get to the data you are looking for, a computer must read every preceding record.
Tapes store large quantities of data inexpensively. Tapes are erasable, reusable, and
durable. Due to long access time, Magnetic tapes are used mainly for backups. Magnetic
tape consists of a plastic ribbon onto which a layer of magnetic material is glued.
Figure : Magnetic Tape
Differentiate between Magnetic Tape and Hard Disk
Magnetic Tape Hard Disk

Sequential Access Random Access
It is slow in accessing because of It is faster than magnetic tape because of
sequential access random access
Portable Portable and fixed
Economical (Cheaper) Costlier than hard disk
It consists of magnetic ribbon disk Made of more than one platter arranged
(tape) one on top of the other to form a disk
pack
Optical Media / Optical Storage Devices
Optical technology involves the use of lasers (high concentrated beams of light). The
word laser is stands for (light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation).
Laser beams read to and write data from the optical storage medium. Examples of
optical storage devices are CD, DVD and Blu-ray discs.
Optical devices use a laser to scan the surface of a spinning disc made from metal and
plastic. The disc surface is divided into tracks, with each track containing many flat
areas and hollows. The flat areas are known as lands and the hollows as pits.
When the laser shines on the disc surface, lands reflect the light back, whereas pits
scatter the laser beam. A sensor looks for the reflected light. Reflected light (lands)
represents a binary '1', and no reflection (pits) represents a binary '0'.
Standard CD holds 650 MB ( CD – R, CD-RW)
 R media are blank. An optical device writes data to them by shining a laser onto
the disc. The laser burns pits to represent '0's. The media can only be written to
once, but read many times. Copies of data are often made using these media.
 RW works in a similar way to R, except that the disc can be written to more than
once.
DVD – ROM, uses both sides of the disk and capacities can reach 18 GB.DVD players can
read CDs
Solid State Storage Devices
Solid state devices use non-volatile random access memory (RAM) to store data
indefinitely. They tend to have much faster access times than other types of device and,
because they have no moving parts, are more durable. Examples - USB memory sticks
/ flash memory / smart card
 Data is stored physically

 No magnets or laser
 Very fast
Comparison – Storage Devices
Medium Type Capacity Speed of Access

Hard Disk Magnetic 500 GB 12 TB Slow
CD - ROM / R Optical 640 MB Very Slow
CD - RW Optical 640 MB Very Slow
DVD - ROM / R Optical 4.7 GB Slow
DVD - RW Optical 4.7 GB Slow
Blu-ray-ROM / R Optical 50 GB Slow
Blu-ray-RW Optical 50 GB Slow
Solid-State-Drive Flash Memory 256 GB – 4 TB Very Fast
USB Memory Flash Memory 2 GB – 2 TB Fast
Stick
Handout – 6
Peripherals of Computers – I/O Devices
Peripherals devices alternatively referred to as an IO device, an input/output device is

any hardware used by a human operator or other systems to communicate with a
computer. As the name suggests, input/output devices are capable of sending data
(output) to a computer and receiving data from a computer (input).
Examples of input/output devices are - CD-R/RW, DVD, and Blu-ray drive, Digital
camera, Hard drives, Modem, Network adapter, Touch screen, USB, Printers etc
Printers
A printer is a device that produces a paper copy of the information on your screen. You
can use a printer to produce letters, invoices, newsletters, reports, labels, and much
more.
Types of Printers:
 Dot Matrix Printers

 Daisy Wheel
 Inkjet Printers
 Laser Printers
 Thermal Printers
 Large printers - Plotters
Printers are classified into two categories
 Impact Printers
 Non - Impact Printers
Sr No. Impact Printers Non-Impact Printers

1 Produces characters and graphics A type of printer that produces
on a piece of paper by striking it is characters and graphics on a piece of
called impact printer. paper without striking.
2 They use pins, hammers or wheel to They use laser, spray of special ink or
strike against an inked ribbon to heat and pressure to print on paper.
print on a paper.
3 It contains electromechanical print It does not contain electromechanical
head print head.
4 Print quality of impact printers is Print quality of non-impact printers is
lower than those of non-impact higher than those of impact printers.
printers.
5 They use special inked ribbons to They use toner or cartridge for
produce print on paper when print printing on paper.
head strikes.
6 Its speed is slow Its speed is fast
7 Its operation produces noise It works silently
8 Multiple copies can be created Hard to produces multiple copies. All
(carbon copy) printouts are treated as original.
9 They are often less expensive. They are often very expensive when
compared to impact printers.
10 It does not support different fonts It can print different types of
/style / colour (with exception) characters form / fonts
11 It does not support graphics. It supports graphics / colour and a
variety of fonts
12 They use continuous paper sheet. They often use individual paper
sheets
13 Examples - Dot Matrix, Daisy Examples – Laser, Inkjet, Plotter,
Wheel and Line Printers and Thermal Printers
Direct Data Entry Devices
Direct data entry devices are devices that read data from a source that is provided and
transferred it directly to the computer system. There are various direct data entry
devices such as:
1. Magnetic Strip Reader used to read data from magnetic stripes on mostly banking
cards
Figure : Magnetic Strip Reader

2. Chip Readers– read data from the chip on bank cards
Figure : Chip Reader
3. Scanners
A Barcode reader– used to scan codes directly from the products, books and
membership cards.
Advantages: faster, more accurate than manually inputting data, barcodes are
used internationally to identify the product.
Disadvantages: barcode only contains numerical code, barcodes can be easily

damaged.
Figure : Bar Code Reader

B Optical Mark Reader (OMR)– used to read and input information from a form.
Optical Mark reading (OMR) is a method of entering data into a computer

system. Optical Mark Readers reads pencil or pen marks made in pre-defined
positions on paper forms as responses to questions or tick list prompts. OMR
technology detects the absence or presence of mark, but not the shape of the
mark. The forms contain small ovals, referred to as ‘bubbles’ that are filled in by
the respondents. OMR can not recognize hand – printed or machine printed
characters. Applications of OMR include scanning of examination sheets,
surveys, questionnaires. OMR is more accurate than OCR.
Figure : Samples of OMR Sheets

C Optical Characters Recognition (OCR)
OCR is a technology that converts scanned images of hand written, type written or
printed text into machine – coded text.
On the software side the software recognizes letter ‘A’ as A and stores the information.
It converts whole image / document in the editable format.
It is widely used as a form of data entry form some sort of original paper data source,
whether document, sales receipts, mail or any number of printed records.
OCR is error prone as compared with OMR.
Figure : OCR Technology

D Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR)
MICR is a technology used to verify the legitimacy or originality of paper documents,

especially cheques.
Magnetic ink character recognition code, known in short as MICR code, is a character
recognition technology used mainly by the banking industry to streamline the
processing and clearance of cheques and other documents
Special ink which is sensitive to magnetic field is used in the printing of certain
characters on the original documents. Information can be encoded in the magnetic
characters.
The technology is defines by ANSI (American National Standards Institute). It consists

of magnetic ink printed characters of special design which can be recognized by high
speed magnetic recognition equipment. MICR characters are printed in the form of
either an E – 13 B or CMC – 7 fonts.
Figure : MICR Code

Unit – 2
Handout – 7
Computer Software
Software tells the computer what to do
Computer Software is a set of electronic instructions that makes the computer perform
tasks. Basically Software comprises the entire set of programs, procedures, and routines
associated with the operation of a computer system.
Software is also called a program. To operate computer and process data we require
different types of software (programs).
“SOFTWARE RUNS THE MACHINE”
Computer software, also called software, is a set of instructions and documentation that
tells a computer what to do or how to perform a task. Software includes all different
programs on a computer, such as application software (Word Processor) and system
software (Operating System). Software is a set of instructions that the computer
follows.
Software are classified into two categories:
1. System Software
2. Application Software
Figure : Categories of Software
1. System Software
System software is one of most important software. System software is used to start
and run computer systems and network. This includes operating system (Linux) and
network operating system Windows Server 2020).
Basically System Software is a set of programs that control and manage

the operations of computer hardware. It also helps application programs to execute
correctly. System Software are designed to control the operation and extend the
processing functionalities of a computer system.
System software coordinates the activities and functions of hardware and software, and
it controls the operations of computer hardware. A computer’s operating system is an
example of system software. Operating systems control the computer hardware and act
as an interface between user and computer system.
Features of System Software
 Close to the system

 Fast in speed
 Difficult to design
 Difficult to understand
 Less interactive
 Difficult to manipulate
 Generally written in low-level languages
Examples of system software include - Operating Systems (OS), Device Drivers ,

Translators and Utility Software.
Operating System
 Operating System (OS) control the computer hardware and act as an interface
between user and computer system.
 Operating System is also called resource manager. Everything whether
software or hardware or liveware (user) are managed by OS.
Examples of OS are DOS, MS DOS, Windows, Linux, Unix, CP/M, Mac OS,
Examples of Mobile OS - Android, Symbian, iOS, BlackBerry OS and

Windows Mobile.
Device Drivers
 In computing, a device driver is a computer program that operates or controls a

particular type of device that is attached to a computer or automaton
 Drivers are hardware dependent and operating-system-specific. Few of the
devices which use drivers are Card reader, Controller, Modem, Motherboard
chipset, Network card, Printer, Scanner and Sound card.
 Now most of the device drivers are in-built.
Translators
 A translator is a program that converts source code into object code. Generally,
there are three types of translator: - compilers, interpreters, assemblers.
Utility Software
 Utility software is software designed to help to analyze, configure, optimize or

maintain a computer. It is used to support the computer infrastructure.
 System Utilities – Anti Virus, Network Utilities (Ping)
 Storage Device Management – Backup Software, Disk Partition Editors, Disk
Formatters
 File Management – Data Compression, Data Recovery, File Comparison
2. Application Software
Application software is a type of program that performs a specific personal, educational

and business task.
It is basically a program that has been designed for end –users. Application software
performs or accomplishes a specific task. Application software is also known as end-
user program
Examples of application software – Word Processors (MS Word), Web Browsers

(Firefox), Skype (real time online communication).
Application software are of two types - Off-the-Shelf and Customized Software.
Features of an Application Software
 Close to the user

 Easy to design
 More interactive
 Slow in speed
 Generally written in high-level language
 Easy to understand
 Easy to manipulate and use
 Bigger in size and requires large storage space
Q 1. Differentiate between Off –the –shelf and Customized Software

Graphical User Interface (GUIs)
A graphical user interface (GUI) is a type of user interface through which users interact
with electronic devices via visual indicator representations (pointing device).
A GUI allows the use of icons to interact with electronic devices, rather than using only
text via the command line.
For example, all versions of Microsoft Windows utilize a GUI, whereas MS-DOS does
not.
Advantages / Features
 No need to memorize commands

 Easier to use
 Interactive
 Sophisticated Visual Presentation.
 Pick-and-Click Interaction.
 Visualization.
 Object Orientation.
 Concurrent Performance.
 & more…
Figure : Sample GUI Screen
GUI was developed by Xerox Palo Alto Research Laboratory in 1970. Initially it was
deployed commercially in Apple’s Macintosh and Microsoft’s Windows operating
systems. Examples of GUI based operating system are - Microsoft Windows,
Apple System 7 and macOS, Chrome OS, Linux variants like Ubuntu.
Due efficiency and usability text based and command line interfaces (OS) were replaced
by GUI.
A GUI displays objects that convey information, and represent actions that can be taken
by the user. The objects change color, size, or visibility when the user interacts with
them.
GUI objects include icons, cursors, and buttons. These graphical elements are
sometimes enhanced with sounds, or visual effects like transparency and drop shadows.
Now GUI has become the standard of user-centered design in software application.
Differentiate between Graphical User Interface and Command Line Interface
S No. Command Line Interface Graphical User Interface

(CLI) (GUI)
1 CLI is difficult to use. Whereas it is easy to use.
2 It consumes low memory While consumes more
memory.
3 CLI is fast in execution Slow in execution if
compared with CLI
4 CLI operating system needs While GUI operating system
only keyboard need both mouse and
keyboard.
5 CLI’s appearance can not be While it’s appearance can be
modified or changed. modified or changed.
6 In CLI, input is entered only While in GUI, input can be
at command prompt. entered anywhere on the
screen.
7 CLI do not use any pointing While it uses pointing
devices. devices for selecting and
choosing items.
8 In CLI, spelling mistakes Whereas in GUI, spelling
and typing errors are not mistakes and typing errors
avoided. are avoided.
9 You have to memorise the No need to memorise the
basic commands basic commands
Unit – 2
Handout – 8
Office Suite
In computing, an office suite is a collection of productivity software usually containing

word processor, spreadsheet, presentation, database, communication, personal
information manager programs.. There are many different brands and types of office
suites. Popular office suites include Microsoft Office, Google Workspace (formerly
G Suite), Apache OpenOffice, and Libre Office.
Basically Office Suite is a collection of applications software. Office Suite includes

general purpose software / packages which are widely used in office.
Few of the widely used and popular Office Suite are:
Libre Office
Microsoft Office
Google Docs, Google Sheets, and Google Slides
Apache OpenOffice
Libre office suite is one of the popular open software (free) and includes
Writer (Word processor): it is used for creating letters, books, blogs and also reports.
Calc (Spreadsheet): It is used for financial and mathematical function.

Impress (Presentation): it gives a multimedia facility. It gives special effect animation
as well as a drawing tool
Draw (vector graphics): it is a vector drawing tool that can produce everything from
a simple diagram or flowchart.
Base (Database): it helps us to create edit forms, reports and queries and also a relation.
Math (formula editor): It can create complex equations as well as characters.
MS Office is widely used commercial Office Suite and includes Microsoft Word,
Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Access, Microsoft Publisher,
Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft OneNote, Skype for Business, Microsoft InfoPath.
Microsoft Office
Microsoft office suite is an office suite of applications developed Microsoft.
MS Office includes:
 Word, a word-processing program

 Excel, a financial spreadsheet program
 Access, a database program
 PowerPoint, a program for creating presentations
 Outlook, a program for email and scheduling
 OneNote, to keep your notes organized
 Publisher, for desktop publishing
 SharePoint, a document management and storage system
Google Docs
Google Docs is a free Web-based application in hich documents and spreadsheets can
be created, edited and stored online. Files can be accessed from any computer with
an Internet connection and a full-featured Web browser.
Users of Google Docs can import, create, edit and update documents and spreadsheets
in various fonts and file formats, combining text with formulas, lists, tables and images.
Apache OpenOffice
Apache OpenOffice (AOO) is also an open-source office productivity software suite

developed by Apache Software Foundation
Apache OpenOffice is the leading open-source office software suite for word
processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, databases and more. It is available
in many languages and works on all common computers.
Introduction to Operating System
An operating system is a group of computer programs that controls a computer’s

resources such as the CPU, memory, and input / output devices and provides the users
with an interface that makes it easy to use the computer.
Figure : Operating System – User Interface
 Operating System (OS) control the computer hardware and act as an interface
between user and computer system.
 An Operating System is an integrated set of system programs whose major
function is to manage resources (like CPU, Memory, Disks etc) , control input
and output, schedule jobs, handle errors, provide security, acts as an interface
between the user and the machine. Everything whether software or hardware
or liveware (user) are managed by OS.
 OS provides users an environment to execute programs conveniently and
efficiently.
 OS coordinates all the activities of computer hardware devices. It is usually the
first program loaded into the computer during booting and it remains in the
memory at all the times.
 OS schedules jobs according to their priority passing control from one program
to the next. The overall function of job control is especially important where
there are several users (a multi user environment).
Figure: Layers and Users of Computer System
The operating systems available today are based on the plug and play concept in which
a new device when connected will be automatically detected and configured without
any user’s intervention.
Examples of OS are DOS, MS DOS, Windows, Linux, Unix, CP/M, Mac OS,
Examples of Mobile OS - Android, Symbian, iOS, BlackBerry OS and

Windows Mobile.
Function of Operating System
As we know OS works as a resource manager, it manages all the resources of the

computer. It also manages users and their services (password etc).
OS performs basic computer tasks, makes computers easier to use, manages resources,
provides user interface, provides application programming interface, manages –
processes / files / memory / devices / security.
The main operations and functions of an operating system are shown in below figure.
Figure : Important Functions of Operating System
 Process Management
 Memory Management
 File Management
 Device Management
 Security Management
 Job Accounting
 Secondary Storage Management
 Networking
 Coordination between other software and users
Process Management
A process is a program in execution. The CPU executes a number of programs. While

its main concern is the execution of user programs, the CPU is also needed for other
system activities. These activities are called processes. In multiprogramming
environment, the OS decides which process gets the processor when and for how
much time. This function is called process scheduling.
Memory Management
Memory management refers to management of Primary Memory or Main Memory.

Main memory is a large array of words or bytes where each word or byte has its own
address. An Operating System does the following activities for memory management:
 Keeps tracks of primary memory, i.e., what part of it are in use by whom, what part
are not in use.
 Allocates the memory when a process requests it to do so.
 De-allocates the memory when a process no longer needs it or has been terminated.
File Management
File management is one of the most important components of an OS computer can store
information on several different types of physical media magnetic tape, magnetic disk
& optical disk are the most common media. The OS is responsible for the following
activities of file management:
 Creating & deleting files

 Creating & deleting directories
 Backing up files on non-volatile media.
Device Management
An Operating System manages device communication via their respective drivers. It

does the following activities for device management:
 Keeps tracks of all devices. The program responsible for this task is known as
the I/O controller
 Decides which process gets the device when and for how much time
 Allocates the device in the most efficient way
 De-allocates devices.
Security Management
By means of password and similar other techniques, it prevents unauthorized access to

programs and data.
Job Accounting
Keeping track of time and resources used by various jobs and users.
Secondary Storage Management
As the main memory is too small to accommodate all data & programs, the data that it
holds are lost when power is lost. The computer system must provide secondary storage
to back-up main memory.
Networking
The processors in the system are connected through a communication network, which
can be configured in the number of different ways. Operating system makes a
communication link between user and the system and helps the user to run application
programs properly and get the required output.
Coordination between other software and users
OS provides the coordination and assignment of compilers, interpreters, assemblers

and other software to the various users of the computer systems. It also provides a
platform / environment to develop / use application software.
Unit – 2
Handout – 9
Types of Operating Systems
An operating system has two main objectives – To make the computer system
convenient and easy to use. To use computer hardware in an efficient way.
There are various types of operating systems such as :
 Batch Processing OS
 Single User OS
 Multiuser OS
 Multitasking OS
 Multiprocessing OS / Parallel Processing
 Multiprogramming
 Time-Sharing OS
 Real Time OS
Batch Processing OS
Some computer processes are very lengthy and time-consuming. To speed the same
process, a job with a similar type of needs are batched together and run as a group.
The user of a batch operating system never directly interacts with the computer. In this
type of OS, every user prepares his or her job on an offline device like a punch card and
submit it to the computer operator.
Figure : Concept of Batch Processing
Batch processing helps in handling tasks like payroll, end-of-month reconciliation, or

settling trades overnight.
Single User and Single Task OS
An OS that is suitable for use by a single user on a standalone system to perform a

single task. For example, MS DOS handles one task at a time like user can not print a
file to printer if s/he is editing it.
Single User but Multitasking OS
The single user multitasking OS allows a single user to simultaneously perform several
tasks. This is the OS normally used in our desktop and laptops.
Single User but Multitasking OS enhances the productivity of users, as they can
complete more than one job at the same time. For example, when we are typing a
document in Microsoft Word while listening to a song and downloading a file from the
Internet, we are actually doing three jobs at the same time with the help of multitasking
OS.
Microsoft’s Windows and Apple’s Mac OS platforms are examples of single-user

multitasking OS.
Multiuser OS
When same data and application are to be accessed by many (multiple) users at the same
time then a multiuser OS is used. User’s communication is also possible. Examples
include – UNIX OS, LINUX OS, and WIN-7.
Multitasking OS
Multitasking is when multiple jobs are executed by the CPU simultaneously by

switching between them. Switches occur so frequently that the users may interact with
each program while it is running. The OS handles multitasking in the way that it can
handle multiple operations/executes multiple programs at a time.
Figure : Concept of Multitasking
Multiprocessing OS / Parallel Processing
Multiprocessing means using two or more processors (CPUs) within a single computer
system. In multiprocessing system, a complex program can be divided into smaller parts
and then be executed concurrently by multiple processors. Since processing done in
parallel, so it is also known as parallel processing or parallel computing.
Multiprocessing computers are widely used in weather forecasting. LINUX, UNIX and
versions of Windows OS are examples of multiprocessing OS.
Figure : Concept of Multiprocessing OS
Multiprogramming OS
Multiprogramming is also the ability of an operating system to execute more than one
program on a single processor machine. More than one task/program/job/process can
reside into the main memory at one point of time.
OS
Job 1
Job 2
Job 3
Job 4
Job 5
Figure : Multiprogramming
The above figure depicts the concept of multiprogramming, the main memory consists
of 5 jobs at a time, CPU executes one by one. In this way CPU is never idle, so
performance increases.
Time-Sharing OS
Time sharing is a logical extension of multiprogramming and enables multiple users to

simultaneously share the CPU’s time.
Figure : Time-sharing System
If there are 4 users / jobs then CPU cycle divided into 4 equal time slots and the CPU
switches among these four users / jobs. The small time slot is called time slice. This
time slot allotted is extremely small and gives the users an impression that he or she is
only using the CPU. The short period of time, which is usually between 10 – 100 ms.
Real-time OS
Real-time systems are those that have strict-time constraints. Any delay in processing
is not allowed. It means that these systems need inputs within the specified time limit
as only then it can process data. Otherwise, an error occurs which may be very fatal
also. Sometimes these systems are also equipped with sensors. Real-time systems are
used to control process. Processing is done within strict time constraints only.
Air Traffic Control Systems, Oil Refinery System, Military Software Systems, Space
Software Systems are some example of real-time systems.
Multi-Tasking/Time-sharing Operating systems
Time-sharing operating system enables people located at a different terminal(shell) to

use a single computer system at the same time. The processor time (CPU) which is
shared among multiple users is termed as time sharing.
Unit – 2
Handout – 10
Popular Operating Systems
Windows Operating System
The OS was developed by Microsoft Corporation and is most widely used OS. The first
successful version of this OS was Windows 3.0 which was released in 1990. The
subsequent released versions are windows 4.0, windows 2000, windows XP, Windows
NT 4.0 workstation, Windows NT 4.0 server and so on .
Windows come along with a graphical user interface (GUI). Earlier version of windows
was DOS based. The windows 4.0 family of OS changed things a little. It combines the
OS technology of DOS and the and the graphical user interface.
Microsoft Windows includes a wide array of features, tools, and applications to help
get the most out of Windows and your computer.
Figure : Windows 10 Start Menu

Windows Utilities
Paint
WordPad
Calculator
Calculator picks up a bunch of new functionality, including this handy mortgage calculator.
Windows 7 also includes a Sticky Notes application.

Windows Calendar
Windows DVD Maker
Windows Media Player
Windows Fax and Scan
Microsoft Safety Scanner
Microsoft Safety Scanner is a free disposable virus scanner similar to Windows

Malicious Software Removal Tool that can be used to scan a system for computer
viruses and other forms of malware.
Windows Live Movie Maker (2021)
Craft video footage, photos, and music into a movie, then share it with your friends.
Skype for Windows
Keep in touch with the people you care about most. Video Call or Chat, Skype helps
you get together.
Windows 7 USB DVD Download Tool
Allows you to install a downloaded copy of Windows 7 onto your computer directly
from the USB flash drive or DVD.
Microsoft Touch Pack for Windows 7
A collection of games and applications for your Windows touch-enabled PC, including
Blackboard, Surface Globe, and Collage.
What is Windows System Registry?
The Windows Registry is a database of settings used by Microsoft Windows. It stores

configurations for hardware devices, installed applications, and the Windows
operating system.
Overview of Linux OS
The Birth of Linux
On August 25, 1991, a Finnish computer science student named Linus Torvalds made
the announcement about Linux, a new free operating system (Free Software Foundation
– FSF). While still a student at the University of Helsinki, Torvalds started
developing Linux to create a system similar to MINIX, a UNIX operating system.
Introduction of Linux
Linux is, in simplest terms, an operating system. It is the software on a computer that
enables applications and the computer operator to access the devices on the computer
to perform desired functions. Linux is very similar to other operating systems, such as
Windows and Unix.
Linus’s intention was to develop a PC version of Unix users. Unix is a very costly OS
whereas Linux is open source software.
Figure : Linux OS Logo
Linux is developed collaboratively, meaning no one company is solely responsible for

its development. Now Linux has become the choice of desktop, server and mainframe.
Linux enables cloud services such as Amazon’s A 3 to work with superior capability
to deliver online applications.
Linux is already successful on many different kinds of devices, but there are also many
technological areas where Linux is moving towards, even as desktop and server
development continues to grow faster than any other operating system today.
Features of Linux
 Multiuser
 Multitasking
 Timesharing
 GUI and Non GUI
 Shell
Versions
 Fedora
 Ubuntu
 RHL (Red Hat Linux)
Linux Architecture
Linux System Architecture consists of following layers
Figure : Linux Architecture

Hardware
The basic level is the hardware. Hardware consists of all peripheral devices RAM/
HDD/ CPU etc. Hardware interacts only with kernel.
Kernel
The kernel is the core of the OS. A collections of routines (programs) mostly written in
C language. It is loaded into memory when the system is booted and communicate
directly with the hardware. User programs (applications) that need to access the
hardware use the services of the kernel which performs the job on the user’s behalf. It
provides services for all other components of OS
Shell
Shell is an interface to kernel. It hides complexity of kernel’s functions from users.
Shell is a master utility program.
Shell can be used as command interpreter and programming language. Shell is a layer
between user and kernel.
Figure : Interfacing – User / Shell / Kernel

Only through shell, user can interact with the Linux OS. A shell is basically a command
line interface to OS. It provides interactive processing and execution of user commands.
Shell interprets the commands given by the user. The shell provides services requested
by Linux users such as viewing a file, and creating or removing a directory or file.
There are various types of shell such as :
 C Shell (csh)
 Korn Shell (ksh)
 Bourne Shell (sh)
 Bash Shell (bash) - bourne again shell (default shell)
Differentiate between Windows and Linux OSs
S No. Windows Linux

1 Windows is a proprietary OS owned Linux OS was developed from a base
by Microsoft of Unix. Linux is open source
2 Windows is expensive and its Linux is cheap or free
licensing restricted
3 All the flavors / versions of Windows Various distributions of Linux of
come from Microsoft only different companies are there such as
Red Hat, SUSE, , Knoppix,
4 Source code of Windows is not Linux source code is available
available
5 Windows uses alphabet to represent In Linux all directories are attached to
different devices or different hard the root directory, which is identified
disk partitions ( C or D or E) by a forward slash / , such as
/ bin (system program), / data (user
defined directory), /etc (system
configuration), /usr
Mac Operating System
The family of Macintosh Operating Systems was developed by Apple Inc, includes GUI
based OS. Mac OS was introduced in 1984 to run the company's Macintosh line of
personal computers (PCs).
Microsoft inspired and borrowed the GUI ideas of Macintosh.
Macintosh hardware is designed for Mac OS and therefore, preinstalled on every

Macintosh system.
The current Mac operating system is macOS, originally named "Mac OS X" .
Although they have different architectures, the Macintosh operating systems share a
common set of GUI principles, including a menu bar across the top of the screen;
the Finder shell, featuring a desktop that
represents files and applications using icons and relates concepts
like directories and file deletion to real-world objects like folders and a trash can; and
overlapping windows for multitasking.
Figure : Macintosh System Start Menu
Mac OS are equipped features such as Internet file sharing, network browsing, and
multiple user accounts.
Unit – 2
Handout – 11
Introduction to Programming Languages
A programming language is a set of rules that provides a way of telling a computer what
operations to perform.
A programming language is a set of rules for communicating an algorithm.
As you know language has its symbols, words and grammatical rules. Similarly,
computer language also has words, symbols and rules of grammar. The grammatical
rules ae called syntax. Each programming language has a different set of syntax rules.
Figure : Level of Programming Languages

First programming language was developed in 1950s. Since then thousands of
languages have been developed. Different programming languages are designed for
different types of programs.
Figure : Hierarchy of Computer Language
There are five generation of programming languages.
Figure : Programming Languages
There are five generation of Programming languages. They are:
First Generation Languages :

These are low-level languages like machine language. These languages are hardware
dependent.
Second Generation Languages :
These are low-level assembly languages used in kernels and hardware drives. These
are also hardware dependent languages.
Third Generation Languages :
These are high-level languages like Fortran, Cobol, C, C++, Visual Basic and Java.
These languages use English words and mathematical notations. Programs written in
source code which must be translated into machine language program called object
code.
The translation of source code to object code is accomplished by machine language
system program called a compiler. Alternative to compilation is interpretation which
is accomplished by a system program called interpreter.
Fourth Generation Languages :

These are languages that consist of statements that are similar to statements in the
human language. These are used mainly in database programming and scripting.
Example of these languages include Query Languages, Report Generators, Form
Designers, Application Generators, Python, Ruby, SQL, MatLab (MatrixLaboratory).
Fifth Generation Languages :

These are the programming languages that have visual tools to develop a program.
Examples of fifth generation language include Mercury, Lisp and Prolog. The first
two generations are called low level languages. The next three generations are called
high level languages.
Differentiate between Low Level Languages ( LLL) and High Level Languages
(HLL)
Sr No. HLL LLL
1 HLL are human friendly, because LLLs are machine dependent. These
mathematics and English words are resemble the native binary language
used in HLLs. These languages are of computer and thus difficult for
machine independent. programmer to understand.
2 Hardware independent, therefore Hardware dependent, therefore not

portable. portable.
3 HLLs can not interact directly with LLLs can interact directly with the
the hardware, therefore program hardware, therefore program speed is
speed is slow. fast.
4 HLLs consume more memory. Low-level languages are more

memory-efficient and consume far
less memory than high-level
languages.
5 High-level languages closely LLLs are machine-friendly and

resemble human languages. It is has just two types. The first is the
much easier to remember English binary language that has only 0’s
statements than a computer and 1’s. The other language is the
language. Assembly language a type of
symbol called mnemonics.
6 HLLs are flexible, easy to learn and LLLs are not flexible, difficult to
debug. learn and debug.
7 Fortran, BASIC, Pascal, COBOL, Assembly Language, Machine Code
C, C++, JAVA
Language Translators
Language translators convert programming source code into language that the computer
processor understands.
Programming source code has various structures and commands, but the computer
processors understand only machine language. Language translators are of three types.
Figure : Language Translators
Compiler
A compiler is a language translator that translates high-level language program to

machine language program. While translating, it checks the syntax ( grammar of
the source code) and translates it into object code at a single attempt, if any error
is found, the compiler produces syntax errors and causes of errors. The source code
file (program) must be syntax error- free for complete compilation
process.Interpreter
An interpreter is a language translator designed to translates high-level language

program into machine language program, one instruction at a time. Unlike the
compiler, it translates and executes one statement at a time before moving to
another. If any error (bug) is there, the translation is halted (stopped) and an error
message is displayed.
Assembler
An assembler is the language translator designed to translate assembly language

program (source code) into machine language program (object code). The original
assembly language program codes are source codes and after translation, the final
machine language program codes are called object codes.
Figure : Functions of Translators

Differentiate between Compiler and Interpreter
Sr # Compiler Interpreter
1 It translates a complete high It translates a complete high
language program into machine language program into machine
language at once language line by line
2 It finds the syntax errors after It finds the syntax errors after
compiling the whole program translating each line of the
program
3 The compilation process is The interpreting process is slower
faster than interpreter than compiler
4 It creates the object code after It creates the object code after
compiling the whole program translating each line of the
program
5 The debugging process is The debugging process is easy in
complicated in compiler interpreter
6 Compiler demands more Interpreter requires low resources
resources (CPU Time, memory
etc) than interpreter
7 Examples – C, C++, Java, Examples – BASIC, QBASIC,
Visual Basic etc GWBASIC etc
Unit – 2
Handout – 12
Introduction to Multimedia
Multi means many and media is the plural of medium, refers to the communication
channel through which news, music, movies, education, promotional messages etc can
be disseminated.
Multimedia can have a many definitions these include:
 Multimedia means that computer information can be represented through audio,

video, and animation in addition to traditional media (i.e., text, graphics
drawings, images).
 Multimedia means that computer information can be represented through audio,

video, and animation in addition to traditional media (i.e., text,
graphics/drawings, images).
A good general definition is:
 Multimedia is the field concerned with the computer-controlled integration of

text, graphics, drawings, still and moving images (Video), animation, audio,
and any other media where every type of information can be represented,
stored, transmitted and processed digitally.
 A Multimedia Application is an Application which uses a collection of multiple

media sources e.g. text, graphics, images, sound/audio, animation and/or video.
 Multimedia is a broad term for combining multiple media formats. Whenever

text, audio, still images, animation, video and interactivity are combined
together, the result is multimedia. Slides, for example, are multimedia as they
combine text, graphics, audio and video.
Hypermedia can be considered as one of the multimedia applications.
Applications of multimedia include - Advertisements, Art Education, Entertainment,

Engineering, Medicine, Mathematics, Business, Scientific Research.
The Basic Elements of Multimedia
The basic elements of a multimedia application include the following :
Text : characters that are used to create words, sentences, and paragraphs.
Figure : Text Representation
Graphic : A digital representation of non-text information, such as a drawing, chart, or

photograph.
Figure : Graphic Example

Animation : Flipping through a series of still images. It is a series of graphics that create
an illusion of motion.
Figure : Animation Example
Video : photographic images that are played back at speeds of 15 to 30 frames a second
and the provide the appearance of full motion.
Figure : Video Presenttaion
Audio : music, speech, or any other sound.
Figure : Audio Presentation

Categories of Multimedia
There are two types of multimedia presentation:
Linear Presentation : Linear active content progresses often without any navigational
control for the viewer such as a cinema presentation
Non-Linear Interactive : Non-linear uses interactivity to control progress as with a

video game or self-paced computer based training. Hypermedia is an example of non-
linear content.
Advantages of Multimedia
 It is very user-friendly. It doesn’t take much energy out of the user, in the sense
that you can sit and watch the presentation, you can read the text and hear the
audio.
 It is multi sensorial. It uses a lot of the user’s senses while making use of
multimedia, for example hearing, seeing and talking.
 It is integrated and interactive. All the different mediums are integrated through
the digitisation process. Interactivity is heightened by the possibility of easy
feedback.
 It is flexible. Being digital, this media can easily be changed to fit different
situations and audiences.
 It can be used for a wide variety of audiences, ranging from one person to a whole
group.
Disadvantages of Multimedia
 Information overload. Because it is so easy to use, it can contain too much
information at once.  It takes time to compile. Even though it is flexible, it takes
time to put the original draft together.
 It can be expensive. As mentioned in one of my previous posts, multimedia
makes use of a wide range of resources, which can cost you a large amount of
money.
 Too much makes it unpractical. Large files like video and audio has an effect of
the time it takes for your presentation to load. Adding too much can mean that
you have to use a larger computer to store the files.
Multimedia Development Software Tools
Graphics & Animation
 Adobe - Flash
 Photoshop
 CorelDRAW
 PowerPoint
 SMIL
 Pencil for MAC OS
 & more
Multimedia Software (Audio-Video)
 Media player
 Winamp
 QuickTime
 VLC
 & more
2D & 3D
 Autodesk - Maya, 3DMax

 Gamma 3D
 Plastic Animation 2D
 & more
File Formats
There are different file formats which are used for different applications and purposes.
JPEG
JPEG stands for “Joint Photographic Experts Group”. It's a standard image format for
containing lossy and compressed image data. In PaintShop Pro JPEG is a commonly
used format for storing the edited images. A JPEG is a standardised lossy compression
mechanism for digital images.
PNG
PNG stands for “Portable Graphics Format”. It is the most
frequently used uncompressed raster image format on the internet. This lossless data
compression format was created to replace the Graphics
Interchange Format (GIF). PNG file format is an open format with no copyright
limitations.
GIF
GIF stands for Graphical Interchange Format, is an image format invented in 1987 by
Steve Wilhite. In short, GIFs are a series of images or soundless video that will loop
continuously and doesn't require anyone to press play.
PDF
PDF stands for Portable Document Format, is a file format that has captured all the
elements of a printed document as an electronic image that you can view, navigate,
print, or forward to someone else.PDF files are created using Adobe Acrobat , Acrobat
Capture, or similar products. To view and use the files, you need the free Acrobat
Reader, which you can easily download. Once you've downloaded the Reader, it will
start automatically whenever you want to look at a PDF file.
SVG
SVG stands for Scalable Vector Graphic, is a unique type of image format. By using
SVGs, you get images that can scale up to any resolution, which comes in handy for
web design among plenty of other use cases.
Compressing and Extracting Files
A compressed file is a sort of archive that contains one or more files that have been
reduced in size. Since these file are smaller, they can be stored without taking up much
space, or transferred at higher speeds over the Internet. By using a program such as
WinZip, you can then decompress the file or files back into their original state without
any degradation.
Extract is a term used to describe the process of decompressing and moving one or
more files in a compressed file (eg zip file) to an alternate location.
ZIP is not the only type of compressed file, other compressed file formats are - ARC,
ARJ, RAR, CAB, and the dozens of others.
There are two main types of file compression ? lossless and lossy. Lossless compression
takes your files and reduces their size without losing any information. Lossy
compression reduces your file size by chopping off bits and pieces that aren't 100%
necessary to function.
Handling Optical Media
There are three main types of optical media: CD, DVD, and Blu-ray disc. CDs can store
up to 700 MB (megabytes) of data, and DVDs can store up to 8.4 GB (gigabytes) of
data. Blu-ray discs, which are the newest type of optical media, can store up to 50 GB
of data.
All optical media should be stored in cool, dry, and dark conditions. Data on DVDs,
especially non-replicated, recordable/rewritable DVDs, is subject to loss over time.
All optical media should be regularly checked for data degradation.
Please observe the following precautions when handling CD-ROM disks:
 DO NOT touch the data side of the disk (the side of the disk with no label).
 DO NOT apply paper labels or write on any part of the disk, data side or label
side.
 If dust or fingerprints get on to the disk, wipe with a dry cloth from the center of
the disk to the edge.
 DO NOT place the disk in any place where it will be subjected to direct sunlight
or high temperature.
 Do not operate in an Explosive Atmosphere
 Keep Away from Live Circuits
Unit – 3
Handout – 13
Introduction to Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
Computer Network
An interconnected collection of two or more autonomous computers is called computer

network. A network consists of two or more computers that are linked in order to share
resources (such as printers and CDs), exchange files, or allow electronic
communications.
The computers on a network may be linked through cables, telephone lines, radio
waves, satellites, or infrared light beams.
Figure : Possible Layout of Computer Networks

In computer networks, networked computing devices (network nodes) pass data to each
other along data connections. The connections (network links) between nodes are
established using either cable media or wireless media. The best-known computer
network is the Internet.
ARPANET (ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECT AGENCY NETWORK) is considered one of the

first computer networks started in 1969 by USA Defense.
Advantages of Network
 Sharing of files – The key benefit of a computer network is that it facilitates its
users to share files, and to access files that are stored on a remote computer.
 Sharing of resources – Computer networks facilitate the users to share the
limited and otherwise expensive resources among a number of computing
devices. For example, in a computer lab, there may be 30 computers but only one
or two printers.
 Increased storage capacity – Attaching number of computers to the network
enables sharing of files. Files stored on one computer can easily be accessed by
another computer. A standalone computer may have limited storage capacity, but
when several computers are connected together, the storage memory of all these
computers can be made available for each computer.
 Increased cost-efficiency – Site (software) licences are likely to be cheaper than
buying several standalone licences.
 Sharing of load – If one computer is designated to carry out all the jobs, then it
is very likely that the computer will slow down thereby taking hours to complete
all the jobs. Hence, a better option is to transfer the extra jobs to another machine
(connected to the same network) for execution. This generally improves the
performance of the system.
 Facilitating communication – Network users can communicate
by email and instant messenger.
 Easy backup - Data is easy to backup as all the data is stored on the file server.
Disadvantages of Network
 Managing a large network is complicated, requires a professional.

 If the file server breaks down the files on the file server become inaccessible.
 Viruses can spread to other computers throughout a computer network.
 There is a danger of hacking, particularly with wide area networks. Security
procedures are needed to prevent such abuse, eg a firewall.
Types of Computer Networks
A computer network is a group of computers linked to each other that enables the
computer to communicate with another computer and share their resources, data, and
applications.
A computer network can be categorized by their size. A computer network is mainly

of four types:
Figure: Types of Networks

Local Area Network is a group of computers connected with each other in a small
places such as school, hospital, apartment etc. LAN provides higher security
because there is no outside connection with the local area network. LAN due to their
small size are considerably faster, their speed can range anywhere from 100 to
1000Mbps.
Figure : LAN
Metropolitan Area Network MAN – is a large scale network that connects

multiple corporate LANs together. MAN spans over a physical area like a city that
is smaller than a WAN but larger than a LAN. Government agencies use MAN to
connect to the citizens and private industries. In MAN, various LANs are connected
to each other through a telephone exchange line.
It has a higher range than Local Area Network (LAN).

Figure : MAN
Applications of MAN include:
 MAN is used in communication between the banks in a city.

 It can be used in an Airline Reservation.
 It can be used in a college within a city.
 It can also be used for communication in the military.
Wide Area Network (WAN) is a network that extends over a large geographical
area such as states or countries. A Wide Area Network is quite bigger network than
the LAN. A Wide Area Network is not limited to a single location, but it spans over
a large geographical area through a telephone line, fibre optic cable or satellite links.
The internet is one of the biggest WAN in the world.
A Wide Area Network is widely used in the field of business, government, and
education.
Figure : WAN
Personal Area Network is a network arranged within an individual person,

typically within a range of 10 meters. Personal Area Network is used for connecting
the computer devices of personal use is known as Personal Area Network. Personal
computer devices that are used to develop the personal area network are the laptop,
mobile phones, media player and play stations.
Figure : PAN
Unit – 3
Handout – 14
Network Media / Transmission Media / Communication Media
Transmission media is a pathway that carries the information from sender to receiver.
We use different types of cables or waves to transmit data. Data is transmitted normally
through electrical or electromagnetic signals.
An electrical signal is in the form of current. An electromagnetic signal is series of
electromagnetic energy pulses at various frequencies. These signals can be transmitted
through copper wires, optical fibers, atmosphere, water and vacuum. Different Media
have different properties like bandwidth, delay, cost and ease of installation and
maintenance. Transmission media is also called Communication channel.
Types of Transmission Media
Transmission media is broadly classified into two groups.
 Wired or Guided Media or Bound Transmission Media

 Wireless or Unguided Media or Unbound Transmission Media
Figure : Types of Communication Media
Wired or Guided Media or Bound Transmission Media: Bound transmission media

are the cables that are tangible or have physical existence and are limited by the physical
geography. Popular bound transmission media in use are twisted pair cable, co-axial
cable and fiber optical cable. Each of them has its own characteristics like transmission
speed, effect of noise, physical appearance, cost etc.
 Twisted Pair Cable

 Co-axial Cable
 Fibre Optic cable
Twisted Pair Cable : Twisted-pair wires, which consist of copper wires that are twisted
into pairs, is the most widely used medium for telecommunication. Figure shows a
bunch of twisted pair cables enclosed in a plastic insulation. While ordinary telephone
wires consist of two insulated copper wires twisted into pairs, computer networking
cables, on the other hands, consist of four pairs of copper cabling that can be utilized
for both voice and data transmission.
The transmission speed of twisted –pairs cable varies from 2 million bits per second
(bps) to 100 million bps. They are cheap and easy to install and use. However, these
cables easily pick up noise signals, and thus become prone to error when their length
extends beyond 100 meters.
Coaxial Cable : Coaxial cables are highly preferred connecting media for cable
television systems and for connecting the computers within an office building or within
short distance to form a network. The coaxial cable consists of a single copper
conductor at its centre, encapsulated inside a plastic layer that provides insulation
between the conductor and braided metal shield. The metal shield blocks any
interference from outside environment and is again protected by an outer shield of
plastic material.
The coaxial cable is highly resistant to signal interference and can support greater cable
lengths between network devices than twisted-pair cables. Its transmission speed varies
from 200 million to more than 500 million bps. However, it is difficult to install.
Figure : Coaxial Cable
Optical Fibre : An optical Fiber is a thin, flexible, transparent Fiber that acts as a
waveguide, or "light pipe", to transmit light between the two ends of the Fiber. Optical
fibers are widely used in Fiber-optic communications, which permits transmission over
longer distances and at higher bandwidths (data rates) than other forms of
communication. Fibers are used instead of metal wires because signals travel along
them with less loss and are also immune to electromagnetic interference.
This type of communication can transmit voice, video, and telemetry through local area
networks, computer networks, or across long distances. Optical fiber is used by many
telecommunications companies to transmit telephone signals, Internet communication,
and cable television signals.
The transmission speed of an OFC is hundreds of times more than that of coaxial cable,
and thousands of times more than that of twisted-pair cables. Therefore, its preferable
choice for video conferencing and other interactive services.
Figure : Optical Fibre
Optical fiber works on Refraction of light (Snells Law)
Fiber Optic Cable consists of four parts:
 Core
 Cladding
 Buffer
 Jacket Core.
The core of a fiber cable is a cylinder of plastic that runs all along the fiber cable’s
length, and offers protection by cladding. The diameter of the core depends on the
application used. Due to internal reflection, the light travelling within the core reflects
from the core, the cladding boundary. The core cross section needs to be a circular one
for most of the applications.
Cladding is an outer optical material that protects the core. The main function of the
cladding is that it reflects the light back into the core. When light enters through the
core (dense material) into the cladding (less dense material), it changes its angle, and
then reflects back to the core.
Buffer – its main function of the buffer is to protect the fiber from damage and
thousands of optical fibers arranged in hundreds of optical cables. These bundles are
protected by the cable’s outer covering that is called jacket.
Jacket - Fiber optic cable’s jackets are available in different colors that can easily make
us recognize the exact color of the cable we are dealing with. The color yellow clearly
signifies a single mode cable, and orange color indicates multimode.
Advantages of OFC
 Extremely High Bandwidth

 Longer Distance
 Resistance to Electromagnetic Interference
 Low Security Risk
 Small Size
 Low weight
 Easy to Accommodate Increasing Bandwidth
Disadvantages of OFC
 Fragility: usually optical fiber cables are made of glass, which lends to they are
more fragile than electrical wires.
 Difficult to install
 Attenuation
 Cost higher than copper wire
 Special equipment is required
Wireless or Unguided Media or Unbound Transmission Media: Unbound

transmission media are the ways of transmitting data without using any cables. These
media are not bounded by physical geography. This type of transmission is called
Wireless communication. Nowadays wireless communication is becoming popular.
Wireless LANs are being installed in office and college campuses. This transmission
uses Microwave, Radio wave, Infrared are some of popular unbound transmission
media.
 Infrared
 Satellite Communication
 Micro Waves
Infrared - Infrared (IR) is a wireless transmission medium that sends signals using
infrared light waves. TV and Mobile computers and devices, such as a mouse, printer,
and smart phone, often have an IrDA port that enables the transfer of data from one
device to another using infrared light waves. IR can only be transmitted within small
distance (not more than 10 meters face-to-face) without any object in the line of
transmission.
Figure : Infrared
Satellite Communication – In satellite communication, signals are transferred between

the sender and the receiver using a satellite that is stationed in space, typically 35400
kms (for geosynchronous satellite) above the equator. In this process, the signal, which
is basically a beam of modulated microwaves, is sent towards the satellite. The satellite
amplifies the received signal and transmits it back to the receiver’s antenna present on
the earth’s surface. This means all the transfer of signal happens in space. Satellite can
be used to relay voice, data, and TV signals.
Figure : Satellite Communication Setup
Microwaves – These are radio waves that provide a high-speed signal transmission.
Microwave transmission, often called fixed wireless, involves sending signals from one
microwave station to another. Microwaves can transmit data at rates up to 4,500 times
faster than a dial-up modem.
A microwave station is an earth-based reflective dish that contains the antenna,

transceivers, and other equipment necessary for microwave communications.
 Microwaves travel in straight lines, and so the transmitter and receiver stations
should be accurately aligned to each other.
 Microwaves do not pass through buildings. So, indoor receivers cannot be used
effectively.
Figure : Microwave Transmission
Figure : Microwave Relay Station

Unit – 3
Handout – 15
Internet Technologies
Internet – Network of networks is called Internet. The Internet is a global network that
connects billions of computers all over the world. The Internet links different
organizations, academic institutions, government offices, and home users to share
information among a large group of users.
Each computer on the Internet is called a host. To connect to the Internet, the user must
gain access through a commercial Internet Service Provider (ISP).
The root of the Internet can be traced to the year 1969 when USA Defense formed the
very first network ARPANET.
Internet Services
 Electronic Mail
 File Transfer Protocol (FTP is basically a program that enables users to transfer
files from one computer to another)
 Chatting
 Internet Conferencing
 Electronic Newspaper
 World Wide Web (WWW) – An interconnected set of hypertext document
located throughout the Internet.
 Online Shopping
 Search Engine (The WWW stores enormous amount of information on an
amazing variety of topics in hundreds of millions of pages. Finding information
from this huge source is extremely difficult. The information we need is often
stored in different names in different sites. Therefore, a special site called a
search engine is used to help people find information stored on various sites. –
Google, Yahoo, and MSN Search).
Extranet and Intranet

Intranet - is owned by a single organization and is a tool for sharing information
throughout the organization. It is the type of Internet that is used privately. Since,
intranet is a private network so no one can use the intranet whose have not valid
username and password. In intranet, there are a limited number of connected devices
as compared to internet. Intranet is highly secure and has a small number of visitors.
It is used in order to get employee information, telephone directory etc.
Extranet - refers to network within an organization, using internet to connect to the

outsiders in controlled manner. It helps to connect businesses with their customers and
suppliers and therefore allows working in a collaborative manner.
Figure : Layout of Extranet
Extranet is implemented as a Virtual Private Networks (VPN) because it uses internet

to connect to corporate organization and there is always a threat to information security.
VPN offers a secure network in public infrastructure (Internet).
Figure : Intranet and Extranet

Differentiate between Intranet and Extranet
S No. Intranet Extranet

1 Internal network that can not be Internal network that can be accessed
accessed externally. externally.
2 Intranet is owned by a single While Extranet is owned by either a
organization. single or a many organization.
In intranet, security is implemented Whereas in this, security is
through a firewall. implemented through a firewall in
order to separate the extranet and the
3. internet.
Intranet is managed by an Whereas Extranet is managed by
4. organization. many organizations.
Intranet has a limited number of Whereas in the extranet, connected
connected devices. devices are comparable with the
5. intranet.
While it is also a private network in
which public network is used in
Intranet is a private network type for order to share the information to the
6. an organization. suppliers and customers.
Intranet is used in order to get While It is used to check status,
employee information, telephone access data, send mail, place order
7. directory etc. etc.
Intranet is the limited and While Extranet is the limited and
8. compromised version of Extranet. compromised version of Internet.
A particular organization is the While it is regulated by multiple
9. regulating authority for intranet. organizations.
It is accessible to only the members It is accessible to members of
of organization. organization as well as external
10. members with logins.
It’s restricted area is upto an It’s restricted area is upto an
organization. organization and some of its
11. stakeholders.
12. It is derived from Internet. It is derived from Intranet.
Who is the owner of Internet?
There is no owner or CEO of Internet. The Internet protocols and standards are managed
by two technical bodies :
 IAB
 IETF
The Internet Architecture Board (IAB) - provides long-range technical direction for
Internet development, ensuring the Internet continues to grow and evolve as a
platform for global communication and innovation.
The Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) is the premier Internet standards
body, developing open standards through open processes. The IETF is a large open
international community of network designers, operators, vendors, and researchers
concerned with the evolution of the Internet architecture and the smooth operation of
the Internet.
Communication Protocols
A protocol is a set of rules that governs the communications between computers on a

network. In order for two computers to talk to each other, they must be speaking the
same language. Many different types of network protocols and standards are required
to ensure that your computer (no matter which operating system, network card, or
application you are using) can communicate with another computer located on the next
desk or half-way around the world. The OSI (Open Systems Interconnection) Reference
Model defines seven layers of networking protocols.
Within computer science, a communications protocol is a system of digital rules for
message exchange within or between computers. Communicating systems use well-
defined formats for exchanging messages. Each message has an exact meaning intended
to provoke a particular response of the receiver. Few of the protocols are listed below:
 HTTP- HyperText Transfer Protocol - An Internet-based protocol for sending
and receiving webpages.
HTTPS- Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS) is a secure version of

the Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (http). HTTPS allows secure ecommerce
transactions, such as online banking. When a user connects to a website via
HTTPS, the website encrypts the session with a Digital Certificate. A user can
tell if they are connected to a secure website if the website URL begins with
https:// instead of http://.
FTP is an acronym for File Transfer Protocol. As the name suggests, FTP is used
to transfer files between computers on a network. FTP is the easiest way to
transfer files between computers via the internet, and utilizes TCP, transmission
control protocol, and IP, internet protocol, systems to perform uploading and
downloading tasks.
SMTP stands for Simple Mail Transfer Protocol. It's a set of communication
guidelines that allow software to transmit email over the Internet. Most email
software is designed to use SMTP for communication purposes when sending
email, and It only works for outgoing messages.
PPP (Point-to-Point Protocol) is a protocol for communication between two
computers using a serial interface, typically a personal computer connected by
phone line to a server.
POP is short for Post Office Protocol, a protocol used to retrieve e-mail from a
mail server. Most e-mail applications (sometimes called an e-mail client) use the
POP protocol, although some can use the newer IMAP (Internet Message Access
Protocol).
TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) is a set of rules (protocol) used along with
the Internet Protocol (IP) to send data in the form of message units between
computers over the Internet. While IP takes care of handling the actual delivery
of the data, TCP takes care of keeping track of the individual units of data (called
packets) that a message is divided into for efficient routing through the Internet.
IP Internet Protocol (IP) is the method or protocol by which data is sent from
one computer to another on the Internet. Each computer (known as a host) on the
Internet has at least one IP address that uniquely identifies it from all other
computers on the Internet.
Unit – 3
Handout – 16
Network Devices
Computer networking devices are communication devices that enable the users to create
a network. These devices are also called equipment, intermediate systems (IS) or
networking unit. There are numbers of network devices few of them are as follows:
Hub
It is the dumbest and simplest networking device of all devices. It is also least
expensive, least complicated and least intelligent device comparing to router, switch,
and bridge. Hub are non-intelligent because, when data is sent to the hub it
automatically passes it onto every computer / device on the network.
Its main function is to amplify the signal and broadcast them to all the devices connected
to it. A hub contains multiple ports. When a packet arrives at one port, it is copied to
the other ports so that all the segments of the LAN can see all the packets.
Networks using a Star topology require a central point for the devices to connect.
Figure : Hub
Hubs can be active or passive. An active hub strengthens and regenerates the incoming
signals before sending the data on to its destination. Passive hubs do nothing with the
signal.
Router
A router is an intelligent device that routes data to destination computers. It is basically

used to connect two logically and physically different networks, two LANs, two MANs
and a LAN with WAN. Cisco routers are the most widely used routers all over the
world. In short, we can say, router is a network device that connects together two or
more networks.
A common use of a router is to join a home or business network (LAN) to the Internet
(WAN).
Routers perform the “traffic directing” function on the Internet. Routers operate at the
network layer of the OSI model.
Figure : Router
Router can analyze the data being sent over a network, change how it is packaged, and
send it over a different network. For example routers are commonly used in home
networks to share the single Internet connection between multiples computers.
The routers use special software known as routing table that stores the addresses of
devices connected to the network. The major task of the router is to route the data
packets between two networks on the best possible path for fast data transmission. For
this, it reads the information in each packet to know where the packet has to be sent.
Switch
Switch is a device that can be used in all places where a hub is used. It is much better
than the hub because a switch has a switching table within it. The switching table stores
the addresses of every computer or device connected to it and sends the data only to
destined device rather than broadcast the data to all the devices connected to it.
Therefore, the switch is considered to be an intelligent device as it selects the devices
among many devices connected to it to forward the data.
Figure : Switch
Switches are a special type of hub that offers an additional layer of intelligence to basic,
physical-layer repeater hubs. A switch must be able to read the MAC address of each
frame it receives. This information allows switches to repeat incoming data frames only
to the computer or computers to which a frame is addressed. This speeds up the network
and reduces congestion.
Switches operate at both the physical layer and the data link layer of the OSI Model.
Bridge
A bridge is a network device that connects two or more LANs. When a bridge receives
data from one LAN to forward it to another LAN, it first regenerates (amplifies) the
signal and then forward the data to the other LAN. Amplification ensures that the
devices on the network receive accurate information. Otherwise, the signals become
weaker as they travel, and a 1 sent by the transmitting device may be interpreted as a 0
by the receiving device.
Figure: Demonstration of a Bridge
A bridge reads the address of the receiving device specified on the data packet to
identify the destination of the packet.
Bridges can also connect networks that run at different speeds, different topologies, or
different protocols. Bridges operate at both the Physical Layer and the MAC sublayer
of the Data Link layer.
Repeater
Network repeaters are electronic devices that regenerate incoming electrical, wireless,
or optical signals. Without a repeater, data can only span a limited distance before the
quality of the signal degrades. Repeaters attempt to preserve signal integrity by
removing unwanted noise from the incoming signal, restoring the weak/distorted signal,
thereby extending the distance over which data can safely travel.
Figure : Repeater
repeater connects two segments of the network cable. It regenerates the signal before
sending it to the other segments, but this segment requires a small amount of time.
Gateway
A gateway is a very complicated network device that is basically used to connect two
dissimilar networks that use entirely different protocols. For example, if you know only
English but want to talk to a person who knows only Russian, then you need a translator
to facilitate your communication. The gateway acts as translator between two dissimilar
networks.
It accepts data formatted by one network and converts it into a format that can be
accepted by the other network.
A gateway can either be implemented in software or hardware. The other key role that
a gateway performs is to provide security to the network. It also checks malicious
activity within the network.
Figure : Network Gateway
Network gateways can operate at any level of the OSI model.

Network Interface Card (NIC)
Any computer that is to be connected to a network, needs to have a network interface

card (NIC). Most modern computers have these devices built into the motherboard, but
in some computers you have to add an extra expansion card (small circuit board).
Figure : NIC
A network interface card (NIC) is a hardware component without which a computer

cannot be connected over a network. It is a circuit board installed in a computer that
provides a dedicated network connection to the computer. It is also called network
interface controller, network adapter or LAN adapter. NIC allows both wired and
wireless communications. NIC is both a physical layer and a data link layer device. NIC
is of two types – Internal NIC and External NIC.
Modem
Modulation + Demodulation = Modem (input as well as output device)
A modem transforms digital information from your computer into analog signals that
can transmit over wires, and it can translate incoming analog signals back into digital
data that your computer can understand. Most stand-alone modems have just two ports:
one that connects to the outside world, and an Ethernet jack that connects to a computer
or a router.
Figure : Modem
In short modem modulates and demodulates electrical signals sent through phone lines,
coaxial cables, or other types of wiring.

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Department of Computer Science

Aligarh Muslim University

Introduction to Information Technology

Information Technology means anything related to computing technology, such as

As per the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA), IT is "the study,

 Network and Computer Systems Administrators

Nowadays, almost in all sectors, there is extensive use of Information technology.No

 Ease of access to information

Information technology can be used in business organizations for payroll calculations,

People use computers in a wide variety of ways:

 In homes, tiny computers embedded in the electronic circuitry of most

 In automobiles regulate the flow of fuel, thereby increasing gas mileage.

 In entertainment, creating digitized sound on stereo systems or computer-

 In scientific research to solve mathematical problems, display complicated data,

 In military, military employs computers in sophisticated communications to

 Health Sectors (Hospitals)

Past, Present and Future of Information Technology?

A computer converts data into information that is useful to people.

Program is a list of instructions for a computer to perform a useful task.

As we know physical / mechanical components of computer which we can touch are

3. Input and Output Devices

Software“Computer Software - Tells the computer what to do”

“SOFTWARE RUNS THE MACHINE”

Firmware is a software program or set of instructions programmed on a hardware device.

Simply software coded on hardware is called firmware. Firmware is a tangible electronic

The word “Generation” for computers indicates a step in technology. Nowadays, a

 Second Generation (1956-1964) – 2nd generation computers were based on

The Shapes / Sizes of Computer Today

Microcomputers, or Personal Computers

Some important terms in the binary number system

Term Size (bits) Example

Base or Radix of a Number

System Radix Allowable Digits

Binary representation with three bits

Binary representation with four bits

Binary numbers can be easily translated into electrical impulses.

Hundreds (10 2 ) Tens (10 1 ) Ones (10 0 )

Here 123 = 1 x 100 + 2 x 10 + 3 x 1

The same concept is applied in binary number system.

Converting a Binary Number into Decimal Equivalent

Sixteen’s Eight’s column Four’s column Two’s column One’s column

Use above table to form the decimal number

Decimal number = 1 x 23+ 1 x 2 2 + 0 x 2 1+ 1 x 2 0

Converting a Decimal Number into Binary Form

Table : Decimal, Binary and Octal number system.

Fourth digit Third digit Second digit First digit

Example : Convert (123) 8 into its decimal equivalent.

Example :Convert (10567) 8 into its decimal equivalent.

Example : Convert 1792 to its octal equivalent

(1792) 10= (3400) 8

Find out (9890) 10 = ( ?) 8

Converting an Octal Number into Binary Form

Binary equivalent 6 = 110

Binary equivalent of 3 = 011

Now merge 110011

Find out (175) 8 = ( ?) 2

Converting a Binary Number into Octal Form

Find out (1101100) 2 = ( ?) 8

Figure: Hexadecimal number and its binary and decimal equivalent

Example : Convert A2B 16 to an equivalent binary number.

We can put equivalent number directly from the table

Now put value

First, convert the given hexadecimal to the equivalent decimal number.

The binary number obtained is 1010001010112