EAST ASIA INTERNATIONAL

SYSTEMS COLLEGE INC.

Martin Bldg.,3rd & 4th Floor, Roxas St., District II, Cauayan City, Isabela

COMPUTER SYSTEM SERVICING I

1ST QUARTER MODULE

LESSON 1: COMPUTER SYSTEMS
COMPUTER BASIC

Computer are used in daily lives of people like research, pay bills, shop online, connect
with other people and perform business activities. People use personal desktop computers,
laptops, tablets and smart phones day after day. With increased dependency on personal
computers, one has to be ready in the knowledge of assembly maintenance and repair of
computers dew to the various threats like system failure, crush, malicious programs such as
viruses, data loss and many others.
Computer defines as electronic hardware device. It operates and functions under the
control of instructions called programs stored in its memory. People use computers as
means to do certain tasks and attain target objectives.
A Computer works like a human brain. The brain stores information from our senses and
then use these to guide human actions. A computer needs information to work on, and it is
called data.
A Computer can receive and accept data then processes them using the program set by
the user. Data entered into the computer are in the form of text, images, sounds and videos. A
computer processes this data then produces an output information to be used by the people.
Processed information is stored in computer’s memory.
An electronic device that stores, retrieves, and processes data, and can be

programmed with instructions. A computer is composed of hardware and software, and

can exist in a variety of sizes and configurations.

CLASSIFICATION OF COMPUTERS

❖ SUPERCOMPUTERS
are the most powerful computer available. These high-
capacity computers that runs continuously are being used
by a very large organization mostly big corporation and

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 governmentinstitutions. Users of supercomputers include
NASA and US government.
❖ MAINFRAME COMPUTERS
are less powerful than supercomputers but are capable of
great processing speed, multi-tasking capability and high
data storage. They are mostly used by banks and
insurance companies to processes information of
depositors, millions of daily bank transactions, and policy
holders.
❖ MID-RANGE COMPUTERS
are used by medium size companies for specific purposes.
They may be used for certain assembly line operation or
manufacturing stages in big companies. The size of mid-
range computers may be as big as washing machine. They
may be stand-alone system for specialize application
including network servers.
❖ HANDHELD COMPUTERS
are the smallest computers that are designed to feet into
one hand or palm that is why they are also called palm top
computers? These computers may combine pen input,
personal organizer tools and communication capabilities
such as telephone and internet applications.
❖ MICROCOMPUTERS
or the desktop computers are the most common and widely used computers today
whichyou can see in homes, schools, and in most businesses.
Two types of microcomputers
• Desktop Computers
are small enough to be placed on a desk or table but are to be carried around.

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 • Notebook Computer
also known as Laptop Computers are portable, lightweight and are easy carry
around.

PERSONAL COMPUTERS

❖ Desktop Computer
a personal computer in a set-up wherein it is located on a desk or table.

❖ Laptop Computer or Notebook

a small personal computer where components, display, keyboard, pointing device, CPU,
and rechargeable battery are packed together in one single portable unit intended for
mobile use.

❖ Multi-touch Screen
a computer monitor screen that will allow the interaction of two or more fingers
direction onto the screen to give a command, ATMs on one hand has a touch screen
that responds to a single touch command at a time. The Multi- Touch Screen foregoes
the use of mouse, keyboard, and stylus pen to enter data in interact with the
computer

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❖ NETTOP Desktop Computer
a small size, low voltage, and low power computers. It isrelatively chipped making it
ideal for internet tasks and basic word processing, spread sheet, PowerPoint, and playing
music or video. Most NETTOPS have built in Wi-Fi.

❖ Netbook Computer
also called a mini notebook was conceived and released to the public in two thousand
seven with the release of Asus Eee PC. The main feature of netbook is its small size,
lightweight, low power, and in expensive character that appeals to mobile users.

❖ Tablet PC
a note book equipped with a touchscreen, while allows the user to operate the
computers using a digital pen or stylus. It offers flexibility and functionality that a
standard notebook cannot give but these gadgets usually come at a high price.

❖ Pocket PC
a handheld or pocket size computer running on Microsoft Windows Pocket PC edition
with all features of a modern desktop PC. It may have mobile phone feature.

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 ❖ PDA or Personal Digital Assistant
handheld computer also called palmtop computer. Modern PDAs have phone
capabilities, web browsers, internet, music, and video. Touch screen is a standard
feature on most PDAs.

❖ Smartphone
a mobile phone which incorporates the feature of pocket PC and PDA as described
above. Smartphones are pocket-sized with all the advanced hardware and software
applications that run on mobiles operating system. Today’s smartphones are equipped
with different features and functions such as camera for both photo and video
recording; GPS navigation; play music and videos; internet surfing; games and
entertainment; and over a million more mobile applications (as reported by apple).

ELEMENTS OF COMPUTER SYSTEM

❖ HARDWARE

the physical components of computer constitute its hardware. These includes

keyboard, mouse, monitor and processor. Hardware consists of input device that
make a complete computer system.
Example of input devices are keyboard, optical scanner, and mouse which are used
to feed data into the computer. Output devices such as monitor and printer are
mediato get the output from the computer.

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❖ SOFTWARE

a set of programs that form an interface between the hardware and the user of a
computer system are referred to as software.

Types of software:

• Application software
programs designed by the user to perform a specific function, such as adobe
Photoshop, MS Word, Mozilla Firefox etc.
• System software
a set of tools and programs to manage the overall working of a computer using a
defined set of hardware components is called an operating system. It is the
interface between the user and the computer system
• Utility software
certain special purposes programs that are designed to perform a specialized
task,such as functions copy, cut or paste files in a computer, formatting disk etc.
• Language processors
special software to accept data and interpret it in the form of machine/assembly
language understandable by a computer.it also ensures the correctness of
language syntax and errors.
• Connectivity software
a set of programs and instructions to connect the computer with the main server
to enablesharing of resources and information with server and other connected
computers.

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❖ PEOPLE or LIVE-WARE

the most important element of a computer system is called users. They are also called
live-ware of the computer system.
The following types of people interact with a computer system:
• System analysts - people design the operation and processing of the system.
• System Programmers - people who write codes and programs to implement the
working of the system
• System Operators - People who operate the system and use it for different
purposes. Also called the end-users.
❖ PROCEDURES
a step-by-step series of instruction to perform a specific function and achieve desired
output.
In a computer system there are three types of procedures:
• Hardware oriented procedure - it defines the working of a hardware component
• Software oriented procedure - is a set of detailed instructions for using the
software.
• Internal Procedure - it maintains the overall internal working of each part of a
computer system by directing the flow of information.
❖ DATA

The facts and figures that are fed into a computer for further processing are called
data. Data is raw until the computer system interprets it using machine language, stores
it in memory, classifies it for processing and procedures results in conformance

with the instruction given to it. Processed and useful data is called information which
is used for decision making.

❖ CONNECTIVITY

when two or more computers are connected to each other, they can share
information and resources such as sharing of files (data/music etc.), sharing of
printer, sharing of facilities like the internet etc. This sharing is possible using wires,
cables, satellite, infrared, Bluetooth, microwave, transmission etc.

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LESSON 2: USES OF COMPUTER
COMPUTERS IN DAILY LIFE
Computers are used in so many fields in our daily life. From Engineers to Doctors,
Students, Teachers, Government Organization they all use computers to perform specific tasks,
for entertainment or just to finish office work. Computers have made our life easier. With
greater precision and accuracy and less time taking computers can do a lot in short time while
that task can take a lot of time while doing it manually. Computers have taken industries and
businesses to a whole new level. They are use at Home for work and entertainment purposes,
at Office in hospitals, in government organizations.

USES OF COMPUTER AT HOME

Computer can be used at home in the following ways.

❖ Home Budget - Computer can be used to manage Home Budget. You can easily
calculate your expenses and income. You can list all expenses in an organize way.
There are also specialize software that can manage your income and expenses and
generate some cool reports.
❖ Computer Games - A source of entertainment and recreation. Many games are available
that are specially developed to improved your mental capability andthinking power.
❖ Work from Home - People can manage the office work at home. Owner of the company
can check the work of the employees from home.
❖ Entertainment - People can find entertainment on the internet. They can watch
movies, listen to songs, and watch videos download different stuff. They can alsowatch
live matches on the internet.
❖ Information - People can find any type of information on the internet. Educational and
informative websites are available to download books, tutorials etc. to improve their
knowledge and learn new things.
❖ Chatting & social media - People can chat with friends and family on the internet using
different software like skype etc. One can interact with friends over social media

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 websites like Facebook, Twitter & Google Plus. They can also share photos and videos
with friends
USES OF COMPUTER IN EDUCATION

Computer Based Training (CBT) are different programs that are supplied on CD-ROM.
These programs include Text, Graphics and Sound. Audio and Video lectures are recorded
on CDs. CBT is A low-cost solution for educating people. You can train a large number of
people easily.

Some benefits of CBT are as follows:

1. The students can learn new skills at their own place. They can easily
acquire knowledge in any available time of their own choice.
2. Training time can be reduced.

3. Training materials are interactive and easy to learn. It encourages students to

learnthe topic.
4. Planning and timing problems are reduced or eliminated.

5. The skills can be taught at any time and at any place.

6. It is very cost- ef f ec t i v e way to train a large number of students.

7. Training videos and audios are available at affordable prices.

❖ Computer Aided Learning (CAL) - Computer aided learning is the process of using
information technology to help teaching and enhance the learning process. The use
ofthe computer can reduce the time that is spent on the preparing teaching materials. It
can also reduce the administrative load of teaching and research. The use of multimedia
projector and PowerPoint presentations has improved the quality of teaching.it has also
helped the learning process.
❖ Distance Learning - Distance learning is a new learning methodology. Computer plays
the key role in this kind of learning. Many institutes are providing distance learning
programs. The students do not need to come to the institute. The institute provides
the reading material and the students attends virtual classroom. In virtual classroom,

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 the teacher delivers lecture at his own workplace. The student can attendthe lecture
at home by connecting to a network. The student can also ask questions to the
teachers

USES OF COMPUTERS IN BUSINESS

The use of computer technology in business provides many facilities. Businessman are using
computers to interact with their customers anywhere in the world. Many business tasks are
performed more quickly and effectively. Computers also help them to reduce theoverall cost
of their business. Computer can be used in business in the following ways.

❖ Marketing - An organization can use computers for marketing their

products. Marketing applications provide information about the products to
customers. Computer is also used to manage distribution system,
advertising and selling activities. It can also be used in deciding pricing
strategies.

❖ Stock Exchange - The most important place for businessman. Many Stock
exchanges use computers to conduct bids. The stock Brokers perform all trading
activities electronically. They connect with the computer where Brokers match the
buyers with sellers. It reduces cost as no paper or special building is required to
conduct these activities.

USES OF COMPUTER IN MEDICAL FIELD

❖ Hospital Management System - Software’s are used to automate the day-to-day

procedures and operations at hospitals. These tasks may be Online appointments,
payroll admittance and discharge records.

❖ Patients History- Computers are used to store data about patients, their diseases &
symptoms, the medicines that are prescribed.

❖ Patients Monitoring -Monitoring systems are installed in medical wards and

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 intensive care units to monitoring patients continuously. These systems can monitor
pulse, blood pressure and body temperature and can alert medical staff about
serious situations.
❖ Life Support Systems - Specialized devices are used to help impaired patients like
hearing aids.

❖ Diagnose purpose - A variety of software’s are used to investigate symptoms and

prescribed accordingly. Sophisticated systems are used for test like CT scan, ECG,
and other medical tests.

VALUE OF BACKUP

❖ The most important thing that you store on your computer is information.

❖ Often the contents of a hard disk can represent years of work

❖ If the hard disk stops working one day you could lose all those years of work.

❖ For this reason, it is VITAL that you take regular backups of the information that is
stored on the computer.
❖ Organize your computer for more efficient backups.

❖ Complete vs Incremental backups

❖ Use ‘off-site’ storage

❖ Use passwords

❖ Understand the importance of shutting down your computer properly

❖ Use a UPS (Un-interruptible Power Supply)

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LESSON 3: CATEGORIES OF COMPUTER HARDWARE
Computer hardware is the physical equipment which includes the input devices, central processing
unit, and output devices.

INPUT DEVICE
The input devices are used to input data into the computer. The most common input devices are the mouse
and keyboard. Input devices allow people to interact with a computer, they allow users to input selected
data into the computer for processing. Other input devices may include the scanner, which acquire text
or graphics by scanning. The web camera is another input device that Captures video and images into the
computer for storage or for viewing by other people, Joystick and gamepad are input devices for
computer gaming. Today, digital and video camera are also used as input devices.
❖ Mouse
The mouse acts as the pointing device that you can use to choose programs and files to open,
functions to activate, to determine a typing or drawing starting point, function selection, and to
scroll pages up or down.

❖ Keyboard
The keyboard is a computer input device modeled from the keys of a typewriter. It is an
arrangement of keys or button where characters are printed. The characters consist of letters,
number or signs, and each one is represented by a specific key. Other special keys or combination
of keys also have a corresponding function. The keyboard allows one to input texts, numbers,
special characters, and other functions into the computer.

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❖ Scanner
The image scanner is a computer input device that scans and copies images, objects, texts,
handwriting, and converts them as digital image. Printed pictures, especially those from the pre-
computer home era, can now be scanned, modified, saved, and printed.

❖ Graphics Input Devices

There are many ways to produce and interact with screen graphics. Aside from the mouse, the
following are some other common devices that allow the user to interact with screen graphics. A
digitizing tablet allows you to create your own images. This device has a special stylus that you can
use to draw or trace images, which are then converted to digital data that can be processed by the
computer.

❖ Web Camera
The web camera or webcam is an input device that functions like a digital and video camera. It
allows one to place images into the computer. It may be built-in or may be attached to the
computer unit. Webcam can be used for video conferencing with friends, relatives, or business
associates allowing the participants to see each other.

❖ Game Pad
The game pad, also called joy pad or control pad functions as handheld game controller for
computer games. It has buttons corresponding twosome of the fingers which give one better
control of the characters being played in a computer game.

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 ❖ Joystick
The joystick is a computer input device used as a control device that pivots around so that one could
move in any direction. It is usually used in video games involving flight control for airplanes and
other aircraft. Joystick has also found use in controlling machines such as cranes, unmanned
submarines, trucks, and some medical surgical operations.

❖ Trackball
A variation on the mouse is the trackball. You may have used trackball to play a video game. The
trackball is like an upside-down mouse where you roll the ball directly with your fingers.

❖ Microphone
A microphone is an input device connected to the computer to the sound card via microphone
port. The microphone can be used as voice recorder, VOIP, computer gaming, online chatting, and
recording of songs and musical instruments.

CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT

The central processing unit or CPU or microprocessor is the brain of the computer. It is stored inside the
computer case placed in a slot within the motherboard together with the other components such as:
1. Motherboard containing the CPU, CPU fan/heatsink, memory card or RAM, BIOS, ROM,

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 CMOS, coin cell battery, north bridge interface, south bridge interface, I/O system, and
connectors for back panel, power supply, Serial ATA, ATA disk drive, slots for PCI, ISA, AGP, and
peripheral component interconnect.
2. Power supply

3. Case fan, power cable, and SATA cable

4. LAN card

5. Graphics/Video/Sound card

6. Hard disk drive

7. Optical drive or CD/DVD-ROM drive

8. Ports and wires

Abbreviations:

CPU Central Processing Unit

RAM Random Access Memory

ROM Read Only Memory

BIOS Basic Input Output System

CMOS Complementary Metal Oxide Semi-conductor

ATA Advance Technology Attachment

SATA Serial Advance Technology Attachment
PCI Peripheral Component Interconnect
ISA Industry Standard Architecture

AGP Accelerated Graphic Port

LAN Local Area Network

CD ROM Compact Disc Read Only Memory

DVD ROM Digital Versatile Disc Read Only Memory

I/O Input and Output

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OUTPUT DEVICES

The output devices allow the user to see the result of the data that has been processed. The monitor,
printer, and the speakers are the most commonly used output devices of most desktop computers. The
monitor functions like a television where you can view and see the current encoded data or processed
information. The printer allows users to have a hard or printed copy of the desired data or information
available inside the computer. Modern microcomputers require speakers to appreciate movies, music,
graphic presentation, and even computer alerts.

❖ Monitor

The monitor is an output device that functions as a visual display unit for images, text, or graphics
generated by the computer. The two kinds of monitors are the modern, flat panel Liquid Crystal
Display (LCD) which occupies less space; and the older and bulkier Cathode Ray Tube (CRT)model.

❖ Printer
Printer is a computer output device that produces a permanent or hard copy human readable text
and/or graphics of documents stored in the computer. There are four kinds of printers:

• Dot matrix Printer

a computer printer that prints by hammering or striking an ink-
soaked cloth ribbon against a paper. It functions just like the
typewriter, and the advantage of this type of printer is that it can
easily create carbon copies because of the impact action of the
printing process and the cost per page of printing is relatively
cheap.

• Laser Jet Printer

a computer printer that produces high quality prints of text or

graphics on plain paper. Color and black and white printing are

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 available in this type of printer. Laser Jet printers have faster
speeds than dot-matrix and inkjet printers. Printing in laser is
based on the principle of photocopiers.

• Ink Jet Printer

a computer printer most common for general use at home or at

the office. The prices of printers of this kind have significantly
gone down and it allows one to print high quality output both in
color and in black and white. It could be used in many kinds of
medium aside from paper. This printer operates by propelling
different sizes of very small and precise amount of ink droplets
onto a paper or other media.

• Plotter

a printing device that operates by moving a set of four pens

indifferent colors over a paper surface and can also have shading
features, most plotters are used in printing computer-aided
designs of houses, buildings, mechanical equipment, electrical
and electronic designs, landscape and interior designs, maps, bar
charts, engineering drawings, and even two- or three-
dimensional illustrations.

❖ Speakers

Computer speakers are your audio output for music, video, and computer
alerts. They are normally amplified so that one can enjoy the available
audio output from the computer. A variety of speakers are available in
the market today. Speakers may have the simple two-piece systems, or
the three-, four-, five-piece systems with sub-woofer, and surround
system.

❖ Terminals

Terminal screen may be the monitor of a self-contained personal

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 computer, or it may be part of a terminal that is one of many terminals
attached to a large computer. A terminal consists of an input device, an
output device, and a communications link to the main computer.

❖ Voice output

Speech synthesis is the process of enabling machines to talk to people.

Machine voices are not real human voices but a product of voice
synthesizers which are also called voice output devices or audio response
units. They convert data in main storage to vocalized sounds
understandable to humans. An example is when you start your car and a
voice tells you “Systems activated.”

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LESSON 4: STORAGE DEVICES
There are many available removable storage devices that are commonly used due to their movability,
one can simply bring this data or information in the portable memory and work in other place, as long
as there is an available computer with a software that is capable of reading data

A storage device is used in the computers to store the data. Also provides one of the core functions of
the modern computer

TYPES OF STORAGE

There are four types of storage:

1. PRIMARY STORAGE
2. SECONDARY STORAGE
3. TERTIARY STORAGE
4. OFF-LINE STORAGE

1. PRIMARY STORAGE
Also known as main memory. Main memory is directly or indirectly connected to central
processing unit via a memory bus. The CPU continuously reads instructions stored there and
executes them as required.

Example: RAM, ROM and Cache

❖ RAM – It is called Random Access Memory because any of the data in RAM can be accessed just
as fast as any of the other data.

There are two types of RAMS:

• DRAM (Dynamic Random-Access Memory)

• SRAM (Static Random-Access Memory)

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 Static RAM Dynamic RAM

• Faster • Slower

• More expensive • Less expensive

• Less power consumption

• More power consumption

• Does not need to be refreshed • Needs to be refreshed thousands of

times per second

❖ ROM

• This memory is used as the computer begins to boot up.

• Small Programs called firmware are often stored ROM Chips on Hardware devices (like a
BIOS chip), and they contain instructions the computer can use in performing some of the
most basic operations required to operate hardware devices.
• ROM memory cannot be easily or quickly overwritten or modified.
❖ CACHE
• Cache is a high-speed access area that can be either a reserved section of main memory
or a storage device.
• Most computers today come with L3 Cache or L2 Cache, while older computers
included only L1 Cache.
2. SECONDARY STORAGE
• It is not directly accessible by the CPU.

• Computer usually uses its input/output channels to access secondary storage and transfers
the desired data using intermediate area in primary storage.
Example: Hard Disk
Hard disk

• The hard disk is the main storage, and usually largest data storage device in a computer.
• It can store anywhere from 160 gigabytes to 2 terabytes

• Hard disk speed is the speed at which content can be read and written on a disk.

• A hard disk unit comes with a set of rotation speed varying from 45000 to 72000 rpm.

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 • Disk access time is measured in milliseconds
3. TERTIARY STORAGE
• Typically, it involves a robotic mechanism which will mount (insert) and dismount
removable mass storage media into storage device.
• It is a comprehensive computer storage system that is usually very slow, so it is usually used to
archive data that is not accessed frequently
• This is primarily useful for extraordinary large data stores, accessed without human
operators.
Examples: Magnetic Tape and Optical Disk
❖ Magnetic Tape

• A magnetically coated strip of plastic on which data can be encoded.

• Tapes for computers are similar to tapes used to store music.

• Tape is much less expensive than storage mediums but commonly much slower
solution that is commonly used for backup.

❖ Optical Disc
• any storage media that holds content in digital format and is read using a laser
assembly is considered optical media.
The most common types of optical media are:

o Blu-ray (BD)
o Compact Disc (CD)
o Digital Versatile Disc (DVD)
4. OFF-LINE STORAGE
• Also known as disconnected storage.
• a computer data storage on a medium or a device that is not under the control of a processing
unit.
• It must be inserted or connected by human operator before a computer can accessed it again.
Example: Floppy Disk, Zip Diskette, USB flash drive, Memory Card
❖ Floppy Disk

• A soft magnetic disk. Disk is portable. Floppy disks are slower to access than hard disks and

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 have less storage capacity, but they are much less expensive.
❖ Zip Diskette

• Hardware data storage device developed by LOMEGA that functions like a standard

o 1.44” floppy drive.

• Capable to hold up to 100 MB of data or 250 MB of data on new drives.

❖ USB Flash Drive

• A small, portable flash memory card that plugs into computers USB port and functions as a
portable hard drive.
❖ Memory Card

• An electronic flash memory storage disk commonly used in consumer electronic devices
such as digital cameras, MP3 players, mobile phones, and other small portable devices.

STORAGE DEVICES FEATURES

1. Volatility

2. Accessibility

3. Mutability

4. Addressability.
1. VOLATILITY
Two types of Volatility

❖ Volatile Memory – Requires Constant Power to maintain the stored information. All contents
erased when the systems power is turned off or interrupted.
❖ Non-Volatile Memory – Will retain the stored information if it is not constantly supplied
with electric power. It is suitable for long-term storage information.
2. ACCESSIBILITY
Refers to reading or writing data records
Two types of accessibility:
❖ Random Access – Any location in storage can be accessed at any moment in approximately
the same amount of time.
❖ Sequential Access – The accessing of pieces of information will be in a serial order, one after

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 the other; therefore, the time to access a particular piece of information depends upon
which piece of information was last accessed
3. MUTABILITY
Allows information to be overwritten at any time.
Computer without some amount of read/write storage for primary storage purposes would be
useless for many tasks.
Three types of mutability:

❖ Mutable storage
• Allows information to be overwritten at any time.
• A computer without some amount of read/write storage for primary storage purposes
would be useless for many tasks.

❖ Read only storage

• Retains the information stored at the time of manufacture, and write once storage allows
the information to be written only once at some point after manufacture. These are called
immutable storage.

❖ Slow write, fast read storage

• Allows information to be overwritten multiple times, but with the write operation being
much slower than the read operation.
4. ADDRESSABILITY
There are three types of addressability:
❖ Location-addressable - Each individually accessible unit of information in storage is selected
with its numerical memory address
❖ File addressable - Information is divided into files of variable length, and a particular file is
selected with human-readable directory and file names
❖ Content addressable - Each individually accessible unit of information is selected based on the
basis of (part of) the contents stored there. Content addressable storage can be implemented
using software (computer programs) or hardware (computer device), with hardware being
faster but more expensive option.

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LESSON 5: INTERNAL CONNECTIONS OF COMPUTERS SYSTEM
UNIT
THE INTERNAL SYSTEM UNIT OBJECTIVE
The computer is a collection of different devices connected to a central processing unit (CPU). The
CPU houses and connects most of the components that make up computer system.
The microprocessor and the memory units are the two most important parts of the internal system.
The microprocessor is the one that controls and processes data to information. It is usually placed in a
support electronic board also known as the motherboard. The microprocessor is encased and shielded
in order to be protected. It is also cooled because it tends to produce heat, therefore, in most cases a fan
and heatsink are attached to a microprocessor.
The Random-Access Memory or RAM is inserted or placed in a slot on the motherboard. The RAM
is the primary storage for data and program that are currently being processed. RAM is oftentimes
referred to as the temporary storage because its contents are lost when electrical power to the
computer is turn off.
Inside the CPU is also known as the Memory component known as the Hard disk. Hard disk is used to
store most of the programs, data, and information in the computer. Hard disk has a big storage capacity
and stored data are not lost even when the power is turned off.

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The CPU may also include other storage devices such as floppy disk drive and optical disk drive, CD or
DVD drive. The CD drive is where most programs are installed and data may be placed into the computer
as well. It is also used to play music and videos in VCD or DVD format.

WHAT IS INSIDE THE SYSTEM UNIT?

The system unit is the main case of a computer. The system unit contains the CPU or a
microprocessor, disk drives, memory, power supply, sound card, video card and cooling fan.

❖ Power cables or ATX 4 pin power supply connector is a standard motherboard power connector
used to provide +12 VDC to the processor voltage regulator.
❖ Front panel connectors the front panel header is where the connectors of hard disk drive activity
lights, case speaker, reset button, power on/off button, computer power on light, and key lock,
are connected to make them function smoothly.

❖ Power supply is an electronic device that supplies energy to the computer.

❖ computer fan is any fan inside, or attached to, a computer case used for active cooling. Fans are
used to draw cooler air into the case from the outside, expel warm air from inside and move air
across a heat sink to cool a particular component.

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❖ Random-access memory (RAM ) is a form of computer memory that can be read and changed in
any order, typically used to store working data and machine code. A random-access memory
device allows data items to be read or written in almost the same amount of time irrespective of
the physical location of data inside the memory.

❖ SATA Cables stands for "Serial Advanced Technology Attachment," or "Serial ATA." It is an interface
used to connect ATA hard drives to a computer's motherboard.

❖ A PCI slot is a built-in slot on a device that allows for the attachment
of various hardware components such as network cards, modems,
sound cards, disk controllers and other peripherals.

❖ The motherboard is the main circuit board of your computer and is also known as the mainboard
or logic board. If you ever open your computer, the biggest piece of silicon you see is the
motherboard.
❖ A hard disk drive (HDD), hard disk, hard drive, or fixed disk is an electro- mechanical data storage
device that uses magnetic storage to store and retrieve digital data using one or more rigid rapidly
rotating platters coated with magnetic material.
❖ an optical disc drive (ODD) is a disc drive that uses laser light or electromagnetic waves within or
near the visible light spectrum as part of the process of reading or writing data to or from optical
discs

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LESSON 6: HOW COMPUTER SYSTEMS WORKS
The computer needs Input, Process, and Output to work. Users encode input data to the
computer to get processed information or output. The input, process, and output have corresponding
devices that do the work. Users are usually familiar with the input and output associated with the
computer. The process part which is done by the microprocessor or CPU is the unseen part of the
computer system

INPUT

The computer needs input data and commands in order to work. You can enter the input data and
commands into the computer using the keyboard and the mouse. Typing letters and numbers is called
input. An input is the data and command entered into the computer.

PROCESS

The computer then works on these data and command entered onto the computer. This step is called
process. The CPU or microprocessor is where the process takes place.

OUTPUT

The result displayed on the monitor or heard on the speaker after the data is processed is called output.
Output is the result of the data processing. The processed data is now called information.

Sometimes the output is an instant reaction to the input as in the following examples:

❖ When you purchase an item at a supermarket and pay at the cashier, scanning the bar code will
provide input that will allow instant retrieval of information outputs which are the price and item
name
❖ When you go to the bank ATM, typing the customers bank account numbers as the input will
provide the customer with the account balance as output.

❖ A student pilot experience cockpit environment, allowing the student to simulate take off,
cruising, and landing an airplane on the computer.

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 ❖ When you use the special pen in your cellphone to write notes, the hand written characters are
displayed as typed text and are stored in the cellphone. This is also used in some restaurant’s that
use computer pads when taking orders.
❖ When you book a flight with travel agency, the details of your intended flight will be typed in a
computer for queries on flight schedules and the system will receive an on- screen output
indicating the availability of flight. After reservation has been confirmed, a printed output of the
ticket may be issued.

HOW INPUT AND OUTPUT DEVICES WORK

Without input/output (I/O), there will be no interaction with the CPU. The devices are connected to the
data bus that carries the data, and address bus that puts the data to the storage location. They are accessed thru
a special I/O instruction. The devices communicate with the CPU using I/O lines.

Input is getting data from the user to the computer. Some input data can go directly to the
computer for processing like bar codes, speech that enters the computer through a microphone, and
data entered by means of keyboard, mouse, scanner, or from a magnetic disk. The raw data is then
processed by the computer which will result to an output that can be seen in output devices like monitor,
printer, etc., resulting to an output showing the information/image that user can use.

The computer needs the following parts function properly:

❖ CPU – Processor chip, buses, ports (plugs), controllers, BIOS ROM (placed by manufacturer,
cannot be accessed or modified, tells the computer how to start itself).
❖ RAM – Short term or temporary storage, called main memory
❖ Input Devices – allow the user to input data into computer like keyboard and mouse.

❖ Output Devices- allow user to see the results like monitor, printer, and modem (can perform both
input and output).
❖ Secondary storage – permanent storage like CD-ROM, hard disk drive and floppy disk.

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MACHINE CYCLE

There are four basic steps that the CPU does to process its operation: fetch, decode, execute, and store.
The process is repeated again and again until the last instruction. This is also called the machine cycle

Step 1 Fetch is the process of getting instructions or data from program

memory (Cache or RAM)
Step 2 Decode is the process of translating these instructions or data that the
CPU can understand and execute upon.

Step 3 Execute is the process of carrying out of the command. The

commands are executed or performed either in Arithmetic Logic Unit
(ALU) or floating-Point Unit (FPU).
Store or write back is the process of writing the result to the memory.
Step 4
This memory is in the CPU itself and they are called registers.

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HARD DISK DRIVE (HDD)

The HDD is usually located at the bottom inside the computer case. The part of the hard disk are as
follows: Platter, Spindle, read/write head, actuator, actuator arm, actuator axis, power connector, SATA
connector, and jumper.

❖ Spindles
Rotates the platters as needed and holds them in position. The rpm of the spindle determines
how fast the data is written and read.
❖ Read/Write head
Are the small parts of a disk drive which move above the disk platter and transform the platters
magnetic field into electrical current or, vice versa?
❖ Actuator
Contains sensitive components that allow your computer to access and interpret data. The role
of the actuator is to read and write information from set of platters that are coated with a thin
magnetic material.

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❖ Platter
the circular disk on which magnetic data is stored in a hard disk drive. The rigid nature of the
platters in a hard drive is what gives them their name (as opposed to the flexible materials which
are used to make floppy disks).
❖ Jumper
The jumper pins are similar to the pins on the I/O plate on the motherboard. It allows the
computer to close an electrical circuit, allowing the electricity to flow on a circuit board and
perform a function.
❖ SATA Connector
a standard for connecting and transferring data from hard disk drives to computer system.
❖ Actuator axis - The central point of the assembly. A motor rotates the axis to send the actuator
heads to the appropriate part of the platters, allowing the device to read and write data.
❖ Actuator arm
The mechanical arm that moves the read/write head across the surface of a harddisk similar to
the tone arm on a photo turntable.
❖ Power connectors
Are used to supply and distribute power to internal devices inside the computer.

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LESSON 7: THE MOTHER BOARD
The mother board is the foundation of all components for the computer to run. It processes,
stores, and connects to all parts of the computer system. It also known as the main printed circuit board
(PCB). It is where all the needed components are mounted, connected, and powered.

Parts of the Motherboard

❖ Central Processing Unit (CPU)

known as the brain of the computer where most of the calculations take place.

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 Different kinds of microprocessors are used for a variety of personal computer applications. The
most common microprocessor is either made by Intel corporation Or by Advanced Micro Device
Corporation (AMD). They are the two worlds biggest microprocessors suppliers.

The table below illustrates some of the microprocessors used in desktop and laptop personal computer.

Microprocessors in personal computers

APPLICATION INTEL AMD

Servers and Power users Itanium, Xeon Opteron

Graphics and video users, Intel Core microprocessor (Core Athlon Phenom
Computer Aided Design users, i3, Core i5, Core i7, Core 2, Core
Business M)
Application

Home users, Small Celeron Intel Pentium, Sempron

business applications, Students Intel Atom microprocessor

❖ Fan and Heatsink

An electronic device that incorporates a fan and active cooling solution to keep the CPU cool.
❖ BIOS Chip
Basic Input/output system or BIOS contains a program or code that helps the processor to interact
and control the other components in the computer like monitor, printer, scanner, card reader,
speakers, joystick, microphone, camera, disc drives, TV/video/sound card, network cards, USB
ports, and hard drives. It also does boot process before the operating system do its work.
❖ I/O System
Input/Output system is the communication or signals between an information processing system
(computer) and the outside world (People or another information processing system) via serial
ports or parallel ports. The common set of wires connecting multiple devices is called Bus.

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❖ BUS/Expansion slot
Are PCI slots that allow you add other function in the computer like TV tuner, video capture card,
etc. PCI bus connects high speed devices which deliver data one character at a time.
❖ CMOS Storage Chip
Allows you to modify the date, time and sets the loading procedure when the computer starts.
The CMOS setup allows you to activate or deactivate different hardware components that are
connected to the computer such as video card, sound card, USB, and other ports. This is also for
power management setup, load fail-safe defaults, set password, and save & exit setup.

❖ CMOS Backup Battery

A small battery attached directly to the motherboard that maintains the time, date, hard disk, and
other configuration settings in the CMOS memory. Complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor
or CMOS is a small amount of memory on a computer motherboard that stores the BIOS settings
❖ Northbridge Interface
Connects the CPU to the RAM, level 2 cache, the PCI, video card, express bus, ethernet, memory
bus, and front-side bus (FSB).
❖ Southbridge Interface
Handles all the inputs and outputs to many devices connected to the computer. It coordinates the
flow of data between the CPU and peripherals.

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 It holds the PC Express PCI, USB, SATA, BIOS, and I/O devices like keyboard, mouse, USB, audio,
video, etc.

❖ IDE Disk drive connection

IDE or ATA is used to connect hard disk drives, CD-ROM drives, and similar peripherals.
❖ SATA Connectors
Serial ATA or SATA is a single cable with a minimum of four wires creates a point-to-point
connection between devices.

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❖ Memory slots
are where memory modules are located. The number of memory slots will depend on the
motherboard you will install in your computer. Example DDR1, DDR2, DDR3, DDR4 AND DRAM.

❖ Video card slot

are where you connect your preferred video card that shows the output display of the computer
to the monitor.

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LESSON 8: COMPUTER POWER CONNECTORS AND CABLES

There are a lot of different Power Supply connectors out there. They are designed in such a way
that you cannot go wrong when installing them. The cable simply won’t fit in the connector slot when you
try to connect the wrong header.
However, it can still be interesting to learn about the different connector types and their applications.

Power Connectors
power connectors are attached to the power supply to give power to the motherboard and the other
components.
❖ Power cord
A power cord, line cord, or mains cable is an electrical cable that temporarily connects an appliance
to the mains electricity supply via a wall socket or extension cord.

❖ ATX 24 pin power connectors

An ATX style connector is a replacement for the older P8 and P9 AT style connector. It is one of
the largest connectors inside a computer. It connects a power supply to an ATX style motherboard.
As shown in the picture, the 20-pin cable is a multi-color cable and may be labeled as P1.

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❖ ATX 4 pin connector
The P4 connector is a 12V power supply cable used with motherboards that have an Intel Pentium
4 or later processor. Today, the connector is a standard power connector and is used with both
Intel and AMD motherboards.

❖ SATA Cable
Short for Serial Advanced Technology Attachment, SATA is a connector interface used for
computer bus connections, connecting a host bus adapter, to a mass storage device. SATA cables
also utilize smaller cables than their PATA predecessors as well as providing an external interface,
unlike PATA.

❖ Molex connectors
These "Molex" connectors bring DC power to the drives inside a PC case. The large one on the
right is used for disk, CD- ROM and DVD drives, while the small connector is used for floppy drives
and other devices.

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Wires and Cables
Carries data or information to various parts of the computer system.

❖ Universal Serial Bus (USB) connector

Is a connector between a computer and a peripheral device such as a printer, monitor, scanner,
mouse or keyboard. It is part of the USB interface, which includes types of ports, cables and
connectors.

❖ Video Graphic Array (VGA)

A VGA cable is a device used to transfer video signals. It does this by acting as a link between the
computer and the monitor or between the computer and the television screen. The video graphic
cable comes in two types, male and female connector.

❖ Digital Visual Interface (DVI)

A video display interface developed by the Digital Display Working Group (DDWG). The digital
interface is used to connect a video source, such as a video display controller, to a display device,
such as a computer monitor.

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❖ HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface)
Is a proprietary audio/video interface for transmitting uncompressed video data and compressed
or uncompressed digital audio data from an HDMI-compliant source device, such as a display
controller, to a compatible computer monitor, video projector, digital television, or digital audio
device. HDMI is a digital replacement for analog video standards.

❖ Firewire Connector
Along with USB, Firewire (also called IEEE 1394) is another popular connector for adding
peripherals to your computer. Firewire is most often used to connect digital camcorders, external
hard drives, and other devices that can benefit from the high transfer rates (up to 480 Mbps)
supported by the Firewire connection.

❖ PS/2 Connector
The PS/2 port is a 6- pin mini-DIN connector used for connecting keyboards and mice to a PC
compatible computer system. Its name comes from the IBM Personal System/2 series of personal
computers, with which it was introduced in 1987.

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❖ Advanced Technology
Attachment, ATA Connector was approved on May 12, 1994, and is an interface that connects
hard drives, CD-ROM drives, and other drives. The first ATA interface is now commonly referred
to as PATA, which is short for Parallel AT Attachment after the introduction of SATA

❖ Ethernet cable
A common type of network cable used with wired networks. Ethernet cables connect devices such
as PCs, routers, and switches within a local area network. If a network cable is too long or of poor
quality, it won't carry a good network signal.

❖ Telephone jack and a Telephone plug

Is electrical connectors for connecting a telephone set or other telecommunications apparatus to
the telephone wiring inside a building, establishing a connection to a telephone network. The plug
is inserted into its counterpart, the jack, which is commonly affixed to a wall or baseboard. The
standards for telephone jacks and plugs vary from country to country, though the RJ11 modular
connector has become by far the most common type.

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