Fundamentals of Computer

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COMPUTER FUNDAMENTALS
BBA104/BCM104/BTT104/BAQ102
Dr. R.G. Saha

Dr. Shruthi Prabhakar
CHANDIGARH UNIVERSITY
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Computer Fundamentals
Course Code: BBA104/BCM104/BTT104/BAQ102 Credits: 3
Course Objectives:
 To understand the organization and operation of a computer processor, primary and
secondary memory, peripheral devices.
 To enrich student with knowledge of networking and applications in the computer.
 To apply the knowledge of various operating systems and their practical implications.
Syllabus
Unit 1 - Computer Basics: Introduction, Characteristics of a Computer, Criteria for Using
Computers.
Unit 2 - History: Past Developments in Computers, Generations of Computer.
Unit 3 - Classification of Computers: Applications of Computer, Basic Components of PC,

Computer Architecture.
Unit 4 - Hardware and Software: Introduction, Computer Memory, Secondary Memory.
Unit 5 - Hardware and Software: Computer Peripherals, Output Devices, Software

Requirements.
Unit 6 - Detailed Content: Video Display, Storage Devices, Power Supplies.
Unit 7 - Detailed Content: Basic Input and Output System, Wi-Fi, Operating System.
Unit 8 - Windows: Introduction, Features, Comparison between Professional and Home Edition,
Windows Installation, Activating Windows, Security Features of Windows, Accessing User
Accounts and Getting Help.
Unit 9 - Excel: Introduction, Workbook, Worksheet, Formatting in Excel, Advanced Formatting

in Excel, Working with Formulas, Printing Worksheets.
Unit 10 - Word Processing Basics: Opening and Closing Documents, Text Creation and
Manipulation, Formatting the Text, Table Manipulation.

Unit 11 - MS-PowerPoint: Introduction, Creating a Presentation, Basic Formatting in
PowerPoint, Advanced Formatting, Using Templates, Inserting Charts, Inserting Tables, Printing
Presentations.
Text Books:
1. French C.S., (1998). Data Processing and Information Technology. New Delhi: BPB
Publications.
2. Sinha P.K. (1992). Computer Fundamentals. New Delhi: BPB Publications.
Reference Books:
1. Davis, H. (1998). The ABCs of Microsoft Office 97 Professional edition. New Delhi: BPB
Publications.

CONTENTS
Unit 1: Computer Basics 1-8
Unit 2: History 9 - 30
Unit 3: Classification of Computers 31 - 63
Unit 4: Storage Devices 64 - 84
Unit 5: Hardware and Software 85 - 132
Unit 6: Bringing Computer to Life 133 - 160
Unit 7: Basics of Operating System 161 - 176
Unit 8: Windows 177 - 204
Unit 9: Word Processing Basics 205 - 233
Unit 10: MS-Excel 234 - 258
Unit 11: MS-PowerPoint 259 - 276

Computer Basics 1
UNIT 1 COMPUTER BASICS
Structure:
1.0 Learning Objectives
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Definition of Computer
1.3 Characteristics of Computer
1.4 Limitations of Computer

1.5 Summary
1.6 Key Words/Abbreviations
1.7 Learning Activity
1.8 Unit End Questions (MCQs and Descriptive)
1.9 References

After studying this unit, you will be able to:
 Understand the concept of Computer Basics.
 Discuss the characteristics of a computer.
 Explain the criteria for using computers.

2 Computer Fundamentals
1.1 Introduction
A few years ago the “TIME” magazine of the United States chose the computer as the “Man
of the Year”, perhaps recognizing the contributions of the computer to mankind. The computer was
rated on par with statesmen and scientists who changed the course of history. In the area of business
applications, computers have caused a fundamental change in the way businesses are conducted.
Changes that were taking at a revolutionary pace now seem revolutionary, thanks to the computer.
Computer with all the support it offers has now become indispensable tool in the hands of managers
for their decision making, to run an organization in a proper and efficient manner. The nature of
modern organizations, the current legal and social environment, advanced technology and the expanding
role of management have created information they needs that cannot be satisfied by traditional
means. Computers are in the fore front of the revolution that provides today’s users with the necessary
“information and knowledge edge” to survive and excel in today’s business scenario.
It is the versatility of human ability to reduce a complex problem to a simple logically connected
problem and then use a computer to solve them. Primarily, computers are used for calculations

Computer Basics 3
which were beyond contemplation because of time span and monotony involved to solve them.
Apart from scientific work computers are now applied to a variety of applications. Computers are
used for word processing and publishing activities. Portable laptops are used by people to keep in
touch with their organizations, even while negotiating a deal with a customer. Computers are used in
infer the moods of the market through complex statistical programs. Computers are used in aircraft,
submarines and advanced space shuttles for navigation. Computers are used at home, in the office,
at Schools and in the Banks. Today, the world revolves around the computer. Whatever the career
is chosen, nobody cannot ignore the computer.
1.2 Definition of Computer

The origin of the word computer is taken from Latin word “Computare”, meaning "to calculate".
So, according to this definition, Computer is a machine which can perform calculations at very high
speed. In other words, Computer is an electronic device which converts raw data into meaningful
information. A computer is an electromechanical device which, accepts data, stores and processes
the data and gives out meaningful information at a very high speed with accuracy.
So it can be said,
Computer is a digital and automatic machine that takes data as input from the users, processes
it, stores it if necessary and gives output in desired form.
Standard Definitions of a Computer
“A device used for computing; specifically, an electronic machine which, by means of stored
instructions and information, performs rapid, often complex calculations or compiles, correlates and
selects data”. – Webster’s Dictionary
“A data processor that can perform substantial computation, including numerous arithmetic
and logic operations, without intervention by a human operator during the run”.
– International Standards Organisation (ISO)
“A device capable of solving problems by accepting data, performing described operations on

the data and supplying the results of these operations”. – US Institute of Computer Sciences

1.3 Characteristics of Computer

Today the computer plays a major role in the modern society and its development. The
characteristics that make a computer possible to play such vital role are:
(i) High Speed: Since electrical pulses cause all the operations of the computer, the computers
can perform large number of operations in just one second. The processing speed of a
computer is generally measured in Nano seconds. Since the computers are electronic
device and work with the electrical pulses which travel at incredible speed and hence their
internal speed is also virtually instantaneous. The speed of the processing varies with the
computer hardware.
(ii) Accuracy: The accuracy of the computers is consistently very high. Computers do not
make mistakes. Errors causes in computing are generally due to negligence, such as
inaccurate data, improper procedures, poor designs, etc.
(iii) Storage Capacity: Computers have a very large storage capacity. The computers can
store large amount of data and information, which is expressed in terms of kilobytes,
megabytes and gigabytes in memory. Moreover, the storage capacity of the computers can
be increased by using secondary storage devices such as magnetic disk. The information
stored in the secondary storage devices can be retrieved quickly with the help of main
memory (RAM).
(iv) Reliability: The computers give very accurate results with predetermined values. They
correct and modify the parameters automatically and give suitable signals. They give
formatted results with high degree of precision.
(v) Versatility: Computers are very versatile machines with manual and automatic controls.
They are capable of solving any problem and can be applied in all sorts of business and
other activities.
(vi) Automation: The special feature of computer is automation, i.e., the computer executes a
program continuously without any human intervention until completion. The central
processing unit of the computer makes it processing unit of the computer makes it possible.

Computer Basics 5
1.4 Limitations of Computer

The computer can outperform human beings in speed, memory and accuracy but still the
computer has limitations. There are following limitations of a computer.
(i) Programmed by human: Though computer is programmed to work efficiently, fast and
accurately but it is programmed by human beings to do so. Without a program, computer is
nothing. A program is a set of instructions. Computer only follows these instructions. If the
instructions are not accurate the working of computer will not accurate.
(ii) Thinking: The computer cannot think itself. The concept of artificial intelligence shows
that the computer can think. But still this concept is dependent on set of instructions provided
by the human beings.
(iii) Self-care: A computer cannot care itself like a human. A computer is dependent still to
human beings for this purpose.
(iv) Retrieval of memory: A computer can retrieve data very fast but this technique is linear.
A human being’s mind does not follow this rule. A human mind can think randomly which a
computer machine cannot.
(v) Feelings: One of the main limits in the computer is of feeling. A computer cannot feel
about some like a human. A computer cannot meet human in respect of relations. Human
can feel, think and caring but a computer machine itself cannot. A computer cannot take
place of human because computer is always dependent of human.
1.5 Summary
The origin of the word computer is taken from Latin word “Computare”, meaning "to calculate".
So, according to this definition, Computer is a machine which can perform calculations at very high
speed. In other words, computer is an electronic device which converts raw data into meaningful
information. A computer is an electromechanical device which, accepts data, stores and processes
the data and gives out meaningful information at a very high speed with accuracy.

The accuracy of the computers is consistently very high. Computers do not make mistakes.
Errors causes in computing are generally due to negligence, such as inaccurate data, improper
procedures, poor designs, etc.
A computer can transfer data quickly from storage to memory, process it, and then store it
again for future use. Many computers store enormous amounts of data and make this data available
for processing anytime it is needed.
Benefits from using computers are possible because computers have the advantages of speed,
reliability, consistency, storage and communications.
One of the main limits in the computer is of feeling. A computer cannot feel about some like a
human. A computer cannot meet human in respect of relations. Human can feel, think and caring but
a computer machine itself cannot. A computer cannot take place of human because computer is
always dependent of human.
The computer can outperform human beings in speed, memory and accuracy but still the
computer has limitations.

 Computer: Computers are used for word processing and publishing activities.
 Reliability: The computers give very accurate results with predetermined values.
 Consistency: Given the same input and processes, a computer will produce the same
results – consistently
 Storage: Computers have a very large storage capacity.
 Communications: Most computers today can communicate with other computers, often
wirelessly.
 Self-care: A computer cannot care itself like a human. A computer is dependent still to
human beings for this purpose.

Computer Basics 7
 Automation: The special feature of computer is automation, i.e., the computer executes a
program continuously without any human intervention until completion. The central
processing unit of the computer makes it processing unit of the computer makes it possible.
 Feelings: One of the main limits in the computer is of feeling. A computer cannot feel
about some like a human. A computer cannot meet human in respect of relations. Human
can feel, think and caring but a computer machine itself cannot.

1. Definition of computer. Explain its criteria for using computers.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
2. Give the computer concept with their merits and limitations.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
3. Define computer. What are the characteristics of computer?
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
A. Descriptive Type Questions
1. Define Computer.
2. What are the characteristics of computer?
3. Explain the criteria for using computer.
4. What are the limitations of computer?

B. Multiple Choice/Objective Type Questions
1. The computers can perform large number of operations in just __________.
(a) One minute (b) One hour
(c) One second (d) None
2. The accuracy of the computers is consistently __________.
(a) Very high (b) Very low
(c) Medium (d) None
3. Large number of Data and Information is expressed in terms of __________.
(a) Kilobytes (b) Megabytes
(c) Gigabytes (d) All of the above
4. The term ‘Computer’ is derived from __________.
(a) Latin (b) German
(c) French (d) Arabic
5. Who is the father of Computer?
(a) Allen Turing (b) Charles Babbage
(c) Simur Cray (d) Augusta Adaming
6. Who is the father of personal computer?
(a) Edward Robert (b) Allen Turing
(c) Charles Babbage (d) None of these
Answers:
1. (c), 2. (b), 3. (d), 4 (a), 5. (a), 6. (c)
1.9 References
References of this unit have been given at the end of the book.

UNIT 2 HISTORY
Structure:
2.1 Introduction
2.2 History of Computer
2.3 Generations of Computer
2.4 Summary

2.8 References

 Discuss the history of Computers
 Explain the past developments in Computer
 Explain the generations of Computers
2.1 Introduction
Generation in computer terminology is a change in technology a computer is/was being used.
Initially, the generation term was used to distinguish between varying hardware technologies.
Nowadays, generation includes both hardware and software, which together make up an entire
computer system.
There are five computer generations known till date. Each generation has been discussed in
detail along with their time period and characteristics. In the following table, approximate dates
against each generation has been mentioned, which are normally accepted.
2.2 History of Computer

The history of the computer dates back to a long time, when a man used his fingers for counting.
The Stone Aged man used stones for counting. Later the stones were replaced by sticks and marks
on the earth, scratches and symbols on the stones and knots on the ropes. It was very difficult to use
these computing aids, because it required some physical efforts. Moreover, the computing speed
was also very slow. This necessitated to develop a new technique and as a result the number was
discovered. The number system laid the foundation for the modern computer.
Even though the computer is basically a product of late 1940s, there were several important
developments proceeding. Let see some important developments that enroute to the invention of
Modern day computers.
3000 BC – Chinese ABACUS
1617 AD – Logs and Bones by John Napier
1620 – Slide rule by William Oughtred
1642 – Adding machine by Blaise Pascal
1673 – Mechanical calculator by Gottfried Von Leibnitz
1801 – Punched card controlled looms by Joseph Jacquard
1833 – Difference Engine by Charles Babbage
1896 – Electromechanical card tabulators by Herman Hollerith
1937 – ABC Computer by Dr. Atanasoff and Berry
1944 – Mark I calculating machine by Howard Aiken
1947 – ENIAC operational by Eckart and John Mauchly

History 11
1949 – EDSAC completed in England
1951 – UNIVAC I operational

ABACUS
It is a manual mechanical device developed in China. It consists of a wooden frame with two
compartments and beads sliding along the steel wires for counting. Multiplication and divisions are
done using repeated additions and subtractions. Even today, it is still used in many countries like
Japan, China, etc.
Napier’s Logs and Bones
John Napier (1550-1617), a Scottish mathematician, invented logarithms. The use of logs
enabled was to transform multiplication and division problems into problems of additions and
subtractions. In the beginning, it was called logs as artificial numbers. But later, it was named them
as logarithms.
Fig. 2.1: Napier’s Bones

Slide Rule
Napier’s log became the basis for a well-known invention was called slide rule by William
Oughtred. In the slide rule, the final value was straight away read on the scale. It is capable of doing
mathematical operations and functions.
Fig. 2.2: Slide Rule

A slide rule consists of three parts: the body, the slide and the cursor. The body and the slide are
marked with scales. The cursor has a hairline that facilitates accurate positioning of the cursor at a
specific point on some scale.

Pascal’s Adding Machine
The great French mathematician, Blaise Pascal (1623-1666), made the next attempt in the
computing history. Pascal invented a machine that used gears, wheels and dials. This machine
displayed numbers by the rotation of wheel. This machine was used only for addition and subtraction
of numbers. It was known as Pascal’s adding machine or Pascaline.
Fig. 2.3: Pascal’s Wheel Calculator

Leibnitz’s Calculator
Gottfried Van Lebniz (1646-1716), a famous German mathematician improved Pascal’s

machine to a special stepped gear mechanism for automatic calculation, which was named Leibniz
calculator.
Fig. 2.4: Leibnitz’s Calculator

This machine was able to perform all the four basic mathematical operations such as addition,
subtraction, multiplication and division. It used stepped cylinder each with nine teeth of varying
lengths instead of wheels. Shift mechanism was introduced in Leibniz calculator. Moving a digit to
right or left is called a shift.
Jacquard’s Loom
Jacquard loom, also called Jacquard Attachment or Jacquard Mechanism. The Jacquard
system was developed in 1804 by Joseph-Marie Jacquard (1752-1834) of France.

History 13
Fig. 2.5: Jacquard’s Loom

His system improved on the punched-card technology of Jacques de Vaucanson’s loom. He
used punched cards to produce complex cloth patterns with automated looms. Jacquard’s loom
provided the way for the modern storage mechanism on punched cards and the binary coding
system.
The idea behind the Jacquard’s loom was a system of punch cards and hooks. The cards were
made very thick and had rectangular holes punched in them. The hooks and needles used in weaving
were guided by these holes in the cardboard. When the hooks came into contact with the card, they
were held stationary unless it encountered one of the punched holes. Then the hook was able to pass
through the hole with a needle inserting another thread, thus forming the desired pattern. Intricate
patterns were achieved by having many cards arranged one after the other and/or used repeatedly.

Fig. 2.6: Electronic Jacquard’s Loom

This idea of punch cards was revolutionary because it used the idea of a machine having the
ability to follow an algorithm. These punch cards were innovative because the cards had the capability
to store information on them. This ability to store information was what helped spark the computer
revolution.
Babbage’s Engines
Charles Babbage (1791-1871), a British mathematics professor is known as “Father of

Computer”. He developed and demonstrated a working model of a mechanical computer called
‘Difference Engine’ in 1822. Encouraged by the success of Difference Engine, he developed another
device called “Analytical Engine” in 1833.
Analytical Engine used the concepts of Automated Loom and Difference Engine. This machine
had five units. They are input, output, store, mill and control, which are similar to the units of modern
computer.
Hollerith's Machine
In 1889, Herman Hollerith (1860-1929) devised a machine that run on electricity for the first
time for calculation and recording data. This machine was capable of reading both numbers and

History 15
letters, programming them and giving out letters and numbers in the desired form. It was called as
‘Tabulator’. In 1896, Hollerith established his own company called ‘Tabulating Machine
Company’. Today, these is known as, ‘International Business Machines Corporation – IBM’.
Fig. 2.7: Hollerith’s Accounting Machine

The Mark I Computer
During the 1940s, the “Mark” series of computers were developed at Harvard University. The
Mark I computer could performed a series of mathematical operations. The first of these computers
was the Mark I put into operation in 1944 and was used until 1959. It was complex in design and
huge in size. It was 50 ft long and 8 ft high and was using 3000 decimal storage wheels, 1400 rotary
dial switches and 500 miles of wire to transmitted and read the data electrically. It was programmed
by punch cards. It was weighed 5 tons and could do a multiplication operation in about 6 seconds. Its
storage capacity was 32 words and each of 31 binary digits.
Fig. 2.8 :The Mark I Computer

ABC Computer
In 1937, Dr. John Atanasoff with the help of his assistant Berry designed the Attanasoff–
Berry Computer (ABC). The machine laid the foundation for the development of electronic digital
computer. It was designed with a specific purpose, to solve systems of simultaneous up to 29 linear
equations. The machine exact operation was to accept two linear equations at a time with up to 29
variables and a constant, using this data it could eliminate one of the variables. Following this way,
the machine could continue by eliminating each time one variable, until the entire system of equations
was solved.
The ABC was not a general-purpose computer (its function was fixed), meaning that it did not
implemented the stored program architecture (Von Neumann architecture). It still was the first to
implement 3 of the most important ideas used in computers nowadays. The first and probably most
important was using binary digits (1's and 0's) to represent all the numbers in a given data. The
second was to perform all the calculations using electronics instead of mechanical switches and
wheels. And the third was using the principle from the Von Neumann architecture where the memory
and the computations were separate. The ABC also implemented another important idea using a
regenerative capacitor memory that is still used nowadays in Dynamic Random Access Memory.
This means that since the capacitors are loosing their charge pretty quickly they need to be given a
new electronic charge every few milliseconds.

History 17
COUNTER DRUM
KEYBOARD DRUM
DECIMAL CARD CARRY-OVER DRUME
DECIMAL-TO-BINARY READER
CONVERSION DRUM MOTOR
BASE 2
CARD READER
BASE 2 OUTPUT
CARD PUNCHER
POWER SUPPLY AND

REGULATOR
30 ADD-SUBTRACT LOGIC CIRCUITS
ELECTRICAL CARD-PUNCHING CIRCUITS
MEMORY-RECENERATING CIRCUITS
Fig: 2.9 ABC Computer

The system weighed 320 kg and contained approximately 1.6 km of wire, 280 dual-triode
vacuum tubes, 31 thyratrons and was about the size of a desk. The memory of the ABC was a pair
of drums, each containing 1600 capacitors. The capacitors on each drum were organized into 32
“bands” of 50, giving the machine a speed of 30 additions/subtractions per second. Data was
represented as 50 bit binary fixed point numbers. The electronics of the memory and arithmetic units
could store and operate on 60 numbers at a time. The AC power line frequency of 60 Hz was the
primary clock rate for the lowest level operations. The logic functions were fully electronic,
implemented with vacuum tubes. It used 45 vacuum tubes for internal logic and capacitors storage.

ENIAC – Electronic Numerical Integrator and Calculator
Fig. 2.10: ENIAC Computer

In 1947, John Mauchly and Eckart completed the first large-scale Electronic Digital Computer,
ENIAC. In this computer, each time a program was changed, the wiring had to be completely
rearranged. It weighed 30 tons and contained 17,468 vacuum tubes, 7,200 crystal diodes, 1,500
relays, 70,000 resistors, 10,000 capacitors and occupied a space of 30,550 feet. ENIAC was also
programmed by punch cards and switch settings, and could read 2 numbers per second.
EDSAC – Electronic Delay Storage Automatic Calculator
Fig. 2.11: EDSAC Computer

History 19
The Electronic Delay Storage Automatic Calculator (EDSAC) was a UK made computer.
Maurice V. Wilkes of Cambridge University completed EDSAC in 1949. EDSAC was the first
computer to operate on the stored program concept (in which the data and instructions are stored
inside the memory). Stored program concept was given by Von Neumann which introduced the idea
of storing both instructions as well data in the binary form instead of decimal numbers. In this
machine, addition operations was accomplished in 1500 microseconds and multiplication in 4000
microsecond. EDSAC used mercury delay lines for memory and 3,000 vacuum tubes for logic.
Programs were input using 5-hole punched tape and output was via a teleprinter.
UNIVAC-I Universal Automatic Computers
In 1947, after ENIAC became operational Mauchly and Eckart formed their own company
the ‘Eckart-Mauchly Computer Corporation’. Immediately after this they started the design of
UNIVAC I. This was purchased by US Bureau of Census. UNIVAC was the first computer dedicated
to business applications.
Fig. 2.12: UNIVAC I Computer

The UNIVAC I was the first “mass produced” computer. It contained 5200 vacuum tubes and
consumed 125 kW of power when operating. The UNIVAC was also the first computer to come
equipped with a magnetic tape unit and was the first computer to use buffer memory. The UNIVAC

I was used for general purpose computing with large amounts of input and output. UNIVAC I had
duplicate arithmetic units, so all errors were immediately detected.
2.3 Generations of Computer

Generation in Computer is a step in technology. It provides a framework for the growth of the
computer industry. Computers are generally classified into different generations according to the
memory device which is used in the computers. So, the term ‘generation’ is used to distinguish
between varying both hardware and software technologies. The custom of referring to the computer
era in terms of generation came into wide use only after 1951. Till today, there are totally five
generations.
Each of the generations, their time duration and their hardware devices are given in the
following table:
Generation Time Duration Hardware device
1G Computer 1940-1955 Vacuum Tubes
2G Computer 1956-1963 Transistor
3G Computer 1964-1970 Integrated Circuits (IC)
4G Computer 1971-Till Now Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) or

Microprocessor
5G Computer 1990 Onwards Artificial Intelligence Based
Each of the generations and their software are given in the following:
Generation Software are used
1G Computer Machine Language
2G Computer Assembly Language
3G Computer Structured programming languages such as C, COBOL and

FORTRAN.

History 21
4G Computer Domain specific languages such as SQL (for database access)

and TeX (for text formatting)
5G Computer Artificial Intelligence
When generation goes up the following characteristics are in effect:
Characteristics Effect
Size Decrease
Speed Increase
Power consumption Decrease
Heat generation Decrease
Complexity Decrease
Storage capability Increase
Processing capability Increase
Use of user-friendly software Increase
Storage devices More flexible and more capacity
Price of computer Decrease
First Generation Computer (1940 -1955)
The first generation started with UNIVAC I and IBM’s 701. They were the first computers to
be used by businesses, mostly for accounting functions such as payroll and billing. Previous computers
had been used mainly for military and scientific computation.
Hardware
Thousands of vacuum tubes were required to build a single first generation CPU. Relatively
few numbers could be stored using a vacuum tube to represent each binary digit. The lasting
contribution of the first generation computer to modern computer technology was the use of magnetic

storage media. Magnetic drums (cylinders with a magnetizable outer surface) were used as internal
memory or main memory.
Central processing unit
Data processing unit
AC MQ
Input
Arithmetic-logic output
circuits equipment
DR
Instructions
and data
IBR PC Main
memory
M
IR AR
Control Control Addresses

circuits signals
Program control uni
Fig: 2.13
Fig.Structure of a first-generation
2.13: Structure of a Firstcomputer: IAS Computer: IAS
Generation
Punched cards were used as a secondary storage. Data to be processed are transferred from
the secondary storage to the main memory. Even though they represented an improvement in speed,
drums did have limited capacity. To augment this capacity, the magnetic tape was developed toward
the end of the first generation as a secondary storage media.
Software
The first programs were expressed in the long string of binary digits that the machine deals
with. This was the machine language. Later, the first big software break through was the development
of the assembly language. This allowed programmers to use mnemonics (easily remembered names)
for operations and symbols for variables.

History 23
Second Generation Computer (1956 -1963)

Hardware
The invention of the transistor marked the beginning of the second generation computer. By
1959, transistors were the dominant component of the typical CPU. Primary memory was radically
transformed during this period. Tiny doughnut-shaped magnetic cores were strung together on wires.
Fig. 2.14: Structure of a Second Generation Computer: The IBM 7094

Each tiny core could be stored one bit. The magnetic disk was used as a secondary storage
media. Disks rotated rapidly, so that less time was required to move data into primary memory for
processing. Magnetic tapes were still being used during this time. Computer hardware generally
became smaller, more reliable and more easily maintainable. Components were “packaged” into
printed circuit boards. Diagnostic programs which test the machine for faulty parts were developed.
Software
High-level languages (programming languages that resemble written English in vocabulary and
syntax) were developed compilers, assemblers and translators that translated statements into machine

language (FORTRAN, COBOL). Portability of programs between computers of different

manufacturers was also made possible.
Third Generation Computer (1964 -1970)
The third generation started with IBM developing upward compatibility with their family of
computers (IBM’s 360 product line). Any program written for one of these machines could be run
without changes in any larger machine in the series.
CPU Memory Channel I/O

Fig. 2.15: Third Generation Computer
Hardware
Integrated Circuits (IC) were small solid pieces of silicon that contained all the components
(transistors and other components on the printed circuit boards) as well as all their necessary
interconnections. By 1969, approximately 100 transistors could be built on a single piece of silicon (a
silicon chip). Volatile transistor memory was developed but in cases where in it was vital that the
contents not be lost, miniaturized magnetic core memories remain in use. Low-cost minicomputers
became possible terminals for data entry and operation. Magnetic disks represented an increasing
percentage of the volume memory market in this generation. Disk packs (rotating disks but with
removable disk storage surfaces) became prevalent.

History 25
Software
The number of high-level languages continued to grow. Languages adapted to more specific
applications. The operating system made its appearance. Time sharing of an operating system was
also available wherein the CPU is so faster. It could be keeping up with many users communication
with the system from a number of terminal keyboards.
Fourth Generation Computer (1971 – Till Now)
Hardware
In early 1970s, Large Scale Integration (LSI) chips could be manufactured containing few
thousand chips. By mid-1970s, Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) chips were produced containing
an entire microprocessor, or the microcomputer CPU. Inter Corporation is the pioneer in this
technology. In 1974, Intel 8080 microprocessor was packaged as a part of a kit to build Altair 8800,
the first PC. IBM entered the PC market in 1981 and went on to become a major supplier of PC in
the business market. Soon, many companies began to manufacture microcomputers that worked
just like or even better than IBM’s personal computer. These so called “Clones” or “IBM-
compatibles”, had becomes a major force in reducing prices and making powerful microcomputers
widely available. Single memory chips contain up to million bits. Secondary storage has grown to a
capacity large enough to contain all data needed to operate a big corporation or a major government
agency. Floppy disks made their debut in 1970. CD-ROM was introduced by Sony and Phillips in
1984 that provided significantly greater storage capacity for digital data.
Fig. 2.16: Fourth Generation Computer

Software
Commercially, successful operating systems were available for microcomputers (CP/M, MS-
DOS, PC-DOS, Windows) Structured Programming contributed to the standardization of the discipline
and organization of programming (Pascal, C) and Application packages (software program or collection
of related programs that lets a user perform a specific tasks) were developed. These user-friendly
software had been a driving force behind the installation of computers in offices and in the home.
Data communication software came about. This allowed users to “talk” to each other and machines
to “communicates’’ with each other and share resources through networking.
Fifth Generation Computer (1990 Onwards)
The computer which uses AI (Artificial Intelligence) and Bio-chips as memory device is called
the Fifth Generation Computer. Scientists are now at work on these computers – a promise but not
yet reality.
Some major characteristics of fifth generation computer are listed:
(i) Acceptance of parallel processing in full fledges.
(ii) Because of use of super conductor materials like Bio-chips and GaAs (Gallium Arsenide)
as memory device, the speed will be very high.
(iii) Large subsets of natural languages like English, German and Japanese are used and made
more user friendly.
(iv) Use of AI make computers intelligent and knowledge based.
(v) PROGLOG (Programming Logic) use Operating System.

History 27
Fig. 2.17: Fifth Generation Computer System

Some major difference between other generation computers and fifth generation
computers:
Basis of Difference Other Generation Fifth Generation
Structure Serial in structure Parallel in structure
Function Algorithmic in functioning Knowledge based processing
Architecture DISP/LISP (Data/Logic KISP (Knowledge Information

Information Processing Processing System) based System) based
Nature Number processing Knowledge processing
Speed Slower Very much higher
2.4 Summary
The history of the computer dates back to a long time, when a man used his fingers for counting.
The Stone Aged man used stones for counting. Later the stones were replaced by sticks and marks
on the earth, scratches and symbols on the stones and knots on the ropes. It was very difficult to use
these computing aids, because it required some physical efforts.

Generation in Computer is a step in technology. It provides a framework for the growth of the
computer industry. Computers are generally classified into different generations according to the
memory device which is used in the computers.
The ABC was not a general-purpose computer (its function was fixed), meaning that it did not
implemented the stored program architecture (Von Neumann architecture). It still was the first to
implement 3 of the most important ideas used in computers now-days.
The idea behind the Jacquard's loom was a system of punch cards and hooks. The cards were
made very thick and had rectangular holes punched in them. The hooks and needles used in weaving
were guided by these holes in the cardboard.
Analytical Engine used the concepts of Automated Loom and Difference Engine. This machine
had five units. They are input, output, store, mill and control, which are similar to the units of modern
computer.
During the 1940s, the “Mark” series of computers were developed at Harvard University. The
Mark I computer could performed a series of mathematical operations. The first of these computers
was the Mark I put into operation in 1944 and was used until 1959.

 ABACUS: It is a manual mechanical device developed in China.
 Slide Rule: Napier’s log became the basis for a well-known invention was called slide
rule by William Oughtred.
 Hardware: Thousands of vacuum tubes were required to build a single first generation
CPU.
 Software: The first programs were expressed in the long string of binary digits that the
machine deal with.

History 29

1. Explain the history and generations of Computers.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
2. Student should record the various generation of computer in details.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
1. Discuss the history of computer.
2. Explain the generation of computer.
3. Explain ABC Computer.
1. ABACUS was developed in __________.
(a) France (b) Japan
(c) China (d) None
2. IBM 1401 is __________.
(a) First Generation Computer (b) Second Generation Computer
(c) Third Generation Computer (d) Fourth Generation Computer
3. Which of the following is first generation of computer?
(a) EDSAC (b) IBM-1401
(c) CDC-1604 (d) ICL-2900

4. Second Generation computers were developed during __________.
(a) 1949 to 1955 (b) 1956 to 1965
(c) 1965 to 1970 (d) 1970 to 1990
5. The computer size was very large in __________.
(a) First Generation (b) Second Generation
(c) Third Generation (d) Fourth Generation
6. Microprocessors as switching devices are for which generation computers?
(c) Third Generation (d) Fourth Generation
7. Which generation of computer is still under development?
(a) Fourth Generation (b) Fifth Generation
(c) Sixth Generation (d) Seventh Generation
8. Artificial Intelligence is associated with which generation?
(c) Fifth Generation (d) Sixth Generation
9. Fifth generation computer is also known as __________.
(a) Knowledge information processing system
(b) [b] Very large-scale integration (VLSI)
(c) Both [a] and [b] (d) None of these
Answers
1. (c), 2. (b), 3. (a), 4. (b), 5. (a), 6. (d), 7. (b), 8. (c), 9. (d)
2.8 References

UNIT 3 CLASSIFICATION OF COMPUTERS
Structure:
3.1 Introduction
3.2 Types of Computer
3.3 Applications of Computer
3.4 Basic Components of PC

3.5 Computer Architecture
3.6 Summary

3.10 References

 Explain the classification of Computers
 Discuss the applications of Computer
 Understand the basic concept of components of PC
 Understand the concepts of Computer Architecture

3.1 Introduction
Computers can be broadly classified by their speed and computing power. It is a multi-user
computer system, capable of supporting hundreds of users simultaneously. Businesses use personal
computers for word processing, accounting, desktop publishing and running spreadsheet.
3.2 Types of Computer
Fig. 3.1: Types of Computer

(a) Purpose
Computer can be classified by its functions:
(i) Analog Computer
Analog computers are computers that measure physical quantities (e.g., pressure, temperature,
length, etc.) and convert them to numeric values. For example, a thermometer does not perform
any calculation but measures the temperature of the body by comparing the relative expansion of
mercury. Another example is voltmeter which measures voltage. They give relative results hence
are accurate to within 0.1% of the correct value.

Classification of Computers 33
Fig. 3.2: Analog Computer

(ii) Digital Computer
Digital computers are counting digital devices. It directly counts the numbers (or digits that
represent numerals, letters, or other special symbols). For example, a digital calculator or a digital
watch. The majority of computers used for business and scientific applications are digital.
Fig. 3.3: Digital Computer

(iii) Hybrid Computer
The features of analog and digital machines are combined to create a hybrid computing system.
For example, in a hospital, an analog Cardiogram measures a patient’s vital signs like temperature,
heart functions. These are then converted to numbers and supplied to the digital components that
monitor the patient’s vital signs, any fluctuation can thus be noticed immediately.

Fig. 3.4: Hybrid Computer

(b) Development
This is a modern computer with the power and speed of today. It is end result of countless
inventions, ideas, and developments contributed by many people through out the last several decades.
The changes based on development can be categorized into five generations of computers.
(i) First Generation of Computer
UNIVAC (Universal Automatic Computer) was the first general purpose electrical computer
to be made available and marks the beginning of the first generation of electrical computers. The
first generation electrical computer employed vacuum tubes. These computers were large in size
and required air conditioning. This was the most popular first generation computer and was introduced
in 1950.
(ii) Second Generation of Computer
The second generation of computers employed transistors and other solid state devices. Their
circuits were smaller than the vacuum tubes, and generated less heat. Hence, the second generation

computers required less power, were faster and more reliable. IBM 1401 was the most popular type
of generation computers. They employed magnetic tapes as the input/output media.
(iii) Third Generation of Computer
In the third generation of computers, integrated circuits on chips (thin wafers of silicon) were
used to store data and process instructions. These computers could handle more than one operation
simultaneously.
The more circuits on a single chip greater the amount of data that can be stored on the memory
chip. The technique of integrating circuits on a single chip was established during the third generation
of computers.
(iv) Fourth Generation of Computer
It was now possible to put the entire processor of the computer on a single chip. Intel Corporation
developed the first Intel 4004 microprocessor chip. A microprocessor is built using a microprocessor
chip along with some other chips and circuitry.
A whole range of that could be used for generalized applications became popular. The PC, PC/
XT, PC/AT are some of the personal computers popularized by IBM. While the PC and the PC/XT
differ in the disk storage supported by them, the PC/AT differs in the processor itself. The Intel 8088
microprocessor chip is used in PCs and PC-XT and PC/AT use the Intel 80286 or Intel 80386 chips
as their microprocessors. There are other chips like the Motorola 68020, Motorola 68030, Zilog 8000
etc. Used to build other microcomputers.
(v) Fifth Generation of Computer
The fifth generation of computers are conceived as a knowledgeable information processing

system. It incorporates Artificial Intelligence. Modeled on human intelligence, they are self-learning
systems which can store experiences and take decisions based on the information and logic stored
in the computer. They can also process non-information, e.g., graphs, pictures, etc.
(c) Size and Performance
Computers vary widely in performance, size and cost. Performance is measured in terms of
speed of processing instructions, storage capacity, ability to handle a large number of input and

output devices, and nature of operations performed (simple word processing to complex scientific
calculations). Generally, the better the performance, the larger the size and the higher the cost.
• Super Computer
• Mainframe Computer
• Mini Computer
• Micro Computer
(i) Super Computer
Complex scientific applications like weather forecasting require a large amount of data to be
manipulated within a very short time. Other uses of supercomputers scientific simulations, animated
graphics, fluid dynamic calculations, nuclear energy research, electronic design and analysis of
geological data. Large super computers with faster processing using multiple processors and superior
technology are used for complex tasks requiring a lot of computational power. Perhaps the best
known supercomputer manufacturer is Cray Research. Examples of super computers are CRAY
XMP-24 and NEC-500.
Fig. 3.5: Super Computer

(ii) Mainframe Computer
The earliest computers were called mainframes due to their large size. A mainframe is the
heart of a network of computers or terminals which allows hundreds of people to work at the same
time on the same data. It requires a special environment – cold and dry.

Fig. 3.6: Mainframe Computer

Mainframes are very large computers with a very high capacity of main store. Because they
can process large amounts of data very quickly, they are used by big companies, banks, government
departments as their main computer. They can be linked into a network with smaller department
computers, microcomputers or with each other.
(iii) Mini Computer
A mini computer is a class of multi-user computer that lies in the middle range of the computing
spectrum, in between the mainframe and micro computers. It is less powerful than a mainframe and
more powerful than the micro computers. They have larger RAM and backing storage capacity and
can process data more quickly.
Fig. 3.7: Mini Computer

This class of computers became available in the 1960s when large scale integrated circuits
made it possible to build a computer much cheaper than the then existing mainframes. The first
popular minicomputer was the pdp-8, launched in 1965. Mini computers were basically developed
for use in process control systems.
(iv) Micro Computer
Microcomputers are at the lowest end of the computer range. The term “microcomputer” was
introduced with the advent of single chip microprocessors. ‘Personal Computer (PC)’ was first
known as microcomputer because they are designed to be used by one person at a time. The
principal characteristics of personal computers are that they are single-user systems and are based
on microprocessors. However, although personal computers are designed as single-user systems, it
is common to link them together to form a network. A personal computer may be a desktop computer,
a laptop, tablet PC or a handheld PC (also called palmtop).
Fig. 3.8: Micro Computer

Personal computers are typically used at home, at school, or at a business. The most common
applications for businesses, the PC are used for word processing, spreadsheet calculating and database
managing. At home, PC is for entertainment (computer games) and surfing the Internet and e-mail.
The other applications are desktop publishing, accounting, statistical analysis, graphics, investment
analysis, project management, editing photographs, creating graphics and also used in teaching (the
computer acts as a teacher). The highly visible personal computers fall under these categories:
• Tower Model Computer • Desktop

• Laptop or Notebook • Sub-notebook
• Palmtop • Personal Digital Assistant (PDA)
• Pocket PC • Tablet PC

• Ultra-Mobile PC (UMPC) • Home Theater PC (HTPC)

• Workstation/Server Computer • Client-Server Computer
• Embedded Computer • Wearable Computer
Tower Model Computer
Refers to a PC in which the power supply, motherboard and mass storage devices are stacked
on top of each other in a cabinet. This is in contrast to desktop models, in which these components
are housed in a more compact box. The main advantage of tower models is that there are fewer
space constraints, which makes installation of additional storage devices easier.
Fig. 3.9: Tower Models

Desktop
The term ‘desktop’ refers specifically to a horizontally-oriented case, usually intended to have
the display screen placed on top to save space on the desktop. Most desktop computer offer more
power, storage, versatility and low cost.
Fig. 3.10: Desktop Computer

Laptop
A laptop is a small mobile computer, which usually weighs 2.2-18 pounds (1.6 kilograms),
depending on size, materials and other factors. A laptop is designed to sit on user lap and user can
therefore expect it to be quite large and loaded down with features and power. Laptops usually run
on a single main battery or from an external AC/DC adapter which can charge the battery while
also supplying power to the computer itself. Many computers also have a 3 volt cell to run the clock
and other processes in the event of a power failure.
Fig. 3.11: Laptop Computer

As personal computers, laptops are capable of the same tasks, although they are typically less
powerful for the same price. They contain components that are similar to their desktop counterparts
and perform the same functions, but are miniaturized and optimized for mobile use and efficient
power consumption. Laptops usually have liquid crystal displays and most of them use different
memory modules for their random access memory (RAM), for instance, SO-DIMM in lieu of the
larger DIMMs. In addition to a built-in keyboard, they may utilize a touchpad (also known as a
trackpad).
History
In 1976, the Xerox PARC division developed the Xerox NoteTaker, considered the first portable
computer. It never reached the market, as only 10 prototypes were built. In 1981, the Osborne 1 was
launched as the first commercially available portable computer. About the size of a tabletop sewing
machine, the Osborne did not have any battery power, running only on electricity instead but it
allowed computer users to work with a computer while on the go.

In the span of barely 3 years, portable computer models started flooding the market. In 1982,
Kaypro introduced the Kaypro II, which featured double-sided floppy drives (twice the storage
capacity) and a larger CRT monitor. The first true laptop, the GRiD Compass 1101, was arguably
released that same year. In 1983, Compaq launched its Compaq Portable, while Epson introduced
the HX-20.
Notebooks
Notebook computers typically weigh less than 5 pounds and are small enough – “notebook
sized” – to fit easily in a backpack or briefcase.
Fig. 3.12: Notebooks

It was also designed to function similarly to desktops but were geared more toward personal
use than business use. The handy notebook size was what defined notebook computers. When they
were first released, they did not even have a replaceable hard disk or other associated peripherals.
History
By 1988, portable computers had become smaller, as demonstrated by the Cambridge Z88.
Though this portable computer was 16 times more powerful than the Osborne 1, its total weight had
been halved.
The first “notebook computers” – so called because the size of these devices was roughly the
size of a paper notebook – were the 1988 NEC UltraLite and the Compaq LTE, launched in 1989.
These designs were then joined by the IBM ThinkPad, featuring the first 10.4 inch screen on a
notebook computer. While these early notebooks averaged a little over 6 pounds, lighter and more
powerful “sub-notebooks” began making their mark in 1993 with the introduction of the Gateway
Handbook and the Hewlett-Packard OmniBook. The 4.4 pound Apple PowerBook was eclipsed by

the Sony VAIO in 1997, the latter weighing in at under 2.5 pounds. Microsoft's Tablet PC computers
were smaller still and in 2007, Asus introduced the Eee PC, reducing screen and keyboard size while
retaining full computer usage capabilities.
Comparison between Laptop and Notebook
Laptop Notebook
Main Apple, Dell, Toshiba, Acer, Asus, Apple, Samsung, Sony, Toshiba, Dell.
Lenovo, HP, Samsung, Sony, MSI,
AlienWare, Microsoft.
Manufacturers Small and sleek to large and bulky. Notebooks generally come in the sizes
Screen sizes normally range from 10 of real notebooks to the near PDA
to 20 inches across. sizes. (Exceptions occur as some
manufacturer’s market their laptops as
notebooks).
Size Can be present in an integrated fashion. Not always integrated. Can be

externally attached though.
DVD-Drives and Has fans and other system like in Usually, do not have an effective
other accessories desktop adjusted to suit its use. cooling system as processing power is
like in Desktop lesser than laptops.
Cooling system A laptop is a mobile computer/device, A notebook computer is a battery- or

small and light in weight and as the AC-powered personal computer
name suggests, sits in the lap of the generally smaller than a briefcase that
user. can easily be transported and
conveniently used in temporary spaces
such as on airplanes, in libraries,
temporary offices and at meetings.
Meaning Primary usage is mobility and replicates Primary usage is mobility and personal
the usage of a personal computer with computer with extra durability.
extra durability.

Processing Laptops are usually associated with Notebooks nowadays come in laptop
Capacity higher processing power than configurations but the size factor wears
notebooks. Normally 1-8 GB RAM. off as it becomes more powerful and the
sense of notebook is gone.
Physical A laptop usually weighs between 1.4 A notebook weighs less than 5 pounds
characteristics to 5.4 kgs (3 to 12 pounds). and is 3 inches or less in thickness.
Subnotebook
Fig. 3.13: Subnotebook Computer

A subnotebook is a class of laptop which are smaller and lighter than typical notebooks. It is
also called ‘ultraportable’. They generally are found to run full desktop operating systems such as
Windows or Linux, rather than specialized software such as Windows CE, Palm OS or Internet
Tablet OS.
Subnotebooks are smaller than laptops but larger than handheld computers. They often have
smaller-sized screens, less than 14 inches and weigh less than typical laptops, usually being less than
2 kg (4.4 lbs). The savings in size and weight are usually achieved partly by omitting ports or having
removable media or optical disc drives.
Palmtop
A palmtop is a hand-held microcomputer, i.e., small enough to be held in one’s hand. Although
extremely convenient to carry, handheld computers have not replaced notebook computers because

of their small keyboards and screens. The most popular palmtop computers are specifically designed
to provide PIM (Personal Information Manager) functions, like a calendar, address book, etc.
Fig. 3.14: Palmtop Computer

Personal Digital Assistants (PDA)
A Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) is a hand-held microcomputer that trades off power for
small size and greater portability. They are tightly integrated computers that often use flash memory
instead of a hard drive for storage. These computers usually do not have keyboards but rely on
touch-sensitive LCD screen for both output and input.
PDAs communicate with desktop computers and with each other either by cable connection,
infrared (IR) beam or radio waves. It can function as a cellular phone, fax sender and personal
organizer. PDAs are normally used to keep track of appointment calendars, to-do lists, address
books and for taking notes.
Fig. 3.15: Personal Digital Assistant (PDA)

Pocket PC
A Pocket PC is a hardware specification for a handheld-sized computer (PDA) that runs the
Microsoft Windows Mobile operating system. It may have the capability to run an alternative operating
system like NetBSD or Linux.
Fig. 3.16: Pocket PC

Pocket PCs can also be used with many other add-ons like GPS receivers, barcode readers,
RFID readers and cameras.
Tablet PC
A Tablet PC is a notebook or slate-shaped mobile computer, first introduced by Pen computing

in the early 90s with their PenGo Tablet Computer and popularized by Microsoft. Its touchscreen or
graphics tablet/screen hybrid technology allows the user to operate the computer with a stylus or
digital pen or a fingertip, instead of a keyboard or mouse. Tablet PCs are often used where normal
notebooks are impractical or unwieldy or do not provide the needed functionality.
Fig. 3.17: Tablet PC

Ultra-Mobile PC
The Ultra-Mobile PC (UMPC) is a specification for a small form factor tablet PC. It was
developed as a joint development exercise by Microsoft, Intel and Samsung, among others. Current
UMPCs typically feature the Windows XP Tablet PC Edition 2005, Windows Vista Home Premium
Edition or Linux operating system and low-voltage Intel Pentium or VIA C7-M processors in the
1 GHz range.
Fig. 3.18: Ultra-Mobile PC

Home Theater PC
A Home Theater PC (HTPC) is a convergence device that combines the functions of a personal
computer and a digital video recorder. It is connected to a television or a television-sized computer
display and is often used as a digital photo, music, video player, TV receiver and digital video recorder.
Fig. 3.19: Home Theater PC

Home theater PCs are also referred to as media center systems or media servers. Because of
the nature of the HTPC, higher than average capacities are required for HTPC units to allow
storage of pictures, music, television shows, videos and other multimedia HTPC cases have a small
LCD screen on the front where a user can view music/movie information.
Workstation/Server Computer
A workstation is a high-end microcomputer designed for technical or scientific applications.

Intended primarily to be used by one person at a time, they are commonly connected to a local area

network and run multi-user operating systems. The term workstation has also been used to refer to
a mainframe computer terminal or a PC connected to a network.
Historically, workstations had offered higher performance than personal computers, especially
with respect to CPU and graphics, memory capacity and multitasking capability. They are optimized
for the visualization and manipulation of different types of complex data such as 3D mechanical
design, engineering simulation, animation and rendering of images, scientific calculations and
mathematical plots.
Workstation Computer Server Computer

Fig. 3.20: Workstation/Server Computer
The workstation class Personal Computer may have some of the following features:
(i) Support for ECC (Error Correction Code, i.e., a system of error control for data
transmission) memory.
(ii) A larger number of memory sockets which use registered (buffered) modules.
(iii) Multiple processors.
(iv) Multiple displays.
(v) Run a “business” or “professional” operating system version.
Server usually refers to a computer that is dedicated to providing a service to other computers
over a network. A server application is a computer program that accepts connections in order to
service requests by sending back responses. Servers usually have powerful processors, lots of
memory and large hard drives. Examples of server applications include web servers, e-mail servers,
database servers and file servers.

Client-Server Computer
Client–Server Computing or networking is a distributed application architecture that partitions

tasks or work loads between service providers (servers) and service requesters (clients).
Often clients and servers operate over a computer network on separate hardware. Classic client-
server architecture requires one of the communication endpoints to act as a server, which is much
harder to implement. A server machine is a high-performance host that is running one or more
server programs which share its resources with clients. A client does not share any of its resources
but requests a server’s content or service function. Clients therefore initiate communication sessions
with servers which await (listen to) incoming requests.
The most basic type of client-server architecture employs only two types of hosts – clients and
servers. This type of architecture is sometimes referred to as two-tier. It allows devices to share
files and resources. The two tier architecture means that the client acts as one tier and application
in combination with server acts as another tier.
Fig. 3.21: Client-Server Computer

In most cases, a client-server architecture enables the roles and responsibilities of a computing
system to be distributed among several independent computers that are known to each other only
through a network. This creates an additional advantage to this architecture: greater ease of
maintenance.

For example, it is possible to replace, repair, upgrade or even relocate a server while its clients
remain both unaware and unaffected by that change. All data is stored on the servers, which generally
have far greater security controls than most clients.
As the number of simultaneous client requests to a given server increases, the server can
become overloaded and this is the main disadvantage of client-server computer.
Embedded Computers
An embedded system is a special-purpose computer system designed to perform one or a few

dedicated functions often with real-time computing constraints. It is usually embedded as part of a
complete device including hardware and mechanical parts. They generally execute a program that
is stored in non-volatile memory and is only intended to operate a specific machine or device.
Embedded computers are typically required to operate continuously without being reset or
rebooted and once employed in their task the software usually cannot be modified. Embedded
computers are very common. Embedded systems range from portable devices such as digital watches
and MP4 players, to large stationary installations like traffic lights, factory controllers or the systems
controlling nuclear power plants.
Fig. 3.22: Embedded Computer

Wearable Computer
The latest trend in computer is Wearable Computer. A wearable computer is a computer that is
subsumed into the personal space of the user, controlled by the user, and has both operational and
interactional constancy, i.e., is always on and always accessible. They have been applied to areas

such as behavioral modeling, health monitoring systems, information technologies and media
development. Wearable computers are especially useful for applications that require computational
support while the user’s hands, voice, eyes or attention are actively engaged with the physical
environment.
One of the main features of a wearable computer is consistency. There is a constant interaction
between the computer and user, i.e., there is no need to turn the device on or off. Another feature is
the ability to multi-task. It is not necessary to stop what you are doing to use the device; it is
augmented into all other actions. These devices can be incorporated by the user to act like a prosthetic.
It can therefore be an extension of the user’s mind and/or body.
3.3 Applications of Computer

(a) Banking: Banks uses computers for general purpose computations, to maintain ledger, to
handle transactions, to make entry in passbooks, to issue fixed deposit receipts, to provide
online service to customers who want to perform bank transactions from home terminals
and to answer customers at bank terminals regarding their balance etc. For all these purpose
there is a central computer (a server) which processes all the data from different terminal
computers. These days banks also provide the ATM (Automatic Teller Machine) service
to the customers. A customer with the ATM card can perform a cash transaction immediately
with the ATM machine by inserting card in it.
Fig. 3.23: Banking

(b) Home-based workers: Now that it is easy to connect a computer at home to all of the
computers at the office, more and more people are working at home. These telecomputers

often work one or more days without the traditional commute. The same ability to
communicate so easily makes home-based business easier to start and operate.
(c) Desktop publishing: Producing finished business literature is one of the uses of computer
in business. Using desktop publishing programs, or even sophisticated word processing
programs, people can create sales letters, brochures, price lists, newsletters, and even
book-length manuals.
(d) Financial analysis: Financial analysis is performed throughout the company, from top
management to down. People can analyze investments, sales, expenses, markets and other
aspects of the business using both numbers and graphs.
Computer in Commercial
Many business companies, large or small use computers to help in the control of daily activities.
Some of the more common uses are:
Fig. 3.24: Computer in Commercial

(a) Employee records: All organizations keep record of their employees. An employee record
normally contains information such as name, address, telephone number, present job
classification, date of start of employment, contract period, salary scale or rate of pay,
allowances, deductions, salary paid to date, taxes deducted to date, etc. Using a computer,
it is a simple matter to store, retrieve and update information concerning employees. The
most frequent use of an employee record is in payroll processing.

(b) Payroll processing: With the employee record we have almost every information of an
employee. Regarding the payroll the fields such as employee name, address, job classification,
rate of pay, fixed allowances, fixed deductions etc., are important. With different information
such as number of hours worked by each employee, fixed allowances, fixed deductions
etc., the gross pay is calculated.
(c) Accounts receivable: An account receivable system keeps track of all money owed to
the company by its customers. e.g., consider a department store which offers credit to
selected customers. For each customer record is created which include date such as
customer name, address, telephone number, occupation, credit limit, amount owed by the
customer, date of last purchase, date of last payment, etc. The date of last purchase, date
of last payment data items are used by the computer to determine the length of time for
which the customer has owed money to the store. Based on this time a notice can be sent
to the customer, if he/she is too late to pay.
(d) Account payable: An accounts payable system keeps records of people to which the
company owes money. These are usually the people who provide goods and services to the
company. This system enables the company to schedule its payments in a way which is in
the best interests of the company.
(e) Stock control: A stock control system enables a user to mange his stock more effectively.
At the heart of the system is the file of stock items. For each item in stock, an ‘item record’
is created. Each item is assigned a unique identifier (usually a number). This number is
used in all transactions to do with the item.
Computer in Industry
Computers have had a major impact in industries where products are designed and manufactured.
Computer Aided Design (CAD) is used to develop products. Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM)
is used to produce them.

Fig. 3.25: Computer in Industry

(a) Product design: Designing complicated products can require the efforts of thousands of
people working together. This teamwork is greatly enhanced through the use of computerized
design.
(b) Factories: Factory floors are becoming increasingly populated by computers used for
many purposes including inventory control and planning and process control. Computers
are also used to run robots that create, finish, assemble, and test products and their
components.
Computer in Health Care and Medical field
Computers are widely used in hospitals to help doctors in diagnosis, getting information on
patients, diseases, treatment, drugs etc. They are also used in administration and in keeping patient
records. Doctors can get information from distant data banks and expert systems. They can discuss
with colleagues using teleconferencing. Many devices take images and diagnose diseases. Examples
are Computerized Axial Tomography (CAT), Position Emission Tomography (PET), Magnetic
Resonance Imaging (MRI), etc. These devices take pictures of brain and help in diagnosis of various
kinds of diseases. There are a lot of computerized automatic medical equipments which help in
diagnosis of diseases such as CT scan machine, Eye testing machines, Ultra sonography equipment, etc.

Fig. 3.26: Computer in Health Care and Medical Field

Computer in Education
Computers have been used in schools since the first Apples were introduced in the 1970.
However, their impact was limited then because there were not enough computers and educational
computer programming was poor. As technology has advanced education, software has become a
major influence at all levels from elementary schools to universities. The ability to connect computers
and students together over a network such as the Internet opens up fantastic educational opportunities.
Fig. 3.27: Computer in Education

(a) Research and Universities: Scientific and engineering design and research work involve
complex and massive computations. In many cases, simulation is also required. Such complex
computations are not possible by hand calculators. So, computers are must for this type of
work.
(b) Library: A typical library contains thousand of books, magazines, reports and other
documents which users may wish to borrow. A small library may have several hundred
prospective borrowers, while the number of users of larger libraries can reach beyond
thousands. Maintaining records of books and borrowers is well suited to a computer system.
Using a computer enables library personnel to answer queries about the status of books
more easily than if a manual system was being used. A computerized system also enables
to find out whether to issue books to the users or not. If the maximum limit of the book is
already reached then that user will not get the book.
Computer in Engineering
Computer Applications in Engineering Education provides timely information on the innovative

uses of computers and software tools in education, and for accelerating the integration of computers
into the engineering curriculum. In modern times, computers have closely connection with everyone,
especially scientist and engineer. Computer programs can now solve difficult problems in a fraction
of the time it used to take. Computer-aided engineering is a powerful tool and necessary for engineering
design and manufacture.
Fig. 3.28: Computer in Engineering

Nowadays, you no longer have to write your own software programs to use computers
effectively. In chemical engineering, a lot of softwares are used in the process of chemical operation,
like the software for process of chemical engineering Proa! and Aspen, and Computational fluid
dynamics software Fluent and CFX and so on.
Computer in Graphics
Today, computers and computer-generated images touch many aspects of daily life. Computer
graphics is found on television, in newspapers, for example, in weather reports, or for example, in all
kinds of medical investigation and surgical procedures.
Fig. 3.29: Computer Graphics Cartoon

The development of computer graphics, has made computers easier to interact with and better
for understanding and interpreting many types of data. Computer imagery has applications for film
special effects, simulation and training, games, medical imagery, flying logos, etc. Although computer
graphics is a vast field that encompasses almost any graphical aspect, it mainly interested in the
generation of images of three-dimensional scenes.

3.4 Basic Components of PC

When you look at a computer closely, you can name the following main parts:
Fig. 3.30: Parts of Computer

Mouse
A mouse is used to replace the key combinations with easier point and click actions. The
mouse is connected to the main board of the computer by a cable. It is input device.
Keyboard
 It has many small keys on it.
 The computer accepts data with the help of keyboard.
Monitor
This part looks like a TV screen with the help of this.
 We can see what has been typed into the computer.
 It displays the resulting output.
 It is also called a Screen/VDU (Visual Display Unit).

Hard Disk Drive
 The computer stores information permanently in it.
 The hard disk is the fixed storage.
CPU (Central Processing Unit)
 It is housed in the main unit.
 It is a small silicon chip.
 It is the brain of the computer and does all the manipulation of data we give to the
computer.
CD-ROM Drives
CD-ROM stands Compact Discs-Read Only Memory. CD-ROM drives reads programs and
data stored on a removable CD drives. These drives can hold large amount of information.
Floppy Disk Drive
 The computer can store information in a floppy disk.
 This is a removable storage.
Printer
It is a output device. We can see the resulting output on the monitor but to print it on paper we
need a printer.
3.5 Computer Architecture

A computer system is one that is able to take a set of inputs, process them and create a set of
outputs. This is done by a combination of hardware and software. In describing Computer systems
a distinction is often made between Computer Organization and Computer Architecture.
Computer Architecture
In computer engineering, computer architecture is a set of rules and methods that describe the
functionality, organization and implementation of computer systems. Computer architecture is the

architectural attributes like physical address memory, CPU and how they should be made and made
to coordinate with each other keeping the future demands and goals in mind. It is concerned with
structure and behavior of computer as seen by the user.
Computer Organization
Computer Organization refers to the Operational Units and there interconnections that realize
or recognize the specifications of Computer Architecture. Computer organization is how operational
attributes are linked together and to realize the architectural specifications. So, from the definition,
we can easily understand that Computer Architecture is:
Set of Instructions + Computer Organization = Computer Architecture
Application program
High level
Application design
Software
System design
Computer architecture
Computer design
Co mput er Logic design

Organisation
Hardware
Circuit design
Computer Componment
Low level
Fig. 3.31: Computer Architecture

The distinction between computer organization and computer architecture is often misunderstood.
For example, if computer organization examines the lumber, bricks, nails and other building material,
while computer architecture looks at the design of the house.

3.6 Summary
As personal computers, laptops are capable of the same tasks, although they are typically less
powerful for the same price. They contain components that are similar to their desktop counterparts
and perform the same functions, but are miniaturized and optimized for mobile use and efficient
power consumption.
Computers can be broadly classified by their speed and computing power. It is a multi-user
computer system, capable of supporting hundreds of users simultaneously. Businesses use personal
computers for word processing, accounting, desktop publishing, and for running spreadsheet
CD-ROM stands for compact discs-read only memory. CD-ROM drives reads programs and
data stored on a removable CD drives. These drives can hold large amount of information.
The term ‘desktop’ refers specifically to a horizontally-oriented case, usually intended to have
the display screen placed on top to save space on the desktop. Most desktop computer offer more
power, storage, versatility and low cost.
A laptop is a small mobile computer, which usually weighs 2.2-18 pounds (1.6 kilograms),
depending on size, materials and other factors. A laptop is designed to sit on user lap and user can
therefore expect it to be quite large and loaded down with features and power.
A sub notebook is a class of laptop which are smaller and lighter than typical notebooks. It is
also called ‘ultraportable’. They generally are found to run full desktop operating systems such as
Windows or Linux, rather than specialized software such as Windows CE, Palm OS or Internet
Tablet OS.
A Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) is a hand-held microcomputer that trades off power for
small size and greater portability. They are tightly integrated computers that often use flash memory
instead of a hard drive for storage.


 Analog Computer: Analog computers are computers that measure physical quantities.
 Digital Computer: Digital computers are counting digital devices.
 Hybrid Computer: The features of analog and digital machines are combined to create a
hybrid computing system.
 Desktop: Most desktop computer offer more power, storage, versatility and low cost.
 Laptop: A laptop is designed to sit on user lap and user can therefore expect it to be quite
large.
 Personal Digital Assistants (PDA): PDAs communicate with desktop computers.

1. What is computer architecture? Explain the applications and basic components of
computer.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
2. Explain different types of computer with their merits and demerits.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
3. Explain different generation of computer and their development.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————

1. What is Computer Organization?
2. Explain the types of Computer.
3. Differentiate between Laptop and Notebook.
1. UNIVAC is __________.
(a) Universal Automatic Computer (b) Universal Array Computer
(c) Unique Automatic Computer (d) Unvalued Automatic Computer
2. CD-ROM stands for __________.
(a) Compactable Read Only Memory (b) Compact Data Read Only Memory
(c) Compactable Disk Read Only Memory
(d) Compact Disk Read Only Memory
3. Which of the following is called low level languages?
(a) Machine language (b) Assembly language
4. Digital devices are __________.
(a) Digital clock (b) Automobile speed meter
(d) Clock with a dial and two hands (d) All the above

5. The computer that process both analog and digital is called __________.
(a) Analog computer (b) Digital computer
(c) Hybrid computer (d) Mainframe computer
6. Mnemonic a memory trick is used in which of the following language?
(a) Machine language (b) Assembly language
(c) High level language (d) None of these
Answers:
1. (a), 2. (d), 3. (c), 4. (a), 5. (c), 6. (b)
3.10 References


UNIT 4 STORAGE DEVICES
Structure:
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Block Diagram of a Computer
4.3 Computer Memory
4.4 Main Memory
4.5 Secondary Memory
4.6 Summary
4.10 References
 Understand the concepts of Hardware and Software
 Understand the concepts of Computer Memory and Secondary Memory

Storage Devices 65
4.1 Introduction
Hardware is a physical part of computer that causes processing of data. Software is a set of
instruction that tells a computer exactly what to do. It is manufactured. It is developed and engineered.
Hardware cannot perform any task without software. For example, the computer monitor you are
using to read this text and the mouse you are using to navigate this web page are computer hardware.
4.2 Block Diagram of a Computer
All computer systems, no matter how small or large, have the same fundamental capabilities:
• Input Device: It includes devices like keyboard and mouse, which are used by the user to
give some data to the computer.
• Central Processing Unit: Processing unit is where these data are processed and turned
into meaningful information. It also includes temporary storage (RAM) in which the data
currently being processed are stored temporarily.
• Output Device: To show the result of processes, to the user, output devices like monitors
and printers are used.

Following are the figure of block diagram of a computer:
Central Processing Unit*
MEMORY UNIT
hold the data, instruction
and result of processing
CONTROL UNIT
Interpret stored
instruction sequence
issue command to all element
INPUT OUTPUT
Data & information
Instruction with result
ARITHMETIC LOGIC UNIT
Perform arithmetic
and Logic operation
SECONDARY
STORAGE
Fig. 4.1: Block Diagram of a Computer

Input Device
Explanation for input device is given in unit 5.
Central Processing Unit (CPU)
The Central Processing Unit (CPU) is the component of a computer system with the circuitry
to control the interpretation and execution of instructions. It performs the process part of INPUT-
PROCESS-OUTPUT cycle. A CPU built on a single chip is called a ‘Microprocessor’.
A microprocessor is an electronic device which is of little use unless interfaced with memories and
several other Input/Output (I/O) device.

Storage Devices 67
Fig. 4.2: Central Processing Unit (CPU)

Nowadays, microprocessor is also called ‘Processor’. A processor combined with main memory,
auxiliary storage, input device and output device, which make a computer. A microprocessor
incorporates most or all of the functions of a computer’s CPU on a single Integrated Circuit (IC).
ICs are made up of different electronic components such as capacitors, resistors, transistors, etc.
Fig. 4.3: Motherboard Fig. 4.4: Integrated Circuit (IC)
These components are hooked together on fiberglass boards called circuit boards. You can
see the small thin copper or metal lines (wires) on a circuit board that connect the different components
together. These are called traces. Integrated Circuit is also called microchip. In a microcomputer,
the printed circuit board that connects all of the parts of the computer together is called the

‘motherboard’. The CPU could be considered the ‘brain’ of the computer. It sends electrical
signals to the various parts of the computer, controlling what goes on. The motherboard contains the
CPU, as well as a separate chip for the system clock. Everything connected to your computer
system, plugs either directly or indirectly into the motherboard. The motherboard contains the CPU,
the BIOS ROM chip (Basic Input/Output System), and the CMOS Setup information. It has expansion
slots for installing different adapter cards like video card, sound card, Network Interface Card and
modem.
It is sometimes called the system board, the logic board, the baseboard, or less commonly,
the planar board. A CPU cache is a cache used by the central processing unit of a computer to
reduce the average time to access memory. The cache is a smaller, faster memory which stores
copies of the data from the most frequently used main memory locations. As long as most memory
accesses are cached memory locations, the average latency of memory accesses will be closer to
the cache latency than to the latency of main memory. When the processor needs to read from or
write to a location in main memory, it first checks whether a copy of that data is in the cache. Then
the processor immediately reads from or writes to the cache, which is much faster than reading
from or writing to main memory.
CPU Structure
As there are a great many variations in architecture between the different kinds of CPU, a
simplified model of the structure is looking here. The simplified model consists of five parts:
• Control Unit
• Arithmetic and Logic Unit (ALU)
• Register Array
• System Bus
• Memory Unit

Storage Devices 69
Fig. 4.5: CPU Structure

(a) Control Unit
The Control Unit interprets any instruction it receives from memory and directs the sequences
of events necessary to execute the instruction. It is also responsible for performing the instruction
execution cycle. It consists of a decoder, control logic circuits and a clock to ensure everything
happens at the correct time.
Control unit uses a system clock which synchronizes all tasks by sending out electrical pulses.
The clock speed of a CPU is defined as the frequency that a processor executes instructions or that
data is processed. This clock speed is measured in millions of cycles per second or megahertz
(MHz) and is the main element in determining the speed of the processor. Computer speed is also
measured by the ‘Number of Instructions Completed Per Second’ or ‘Millions Per Second
(MPS)’ or ‘Instructions Per Second (MIPS)’. Hertz is the unit of frequency that measures the
number of cycles per second in a periodic signal.

Fig. 4.6: Control Unit

(b) Arithmetic and Logic Unit
The Arithmetic and Logic Unit (ALU) is that part of CPU where actual data processing
occurs. All calculations (mathematical) and all comparisons (logic function) take place in this unit.
Basic arithmetic functions which an ALU can carry out are addition and subtraction. More powerful
CPUs can support additional mathematical operations like multiplication and division.
Fig. 4.7: Arithmetic and Logic Unit

In addition to arithmetic functions, the ALU also performs logic functions. The logical operation
which can it can carry out greater than, equal to, less than comparison between two numbers.
Besides these operations, some processors also supports operations which check if particular bits
are on or off.
The ALU is made up of devices called gates that receive one or more inputs and based upon
what function they are designed to perform, output a result. The ALU in example performs one of
seven functions: NOT, Left Shift, Right Shift, Add, Subtract, AND, OR.
Every arithmetic step requires at least two numbers and then it produces a result. Multiplication,
for example, uses a multiplicand and a multiplier to get a product. Although every ALU must be able

Storage Devices 71
to manage the two data words and the result, different processing and storage techniques are used
in different models.
(c) Register Array
Registers are temporary memory units that store a computer instruction, a storage address or
any kind of data (such as a bit sequence or individual characters). The registers are located in the
processor, instead of in RAM, so data can be accessed and stored faster. When a program is
debugged, register contents may be analyzed to determine the computer’s status at the time of
failure. Each of the registers is 16 bits long, i.e., can contain a 16-bit binary number. Group of flip
flops and gates form a register. Register is a special purpose memory. This memory is vital for
moving data in and out of the main memory and to process the data. When CPU executes the
instructions, there is a transfer of information between various units of the computer system. CPU
uses these registers to handle the process of execution effectively and efficiently. They are a part of
the central processing unit but cannot be considered as a part of main memory. They can hold only
one piece of data at a time. Registers receive the information, hold it temporarily and pass it on as
directed by the control unit. The number of registers varies from computer to computer, each one
designed to perform a specific function.
Types of Registers
A processor often contains several kinds of registers, that can be classified according to their
content or instructions that operate on them:
(i) User-accessible registers are divided into data registers and address registers.
(ii) Data registers are used to hold numeric values such as integer and floating-point values.
(iii) Address registers hold addresses and are used by instructions that indirectly access
memory.
(iv) Index register are used to store the index of memory address.
(v) Conditional registers hold truth values often used to determine whether some instruction
should or should not be executed.

(vi) General purpose registers (GPRs) are combined with Data and Address registers.
They can be used by the programmer for data manipulation.
(vii) Floating point registers (FPRs) are the type of data registers that store floating point
numbers in many architectures.
(viii) Accumulator register is special data register which stores the result of the last processing
step of the ALU.
(ix) Constant registers are used to store read only values such as zero, one, or pi.
(x) Vector registers hold data for vector processing done by SIMD instructions (Single
Instruction, Multiple Data).
(xi) Special purpose registers (SPRs) hold program state. This have two special registers –
Status Registers and Control Registers.
(xii) Status registers has two special registers –
• Stack Pointer: Contains the last address of a stack of.
• Status Register: Also flag register or condition code register (CCR)) is a collection of
flag bits for a processor.
(xiii) Control registers has two special registers –
• Program Counter (PC): Contains the address (in binary) in main memory of the next
instruction.
• Instruction Register (IR): Contains the instruction (in binary) that is currently being
executed.
(xiv) Model-specific registers (also called machine-specific registers) store data and settings
related to the processor itself.
(d) System Bus
The system bus is a cable which carries data communication between the major components
of the computer, including the microprocessor. These wires carry information in terms of voltage. If

Storage Devices 73
5V at a wire indicates Bit 1, 0V indicate Bit 0. The system bus consists of three different groups of
wiring, called the data bus, control bus and address bus. These all have separate responsibilities and
characteristics, which can be outlined as follows:
(i) Address Bus
An address bus carries the address of memory location or address of the peripheral. If the
computer used 8 bits to represent the address of a location, then it can address upto 28 – 256
location. Sometimes, the address bus is combined with the data bus also. This is said to be address
bus multiplexed with data bus. Bits flow from the microprocessor to peripheral is undirectional.
(ii) Data Bus
A Data Bus carries the data to the memory location or input/output units. In 8-bit computer, the
width of the Bus is 8 lines. It can carry only 8-bits at a time. The control unit will distinguish whether
the data is to be sent for input or output. Data flow between microprocessor and memory and
peripheral is bidirectional.
(iii) Control Bus
This Bus carries control signals used to control overall operations of the computer. This Bus
sends appropriate signals at the appropriate time to all the parts of the computer. These provide
timing and control signals.
(e) Memory Unit
The memory is not an actual part of the CPU itself, and is instead housed elsewhere on the
motherboard. However, it is here that the program being executed is stored, and as such is a crucial
part of the overall structure involved in program execution. For more information about memory,
please see next pages.
Output Device
Explanation for output device is given in unit 5.

4.3 Computer Memory

In contemporary usage, memory usually refers to a form of semiconductor storage known as
random-access memory (RAM), which is fast but temporary storage. Storage today more commonly
refers to mass storage — optical discs, forms of magnetic storage like hard disk drives, , which is
slower than RAM, but of a more permanent nature. Historically, memory and storage are respectively
called ‘main memory’ or ‘primary storage’ or ‘internal memory’ and ‘secondary storage’ or
‘external memory’.
4.4 Main Memory

Primary or Main Memory
A storage location that holds memory for short periods of times. RAM and ROM are examples
of a primary storage device. This storage unite is often called either ‘main memory’ or ‘primary
memory’. The primary memory of CPU is the place where computer program and data is stored
during processing.
Fig. 4.8: Primary or Main Memory

Random Access Memory (RAM)
Pronounced ram, acronym of Random Access Memory, a type of computer-memory that can
be accessed randomly; that is, any byte of memory can be accessed without touching the preceding
bytes. This is the memory that the computer uses while it is executing programs. RAM is the most
common type of memory found in computers and other devices, such as printers.

Storage Devices 75
Fig. 4.9: Random Access Memory (RAM)

Read-Only Memory (ROM)
Pronounced ROM, acronym for Read-Only Memory, a computer memory on which has been
prerecorded. The information stored on the ROM, chips is permanent and is stored when it is
manufactured. Unlike the main memory (RAM), ROM retains its contents even when the computer
is turned off. ROM is referred to as being nonvolatile whereas RAM is volatile.
Fig. 4.10: Read-Only Memory (ROM)

Most personal computers contain a small amount of ROM that stores critic programs such as
the program that boots the computer. In addition, ROMs are used extensively in calculators and
peripheral devices such as laser printers, whose fonts are often stored in ROMs. A variation of a
ROM is the PROM (programmable read-only memory). PROMs are manufactured as blank chips
on which data can be written.

4.5 Secondary Memory

Secondary Storage Device
A storage medium that holds information until it is deleted or overwritten. The memory capacity
of the computer can be increased by using secondary or external or auxiliary memory units to the
computer. This is the additional memory used to supplement the storage capability. It is less expensive
and more flexible than main memory. These devices store information such as software and data
permanently. For example, magnetic disk, magnetic tapes, etc.
Magnetic Tape
They are convenient, inexpensive devices which can be used to store large volumes of data.
The magnetic tape is similar to the commonly used audio tape recorders. The tape is wound on a
spool and threaded manually on the take-up spool. Data on tapes is stored as blocks, therefore
recording and retrieving is sequential. The access time in the case of magnetic tapes is quite high.
Fig. 4.11: Magnetic Tape

Magnetic Disks
A magnetic disk is a circular platter that is made of smooth metal or mylar plastic. It is coated
with magnetic material.
Data is stored or retrieved from the disk using a conducting coil called the head. During read/
write, the head is stationary while the platter rotates beneath it. With disks, it is possible to directly

Storage Devices 77
access records by specifying the address or location. That is why disks are called direct access
storage devices.
Fig. 4.12: Magnetic Disk

Hard Disk
Hard disk is a magnetic disk on which one can store computer data. The hard disk is faster
than floppy disks. For example, hard disk can store anywhere from one megabytes to several
gigabytes, whereas most floppies have a maximum storage capacity of 1.4 megabytes.
A single hard disk usually consists of several platters. Each platter requires two read/write
heads, one of each side. All the read/write head are attached to a single access arm so that they
cannot move independently. Each platter has the same number of tracks, and a track location that
cuts across all platters is called a cylinder. For example, a typical 84 megabyte hard disk for a PC
might have two platters (four sides) and 1,053 cylinders. In general, these are less portable than
floppies, although it is possible to buy removable hard disks. There are two types of removable hard
disks, disk packs and removable cartridges.
Fig. 4.13: Hard Disk

Winchester Disk
Another magnetic media suitable for large volumes of information is the hard disk popularly
known as Winchester disk. A Winchester disk pack consists of two or more magnetic plates fixed to
a spindle, one below the other with a set of read-write heads. The disk pack is permanently seated
inside a casing to protect it from dust and other contamination, thus, increasing its reliability and data
integrity. They can hold large volume of information than floppies. They are very fast in reading and
writing. Winchester disks are available in different sizes and capacities. Standard sizes are 5.25
inches, 8 inches, 10.5 inches and 14 inches, storage capacities.
These is a portable memory device that can be used to quickly transfer to audio, video and data
files from the hard drive of one computer to another.
Fig. 4.14: Winchester Disk

Optical disk
Optical disks differ from magnetic disks by the way data is stored and read. In optical disks, a
laser beam is used to read and write data on these reflective disks. They support direct access to
data and have more storage capacity than magnetic disks. They are popularly known as compact
disks (CDs).

Storage Devices 79
Optical disks can store much more data upto 6 gigabytes (6 billion bytes) than magnetic media,
such as floppies and hard disks. It is an electronic data storage medium from which data is read and
written to by using a low-powered laser beam. It is flat, circular, plastic or glass disk on which data
is stored in the form of light and dark pits. The laser beam reads the pits and the data can be
accessed. There are three basic types of optical disks
Fig. 4.15: Optical Disk

Optical Storage Devices
Compact Disc
Compact Disc (CD) is a Secondary Storage device. We can store the data, and information to
the disc of size 700 MB and above. It is pronounced as “see-dee” ROM. There are various types –
Read-Only Memory CD-ROM PROM, EPROM, CD-R Drive, CD-RW Drive, etc.

Fig. 4.16: Compact Disc

CD-ROM
A CD-ROM is a CD that contains computer data, which cannot be read or rewritten. In

computers, CD-ROM is the most commonly used optical storage technology. CD-ROM is a compact
disc that contains information, which is accessible by a computer. It is composed of polycarbonate
plastic, thin reflective metal layers, made of aluminum and a lacquer coating. Data is stored on the
disc as a series of light and dark pits; the light portion refers to the spaces between the pits. A laser
beam reads the pits and the data can be accessed.
CD-ROM is an adaptation/EXTENSION of the compact disc that is designed for music storage
and playback. The format of CD-ROM is very similar to an audio CD; the only difference being the
standards used to store data. A standard 120 mm CD-ROM holds up to 700 MB of data, or about 70
minutes of audio. This may mean that one CD can contain over one thousand novels; an average
novel being composed of 60, 000 words. A single CD-ROM has the storage capacity of 700 floppy
disks, enough memory to store about 300,000 text pages. Once the data is written to a standard CD-
ROM disc, it cannot be altered or rewritten.

Storage Devices 81
Fig. 4.17: CD-ROM
4.6 Summary
Hardware is a physical part of computer that causes processing of data. Software is a set of
instruction that tells a computer exactly what to do. It is manufactured. It is developed and engineered.
Hardware cannot perform any task without software.
The central processing unit (CPU) is the component of a computer system with the circuitry to
control the interpretation and execution of instructions. It performs the process part of input-process-
output cycle.
Control unit uses a system clock which synchronizes all tasks by sending out electrical pulses.
The clock speed of a CPU is defined as the frequency that a processor executes instructions or that
data is processed.
The ALU is made up of devices called gates that receive one or more inputs and based upon
what function they are designed to perform, output a result. The ALU in example performs one of
seven functions: NOT, Left Shift, Right Shift, Add, Subtract, AND, OR.
Registers are temporary memory units that store a computer instruction, a storage address or
any kind of data (such as a bit sequence or individual characters).

random-access memory (RAM), which is fast but temporary storage.

A storage location that holds memory for short periods of times. RAM and ROM are examples
of a primary storage device. This storage unite is often called either ‘main memory’ or ‘primary
memory’.
computer.

 Central Processing Unit (CPU): The Central Processing Unit (CPU) is the component
of a computer system
 Control Unit: The Control Unit interprets any instruction it receives from memory.
 Arithmetic and Logic Unit: The ALU is made up of devices called gates that receive
one or more inputs
 Register Array: The registers are located in the processor, instead of in RAM, so data
can be accessed and stored faster.
 Memory Unit: The memory is not an actual part of the CPU itself, and is instead housed
elsewhere on the motherboard.

1. What is CPU? Explain the CPU structure.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
2. Explain different types of secondary devices with example.
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Storage Devices 83
1. What is Control Unit?
2. Discuss about Arithmetic and Logic Unit.
3. Explain the types of Registers.
1. The brain of any computer system is __________.
(a) Control Unit (b) Arithmetic Logic Unit
(c) Central Processing Unit (d) Storage Unit
2. ALU is __________.
(a) Arithmetic Logic Unit (b) Array Logic Unit
(c) Application Logic Unit (d) None of these
3. Which of the following is a secondary memory device?
(a) Keyboard (b) Disk
(c) ALU (d) All the above
4. Pick the one that is used for logical operations or comparisons such as less than equal to or
greater than.
(a) Arithmetic and Logic Unit (b) Control Unit

5. __________ are used to hold numeric values such as integer and floating-point values.
(a) Data registers (b) Index registers
(c) Conditional registers (d) Accumulator registers
6. __________ are used to store read only values such as zero, one, or pi.
(a) Index registers (b) Constant registers
(c) Accumulator registers (d) Conditional registers
Answers:
1. (c), 2. (a), 3. (b), 4. (a), 5. (a), 6. (b)
4.10 References


Hardware and Software 85
UNIT 5 HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE
Structure:
5.2 Elements of Computer – Hardware and Software
5.3 Relationship between Hardware and Software
5.4 Computer Peripherals
5.5 Input Devices

5.6 Output Devices
5.7 Software Requirements
5.8 Summary

5.12 References


 Understand the concept of Computer Peripherals
 Explain the Output Devices of computer
 Discuss Software requirements for computer
5.1 Introduction
A computer peripheral is any external device that provides input and output for the computer.
For example, a keyboard and mouse are input peripherals, while a monitor and printer are output
peripherals.
A computer peripheral is a device that is connected to a computer but is not part of the core
computer architecture. The core elements of a computer are the central processing unit, power
supply, motherboard and the computer case that contains those three components. Technically
speaking, everything else is considered a peripheral device. However, this is a somewhat narrow
view, since various other elements are required for a computer to actually function, such as a hard
drive and random access memory (or RAM).
Most people use the term peripheral more loosely to refer to a device external to the computer
case. You connect the device to the computer to expand the functionality of the system. For example,
consider a printer. Once the printer is connected to a computer, you can print out documents. Another
way to look at peripheral devices is that they are dependent on the computer system
5.2 Elements of Computer – Hardware and Software

Generally, the basic elements of computer are ‘hardware’ and ‘software’, which are frequently
used in computer system.

Computer
Hardware Software
Input Output System Application

CPU Packages
device device Software
* MS Word
Supporting Operating Programming * MS Excel
Processor Memory
Electronic System Language * MS Access
* Multimedia
* Potoshop
* Windows * C * Tally
Primary Secondary * Windows NT * C++ * Pagemaker
* DOS * Java
* Unix * Visual Basic
Temporary Permanent * Pascal
* Basic
Low capacity High capacity
Very fast Slow scan speed

Scan speed
Non Voltile
Voltile
Harddisk
RAM
Floppy Disk
CD Rom
Fig. 5.1: Hardware and Software

The hardware consists of the physical equipments which makes up the computer system like
Monitor, Keyboard, CPU, Hard Disk, Floppy drive, Printer etc. Normally all the items which can
seen and touched are hardware items. Thus, storage, processing and control unit, I/O device (input/
output device) and peripherals devices – all are hardware. It is the physical part of the computer
including the digital circuits inside the computer. Hardware includes not only the computer parts but

also the cables, connectors, power supply units and peripheral devices such as the keyboard, mouse,
audio speakers and printers. Entering and displaying information is carried out on a wide variety of
accessory devices called peripherals, also known as input/output (I/O) devices. Some peripherals,
such as keyboard is only input devices, other peripherals, such as printer is only output devices and
some are both.
The term ‘software’ was first used by John W. Tukey in 1958 as the following sense – “In
computer science and software engineering, computer software is all computer programs”. The
most modern software theory was first proposed by Alan Turing in 1935 is – “Computer software,
consisting of programs, codes or instructions that enables a computer to perform specific tasks”.
Software is an ordered sequence of instructions for changing the state of the computer hardware in
a particular sequence. In computers, software is loaded into RAM and executed in the central
processing unit.
5.3 Relationship between Hardware and Software

Computer software and computer hardware can exist independently of each other, just as a
human soul and a human body. The human body does nothing when not indwelt by a soul and the
human soul is inaccessible to us on earth after it has separated from its body in death.
Fig. 5.2: Relationship between Hardware and Software

Likewise, a computer program (software) cannot operate without the computer hardware.
The hardware also cannot perform the processes that the software is programmed to perform,

unless it has had access to the software to gain the needed instructions. ”A computer requires
programs to function and a computer program does nothing unless its instructions are executed by a
central processor” (“Computer Program”).
5.4 Computer Peripherals

When you look at a computer closely, the following main parts are:
Mouse
A mouse is used to replace the key combinations with easier point and click actions. The
mouse is connected to the main board of the computer by a cable. It is input device.
Keyboard
A computer keyboard is a typewriter-style device which uses an arrangement of buttons or

keys to act as a mechanical lever or electronic switch. It enables to enter data into a computer and
other devices.
Monitor
Monitor is a display screen used to provide visual output from a computer. It uses CRT and
LCD technologies.
Hard Disk Drive (HDD)
A hard disk drive (HDD, hard disk, hard drive or fixed disk) is a data storage device that is used
to store files for the operating system and software that run on the computer, as well as files created
or downloaded to the computer by a user.
CPU (Central Processing Unit)
A central processing unit (CPU) is the electronic circuitry within a computer that carries out
the instructions of a computer program by performing the basic arithmetic, logical, control and input/
output (I/O) operations specified by the instructions. CPU is the brains of the computer.
Printer
In computers, a printer is a device that accepts text and graphic output from a computer and
transfers the information to paper, usually to standard size sheets of paper.

5.5 Basic Input System

An input device is a peripheral used to provide data and control signals to an information
processing system such as a computer or information appliance. Examples of input devices include
keyboards, mouse, scanners, digital cameras and joysticks etc. Each of the device is explained
below.
Keyboard
Keyboard was the first input device to be used with computers and it is still the major and most
widely used among all the input devices. It is the primary input device for entering text and numbers.
It is an arrangement of keys on a board in an organized way – this is why it is called keyboard. A
keyboard is connected to a computer system using a cable or a wireless connection.
A standard keyboard has 102 to 110 keys and with 256 to 260 characters and each key sends
a different signal to the CPU. When a key is pressed, a tiny chip called the keyboard controller notes
that a key has been pressed. Then the keyboard controller places a code into the keyboard buffer to
indicate which key is pressed and sends a signal to the computer’s system software to tell that
something has happened at the keyboard. When the system software receives the signal, then it
reads the memory location in the keyboard buffer that contains the code of the pressed key. Then
the system software passes the code to the CPU. The keyboard buffer can store many keystrokes
at one time.
Fig. 5.3: Keyboard

The Basic PC Keyboard Layout
A keyboard typically contains keys for individual letters, numbers and special characters, as
well as keys for specific functions. There are four main keys on PC’s keyboard.

Function keys: These keys are positioned on the top row of the keyboard which are labeled
as F1, F2, F3, and on up to F11 and F12. Though F1 through F12 have some default primary and
secondary features, they can be used well in combination with keys like Ctrl and Alt.
F1: To open help window.
F2: To used to rename a file or folder. Alt + Ctrl + F2 opens the Documents Library while on
MS Office suite.
F3: To used to find something. Shift + F3 toggles between capitalizing each word, lower case
and upper case for selected text on MS Word.
F4: Alt + F4 closes the current program. If no program is running then it launches the Shutdown
dialog box.
F5: To used to refresh action. While using PowerPoint it is used to start a slide show. Opens
Find, Replace, Go to dialog on MS Office programs.
F6: To focuses on the address bar.
F7: To turns on browsing on Mozilla Firefox.
F8: To enters the Windows Start Menu.
F9: To compiles and runs the code in combination with Ctrl key.
F10: To shows the Menu bar in Firefox and IE.
F11: To opens full screen mode in Windows Explorer and all browsers.
F12: To opens Save As window on MS Office.
Typewriter keys: These keys are the same types of keys that find on an old typewriter. All
letters, numbers, and punctuation symbols include:
Cursor-control keys: These four arrow keys move the text cursor in the direction of their
arrows. There are more six-pack cursor-control keys such as Insert, Delete, Home, End, Page Up
and Page Down.

Numeric keypad: The numeric keypad contains calculator-like keys which are popular with
accountants, bank tellers and airline ticket agents.
Fig. 5.4: Typical Windows QWERTY keyboard

Types of Computer Keyboard
There are two major keyboard layouts being used worldwide:
(i) Standard keyboard (qwerty): It is named after the first six leftmost letters on the top
alphabetical line of the keyboard. Also called a QWERTY keyboard because of the layout
on its typing area. It has about 103 keys and about 257 characters.
(ii) Multimedia keyboard: It is designed for the user to access often-used programs such as
Internet, music and email. It contains buttons that control various computer processes,
such as turning on the computer's power, putting the CPU to sleep and waking it up again.
It comes in various connection formats, including PS/2, USB and wireless.
Types of Keys on a Computer Keyboard
(i) Alphanumeric keys: All of the letters and numbers on the keyboard A-Z and 0-9. This
arrangement is called the QWERTY because the first SIX keys on top of the row of letters

are Q, W, E, R, T, Y. The numeric keypad looks like a calculator’s keypad, with its 10 digits
and mathematical operators (+, - , *, /) . ? Numeric keys also features NUM LOCK key.
(ii) Punctuation keys: All of the keys associated with punctuation such as the comma, period,
semicolon, brackets, parenthesis and so on. Also, all of the mathematical operators such as
the plus sign, minus sign, and equal sign.
(iii) Special keys: He standard keyboard contains special key such as:
• Alt key – Short for Alternate, this key is like a second control key.
• Arrow Keys – Most keyboards have four arrow keys that enable to move the cursor up,
down, right or left.
• Backspace key – Deletes the character just to the left of the cursor and moves the cursor
to that position.
• Caps Lock Key – A toggle key that, when activated, causes all alphabetic characters to be
uppercase.
• Ctrl key – Short for Control, this key is used in conjunction with other keys to produce
control characters. The meaning of each control character depends on which program is
running.
• Delete Key – Sometimes labeled Del, deletes the character at the current cursor position
or the selected object but does not move the cursor. For graphics-based applications, the
Delete key deleted the character to the right of the insertion point.
• Enter Key – Used to enter commands or to move the cursor to the beginning of the next
line. Sometimes labeled Return instead of Enter.
• Esc Key – Short for Escape, this key is used to send special codes to devices and to exit
(or escape) from programs and tasks.
• Function Keys – Special keys labeled F1 to F12. These keys have different meaning depending
on which program is running.

Mouse
Mouse is a device that controls the movement of the cursor or pointer on a display screen. A
mouse is a small object, it can roll along a hard, flat surface. Its name is derived from its shape,
which looks a bit like a mouse, its connecting wire that one can imagine to be the mouse’s tail, and
the fact that one must make it scurry along a surface. As user move the mouse, the pointer on the
display screen moves in the same direction.
The computer mouse is considered an input device. With a click of a button, the mouse sends
information to the computer. The computer mouse is an interesting device that offers an alternative
way to interact with the computer beside a keyboard. A typical mouse has two buttons. At the top of
the device you will find a left and right button which allows for “clicks”. There is a scrolling wheel
between the two buttons.
Fig. 5.5: Mouse

Types of Mouse
Based on their ports, there are three common types namely:
(i) PS/2 mouse
(ii) USB mouse
(iii) Serial mouse
Based on their designs, there are three common types namely:
(i) Mechanical mouse: It is a device integrated with an internal metal or rubber ball, which
can spin in all directions (left, right, up and down). Thus, the display cursor moves as the
mouse detects the direction. The ball in the mechanical mouse spins when it comes in

contact with surface on which it is placed. A mouse pad should be used under the mouse to
run on.
(ii) Optomechanical mouse: This type of computer mouse is the same as the mechanical
mouse except that it uses optical sensors to the motion of the ball. A mouse pad should be
used under the mouse to run on.
(iii) Optical mouse: This type of mouse uses a LED sensor for detecting the mouse's movement.
This mouse doesn’t have mouse ball and electromechanical transducer. Movement is detected
by sensing changes in reflected light, instead of interpreting the motion of a rolling sphere.
This type mouse responds more quickly and precisely than the mechanical and
optomechanical mouse. An optical mouse does not have moving parts. That is why there is
no need of cleaning. Even user don't need a mouse pad.
(iv) Wireless mouse: The Mouse without wire or cord is called wireless mouse or cordless
mouse. Most wireless mice use radio frequency (RF) technology to communicate information
to computer.
Digital Camera
Images can be input into a computer using a digital camera. The digital camera takes a still
photograph, stores it, and then sends it as digital input into the computer.
Fig. 5.6: Digital Camera

The images are then stored as digital files. These images can then be manipulated in many
ways using the various imaging tools available.

Scanner
Scanner is an input device that can read text or illustrations printed on paper and translate the
information into a form that the computer can use. A scanner works by digitizing an image; dividing
it into a grid of boxes and representing each box with either a zero or a one, depending on whether
the box is filled in (For color and gray scaling, the same principle applies but each box is represented
by up to 24 bits).
Fig. 5.7: Scanner

The resulting matrix of bits, called a bit map, then can be stored in a file, displayed on a screen
and manipulated by programs. Optical scanners do not distinguish text from illustrations; they represent
all images as bit maps. Therefore, you cannot directly edit text that has been scanned. To edit text
read by an optical scanner, you need an optical character recognition (OCR) system to translate the
image into ASCII characters. Most optical scanners sold today come with OCR packages.
Punched Card
Punched Cards are still in use as medium for recording data and instructions in the form of
punched holes to denote and then they are sequentially read by the card reader. The card reader
sends the data and instructions to the CPU to process them.
Fig. 5.8: Punched Card

The punched cards used for data processing are made generally of 80 columns and 12 rows.
Today 96 columns cards are available. In these cards a hole is punched to represent the binary 1.
The absence of a hole represent binary 0. If a card is punched wrongly, it cannot be corrected. The
cards are read by a unit called a card reader. On receiving the command from the control unit the
device moves the cards one by one over two sub-devices. One of which, senses the punched holes
(0’s and 1’s) and transcribes the pulses to the CPU. Then the output is given as per user specification.
Trackball
Trackball is another pointing device. Essentially, a it is a mouse lying on its back. To move the
pointer, you rotate the ball with your thumb, your fingers, or the palm of your hand. There are usually
one to three buttons near to the ball, which you use just like mouse buttons. The advantage of
trackballs over mouse is that the trackball is stationary so it does not require much space to use it. In
addition, you can place a trackball on any type of surface, including your lap. For both these reasons,
trackballs are popular pointing devices for portable computers.
Fig. 5.9: Trackball

Joystick
A lever that moves in all directions and controls the movement of a pointer of some other
display symbols. A joystick is similar to a mouse, except that with a mouse the cursor stops moving
as soon as you stop moving the mouse.
Fig. 5.10: Joystick

With a joystick, the pointer continues moving in the direction the joystick is pointing. To stop the
pointer, you must return the joystick to its upright position. Most joysticks include two buttons called
triggers. Joysticks are used mostly for computer games, but they are also used occasionally for
CAD/CAM systems and other applications.
Light Pen
Light pen is an input device that utilizes a light-sensitive detector to select objects on a display
screen. It is similar to a mouse, except that with a light pen you can move the pointer and select
objects on the display screen by directly pointing at the objects with the pen.
Fig. 5.11: Light Pen

Digitizing Tablet
This is an input device that enables you to enter drawings and sketches into a computer. A
digitizing tablet consists of an electronic tablet and a cursor or pen. A cursor (also called puck) is
similar to a mouse, except that, it has a windows with cross hairs for pinpoint placement and have as
many as 16 buttons.
Fig. 5.12: Digitizing Tablet

A pen (also called a stylus), which looks like a simple ballpoint pen but uses an electronic head
instead of ink. The tablet contains electronics that enables it to detect movement of the cursor or
pen and translate the movements into digital signals that it sends to the computer.

For digitizing tablets, each point on the tablet represents a point on the display screen in a fixed
manner. This differs from a mouse, in which all movement is relative to the current cursor position.
The static nature of digitizing tablets makes them particularly effective for tracing which the pen or
cursor acts like a mouse. Digitizing tablets are also called digitizers, graphics tablets, touch tales or
simply tablets.
Touchpad
A small, touch-sensitive pad is used as a pointing device on some portable computers. It is

consisting of specialized surface that can translate the motion and position of a user’s fingers to
relative position on screen. It is also called trackpad.
Fig. 5.13: Touchpad
Optical Mark Reader (OMR)
Optical marks are commonly used for scoring in tests. It is marked by the person taking the
test, and can be read by the optical mark reader. The optical mark reader when online to the
computer systems, can read upto 2,000 documents per hour. Seemingly this rate is slow but the fact
that transcription has been eliminated, the overall time is less than those of conventional file media.
Fig. 5.14: Optical Mark Reader (OMR)

OMR can also be used for such applications as order writing, payroll, inventory control, insurance,
questionnaires etc. However, it is to be noted that designing the documents for OMR is rather a
tough task. They should be simple to understand otherwise errors may result, more perhaps, than
would occur in using traditional source documents and keypunching from them.
Handwriting Recognition Device: OCR
Often abbreviated OCR, optical character recognition refers to the branch of computer science
that involves reading text from paper and translating the images into a form that the computer can
manipulate (for example, into ASCII codes). As OCR system enables you to take a book or a
magazine article and feed it directly into an electronic computer file.
All OCR systems include an optical scanner for reading text, and sophisticated software for
analyzing images. Most OCR systems use a combination of hardware (specialized circuit boards)
and software to recognize characters, although some inexpensive systems do it entirely through
software. Advanced OCR systems can read text in a large variety of fonts, but they still have
difficulty with hand written text. The potential of OCR systems is enormous because they enable
users to harness the power of computers to access printed documents. It is already being used
widely in the legal profession, where searches required hours or days, now can be accomplished in
a few seconds.
Fig. 5.15: Handwriting Recognition Device: OCR

Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR)
An MICR can identify and decode characters printed with a special ink that contains particles
of magnetic material. The reading process is called Magnetic Ink Character Recognition. The major
advantage of these characters is that they are machine readable, the process is faster and less
error-prone. Since MICR systems can recognize only certain character styles, the characters have
to be accurately formed.
Fig. 5.16: Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR)

MICR employs a system of printed characters which are easily decipherable by human beings
as well as a machine reader. They use special printing font to represent characters. In this font,
each character is basically composed of vertical bars.
This method is primarily used in banking industry and most cheques are now processed under
the MICR approach. The data printed across the bottom of a blank cheque are recorded in MICR
form: the characters represent the bank on which the cheque is drawn, the customer’s account
number and the amount on cheque. The cheques themselves are prepared off-line. When they are
originally printed by a printing press, the bank identification number, as well as the data about the
customer’s account number are printed simultaneously. The cheques have been cashed or deposited
in bank, an operator uses an off-line enclosing machine to encode, in magnetic ink the amount on the
cheque’s bottom-right side.

Bar Code Reader
You are probably familiar with the bar code readers in supermarkets, bookshops, etc. Bar-code
readers are photo electric scanners that read the bar codes, or vertical zebra striped marks, printed
on product containers. Supermarkets use a bar code system called the Universal Product Code
(UPC).
Fig. 5.17: Bar Code Reader

The bar code identifies the product to the supermarket’s computer, which has a description and
the latest price of the product. The computer automatically tells the PoS (Point of Sales) terminal
what the price is.
Speech Recognition Device: Microphones
A speech recognition program can process the input and convert it into machine-recognized
commands. It is also known as Speech Input Device.
Fig. 5.18: Speech Recognition Device: Microphones

Sometimes abbreviated as mic, a microphone is a hardware peripheral originally invented by

Emile Berliner in 1877 that allows computer users to input audio into their computers.
Webcam
A web camera (or webcam) is a real-time camera whose images can be accessed using the
World Wide Web, instant messaging or a PC video calling application. Web-accessible cameras
typically involve a digital camera which uploads images to a web server, either continuously or at
regular intervals. This may be achieved by a camera attached to a PC or by dedicated hardware.
Videoconferencing cameras typically take the form of a small camera connected directly to a PC.
Fig. 5.19: Webcam

As webcam capabilities have been added to instant messaging text chat services such as
Yahoo Messenger, AOL Instant Messenger (AIM), Windows Live Messenger and Skype, one-to-
one live video communication over the internet has now reached millions of mainstream PC users
worldwide.
Webcams are being used for security purposes. Businesses are using webcams to monitor and
record activity in offices, hallways and warehouses. A webcam alone cannot record video activity.
Webcam monitoring software is needed in combination with a webcam to make a complete video
security tool.
5.6 Basic Output System

Output is anything that comes out of a computer. Output can be meaningful information or
gibberish, and it can appear in a variety of forms – as binary numbers, as characters, as pictures,
and as printed pages. An output device is any machine capable of representing information from a
computer. Output devices include display screens, loudspeakers, printers, plotters, etc.

Monitor
A computer monitor, technically termed as visual display unit is an output device that presents
the information from the CPU on the screen working as an interface between CPU and the user. A
cable connects the monitor to a video adaptor or video card which is set up on the motherboard of
the computer. The CPU (Central Processing Unit) sends instruction to the video adaptor telling
what needs to be displayed on the screen. The video adaptor converts the instructions into a set of
corresponding signals and sends to the monitor. Monitor contains a circuitry that generates the
picture on the screen from the set of signals.
Fig. 5.20: Monitor

The major parameters that measure the performance of a monitor are luminance, contrast
ratio, resolution, dot pitch, response time, refresh rate and power consumption. The common problem
that arises in monitors is dead pixels, blurred screen, phosphor-burn, etc.
Attributes of Monitor
(i) Size: The most important aspect of a monitor is its screen size. A typical size for small
VGA monitor is 14 inches..

(ii) Resolution: The quality of a display monitor depends on its resolution. In general, higher
resolution will leads to clear picture.
Fig. 5.21: CRT Monitor Fig. 5.22: LCD Monitor Fig. 5.23: LED Monitor
(iii) Convergence: Each pixel is composed of three colours namely red, blue and green. If the
dots are not converged properly, the pixel will appear blue.
Types of Computer Monitor
Most people use computer monitors daily at work and at home. And while these come in a
variety of shapes, designs and colors, they can also be broadly categorized into three types.
1. CRT Monitor: CRT stands for Cathode Ray Tube. These monitors employ CRT technology,
which was used most commonly in the manufacturing of television screens. CRT stands
for Cathode Ray Tube. A cathode ray tube is basically a vacuum tube containing an electron
gun at one end and a fluorescent screen at another end. These guns generate red, green
and blue (RGB) colors which are generated other color with a combination of these three
colors. Nowadays, most of the CRT monitors are replaced by LCD and LED Monitors.
The main disadvantages are heavy weight, occupy more place, high power consumption,
high radiation and supports low resolution.
2. Flat-panel Monitor: Flat-panel monitor is a thin screen display found on all portable
computers and is the new standard for desktop computers. Flat panel displays use liquid-
crystal display (LCD) or light-emitting diode (LED) technology to make them much lighter
and thinner compared to a traditional monitor. Actually there are no differences between
LCD and LED monitors but better picture quality in LED monitors.

Printers
Printer is a device that prints text or illustrations on paper and in many cases on transparencies
and other media. There are many different types of printers. In terms of the technology utilized,
printers fall into the following categories. Printers are output devices that print documents and
reports. Printers are of two major categories:
(a) IMPACT (b) NON-IMPACT
Fig. 5.24: Printers

(a) Impact Printers
Impact printers are two types. They are:
(i) Character Printers
Character Printers print character by character. Two commonly used character printers are
Dot Matrix and Daisy Wheel Printers. Dot Matrix are so called because the characters printed are
made up of dots. They typically have a speed of around 200 cps (Character per second) Daisy
Wheel Printers are so called because the printing mechanism is a wheel with radial spokes. At the
end of each spoke is a block with a character embossed on it. In a daisy wheel printer, characters
are fully formed unlike those in dot-matrix printers. Hence they produce a higher quality print than a
dot matrix printer. They typically have a speed of about 35 CPS. They print by spraying patterns of
ink on to paper from a nozzle on jet and have a speed of about 90 CPS. Ink-Jet produce a high
quality of print and hence are popular in offices.

Fig. 5.25: Character Printers

Ink-Jet Printer
Ink-jet printers work by spraying ionized ink at a sheet of paper. Magnetized plates in the ink’s
path direct the ink onto the paper in the desired shapes. Ink-jet printers are capable of producing
high quality print approaching that produced by laser printers. A typical ink-jet printer provides a
resolution of 300 dots per inch, although some newer models offer higher resolutions.
Fig. 5.26: Ink-jet Printer

In general, the price of ink-jet printers is lower than that of laser printers. However, they are
also considerably slower. The drawback of ink-jet printers is that they required a special type of ink
that is apt to smudge on inexpensive copier paper. Because ink-jet printers require smaller mechanical
parts than laser printers, they are especially popular as portable printers.
Daisy Wheel Printer
‘Daisy Wheel’ printers work in a similar manner to an electronic typewriter. The major difference
is that they use a new type of printing element called a ‘daisy wheel’. This is a moulded metal or
plastic disk shaped printing element which looks very much like a daisy, hence the name.

Fig. 5.27: Daisy Wheel Printer

The main element in the Daisy wheel printer consists of a circular fan of metal or plastic petals
radiating from a central hub. A single character is embossed on each petal. An electromechanical
hammer slams the proper daisy wheel into contact with the ribbon, which transfers its inked impression
on to the surface of the paper.
Dot-matrix Printer
Dot-matrix printers create characters by striking pins against an ink ribbon. Each pin makes a
dot, and combinations of dots form characters and illustrations.
Fig. 5.28: Dot-matrix Printer

Dot-matrix printers are inexpensive and relatively fast, but they do not produce high quality
output, compared to laser and ink-jet printers, dot-matrix printers are notorious for making a racket.
Although the prices of laser and ink-jet printers are dropping rapidly, dot-matrix printers are still
cheaper to operate. In addition, since they are impact printers, the dot matrix printers can print to
multi-page forms (that is, carbon copies), something laser and ink-jet printers cannot do.

Fig. 5.29: Dot-matrix Printer Mechanism

Drum Printer
The Drum Printer consists of a metal drum that rotates at a constant rate. All the characters to
be printed are embossed on the rotating metal drum in horizontal rows, a row of As, a row of Bs, a
row of Cs and so on. When a particular letter passes the proper part on the paper, a small
electromechanical hammer slams the paper into contact with its inked metal impression. Usually
about 120 hammers are arranged side by side. Each one serves particular part along the line.
Fig. 5.30: Drum Printer

On each line all the As are printed first, then all the Bs, then all the Cs and so on until the entire
line is completed. The paper then advances upward one-line and the procedure is repeated.
Chain Printer
The chain printer also prints a line at a time. It resembles a bicycle chain that rotates at a
constant speed. Each link of the chain is embossed with a single letter, number or special character.
Depending on the number of different characters to be printed, the alphabet may be rimmed around
the periphery of the chain.

Thus, in a single revolution of the chain, as many as five lines can be printed. Two rows of holes
along the outer edges allows the device to advance the paper immediately after each line has been
printed.
Fig. 5.31: Chain Printer

(ii) Line Printers
These are more expensive than character printers. However, they are much faster. Typically,
line printers come in speeds of 300, 600, 900, 1200, 1500 lines per minute (LPM). They are used for
voluminous routine jobs like preparing electricity, water, telephone bill, shares printing, etc.
Fig. 5.32: Line Printers

(b) Non-impact Printers
These include Thermal and Laser printers. The technique used is to send light beams to electrically
charge a drum surface which attracts lower ink particles and these are then deposited on paper to
form an image. Laser printers are the most expensive of the above stated printers. These are Page
Printers which print at the speed of Pages Per Minute (PPM). Laser printers are silent, give a very

high quality permit and have capacity of handling voluminous printing jobs very rapidly. Speeds
exceeding 20,000 LPM (lines/minute) are fairly common for Laser Printers. Also, they are popular
in Printing Industries for Desk Top Publishing (DTP).
Thermal Printer
Thermal printers are printers that produce images by pushing electrically heated pins against
special heat-sensitive paper. These printers are inexpensive and are used in most calculators and
many fax machines. They produce low-quality print, and the paper tends to curl and fade after a few
weeks or months.
Fig. 5.33: Thermal Printer

• Quality of Type: The output produced by printers is said to be either letter quality (as good
as a typewriter), near letter quality, or draft quality. Only daisy-wheel, ink-jet and laser
printers produce letter-quality type.
• Speed: Measured in characters per second (cps) or page per minute (ppm), the speed of
printers varies widely.
• Impact or Non-impact: Impact printer includes all printers that work by striking an ink
ribbon.
• Graphics: Some printers (daisy-wheel and line printers) can print only text. Other printers
can print both text and graphics.
• Fonts: Some printers, notably dot-matrix printers, are limited to one or a few fonts. In
contrast, laser and ink-jet printers are capable of printing an almost unlimited variety of
fonts. Daisy-wheel printers can also print different fonts, but you need to change the daisy
wheel, making it difficult to mix fonts in the same document.

Laser Printer
Laser printer utilizes a laser beam to produce an image on a drum. The light of the laser alters
the electrical charge on the drum wherever it hits. The drum is then rolled through a reservoir of
toner, which is picked up by the charged portions of the drum. Finally, the toner is transferred to the
paper through a combination of heat and processor. This is also the way copy machines work.
Fig. 5.34: Laser Printer

Because an entire page is transmitted to a drum before the toner is applied, laser printers are
sometimes called page printers. There are two other types of page printers that fall under the
category of laser printers even though they do not use laser at all. One uses an array of LEDs to
expose the drum and the other uses LCDs. The drum is changed once. However, they both operate
like a real laser printer.
Plotter
Plotter is a device that draws pictures on paper based on commands from a computer. Plotters
differ from printers in that they draw lines using a pen. As a result, they can produce continuous
lines, whereas printers can only simulate lines by printing a closely spaced series of dots. Multicolour
plotters use different-colored pens to draw different colours.
Fig. 5.35: Plotter

In general, plotters are considerably more expensive than printers. They are used in engineering
applications where precision is mandatory.
Projector
A projector is a specialized computer display that projects an enlarged image on a movie

screen. Such devices are commonly used in presentations. Projectors are widely used for conference
room presentations, classroom training, home theatre and live events applications.
Fig. 5.36: Projector

A Digital projector, also known as a Video Projector, is using for displaying video, images or
computer data on a screen or other flat surface. It is now popular for “home theater” applications.
The cost of a device is not only determined by its resolution, but also by its light output, acoustic
noise output, contrast, and other characteristics.
Headphone
Headphones give sound output from the computer. Headphone is a mini speaker that is usually
used to listen to music and/or movie or video. This product is usually attached to the ears and
connected to digital devices, like MP3 Player, computer, radio, and iPod. These are also known as
earspeakers, earphones or colloquially.
Fig. 5.37: Headphone

Speaker
Speakers in or on a computer are used to output sounds from the system unit. There are both
internal and external speakers that can be used on a computer. Speakers are connected to a
computer's sound card. They receive audio input from the computer's sound card and produce audio
output in the form of sound waves. Most computer speakers are active speakers, meaning they
have an internal amplifier which allows you to increase the volume, or amplitude, of the sound.
Speakers typically come in pairs, which allows them to produce stereo sound. This means the left
and right speakers transmit audio on two completely separate channels.
Signal
indicator
LED
Power
Volume
s wic h
balance
control
Fig. 5.38: Speaker
Computer Output Microfilm
Computer Output Microfilm is a system that converts stored data directly to microfilm or
microfiche. Information is recorded on a roll of film. COM technology, with a history that dates back
to the first patent for microphotography in 1839, has been used for document and newspaper archival
since the 1920s. COM systems are still used today, mostly by organizations which need to store
payroll, accounting, insurance, inventory or employee data.

Fig. 5.39: Computer Output Microfilm

Both Input and Output Devices
The devices that can be used to perform both functions input and output are called Dual
Devices. These devices are also called Dual Purpose Devices or Both Input/Output Devices. With
the help of a dual purpose device, we can enter data into computer as well as we can output data
from the computer to outside world. For example, Dual devices include: Touch Screen Monitor,
Network Interface Card, Sound card handset etc.
Touch Screen Monitor
Touch Screen Monitor is an input/output device. It uses a special touch sensitive screen. The
User can enter data by touching icons or menus on the screen. As soon as the user selects a
command from menu, output is displayed on screen. Commonly touch screen monitors use sensors
to detect touch of finger.
Fig. 5.40: Touch Screen Monitor

Network Card
Network cards allow computers to connect together to communicate with each other. Network
cards have connections for cable, thin wire or wireless networks Cables connect internal components
to the Motherboard, which is a board with series of electronic pathways and connections allowing
the CPU to communicate with the other components of the computer.
Fig. 5.41: Network Card

Headsets
A head-worn unit containing a microphone and one or two speakers. Employed in call centers
and phone-intensive jobs, headsets allow people to easily have a phone conversation while using the
computer. Wired headsets plug into the computer. Headset consists of speakers and microphone
while speaker act output device and microphone act as input device.

Fig. 5.42: Headsets

Sound Card
A Sound Card is a card that translates signals into sounds that can be played back through
speakers. The purpose of a sound card is to allow sound to be heard through the computer. It is not
enough to let the computer transmit sound by itself, it either needs speakers or a microphone jack.
The output signal is connected to an amplifier, headphones or external device that allows sound to be
heard. The motherboard on most computer systems has an integrated sound card, which is often
sufficient for many users. However, to get higher quality sound it can be upgraded to a separate
sound card, which uses better and more expensive components. Alternatively, it is referred to as an
audio output device, sound board or audio card.

Line in
M icrophone
PCI Connectors
Line Out (speaker)
Gaming Controller Port
Fig. 5.43: Sound Card

Other Components of Computer
While many important components have already been discussed, there are a great many important
parts of the PC which do not fall under the previous headings. As brief summaries of those parts
are as follows:
Computer Cards
A computer card is an expansion device that provides an existing computer with certain added
capabilities. It is a printed circuit board that can be inserted into an expansion slot of a computer
motherboard to add functionality to a computer system. Widely varying both in size, price, and
purpose, these cards have the ability to make your computer perform functions or connect with
external devices that it couldn't have previously. There are different types of card – Graphics cards,
Sound cards, Network cards, TV tuner cards, Video processing expansion cards, serial port cards,
multi-I/O cards, USB port cards and proprietary interface cards, memory expansion cards, etc.
Some of them are given details in following:

Fig. 5.44: Computer Cards

Graphics Card
This circuit board is responsible from the visual outputs that will be displayed on the monitor.
Nowadays, graphics cards have their own memory modules and processor chips, by which they
lessen the load of CPU and RAM, hence enabling to see very detailed graphics and high quality
animations and video.
PCs are general-purpose devices that can be used in many areas of interest and of course
there exists many other hardware components that can be added to them to increase their
functionalities. These include CD-ROM drives, sound cards, radio cards, TV cards, modem cards,
etc.
Fig. 5.45: Graphics Card

Video Cards
Video cards allow computers to display video and animation. Some video cards allow computers
to display television as well as capture frames from video. A video card with a digital video camera
allows computer users to produce live video. A high speed connection is required for effective video
transmission.
Fig. 5.46: Video Cards

Color Cards
Color cards allow computers to produce color (with a color monitor of course). The first color
cards were 2 bit which produced 4 colors [CGA]. It was amazing what could be done with those 4
colors. Next came 4 bit allowing for 16 [EGA and VGA] colors. Then came 16 bit allowing for 1064
colors and then 24 bit which allows for almost 17 million colors and now 32 bit and higher allow
monitors to display almost a billion separate colors.
Fig. 5.47: Color Cards

Universal Serial Bus (USB)
USB is pronounced as ‘yoo-es-bee’. This technology is now very widely used as the most
popular connectivity interface standard, due to both its flexibility and simplicity for the end user. A
Universal Serial Bus (USB) is a common interface that enables communication between devices
and a host controller such as a personal computer (PC). It connects peripheral devices such as
digital cameras, mice, keyboards, printers, scanners, media devices, external hard drives and flash
drives.
Fig. 5.48: Universal Serial Bus (USB)

Computer Case
A computer case (also known as a computer chassis, cabinet, box, tower, enclosure,
housing or simply case) is the enclosure that contains the main components of a computer.
A computer case is sometimes referred to metonymously as a CPU, referring to the primary

component housed within the case; this was a more common term in the earlier days of home
computers, when peripherals other than the motherboard were usually housed in their own separate
cases. Cases are usually constructed from steel, aluminum or plastic.

Fig. 5.49: Computer Case

Fan
Many of the components that make up the modern personal computer are heat-critical, and
malfunction if allowed to become too hot. With the amount of heat that is generated in certain areas,
particularly by the CPU, it is therefore necessary to ensure that the inside of the unit has adequate
ventilation. This is achieved mainly by the use of fans to draw cold air over the components in
question. Heat sinks are also used to dissipate the heat over a larger area.
Fig. 5.50: Fan

Modem
The word “modem” is a contraction of the words modulator-demodulator. A modem is used to

translate information transferred through telephone lines, cable or line-of-site wireless. Modems
came into existence in the 1960s as a way to allow terminals to connect computers over the phone
lines.
Fig. 5.51: Modem

The modem is a device that comprises both a modulator that changes a signal in some way in
the forward direction and a demodulator that changes the signal back to its original form in the
backward direction, essentially reversing the modulation process. Modems operate in balanced and
symmetrical pairs, with one at each end of the communications circuit and with both having the
same capabilities, at least at a minimum level.
The amount of information that can travel through a line is limited. This limit is called bandwidth.
Modems also use Error Correction which corrects transmission errors by constantly checking.
Information is transferred in packets. Each packet is checked for errors and is resent if there is an
error.
Fig. 5.52: Broadband Modem

Modems are measured by the speed that the information is transferred. The measuring tool is
called the baud rate. Originally modems worked at speeds below 2400 baud but today analog
speeds of 56,000 are standard. Cable, wireless or digital subscriber lines can transfer information
more fast with rates of 300,000 baud and up.
Types of Modem
(a) Internal Modem: Internal modems are more directly integrated into the computer system
and, therefore, do not need any special attention. They are less costlier than other types of
modem.
(b) External Modem: They reside outside the computer and have their own power supply
and connect with a cable to a computer’s serial port or USB port. The telephone line plugs
into a socket on the rear panel of the modem. The advantage of this modem is its mobility,
i.e., modem can be moved from one place (computer to another.
(c) PC Card Modem: These modems, designed for portable computers, are the size of a
credit card and fit into the PC Card slot on notebook and hand-held computers. These
modems are removed when the modem is not needed. Except for their size, PC Card
modems are like a combination of external and internal modems. These devices are plugged
directly into a external slot in the portable computer, so no cable is required other than the
telephone line connection. PC card modem also comes in wireless mode for wireless network.
CCTV
Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) is a system in which the circuit is closed and all the elements
are directly connected. This is unlike broadcast television where any receiver that is correctly tuned
can pick up the signal from the airwaves. Directly connected in this context includes systems linked
by microwave, infrared beams, etc.
The most common use of CCTV is in security camera systems. They’ve been found for years
in areas like large retail shops, banks, and government institutions. To reduced costs in the manufacture
of cameras and video recording equipment, camera systems are becoming more and more
commonplace in smaller businesses and even private homes.

Fig. 5.53: CCTV

Applications for CCTV
CCTV is in security systems and such applications as retail shops, banks, government
establishments, etc. The true scope for applications is almost unlimited. Few examples are listed
below:
1. Monitoring traffic on a bridge.
2. Recording the inside of a baking oven to find the cause of problems.
3. Used by the stage manager of a show to see obscured parts of a set.
4. The well-publicised use at football stadiums.
5. Hidden in buses to control vandalism.
6. Recording the birth of a gorilla at a zoo.
7. Making a wildlife program using a large model helicopter.
8. Aerial photography from a hot air balloon.
9. Production control in a factory.
5.7 Software Requirements

Software is a language of computer. Like a human language, there are many different languages.
Computer software can be divided into three groups based on their use and application. These
are – system software, application software and programming languages.

Generally, there are two types of Software –
Application Software
Software
System Software
1. Operating Systems
2. Programming Languages
3. Language Translators
4. Utility Softwares
Fig. 5.54: Types of Software

The NAPCS, North American Product Classification System – Provisional Product List is
classified software based on products and does not include services. The classification the software
is divided to System Software and Application Software, with each having several sub levels:
Software Publishing
System Software Application Software
General Business Productivity

Operating System Software
Home Use Applications
Network Software
Cross Industry Application Software
Database Mgt. Software Vertical Market Application Software
Development Tools and Utilities Software
Programming Language Other Application Software
Other System Software
Fig. 5.55: Software Publishing

(a) Application Software
Application software, also known simply as application or application program is a tool that
utilizes the capacities of a computer to support and improve the software user’s work. In other

word, it is a program or self-contained software that allows users to perform a specific task. A
software development company employs various technologies like .net to provide .net application
development services to its clients.
(ib) System Software
System software is the low-level software required to manage computer resources and support
the production or execution of application programs. It helps run the computer hardware and
system. Systems software includes the following:
(i) Operating Systems
(ii) Programming Languages
(iii) Language Translators
(iv) Utility/Service Softwares
System software is a set of programs that control the operations of a computer and devices
attached with the computer. It creates links between user and computer as well as controls the
execution of application programs. System software are essential for a computer to do work, Without
this software no link can be created between user and computer.
(i) Operating Systems
The operating system is a software program that acts as an interface between the users and
the computer. This system is used as a base for creating and processing application software and to
control and manage the hardware components such as keyboard, monitor, printer, scanner etc.
Thus, it is a system which is used to control all activities of the computer. When user is working in
a application software program, such as Microsoft Word the commands that user on give are willing
the application are Sent through the operating system to the CPU. Windows 2000, Windows 95/
98, Windows XP, Mac OS, UNIX and DOS are all examples of operating systems.
(ii) Programming Languages
The computer being an electronic machine, understands only the machine language which is
nothing but a group of binary digits. It does not understand any of the languages that are used in our
daily life. Thus, certain programming languages are developed to write instructions for the computer.

The operations of a computer are controlled by instructions. A user can select a sequence of computer
operation and processes by entering instructions through the input device. Programming languages
are flexible and free style but they follow very limited vocabularies and rigid rules of syntax and
construction. The user has to learn computer programming languages to communicate with the
computer.
(iii) Language Translators
Computers can understand the instructions only when they are written in their own language
called the machine language. Therefore, a program written in any other language should be translated
into machine language. Translator is a special program which accepts the user programs and check
each statement and if it is grammatically correct, it produces a corresponding set of machine code
instructions. There are three forms of translators:
• Compilers
• Interpreters
• Assemblers
(iv) Utility Programs
Utility programs help to manage, maintain and control the computer resources. These programs
help the computer run better and performs housekeeping tasks. These programs are available to
help user with the day-to-day chore associated with personal computing and to keep you system
running at peak performance. Utility programs include file management (creating, moving and renaming
folders, copying and deleting files), file search, comparing file contents as well as performing diagnostic
routines to check performance and current health of the hardware. Examples of utility programs
include diagnostic programs, trace programs, input routines, and programs used to perform routine
tasks, i.e., everyday tasks, such as copying data from one storage location to another. There are
many different types of utility software and this list is hardly complete, but here are some of the
main categories:

1. File Viewer
2. File Compression
3. Diagnostic Utility Programs
4. Un-Installer
5. Disk Scanner
6. Disk Defragmenter
7. Backup Utility
8. Virus Detection and Protection Programs
9. Peripheral Utilities and Drivers
10. Networking Utilities
5.8 Summary
The hardware consists of the physical equipments which makes up the computer system like
monitor, keyboard, CPU, hard disk, floppy drive, printer etc. normally all the items which can seen
and touched are hardware items.
Software is the computerized instructions that operate the computer, execute particular functions
or tasks, and manipulate the data.
Software is a language of computer. Like a human language, there are many different languages.
Computer software can be divided into three groups based on their use and application.
The computer being an electronic machine, understands only the machine language which is
nothing but a group of binary digits. It does not understand any of the languages that are used in our
daily life. Thus, certain programming languages are developed to write instructions for the computer.

Utility programs include file management (creating, moving and renaming folders, copying and
deleting files), file search, comparing file contents as well as performing diagnostic routines to check
performance and current health of the hardware.
Mouse is a device that controls the movement of the cursor or pointer on a display screen. A
mouse is a small object, it can roll along a hard, flat surface.
Keyboard was the first input device to be used with computers and it is still the major and most
widely used among all the input devices. It is the primary input device for entering text and numbers.
It is an arrangement of keys on a board in an organized way - this is why it is called keyboard.
A small, touch-sensitive pad is used as a pointing device on some portable computers. It is

consisting of specialized surface that can translate the motion and position of a user’s fingers to
relative position on screen.
Output is anything that comes out of a computer. Output can be meaningful information or
gibberish, and it can appear in a variety of forms – as binary numbers, as characters, as pictures,
and as printed pages.
 Software: Computer software, consisting of programs, codes or instructions.
 Keyboard: A computer keyboard is a typewriter-style device.
 Monitor: Monitor is a display screen used to provide visual output from a computer.
 Hard Disk Drive (HDD): A hard disk drive (HDD), hard disk, hard drive or fixed disk is
a data storage device that is used to store files
 Floppy Disk Drive: A floppy disk drive (FDD), or floppy drive, is a hardware device that
reads data storage information

1. Discuss briefly about classification and the elements of the computer.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
2. Explain various system software and application software.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
1. Explain the relationship between Hardware and Software.
2. What is Application Software?
3. Explain Operating System.
4. What is Language Translators?
1. __________ runs on computer hardware and serves as platform for other software to run
on.
(a) Operating system (b) Application software
(c) System software (d) All the above
2. Multiprogramming system __________.
(a) Are easier to develop than single programming system
(b) Execute each job faster

(c) Execute more jobs in the same time period
(d) Are used only one large mainframe computers
3. __________ is the first program run on a computer when the computer boots up.
(a) System software (b) Operating system
(c) System operations (d) None of these
4. __________ shares characteristics with both hardware and software.
(a) Operating system (b) Software
(c) Data (d) None of these
5. Multiprogramming systems __________.
(a) Are easier to develop than single programming systems
(b) Execute each job faster
(c) Execute more jobs in the same time period
(d) Are used only one large mainframe computers
6. Which is the first program run on a computer when the computer boots up?
(a) System software (b) Operating system
(c) System operations (d) None of these
7. Which is built directly on the hardware?
(a) Computer Environment (b) Application Software
(c) Operating System (d) Database System
Answers
1. (a), 2. (c), 3. (b), 4. (a), 5. (c), 6. (b), 7. (c)
5.12 References

Bringing Computer to Life 133
UNIT 6 BRINGING COMPUTER TO LIFE
Structure:
6.2 Video Display
6.3 Storage Devices
6.4 Power Supplies
6.5 Summary
6.9 References

 Understand the concept of Video Display
 Discuss the Storage Devices of Computer
 Understand the concept of Power Supplies

6.1 Introduction
A device that accepts video signals from a computer and provides information in a visual form.
The display devices are known as output devices. The most commonly used output device in a
graphics video monitor. The operations of most video monitors are based on the standard cathode-
ray-tube design.
A storage device is any computing hardware that is used for storing, porting and extracting
data files and objects. It can hold and store information both temporarily and permanently, and can
be internal or external to a computer, server or any similar computing device.
A power supply is a component that supplies power to at least one electric load. Typically, it
converts one type of electrical power to another, but it may also convert a different form of energy
– such as solar, mechanical, or chemical - into electrical energy.
6.2 Video Display

ray-tube design.
How the Interactive Graphics Display Works?
The modern graphics display is extremely simple in construction. It consists of three components:
1. A digital memory, or frame buffer, in which the displayed Image is stored as a matrix of
intensity values.
2. A monitor
3. A display controller, which is a simple interface that passes the contents of the frame
buffer to the monitor. Inside the frame buffer the image is stored as a pattern of binary
digital numbers, which represent a rectangular array of picture elements, or pixel. The
pixel is the smallest addressable screen element. In the Simplest case where we wish to
store only black and white images, we can represent black pixels by 0's in the frame
buffer and white Pixels by 1's. The display controller simply reads each successive byte
of data from the frame buffer and converts each 0 and 1 to the corresponding video

signal. This signal is then fed to the monitor. If we wish to change the displayed picture all
we need to do is to change of modify the frame buffer contents to represent the new
pattern of pixels.
Important Characteristics of Video Display Devices
Persistence: The major difference between phosphors is their persistence. It decides how
long they continue to emit light after the electron beam is removed. Persistence is defined as the
time it takes the emitted light from the screen to decay to one-tenth of its original intensity. Lower
persistence phosphors require higher refreshing rates to maintain a picture on the screen without
flicker. However it is useful for displaying animations. On the other hand higher persistence phosphors
are useful for displaying static and highly complex pictures.
Resolution: Resolution indicates the maximum number of points that can be displayed without
overlap on the CRT. It is defined as the number of points per centimeter that can be plotted horizontally
and vertically. Resolution depends on the type of phosphor, the intensity to be displayed and the
focusing and deflection systems used in the CRT.
Aspect Ratio: It is the ratio of vertical points to horizontal points to produce equal length lines
in both directions on the screen. An aspect ratio of 4/5 means that a vertical line plotted with four
points has the same length as a horizontal line plotted with five points.
6.3 Storage Devices

A storage device is a hardware device designed to store information. Computer data storage,
often called ‘storage’ or’ ‘memory’, refers to computer components or devices that retain digital
data used for computing for some interval of time.

random-access memory (RAM), which is fast but temporary storage. Storage today more commonly
refers to mass storage — optical discs, forms of magnetic storage like hard disk drives, which is
slower than RAM, but of a more permanent nature. Historically, memory and storage are respectively
called ‘main memory’ or ‘primary storage’ or ‘internal memory’ and ‘secondary storage’ or
‘external memory’.

Types of Storage Device
There are two types of storage devices used in computers – a ‘primary storage’ device and a
‘secondary storage’ device.
Random Access Memory (RAM)

Pronounced ram, acronym of Random Access Memory, a type of computer-memory that can
be accessed randomly; that is, any byte of memory can be accessed without touching the preceding
bytes. This is the memory that the computer uses while it is executing programs. RAM is the most
common type of memory found in computers and other devices, such as printers.
There are two basic types of RAM:
• Dynamic RAM (DRAM)
• Static RAM (SRAM)

The two types differ in the technology they use to hold data, dynamic RAM being the more
common type. Dynamic RAM needs to be refreshed thousands of time per second. Static RAM
needs to be refreshed less often, which makes it faster but it is also more expensive than dynamic
RAM. Both types of RAM are volatile, meaning that they lose their contents when the power is
turned off.
Fig. 6.1: Random Access Memory (RAM)

In common usage, the term RAM is synonymous with main memory, the memory available to
programs. For example, a computer with 8 MB RAM has approximately 8 million bytes of memory
that programs can use. In contrast, ROM (Read-Only Memory refers to special memory used to
store programs that boot the computer and perform refers to special memory used to store programs

that boot the computer and perform diagnostics. Most personal computers have a small amount of
ROM (a few thousand bytes). In fact, both types of memory (ROM and RAM) allow random
access. To be precise, therefore, RAM should be referred to as read/write RAM and ROM as read
only RAM.
Read Only Memory (ROM)
Pronounced rom, acronym for Read-Only Memory, a computer memory on which has been
prerecorded. The information stored on the ROM, chips is permanent and is stored when it is
manufactured. Unlike the main memory (RAM), ROM retains its contents even when the computer
is turned off. ROM is referred to as being nonvolatile whereas RAM is volatile.
Fig. 6.2: Read-Only Memory (ROM)

Most personal computers contain a small amount of ROM that stores critic programs such as
the program that boots the computer. In addition, ROMs are used extensively in calculators and
peripheral devices such as laser printers, whose fonts are often stored in ROMs. A variation of a
ROM is the PROM (programmable read-only memory). PROMs are manufactured as blank chips
on which data can be written.

PROM
Pronounced prom, an acronym for programmable read-only memory. A PROM is a memory

chip on which data can be written only once. Once a program has been written onto a PROM, it
remains there forever. Unlike the main memory, PROMs retain the contents when the computer is
turned off. The difference between a PROM and a ROM (read-only memory) is that a PROM is
manufactured as blank memory, whereas a ROM is programmed during the manufacturing process.
To write data onto a PROM chip you need a special device called a PROM programmer or a
PROM burner. The process of programming a PROM is sometimes called burning the PROM.
EPROM
Acronym for Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory and pronounced ee-prom. EPROM
is a special type of memory that retains its contents until it is exposed to ultraviolet light. The
ultraviolet light clears its contents, making it possible to reprogram the memory. EPROM differs
from a PROM that is – a PROM can be written to only once and cannot be erased. EPROMs are
used widely in PCs because they enable the manufacturer to change the contents of the PROM
before the computer is actually skipped. This means bugs can be removed and new versions installed
shortly before delivery.
EEPROM
Acronym for electrically Erasable Programmable Read-only Memory. Pronounced double ee-
prom. An EEPROM is a special type of PROM that can be erased by exposing it to an electrical
charge. Like other types of PROM, EEPROM retains its contents even when the power is turned
off. Also like all other types of ROM, EEPROM is not as fast as RAM.
Flash Memory
Flash memory is a special type of EEPROM that can be erased and reprogrammed in blocks
instead of one byte at a time. Many modern PCs have their BIOS (Basic Input/Output System)
stored on a flash memory chip so that it can easily be updated necessary. Such a BIOS is sometimes
called a flash BIOS. Flash memory is also popular in modems because it enables the modem
manufacturer to support new protocols as they become standardized.

The principal difference between EEPROM and flash memory is that EEPROM requires data
to be written or erased one byte at a time whereas flash memory allows data to be written or erased
in blocks. This makes flash memory faster.
Cache Memory
The cache memory is very important to the PC system and its speed. It is a special and very
high speed memory, which is used to increase the speed of processing by making current program
and data available to the CPU at a rapid rate.
Auxiliary Storage Main Memory
CPU Cache Memory
Fig. 6.3: Cache Memory

Cache memory is volatile, i.e., when the computer is shut down, the data stored there is lost.
Today, the cache memory runs 5 times faster than the motherboard. The CPU looks in the cache for
the data it needs. If the data is there, it will retrieve it and process it. If the data is not there, then the
CPU accesses the system memory and then puts a copy of the new data in the cache before
processing it. Cache memory is placed at two levels. They are called first-level cache (L1) and
second-level cache (L2). The cache memory is placed in between CPU and main memory. Cache
sits on newer processor as L1 (level 1) memory and on the board as L2 memory. This allows kind of
a buffer for the CPU. CPU is faster than the rest of the system in most cases and needs a place to
set information that can be accessed fast, this is where L1 and L2 come in. The L1 cache is a little
more hush. This cache site on the CPU allows a buffer for the rest of the system to keep up with it.
The same goes with L2 cache but act more for information heading out of the CPU rather than in it.

Virtual Memory
Memory is hardware that your computer uses to load the operating system and run programs.
Because computer has a finite amount of RAM, it is possible to run out of memory when too many
programs are running at one time. This is where virtual memory comes in. Virtual memory increases
the available memory of computer by enlarging the “address space,” or places in memory where
data can be stored. It does this by using hard disk space for additional memory allocation.
CACHE VIRTUAL
CPU MEMORY RAM MEMORY HARD DISK
Fig. 6.4: Virtual Memory

The area of the hard disk that stores the RAM image is called a page file, which extension in
windows machine is .SWP. It holds pages of RAM on the hard disk, and the operating system
moves data back and forth between the page file and RAM. When the operating system has to
constantly swap information back and forth between RAM and the hard disk, this is called thrashing,
which can make the computer incredibly slow. This means that the more virtual memory is used, the
more it will slow the computer down. While virtual memory enables the computer to run more
programs than it could otherwise, it is best to have as much physical memory as possible. This
allows the computer to run most programs directly from the RAM, avoiding the need to use virtual
memory. Having more RAM means computer works less, making it a faster, happier machine.
The space on a HDD that is used to store the overflow from memory is called swap space.
The swap space is divided into segments called pages, each of which is associated with a specific
address in memory. When an address is referenced, the page is swapped into memory. It is returned
to the disk when no longer needed and other pages are called. This management of virtual memory
is performed by a type of hardware circuitry called a Memory Management Unit (MMU).
Secondary Storage Device

computer. This is the additional memory used to supplement the storage capability. It is less expensive
and more flexible than main memory. These devices store information such as software and data
permanently. For example, magnetic disk, magnetic tapes etc.
Magnetic Tape
They are convenient, inexpensive devices which can be used to store large volumes of data.
The magnetic tape is similar to the commonly used audio tape recorders. The tape is wound on a
spool and threaded manually on the take-up spool. Data on tapes is stored as blocks, therefore
recording and retrieving is sequential. The access time in the case of magnetic tapes is quite high.
The various types of magnetic tapes are as follows:
Reel to Reel Tapes
Large computers use tape devices to store and read data on reels of tape. A reel of magnetic
tape is half inch in width and can store 1,600 to 6,000 characters per inch along its 2,400 feet length.
Fig. 6.5: Reel to Reel Tapes

Cassette and Cartridge Tapes
Tape drives attached to early personal computers used cassette tapes similar to the familiar
audio cassettes. Cassettes and reels are now being replaced by cartridge tapes. These cartridges
are self contained in hard plastic cells that are easy to mount in a tape drive and store when not in
use. They can hold data 40 MB to 10 GB.
Magnetic Disks
A magnetic disk is a circular platter that is made of smooth metal or mylar plastic. It is coated
with magnetic material.

Fig. 6.6: Magnetic Disks

Data is stored or retrieved from the disk using a conducting coil called the head. During read/
write the head is stationary while the platter rotates beneath it. With disks it is possible to directly
access records by specifying the address or location. That is why disks are called direct access
storage devices.
The various types of magnetic disks include:
Floppy Disk
Floppy disk is a soft magnetic disk. It is called floppy because it flops if you wave it. Unlike
most hard disks, floppy disks (often called floppies or diskettes) are portable, because you can
remove them from a disk drive. Disk drives for floppy disks are called floppy drives. Floppy disks
are slower to access than hard disks and have less storage capacity, but they are less expensive and
portable.
Fig. 6.7: Floppy Disk

Floppies come in two basic sizes:
• 5¼ Inch: The common size for PCs made before 1987. This type of floppy is generally
capable of storing between 100 K and 1.2 MB (megabytes) of data. The most common
sizes are 360 K and 1.2 MB.
• 3½ Inch: Floppy is something of a misnomer for these disks, as they are encased in a rigid
envelope. Despite their small size, micro floppies have a large storage capacity than their
cousins – from 400 k to 1.4 MB of data. The most common sized for PCs are 720 K
(double-density) and 1.44 MB (high-density) Macintoshes support disks of 400 K, 800 K
and 1.2 MB.
Hard Disk
Hard disk is a magnetic disk on which one can store computer data. The hard disk is faster
than floppy disks. For example, hard disk can store anywhere from one megabytes to several
gigabytes, whereas most floppies have a maximum storage capacity of 1.4 megabytes.
Fig. 6.8: Hard Disk

A single hard disk usually consists of several platters. Each platter requires two read/write
heads, one of each side. All the read/write head are attached to a single access arm so that they
cannot move independently. Each platter has the same number of tracks, and a track location that
cuts across all platters is called a cylinder. For example, a typical 84 megabyte hard disk for a PC
might have two platters (four sides) and 1,053 cylinders. In general, these are less portable than
floppies, although it is possible to buy removable hard disks. There are two types of removable hard
disks, disk packs and removable cartridges.

Winchester Disk
Another magnetic media suitable for large volumes of information is the hard disk popularly
known as Winchester disk. A Winchester disk pack consists of two or more magnetic plates fixed to
a spindle, one below the other with a set of read–write heads. The disk pack is permanently seated
inside a casing to protect it from dust and other contamination, thus, increasing its reliability and data
integrity. They can hold large volume of information than floppies. They are very fast in reading and
writing. Winchester disks are available in different sizes and capacities. Standard sizes are 5.25
inches, 8 inches, 10.5 inches and 14 inches, storage capacities.
Fig. 6.9: Winchester Disk

Zip Disk
These are high-capacity floppy disk drives developed by the Iomega Corporation. Zip disks are
slight larger than the conventional floppy disks, and as about twice as thick, e.g., 1200, 2000, 4200
MB and so on are typical for a personal computer. They can hold 100 MB of data because they are
relatively inexpensive and durable they have become a popular media for backing the hard disks and
for transporting large files.
Fig. 6.10: Zip Disk

Jaz Disk
These are removable disk drives developed by the Iomega Corporation. The Jaz Disk has a 12-
ms average seek time and a transfer rate of 5.5 Mbps. The removable cartridges hold 1 GB of data.
The fast data rates and large storage capacity makes it a viable alternative for backup storage as
well as for everyday use.

Fig. 6.11: Jaz Disk

Super Disk
This is a new disk storage technology developed by the Imation Corporation that supports very
high density diskettes. These are etched with a servo pattern at the factory. This pattern is then read
by the Super Disk drive to precisely align the read/write head. The result is that a Super disk or
diskette can have 2,490 tracks as opposed to the 135 tracks that conventional 3.5 to 1.44 MB
diskettes use. This higher density translated to 120 MB capacity per diskette.
Unlike the other removable disk storage solutions as the Zip drive, Super Disk is backward
compatible to older diskettes. This means that you can use the same Super Disk drive to read and
write to older 1.44 MB diskettes as well as the new 120 MB Super Diskettes. Imation’s current
Super Disk drive is called the LS-120.
Fig. 6.12: Super Disk

USB Flash Drive
A flash drive is a small electronic chip which is used as a medium of data storage and transfers
all kind of data like images, videos, music, documents, files, presentation and software from one to
another computer. It is also called thumb drive due to its small size. Before the inception of flash
drives, computer users used floppy discs and CDs to store small amounts of data. When a computer
user inserts a disk or CD into a computer, the computer reads the devices through movable parts,
such as a laser scanning a CD. Since the flash drive has no moving parts, it is less susceptible to

damage. To transfer data between two devices both devices need to have a USB port or USB
adapter.
A flash drive and a pen drive perform the same essential function; however, many people
confuse the terms. The major difference between a pen drive and flash drive is that a pen drive is
generally only used as a mobile USB storage device, whereas a flash drive has many different uses
for data storage. Another difference is that the pen drive always refers to a drive that can be
plugged directly into a USB port. On the other hand, a flash drive may be accessible by a direct USB
connection, a corded USB connection or even stored internally inside a cell phone or mobile media
device.
Pendrive
According to the Phison company website, the term "pen drive" came into the computer
vocabulary in 2001. The pen drive is a type of flash drive named for its small pen-like appearance.
It is a portable device which allows user to transfer data (text, images, videos, etc.) to and from
computer quickly. Users can easily read and write the data on the Pen Drive by plugging it into the
USB port on the computer.
Fig. 6.13: Pendrive

(i) Personal data transport: The most common use of flash drives is to transport and
store personal files such as documents, pictures and videos.
(ii) System administration: Pen drives are particularly popular among system and network
administrators, who load them with configuration information and software used for
system maintenance, troubleshooting, and recovery.
(iii) Computer repair: Pen drives enjoy notable success in the PC repair field as a means
to transfer recovery and antivirus software to infected PCs, while allowing a portion of
the host machine's data to be archived in case of emergency.

Advantages:
(i) Pen drives implement the USB mass storage device class so that most modern operating
systems can read and write to them without installing device drivers.
(ii) It can transfer data much more quickly than older technologies, because it has no moving
parts, it is solid state.
(iii) Pen drives store data densely compared to many removable media. In mid-2009, 256 GB
drives became available, with the ability to hold many times more data than a DVD or even
a Blu-ray disc.
(iv) Compared to hard drives, flash drives use little power, have no fragile moving parts and are
small and light.
Disadvantages:
(i) Hardware failure: The interior of a pen drive is often simply a circuit board soldered to
the USB plug, and since these devices stick out of the side or front of a computer, they tend
to get bumped or struck very easily. The junction point is the weakest spot and a failure
point, making it easy to break the USB connection and render the drive useless.
(ii) Virus and malware: While pen drives can be an easy way to transfer files between
computers, they can also be a vector for malware infections. Any computer with autoplay
turned on may auto-execute infected files on a pen drive, triggering an infection.
(iii) Short life period: Pen drives have a relatively short lifespan compared to other forms of
media.
Optical Disk
Fig. 6.14: Optical Disk

Optical disks differ from magnetic disks by the way data is stored and read. In optical disks a
laser beam is used to read and write data on these reflective disks. Optical disks support direct
access to data and have more storage capacity than magnetic disks. Optical disks are popularly
known as compact disks (CDs).
Optical disks can store much more data upto 6 gigabytes (6 billion bytes) than magnetic media,
such as floppies and hard disks. Optical disk is an electronic data storage medium from which data
is read and written to by using a low-powered laser beam. It is flat, circular, plastic or glass disk on
which data is stored in the form of light and dark pits. The laser beam reads the pits and the data can
be accessed. There are three basic types of optical disks:
(i) Read-only optical disks: The optical disks, which are recorded at the time of manufacture
and cannot be erased. CD, CD-ROM, DVD-ROM and DVD-Video are the read-only
disks.
(ii) WORM (Write Once, Read Many): WORM stands for write-once, read many. The optical
disks can be recorded by the user only once but cannot be erased. After they have been
recorded once, they behave like a read-only optical disk CD-R, DVD-R, and WORM
disks are written once.
(iii) Rewritable/Magneto-optic disks: The optical disks that can be erased and written to with
the new information. CR-RW, DVD-RAM, DVD-RW and magneto-optic disks and Data
play are rewritable. Rewritable disks use magneto-optic or phase change technology.
Advantages:
An optical disk offers many advantages over magnetic storage media.
1. Highest storage capacity.
2. Low cost per Megabyte of storage.
3. Environmental condition tolerance.
4. High data stability.
5. Long media life.

An optical disk has much more storage capacity on the order of gigabytes, than a magnetic
disk. It can hold up to 6 GB of data in comparison to 1.44 MB of a diskette. Optical disks are
inexpensive to manufacture. Data stored on optical disks is resistant to power surges or magnetic
disturbances, such as head crashes or corruption form stray magnetic fields. Hence, they provide
high data stability. Optical disks are less vulnerable to extremes of hot and cold as compared to the
magnetic disks. Optical disks have long media life than magnetic disks. Finally, you should consider
how the player connects to your computer. Most CD-ROMs connect via a SCSI bus. If your
computer doesn’t contain such interface, you will need to install one. Other CD-ROMs connect to
an IDE or enhance IDE interface, which is the one used by the hard disk drive; still others use
proprietary interface.
Almost all CD-ROMs conform to a standard size and format, so it is usually possible to load
any type of CD into any ROM player. In addition, most CD-ROM players are capable of playing
audio CDs, which share the same technology. CD-ROMs are particularly well suited to information
that requires large storage capacity. This includes color graphics, sound and especially video. In
recent years the prices of CD-ROM players have decreased and the tools for creating new CD-
ROM titles have improved, the CD-ROM industry has been expanding rapidly. Today, the most
popular CD-ROM titles have been computer games and multimedia reference works.
Optical Storage Devices

Compact Disc
Compact Disc (CD) is a Secondary Storage device. We can store the data, and information to
the disc of size 700 MB and above. It is pronounced as “see-dee” ROM. There are various types –
Read Only Memory CD-ROM PROM, EPROM, CD-R Drive, CD-RW Drive, etc.
CD-ROM
A CD-ROM is a CD that contains computer data, which cannot be read or rewritten.

In computers, CD-ROM is the most commonly used optical storage technology. CD-ROM is a
compact disc that contains information, which is accessible by a computer. It is composed of
polycarbonate plastic, thin reflective metal layers, made of aluminum and a lacquer coating. Data is

stored on the disc as a series of light and dark pits; the light portion refers to the spaces between the
pits. A laser beam reads the pits and the data can be accessed.
CD-ROM is an adaptation/EXTENSION of the compact disc that is designed for music storage
and playback. The format of CD-ROM is very similar to an audio CD; the only difference being the
standards used to store data. A standard 120 mm CD-ROM holds up to 700 MB of data or about 70
minutes of audio. This may mean that one CD can contain over one thousand novels; an average
novel being composed of 60,000 words. A single CD-ROM has the storage capacity of 700 floppy
disks, enough memory to store about 300,000 text pages. Once the data is written to a standard CD-
ROM disc, it cannot be altered or rewritten.
A CD-ROM can be read using a CD-ROM drive, which is almost common on the personal
computers. A CD-ROM drive may be connected to the computer in several different ways depending
on the type of interface, such as: IDE (ATA), SCSI, SATA, Firewire and USB. Almost all modern
CD-ROM drives can play audio as well as video CDs.
CD-ROMs are recorded by the vendor, and once recorded they cannot be erased and filled
with new data. To read a CD, you need a CD-ROM player. Also called a CD-ROM drive. A CD-
ROM player is a device that can read information from a CD-ROM. CD-ROM players can be
either internal in which case they fit in a bay, or external in which case they generally connect to the
computer’s parallel port.
Parallel CD-ROM players are easier to install, but they have several disadvantages. They are
somewhat more expensive than internal players, they use up the parallel port which means that you
can’t use that port for another device such as a printer, and the parallel port itself may not be fast
enough to handle all the data pouring through it.
Fig. 6.15: CD-ROM

There are a number of features that distinguish CD-ROM players the most important of which
is probably their speed. CD-ROM players are generally classified as single speed or some multiple
of single-speed. For example, a 4X player access data at four times the speed of a single-speed
player. Within these groups, however, there is some variation. Also, you need to be aware of whether
the CD-ROM used the CLV (Constant Linear Velocity) or CAV (Constant Angular Velocity)
technology. The reported speeds of players that use CAV are generally not accurate because they
refer only to the access speed for outer tracks. Inner tracks are accessed more slowly.
CD-ROM FORMAT
One CD-ROM sector contains 2352 bytes, which is further divided into 98 24-byte frames. A
CD-ROM contains a third layer of Reed-Solomon error correction in order to achieve improved
error correction and detection.
• Mode-1 CD-ROM: It has full three layers of error correction data, which contains 2048
bytes of the available 2352 per sector.
• Mode-2 CD-ROM: It is mostly used for video files, which contains 2336 user available
bytes per sector.
CD-ROM SPEEDS AND USES

• Early CD-ROM drives were known as single-speed and could read the data at the speed
of 150 Kbps.
• CD-ROM drives can transfer data up to the speed of 7800 Kbps.
• CD-ROM can store audio, video, text and program instructions. It is used to store software
programs.
DVD-ROM
DVD-ROM is an abbreviation of Digital Versatile Disc- read only memory. DVD-ROM is an

optical disc storage media format that can be used for data storage, which includes movies with high
video and sound quality. A DVD is composed of several layers of plastic, totalling about 1.2 mm
thick. Each layer is created by injection molding polycarbonate plastic. DVD-ROM is a non-volatile
optical storage medium similar to CD-ROM, which contains computer data that cannot be erased or
rewritten. These DVDs are read-only disks that have storage capacity for 133 minutes of high

quality video, in format and audio full-length feature film. The discs are pressed in a similar fashion
as the CDs. The reflective surface is gold or silver colored.
Fig. 6.16: DVD-ROM

DVD-ROM can be accessed using a DVD-ROM drive attached to the personal computer.
DVD-ROM drives are backward compatible, i.e., they are also capable of reading CD-ROMs and
audio CDs as well. The DVD-ROM supports disks with capacities of 4.7 GB to 17 GB and access
rates of 600 Kbps to 1.3 Mbps. A standard DVD disc stores up to 9.4 GB of data. DVDs are of the
same diameter and thickness as CDs and using some of the same materials and manufacturing
methods. Like a CD, the data is encoded in the form of small pits and bumps in the track of the disc.
DVD-ROMs are of same size as a compact disc, but holds data about 7 times more. DVD can store
that much of data because both the sides of a disc are used, with sophisticated data compression
technologies. All DVD-ROMs contain a file system, UDF, which is an extension of the ISO 9660
Standard used for data CDs.
DVDs can store more data than CDs for a few reasons:
• Higher-density data storage
• Less overhead, more area
• Multi-layer storage

Variations of the term DVD often describe the way data is stored on the discs:
(i) DVD–ROM (Read Only Memory): Data that can only be read and not written.
(ii) DVD–R and DVD+R: Record data only once and then function as a DVD-ROM.
(iii) DVD–RW, DVD+RW and DVD–RAM: Both record and erase data multiple times.
(iv) DVD – Audio: A format for delivering high-fidelity audio content on a DVD.
(v) DVD – Video: A standard for storing video content on DVD media.
CD-RW
CD-RW is an abbreviation of compact disc-rewritable and this is a new type of CD disk that
enables you to write onto it in multiple sessions. One of the problems with CD-R disk is that you can
only write to them once. It is a recordable CD format that can be erased and rerecorded multiple
times, just like a floppy disk or a hard disk. It is a rewritable version of CD-ROM. CD-RW disc is
round plastic, about 5 inches in diameter. CD-RW disks can be played or recorded in the CD-RW
drive only. These disks behave unusable when put in a regular CD-drive or a CD-R drive cannot be
played. A CD-RW drive can read everything except a DVD. A CD-RW can hold 650 Megabytes of
data (unlimited number of times) written by a CD-RW drive. CD-RW cannot be selectively overwritten
but can be extended. CD-RWs must be closed before they can be read in a normal CD-ROM drive.
CD-RW disks cannot be read using a CD-ROM drive built before 1997. CD-RWs can be randomly
read and written because of the variation of UDF format. CD-RW disks and drives are more
expensive than a regular CD-ROM drive or media. A CD-RW disc can be read optically by laser
light.
DVD-RW
DVD-RW stands for Digital Versatile Disk-Rewritable. It is a re-recordable optical disc, which
can record up to 4.7 GB per side in a similar fashion to a CD-RW. DVD-RW supports sequential
read/write access i.e. the device may need to wait for the correct location in a constantly revolving
medium. The information stored on DVD-RW can be erased and rerecorded over multiple times
without damaging the medium. DVD-RW is a phase-change erasable format based on DVD-R,
using similar mark length, track pitch and rotation control. The format is supported by the DVD
Forum. DVD-RW is also called “DVD Dash RW” and “DVD Minus RW”. DVD-RW can be

played in many DVD drives and players. Depending on quality, recording time varies from 1 hour to
6 hours.
CD-R Drive
CD-R drive, which is short for Compact Disk-Recordable drive, is a type of disk drive that can
create CD-ROMs and audio CDs. This allows the users to “master” a CD-ROM or audio CD for
publishing. Until today CD-R drives were quite expensive, but prices have dropped dramatically. A
feature of many CD-R drives called multi session recording enables you to keep adding data to a
CD-ROM over time. This is extremely important if you want to use the CD-R drive to create
backup CD-ROMs.
Fig. 6.17: CD-R Drive

To create CD-ROMs and audio CDs, you’ll need not only a CD-R drive, but also CD-R
software package. Often, it is the software package, not the drive itself that determines how easy or
difficult it is to create CD-ROMs. It drives can also read CD-ROMs and play audio CDs.
Magnetic Drum
The drum on which magnetic coating is made is called magnetic drum. Magnetic drum is
basically used to store a large amount of binary information. Each track in magnetic drum is controlled
by one read/write head.

6.4 Power Supplies
PS/2 Port
Keyboard/Mouse
USB
Video card
Sound out
Sound in Network card

Microphone
Modem
MIDI/Game port
http://www.computerhope.com
Fig. 6.18: Power Supplies

Monitor
The monitor data cable will plug into the computer in only one place. Most monitors will use
either a DVI, VGA, or HDMI connector and plug into the corresponding port on the back of the
computer. If your monitor only has a VGA plug and your computer only has a DVI connection, or
visa versa, you need a video converter to connect your monitor.
After the data cable has been connected to the computer, connect the power plug from the
monitor to the surge protector.

Keyboard and Mouse
The keyboard and mouse usually connect to the computer with the same type of connector,
being either a PS/2 or USB connector. These connectors are usually found closer to the top of
where all the connectors are located on the back of the computer.
How to Connect and Install a Keyboard?
For the computer, find the power cord and plug one end into the back of the computer itself
(only one end will fit), usually at the top or the bottom. Plug the other end of the power cord into a
power outlet or surge protector. We highly recommend that both the computer and monitor be
powered through a surge protector. If your house experiences frequent brown outs or black outs,
consider using a UPS to help protect your computer.
A surge protector can help protect the computer from getting damaged by power fluctuations
and surges, which can save you money in the long run by minimizing needed repairs.
Speakers
If you have computer speakers, they can also be plugged into the back of the computer. The
speakers connect to the line out or sound out port (usually green) on the back of the computer. If
your speakers are powered speakers, the power cord should also be plugged into the surge protector.
Internet
Finally, if you are using a wired Internet connection, connect the category 5 Ethernet cable to
the back of the computer. If you are planning on using Wi-Fi to connect to the Internet nothing else
needs to be connected to the computer, but a Wi-Fi router needs to be in range of the computer.
Power Supply
Abbreviated as PS or P/S, a power supply or PSU (power supply unit) is a hardware component
of a computer that supplies all other components with power. The power supply converts a 110-115
or 220-230 volt AC (alternating current) into a steady low-voltage DC (direct current) usable by the
computer and rated by the number of watts it generates. The image to the right shows an Antec
True 330, a 330 Watt power supply.

The power supply is located at the back of the computer, usually at the top. However, many
more recent tower computer cases house the power supply at the bottom. The power supply is
usually located at the top back or bottom back of the case.
Everything contained in the computer chassis is powered by the power supply. For example,
the motherboard, RAM, CPU, hard drive, disc drives, and most video cards (if the computer has
one) are all drawing power from the power supply. Any other external devices and peripherals, such
as the computer monitor and printer, have their own power source.
6.6 Summary
A device that accepts video signals from a computer and provides information in a visual form.
ray-tube design.
ray-tube design.
A storage device is a hardware device designed to store information. Computer data storage,
often called ‘storage’ or’ ‘memory’, refers to computer components or devices that retain digital
data used for computing for some interval of time.
Pronounced ram, acronym of random access memory, a type of computer-memory that can be
accessed randomly; that is, and any byte of memory can be accessed without touching the preceding
bytes.
A CD-ROM is a CD that contains computer data, which cannot be read or rewritten. In

computers, CD-ROM is the most commonly used optical storage technology. CD-ROM is a compact
disc that contains information, which is accessible by a computer.
Pronounced rom, acronym for Read-Only Memory, a computer memory on which has been
prerecorded. The information stored on the ROM, chips is permanent and is stored when it’s
manufactured.

A flash drive is a small electronic chip which is used as a medium of data storage and transfers
all kind of data like images, videos, music, documents, files, presentation and software from one to
another computer.

 Random Access Memory (RAM): RAM is the most common type of memory found in
computers and other devices, such as printers.
 PROM: A PROM is a memory chip on which data can be written only once.
 EPROM: EPROM is a special type of memory that retains its contents until it is exposed
to ultraviolet light.
 Flash Memory: Flash memory is a special type of EEPROM that can be erased
 Hard Disk: Hard disk is a magnetic disk on which one can store computer data.
 DVD-ROM: DVD-ROM is an abbreviation of Digital Versatile Disc- read only memory.
 Magnetic Drum: The drum on which magnetic coating is made is called magnetic drum.

1. What is Storage Device? Explain types of storage devices.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
2. Explain different types of RAM and ROM.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————

1. What is RAM?
2. Explain ROM and its types.
3. What is Virtual Memory?
4. What is Hard Disk? Explain the types of Hard Disk.
1. A word which has to be written in a memory is placed in group of cells known as

___________.
(a) MDR (b) MAR
(c) RAM (d) None
2. A PROM is a memory chip on which data can be written ___________.
(a) Twice (b) Several Times
(c) Only once (d) None
3. ___________ type of memory that retains its contents until it is exposed to ultraviolet
light.
(a) PROM (b) EPROM
(c) EEPROM (d) Flash Memory
4. ___________ can be erased by exposing it to an electrical charge.
(a) PROM (b) EEPROM
(c) EPROM (d) Flash Memory

5. ___________ is very important to the PC system and its speed.
(a) Cache Memory (b) Flash Memory
(c) Both [a] and [b] (d) None
6. The common size for PCs made before 1987 is ___________.
(a) 5¼ inch (b) 6¼ inch
(c) 2¼ inch (d) None
7. Pendrive came into the computer vocabulary in ___________.
(a) 2002 (b) 2003
(c) 2001 (d) 2004
Answers:
1. (a), 2. (c), 3. (b), 4. (b), 5. (a), 6. (a), 7. (c)
6.10 References


UNIT 7 BASICS OF OPERATING SYSTEM
Structure:
7.1 Introduction
7.2 Wi-Fi
7.3 Operating System
7.4 Summary
7.8 References

 Understand the basic input and output system
 Underdstand the concept of Wi-Fi
 Learn about the Operating System
 Study other components of Computer

7.1 Introduction
Input device sends information to a computer system for processing, and an output device
reproduces or displays the results of that processing. Input devices only allow for input of data to a
computer and output devices only receive the output of data from another device.
Wi-Fi is the name of a wireless networking technology that uses radio waves to provide wireless
high-speed Internet and network connections. A common misconception is that the term Wi-Fi is
short for “wireless fidelity,” however this is not the case.
An operating system is the program that, after being initially loaded into the computer by a boot
program, manages all of the other application programs in a computer. The application programs
make use of the operating system by making requests for services through a defined application
program interface.
7.2 Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi is a wireless networking protocol that allows devices to communicate without direct
cable connections. It is technically an industry term that represents a type of wireless local area
network protocol based on the 802.11 IEEE network standard.
Wi-Fi is the most popular means of communicating data wirelessly, within a fixed location. It's
a trademark of the Wi-Fi Alliance, an international association of companies involved with wireless
LAN technologies and products.Wi-Fi is simply a trademarked phrase that means IEEE 802.11x.
Wi-Fi Symbols
How Wi-Fi Works?
The easiest way to understand Wi-Fi is to consider an average home or business. The main
requirement for Wi-Fi is that there is a device that can transmit the wireless signal, like a router,
phone, or computer.
In a typical home, a router transmits an internet connection coming from outside the network,
like an ISP, and delivers that service to nearby devices that can reach the wireless signal. Another
way to use Wi-Fi is a Wi-Fi hotspot so that a phone or computer can share its wireless or wired
internet connection, similar to how a router works.

Basics of Operating System 163
No matter how the Wi-Fi is being used or what its source of connection is, the result is always
the same: a wireless signal that lets other devices connect to the main transmitter for communication,
like to transfer files or carry voice messages.
Wi-Fi, from the user's perspective, is just internet access from a wireless-capable device like a
phone, tablet or laptop. Most modern devices support Wi-Fi so that it can access a network to get
internet access and share network resources.
7.3 Operating System

An operating system (OS) is a set of system software programs in a computer that regulate the
ways application software programs use the computer hardware and the ways that users control the
computer. For hardware functions such as input/output and memory space allocation, operating
system programs act as an intermediary between application programs and the computer hardware.
The operating system is the coordinator and manager of the functions or activities and resources of
PC, like memory, processor and the input and output devices.
“A collection of computer programs that integrate the hardware resources of the computer and
make those resources available to the user, in a way that allows the user access to the computer in
a productive, timely and efficient manner”.
“A program layer that connects to computer hardware in order to facilitate optimal execution
of the user programs”.
“An operating system is a collection of programs that control the application software that
users run and provides a link between the hardware and software currently running on the computer”.
An operating system is the program that, after being initially loaded into the computer by a boot
program, manages all the other programs (called applications or application programs) in a computer.
The application programs make use of the operating system by making requests for services through
a defined Application Program Interface (API). In addition, users can interact directly with the
operating system through a user interface such as a command language or a Graphical User Interface
(GUI).

Application Software
System Software
Operating System
Computer Hardware
Fig. 7.1: Operating System

The operating system acts as an interface between the users and the computer. This system is
used as a base for creating and processing application software. It is a system which is used to
control all activities of the computer. For example, the operating system on your computer controls
the input from the keyboard and mouse to your computer, the opening and closing of programs, the
transfer of information to a printer, the organization of the files on your computer, and the screen
display. To function, every computer must have an operating system. Basically, this system is stored
in the main memory. When the system starts its working, the operating system is loaded in the
memory and will remain until the system turns off. It is the first program loaded into memory
when the computer is turned on, i.e., it brings life to the computer hardware. Without it you cannot
run or any application software.

Application
Disk Drive
Operating
System
Mouse
Monitor
Keyboard Printer
Fig. 7.2: Life to the Computer Hardware
Without an operating system, you cannot communicate with your computer. When you give a
command to the computer the operating system relays the command to the ‘brain’ of the computer,
called the microprocessor or CPU. You cannot interact directly to the CPU because it only
understands machine level language. When you are working in a application software program,
such as Microsoft Word the commands that you on give are willing the application are Sent through
the operating system to the CPU. Windows 2000, Windows 95/98, Windows XP, Mac OS, UNIX
and DOS are the most popular examples of OS.
Types of Operating System
(a) Operating System can be classified by its Users

(i) Single-user Operating System
It is used to manage only one user for a computer to do the things effectively at a time. The
user is the only person who controls the system.
(ii) Multi-user Operating System
It is the one that supports several users at a time. So, each user is provided with a small portion
of time in the memory. To obtain a response time, jobs have to be swapped in and out to main

memory. When this interaction is occurred for I/O operation, CPU will not idle. Most of operating
systems for minicomputers and mainframe computers are multiuser operating system. UNIX and
XENIX are the popular multi-user operating systems.
(b) Operating System can be classified by its Processor
(i) Single-processing Operating System
This operating system has only one processor. These are basically stand alone system.
(ii) Multiprocessing Operating System
Multiprocessing operating system is one which runs on the computer having more than one
CPU. In this system, CPUs sharing bus, clock, memory, peripheral device and tasks are divided
between processore, so that it takes less time than others.
(c) Operating System can be classified by its Jobs

(i) Multi-tasking Operating System
Multi-tasking Operating System is the one that supports several tasks/jobs at a time, but only by
a single user. Windows and operating system/2 are the examples of multitasking operating systems.
(ii) Multi-programming Operating System
The concept is to create system that would load several jobs into memory at once and cycle
through them in some order, working on each one for a specified period of time by multi-user
operating system.
(iii) Time Sharing Operating System
The multi-programming operating system was further used in time sharing system. The operating
system is responsible for switching between the jobs in such a way that ever terminal feels that it is
occupying the entire computer resources. Another important concepts in this system are priority,
interrupt and I/O management. Important jobs can be given high priority so as to execute it fast. If
the job to do some I/O operation while running in CPU, then another job will be allocated to the
processor. Thus, it reduces the idle time of CPU and increases the efficiency.

(iv) Multi-threading Operating System
In recent days, multi-threading operating system is being introduced in addition. After getting
the result, it creates a separate thread to service for further request. It is one in which it supports
both multiple user as well as multiple program at a time, e.g., Sun Solaris Operating System.
(v) Batch Operating System
A batch system is one in which jobs are bundled together with the instructions necessary to
allow them to be processed without intervention. There are two types:
(a) Stacked Job Batch System (mid-1950s – mid-1960s): The output are available after
all the jobs in the current cycle are finished.
Advantages:
(i) Move much of the work of the operator to the computer.
(ii) It increases the performance of system.
Disadvantages:
(i) Some CPU stands idle.
(ii) Turnover time is more.
(iii) Difficult to debug program.
(b) Spooling Batch System (mid-1960s – last 1970s): Spool is the acronym for Simultaneous
Peripheral Operation On Line. The process in which computer can perform I/O parallel
with computing is called ‘Spooling’. The output from jobs are available as soon as the job
completed, rather than only after all the jobs in the current cycle are finished. The Spooling
Batch System is the fast and more simplest of the multi-processing operating system.
(vi) Real Time Operating System
Real time operating systems are dedicated to some well-defined jobs which require very fast
response time. The system must be fault-tolerant, i.e., must handle the error without going to unstable
stage.

(vii) Network Operating System
Most of the network operating system works under the principle of Client-Server mechanism.
In this system, the user is aware of the existence of multiple computers and can use the functionality
of remote machines. In other words, a user doesn’t have to sit in front of machine in which he wants
to work on.
(viii) Distribution Operating System
The distribution operating system depends on network for their functionality, that appears to its
user both as a traditionally uni-processor and multi-processor. The user might not be aware of
where the application is running or where the file is located. The user feels like he is working in the
terminal in front of him, but actually the work may take place in any machine in the network.
Functions of an Operating System
When computer is turned on, the operating system is loaded into the main memory from the
disk. Most of the operating systems perform similar functions. The main functions performed by the
operating system are:
(a) Booting a Computer
The operating system consists of a supervisor portion and a set of system programs. When the
computer is switched on, the supervisor portion of the operating system (known as kernel) is loaded
in the RAM from the disk. This process to start or restart a computer is called booting process.
There are two types of booting.
• Cold Boot: When computer is switched on, the computer starts booting. This process of
booting is called Cold Boot.
• Warm Boot: The process to restart the computer that is already powered on is called
Warm Boot.
(b) Program Management
(i) User-interface
User interface means how the user interacts with the computer to perform various tasks. User
runs the application programs, opens the document, enters the data, prints the output reports etc. All

these are examples of user interfacing. The operating system plays the main role for interfacing
between user and computer. The hardware devices like keyboard, mouse, monitor, etc. are used for
interfacing. There are two main types of user interfaces. These are: Command-line User Interface
and Graphical User Interface.
 Command-line User Interface: In Command-line User Interface, the operating system

provides a prompt line on the computer screen. The command is typed manually from
keyboard to perform a specific task according to the rules and syntax of the commands.
The operating system DOS is an example of command-line interface.
 Graphical User Interface (GUI): In Graphical User Interface, the operating system
provides graphical images on the computer screen, which are known as icons or command
buttons and represent objects. Microsoft Windows operating system is an example of GUI.
(ii) Running Programs
The operating system also provides the interface between the programs and the user. Through
program, the user accesses other computer resources such as printer, backing storages or another
application programs. Actually, in program the built-in instructions known as “system calls” are
used, that request the services from the operating system. The main services that an operating
system provides to programs are:
 Saving the data from memory in files on the disk.
 Loading the files from disk into memory.
 Sending the document on the printer.
 To copy or move data from one document to another or from one program to another.
 For the services of hardware.
 To prepare the disk to store data, etc.

(c) Process Management
(i) Single Tasking: It system can have only one application open at any time.
(ii) Multi-tasking: Operating System can have one or more applications open at the same
time, depending on the system RAM.
(iii) Multi-user: Operating Systems allow the users to share a system. Time is allocated between
the number of users.
(iv) Multi-processing Operating System: This type operating system can run more than one
processor and divide tasks between them.
(v) Multi-programming Operating System: In this operating system, more than one program
at a time run in a system.
(vi) Time Sharing: This operating system is responsible for having several jobs which switch
through time-period and priority of jobs.
(vii) Multi-threading: A system which utilizes more than one processor and can perform multiple
processes at the same time as a thread.
 Thread: A sequence of routines and processes handled by the CPU.
 Foreground: It is processing with interaction with the user.
 Background: It is processing without the opportunity for interaction with the user.
Example: Jobs submitted by users to a printer are stored in a queue and not processed
immediately. They wait until appropriate resources are available and then are processed.
(d) Memory Management

(i) Buffers
Temporary memory spaces for data, used to accommodate the difference in the rate at which
two devices can handle data during transformation. Usually, it is built in the external devices such as
a printer or modem.

(ii) Paging
In operating system, the most widely used mechanism is paging. In paging, primary memory is
partitioned into same size into fixed called ‘Page Frame’ and the job is also partitioned into same
size called ‘Page’. Instead of loading entire job at once, few pages are loaded into the page frame
of memory. After the executing of such pages, they are kept back into the secondary storage and
remaining part is again loaded in main memory.
(iii) Virtual Memory Management
Whenever the system needs more memory to load a program, it is separated in little space in
hard disk. The identified least used pages or programs are the swapped (kept) at those place of hard
disk. This part of hard disk is known as ‘Virtual Memory’ because, it acts like extension of RAM,
but isn’t it. With virtual memory, what the computer can do is look at RAM for areas that have not
been used recently and copy them onto the hard disk. This frees up space in RAM to load the new
application. Instead of having large virtual memory, the system needs to have large amount of RAM
to speed up the processing efficiency.
(iv) Spooling
Spooling is a technique in which an operating system uses buffers (a segment of memory) to

place data before transferring it from or to input/output devices. This is done because sometimes
earlier data is being processed while the new data arrives. For example, a computer sends some
data to a printer. In the meanwhile, new data arrives for printing while the previous data is still being
printed. This new data can now be placed in a buffer, which will be fed to the printer later on
whenever the printer completes its previous job.
(e) Input and Output Management

(i) Device Drivers
The computer is controlled by the special system software called device drivers. The device
driver tells the operating system how to communicate with a device. Each device has its own device
driver. When you boot a computer, the operating system loads each device’s driver. If you attach a
new device or hardware such as scanner to computer then you have to install its driver. Usually the
operating system has built-in device drivers for commonly used input/output devices such as mouse,
keyboard, etc.

(ii) Plug and Play Technology
Operating system automatically detects the appropriate driver needed for a device and installs
and configures the device.
(f) System Administration
(i) System Performance:
User or administrator can check to see whether the computer or network is getting overloaded.
Changes could be made to the way tasks are allocated or maybe a shopping trip is in order. System
performance would include response time (how long it takes for the computer to respond when data
is entered) and CPU utilization (comparing the time the CPU is working to the time it is idle). One of
the major tasks of operating system is to secure the data and program space of each job while
loading into the memory. One program isn’t allowed to capture the program or data space of other
program, for that operating system maintains the boundary of each job in the memory and each job
is allowed to run only in that boundary.
(ii) System Security:
System security is part of the operating system, though additional software can add more
security functions. For multiple users who are not all allowed access to everything, there must be a
logon or login procedure where the user supplies a user name or ID and a secret password. An
administrator must set up the permissions list of who can have access to what programs and what data.
(g) Secondary Storage Management

(i) File Management:
A file is a collection of related information defined by its creator. The files are placed or stored
in the folders or directories. A folder may contain files or sub-folders. The operating system keeps
track of all the folders and files and sub-folders. The operating system maintains a list of these
folders and files in the starting area of disk called the FAT (File Allocation Table). The five major
activities of an operating system in regard to file management are:

1. The creation and deletion of files.
2. The creation and deletion of directions.
3. The support of primitives for manipulating files and directions.
4. The mapping of files onto secondary storage.
5. The backup of files on stable storage media.
(iv) Disk Management
Disk management is a technical task. Under some operating systems the hard-disk can be
divided up or partitioned into several virtual disks. Each virtual disk treats as physically separate
disk. The operating system managing several physical and/or virtual disks can get pretty complex,
especially if some of the disks are set up with different operating systems.
(h) Network Management

(i) Establishing Internet Connection
The operating system also provides means to establish a connection between your computer
and the ISP (Internet Service Provider) Server. Some operating systems also have built-in browser
program used to access the information on Internet. The information downloaded from the Internet
is managed by the operating system in RAM as well as in the disk.
(ii) Controlling Network
Some Operating systems are specially developed, for networking. These operating systems
are called the network operating systems or NOSs. A network operating system organizes and co-
ordinates multiple users and makes it possible to access and share resources on network. The
account of new user is created on the network as well as the account of old user is deleted if
required. The overall functions of users are controlled by the network operating system. The network
operating system also has security features. Each user on the network is required to give a user
name and password to access the network. The account of users cannot be accessed by unauthorized
persons.

7.4 Summary
An input device is a peripheral used to provide data and control signals to an information
processing system such as a computer or information appliance.
Mouse is a device that controls the movement of the cursor or pointer on a display screen.
A mouse is a small object, it can roll along a hard, flat surface.
Spooling is a technique in which an operating system uses buffers (a segment of memory) to

place data before transferring it from or to input/output devices. This is done because sometimes
earlier data is being processed while the new data arrives.
Many of the components that make up the modern personal computer are heat-critical, and
malfunction if allowed to become too hot. With the amount of heat that is generated in certain areas,
particularly by the CPU, it is therefore necessary to ensure that the inside of the unit has adequate
ventilation. This is achieved mainly by the use of fans to draw cold air over the components in
question. Heat sinks are also used to dissipate the heat over a larger area.
When computer is turned on, the operating system is loaded into the main memory from the
disk.

 Typewriter keys: A keyboard for manually entering characters to be printed.
 Cursor-control keys: Buttons which move the cursor.
 Digital Camera: A digital camera is a camera that captures photographs in digital memory.
 Scanner: Scanner is an input device that can read text or illustrations printed on paper
 CCTV: CCTV is a TV system in which signals are not publically distributed but are
monitored.
 Printers: A device which accepts text and graphic output from computer and transfers
the information to paper.


1. Discuss briefly about the Input and Output Devices of Computer.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
2. Explain the other components of computer.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
1. What is Input device?

2. State the four input devices.
3. What are the types of Mouse?
4. Expand: OMR and OCR.
5. Mention any three types of keyboard.
6. What is Output device?
7. What are the different types of output devices?
8. Distinguish between Impact and Non-impact printers.
9. Explain Sound Card and Speaker.

10. Explain different types of modem.
1. A standard keyboard has __________.

(a) 102 to 110 keys (b) 90 to 80 keys
(c) 200 to 250 keys (d) None

2. _____ to open help window.
(a) F2 (b) F3
(c) F1 (d) F4
3. _____ to focuses on the address bar.
(a) F6 (b) F7
(c) F8 (d) F9
4. A ______ works by digitizing an image.
(a) Camera (b) Scanner
(c) Punched Card (d) Track Ball
5. ______ marks are commonly used for scoring in tests.
(a) OCR (b) OMR
(c) MICR (d) None
6. A typical size for small VGA monitor is _____ inches.
(a) 15 (b) 14
(c) 13 (d) 12
Answers:
1. (a), 2. (c), 3. (a), 4. (b), 5. (b), 6. (b).
7.8 References


Windows 177
UNIT 8 WINDOWS
Structure:
8.1 Introduction
8.2 Features of Windows
8.3 Comparison between Professional and Home Edition
8.4 Windows Installation

8.5 Activating Windows
8.6 Security Features of Windows
8.7 Accessing User Accounts and Getting Help
8.8 Summary

8.12 References

 Understand the concept of Windows
 Understand the introduction and features of Windows

 Compare between Professional and Home edition
 Understand the concept of Window installation
 Understand the concept of security features of windows
 Learn to access user accounts and getting help
8.1 Introduction
The latest version of Windows is Windows 10 was introduced in 2015. It is designed to be
compatible with the hardware, software and peripherals. And updates that are always enabled help
user stay up-to-date with features and security for the supported lifetime of device. Windows 10
enables apps to look and work great in all modes, on all devices and even as transition from one to
another.
8.2 Features of Windows

1. Start Menu and Action Centre
The Start Menu is now available in full screen instead of the limited in Windows 8.1. The
Action Centre has quick buttons to switch Wi-Fi and Bluetooth on or off.
2. Cortana on Desktop
Cortana, your personal assistant, is right on desktop. It make easier for user to interact with
device without lifting a finger. User will be able to search hard drive for specific files, pull up photos
from specific dates or launch PowerPoint presentations just by telling PC to do so. User can even
get Cortana to send an email while user is working on a spreadsheet, making multi-tasking much
easier.
3. Xbox app and streaming
Gaming just got even better with Windows 10. Not only do your existing games work great, you
can now play and connect with gamers across Xbox One and Windows 10 devices.
4. Universal apps
The news of Universal apps is good news for anyone using more than one Windows device. A
bundle of apps including Photos, Videos, Music, Maps, People and Messaging and Mail and Calendar

Windows 179
will look and feel the same across different devices and screen sizes. The data will also be saved
and sync automatically via OneDrive.
5. Snap Assist Helps You Snap Windows
A new Snap Assist feature also helps users work out which way is best to snap apps to. User
can snap windows into new screens and tile Windows just as user has been able to since Windows
2.0 or maybe 3.0.
6. Improvements to Windows Explorer
A new Home location is the new default view in Windows Explorer. There's also a Share
button on the Windows Explorer taskbar.
7. Continuum – The Special One
This is the best new thing found out today. Continum is an on-the-fly mode for 2-in-1 devices
that can automatically change mode if it detects there is suddenly no keyboard attached.
8. Lots for Business and Enterprise
This version of Windows will have plenty of other features for enterprise, including a customised
store and protection for corporate data. Mobile Device Management will be able to be used for all
devices.
9. Control Panel
Instead of having two apps to control your device settings in Control Panel and PC Settings,
Microsoft is making things less confusing by bringing them together in one. It will be able to manage
the device from one place instead of hunting for a specific menu.
10. Virtual Desktops
In Windows 10, there is a option to use Virtual Desktops. If you are familiar with workspaces
in Linux you will feel quite at home with Windows Virtual Desktops. Instead of just having one
desktop per monitor you will be able to switch between multiple virtual desktops.

8.3 Comparison between Professional and Home Edition

Here are the various points about Home Edition.
For starters, Windows 7 Home Premium is only supported until January 2015. By contrast,
Windows 7 Professional is supported until January 2020. Oddly, Windows 7 Ultimate is only supported
until January 2015 also.
Maximum memory for Home Premium is 16 GB. For Professional and Ultimate, it is 192 GB
(64-bit Windows).
Home Premium can only support up to 1 CPU. Professional and higher can support a maximum
of 2 CPUs.
Home Premium cannot backup to a network location (only local backups). Professional and
Ultimate can backup to the network.
Home Premium can only be a client for Remote Desktop (can only be connected to from
another machine). With Professional and Ultimate you can use Windows as a host for remote
desktop and connect to other machines.
Home Premium and above all support Home Groups

Professional
Windows 7 Professional
In addition to the points mentioned above, Professional also has the following features and
services:
Support for Dynamic Disks: This allows software implementation of RAID, which could be
useful for a system with multiple hard drives.
Encrypting File System: Allows for file system-level encryption. Not as secure as BitLocker,
which is only available in Ultimate.
Location-aware Printing
Presentation Mode: Lets you change the behavior of Windows while giving presentations,
i.e., control volume, display different wallpaper, prevent screensaver from appearing, etc.

Windows 181
Group Policy: Allows you to control just about all aspects of the Windows operating system
locally or via Windows Server 2003/2008
Offline Files and Folder Redirection: Again, more a feature of a Windows machine joined
to a domain.
Ability to join a Windows domain: Home Premium cannot join Windows domains
Windows XP Mode: Allows you to run Windows XP SP3 inside Windows 7. Used for
compatibility with older programs.
Software Restriction Policies
8.4 Windows Installation

• Computer: 100% IBM Compatible
• Processor: 486DX/66 MHz or Higher processor

• Memory: 16 MB of RAM (for Windows 98); 24 MB of RAM (for Windows 98 SE)
• Drives: Approximately 195MB; can take up to 295MB (for Windows 98)
Approximately 205MB; can take up to 315MB (for Windows 98 SE)
• CD-ROM/Floppy (for Windows98) or CD-ROM/DVD (for Windows98 SE)
• Sound: Standard Sound card for sound capability.
• Video: VGA or higher-resolution
• Controls: 100% compatible Microsoft keyboard/Mouse
• Operating system: Windows 3.x, 3.1x or Windows 95 to upgrade
• DirectX: Includes DirectX 5.0 (for Windows 98) Includes DirectX 6.0 (for Windows 98 SE)
• Other: Microsoft Mouse or compatible pointing device (optional)
Installation of Windows Upgrade on a New Hard Disk Drive
There are two ways to install Windows 98 on your hard disk:
1. Copy all of the files from the win98 directory on the Windows 98 CD to a directory
on your hard disk and install from your hard disk: The first method installs faster and

every time Windows needs new software or driver from the Windows 98 CD, it will first go
to the directory on the hard disk from which it was installed and install the software from
there instead asking that you insert the CD. This saves me from having fish-out the Windows
98 CD every time I install new software and hardware, which is often. In this method, you
leave the files on the hard disk after installation. Furthermore, with this first method, you
may still need the CD for some drivers not found in the win98 directory.
2. Install directly from the CD: The advantage of this procedure is that it saves about 120
MB of hard disk space.
Method 1
(i) Make a c:\windows\options\cabs directory and copy the files from the win98 directory on
the CD-ROM to the cabs directory.
a:\> c:
c:>md windows
c:>cd windows (or simply type cd followed by the F3 key)
c:\windows>md options
c:\windows>cd options
c:\windows\options>md cabs
c:\windows\options>cd cabs
c:\windows\options\cabs>copy d:\win98\*.*
Where d: is your CD-ROM drive.
The c:/windows/options/cabs directory was a convention established with the standard installation
some of the OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) versions of Windows 95. You could copy the
win98 directory to any desired directory on your hard disk and install from there, but I continue to
use the convention so I can remember where the cab files are located.
Cab or cabinet files are files containing one or more compressed files. Most of the Windows
98 files are in cab files on the CD.

Windows 183
(ii) Install Windows 98.
c:\windows\options\cabs>setup/ie
The /ie flag tells Windows 98 not to make a new Startup Floppy during the installation.
Method 2
What you will need: 1. Windows 98 CD
2. Computer with CD-ROM Access
(a) Configuring your BIOS for the Install:
To find out how to access the BIOS please refer to your motherboard manual or the
manufacturer of your computer. (The system BIOS can usually be entered on boot, usually by
pressing the F1, F2, F8, F10 or DEL key. Make sure you save the settings before exiting.
If you are unsure or do not want to enter the BIOS then just test the computer by putting the
CD-ROM in the drive and rebooting the computer. This is the recommended way to install Windows
98.
(b) Starting the Setup:
Part 1:
1. Insert the Windows CD and restart your PC.
2. Once the Windows 98 Setup Menu comes up choose option #2 (Boot from CD-ROM)
3. Then the Windows 98 Startup Menu will come up. Select Option #1. (Start Windows 98
Setup from CD-ROM)
4. Now your computer will install some drivers so please wait for a few moments.
Part 2:
5. Now a blue setup screen will come up. Press Enter.
6. Setup then wants to do some system tests. Just press Enter.
7. Scandisk will now run, please wait.
8. After ScanDisk completes, Windows will copy a few important files for setup.

9. Now the graphical Windows 98 Setup Screen will come up.
10. Click Continue and wait for the setup wizard to complete.
11. Now it will ask you in which directory to install Windows too. The default directory is just
fine so click Next..
12. Setup will now prepare the directory, please wait.
13. Setup will now check for installed components and disk space, please wait.
14. Setup will now prompt you to choose the type of installation. Choose Typical if you have a
desktop computer or Portable if it is a laptop.
15. Windows will prompt you to install components, just choose Continue.
16. If a network card is detected a network information screen will appear. Type in the required
information and click Next
17. Select your country settings, United States should be chosen by default.
18. Now finally the main part of Setup is here. Setup will start copying files. This could take
some time, please be patient.
Part 3:
19. Once setup is done copying files, Windows will restart automatically.
20. The Windows 98 Startup Menu will now appear. Select option #1.
21. The Windows 98 booting screen will appear.
22. Now Windows will prompt you for user information, enter it and click Continue.
23. Now the License Agreement. Read it and if you agree click on “I accept the Agreement”
and click Next. If you select “I don’t accept the Agreement” then setup will end.
24. Now input your product key or certificate authenticity code. This is 16 digits and is located
on the back of your CD case or on the Windows 98 Book. If you have an OEM computer
then it could be on the side or back of your computer. Click Next to continue.
25. Click Finish.

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Part 4:
26. Setup will now finalize the hardware and install settings.
27. Setup will now install plug and play devices.
28. Your computer will restart automatically.
29. The Windows 98 Startup Menu will appear. Select option #1 (Boot from Hard Disk).
30. Windows will start booting for the second time.
31. Setup will continue installing hardware.
Part 5:
32. Now setup will prompt you to enter in your time, date, and time zone. Once selected click
on Apply and then OK.
33. Windows will continue to setup Windows items.

34. The computer will restart automatically once again.
35. The Windows 98 Startup Menu will appear. Select option #1 (Boot from Hard Disk)
Part 6:
36. Windows will boot for the third time.

37. Windows will update system settings.
38. Now finally you have reached the Windows Desktop!

Fig. 8.1: Starting the Setup

39. If you are lucky, you will have no drivers to install, but chances are the next step will be to
install them. Check out device manager for unknown devices, likely items are Network
Cards, Sound Cards, Printers, Scanners, Graphics Cards, Digital Cameras, plus any other
item you have.
Getting Started
Windows 98 is easy to access: turn your computer on; the operating system will boot up
automatically, and you will see the Windows 98 logo. At this point, if you are connected to the
network, you will need to log in. If you are not connected, Windows 98 will continue to load, and
within a few minutes, you will see the Windows 98 desktop.
Components of Windows
Desktop
The Windows 98 operating system is what controls the computer. It tells the machine how to
access the various pieces of hardware you have (floppy drive, hard drive, etc.). It lets you install
pieces of software, and connects you (when possible) to the internet. This is all displayed to you

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through a graphical interface call the “desktop”. The desktop comes up when Windows starts, and
contains short-cuts to most of your programs along with several standard icons. These icons are
described below. You have the ability to change the background design and/or colors if you wish.
The various icons of Windows 98 desktop are explained below:
Launch Task Button System tray

Start button
Fig. 8.2: Desktop
8.5 Activating Windows

Start Menu
Select the Start icon button on the taskbar. Next, make it yours by pinning apps and programs
or moving and regrouping tiles. If you need more space, resize the Start menu to make it bigger.
All apps and programs – right at your fingertips
Get to File Explorer, Settings and other apps user use often from the left side of the Start menu.
To see all apps and programs, select All Apps.

Find all your apps and programs
The Start menu is the place to find a full list of all of them. Select the Start icon button, and then
select All apps in the lower-left corner. To keep scrolling to a minimum, jump to a specific part of the
list. Select one of the section dividers and then choose the letter that the name of app begins with.
Pin apps to the Start menu
To see live updates on what’s happening in world, like new email, next appointment or the
weekend weather. Pin an app, is added to the Start menu as a new tile.
Fig. 8.3: Activating Windows

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Steps:
1. Select the Start icon button, then select All Apps.
2. Press and hold (or right-click) the app you want to pin.
3. Select Pin to Start.
Once pin a new app, resize it. Press and hold (or right-click) the app tile, select Resize and then
choose the tile size user want.
Group your apps
After have pinned an app, move it into a group. To create a new group of tiles, move an app's
tile up or down until a group divider appears and then release the tile. Move apps in or out of the
group. To give new group a name, select the open space above new group and type a name.
Make Start full screen
User gets either maximized or default size. And even when maximized, the left side [All apps]
list takes up a fraction of the screen.
To make Start full screen and see everything in one view, select the Start icon button, then
select Settings > Personalization > Start and then turn on Use Start full screen.
Select the Menu icon in the top left corner of the screen to get to account picture, the All Apps
and Most Used List, and the power button.
If just want resize the Start menu a bit to make it taller or wider, select the top or side border
and drag it.
Work with files and folders
File Explorer previously called Windows Explorer helps user work with files and folders on
OneDrive, PC and network. Open File Explorer by swiping in from the right edge of the screen,
tapping Search or if users are using a mouse, pointing to the top-right corner of the screen, moving
the mouse pointer down, then clicking Search, entering File Explorer in the search box, then tapping
or clicking File Explorer.

Different Parts of the File Explorer Window

1. Left Pane
Use the left pane to get to all kinds of locations: your OneDrive, folders on your PC, devices
and drives connected to your PC and other PCs on your network. Tap or click a location to view its
contents in the file list or tap or click an arrow to expand a location in the left pane.
2. Back, Forward and Up Buttons
Use the Back button to go back to the last location or search results you were viewing, and the
Forward button to return to the next location or search results. Use the Up button to open the
location where the folder you're viewing is saved.
3. Ribbon
Use the ribbon for common tasks, such as copying and moving, creating new folders, emailing
and zipping items, and changing the view. The tabs change to show extra tasks that apply to the
selected item. For example, if you select This PC in the left pane, the ribbon shows different tabs
than it would if you select your Pictures folder. If you can't see the ribbon, tap or click the Expand
the Ribbon button in the top right or press Ctrl+F1.

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Fig. 8.4: Ribbon

4. Address bar
Use the address bar to enter or select a location. Tap or click a part of the path to go to that
level or tap or click at the end of the path to select the path for copying.
5. File list
This is where the contents of the current folder are displayed. It's also where your search
results appear when you enter a search term in the search box.
6. Column headings
In the Details view, you can use the column headings to change how the files in the file list are
organised. For example, you can tap or click the Date modified heading to sort by date (with the
files you worked on most recently at the top). If you tap or click the column heading again, the files
are sorted with the oldest ones at the top. Press and hold or right-click a column heading to select

other columns to add. To learn how to switch to Details view, see the next section, “Changing the
view”.
7. Search box
Enter a word or phrase in the search box to look for an item in the current folder. The search
begins as soon as you begin typing – so if you enter “B”, for example, all the files with names
starting with the letter B will appear in the file list.
8. Status bar
Use the status bar to quickly see the total number of items in a location, or the number of
selected items and their total size.
9. Details/Preview pane
Use the details pane to see the most common properties associated with the selected file. File
properties provide more detailed info about a file, such as the author, the date you last changed the
file and any descriptive tags you might have added to the file. If you can’t see the details pane, tap
or click the View tab, then tap or click Details pane.
Use the preview pane to see the contents of a file, such as an Office document, without
opening it in an application. If you can’t see the preview pane, tap or click the View tab, then tap or
click Preview pane.
Searching for a file
Depending on how many files you have and how they're organized, it might be a lot of work to
always browse to each particular file you need. To save time and effort, use the search box to
search for files. The search box is located at the top of every window. To search for a file, open a
folder as a starting point for your search, tap or click the search box, then start entering your search
term. The search box filters the current view based on the text you enter. Files are displayed as
search results if your search term matches the file's name, tags or other properties or even the text
inside a document. For more information about searching in File Explorer, see Searching for files in
File Explorer.

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Creating a new folder
You can create folders to help organise your files. You can even create folders within folders
(sometimes called subfolders).
Tap or click the Home tab, then tap or click New folder.
Printing a document
You can often print files directly from File Explorer, but it's best to open the file you want to
print in an app and use the app's command for printing. This way, you can check and change print
options if you need to. If you can't find the print command in the app you're using, try pressing
Ctrl+P.
Creating or deleting a file
The most common way to create new files is by using an application. For example, you can
create a letter in a word-processing application or a movie file in a video-editing application. By
default, most apps save files in common folders like Pictures and Music, which makes it easier to
find the files again next time.
When you no longer need a file, you can remove it from your PC to save space and to keep
your PC from getting cluttered with files you don't need. To delete a file, find the file and then select
it. Tap or click the Home tab, then tap or click Delete.
When you delete a file, it’s moved to the Recycle Bin, where it's stored temporarily. Think of
the Recycle Bin as a safety net that allows you to recover files or folders you might have accidentally
deleted. To open the Recycle Bin in File Explorer, enter Recycle Bin in the address bar. Occasionally,
you should empty the Recycle Bin to reclaim all the storage space being used by files you no longer
need. To empty the Recycle Bin, right-click or press and hold it, and then tap or click Empty Recycle
Bin.
Opening an existing file
To open a file, double-tap or double-click it. The file will usually open in the application you
used to create or edit it. For example, a text file will open in your word-processing application. If
you want to open a file in a different application to the one you usually use, select the file, tap or click
the Home tab, tap or click the arrow next to Open, then choose the application you want to use.

Renaming a file or folder
To rename a file or folder, select it in the file list, tap or click the Home tab, then tap or click
Rename.
Set Up Email Accounts
Windows 10 comes with a built-in Mail app, from which you can access all your different email
accounts (including Outlook.com, Gmail, Yahoo!, and others) in one single, centralized interface.
With it, there’s no need to go to different websites or apps for your email. Here is how to set it up.
Fig. 8.5: Setting up Mail from Other Accounts

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Setting Up Mail from Other Accounts
Mail supports all the most popular mail services, including Outlook, Exchange, Gmail, Yahoo!
Mail, iCloud, and any account that supports POP or IMAP. Click the Mail tile to start the app, and
press the “Get Started” button. If you’re logged into your Microsoft account, the app should already
have your outlook.com email address in the list. Click the “Settings” icon in the lower left-hand
corner, or swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and then tap “Settings.” From the right sidebar,
go to Accounts > Add Account.
Fig. 8.6: Choose an Account

The “Choose an account” window will appear. Mail comes ready with all kinds of popular
email services. Choose the type of account you want to add and follow the on-screen instructions.
If your settings are correct, then you’ll jump directly to that account’s inbox, ready to start processing
mail. If you’ve set up more than one account, you can switch among them by selecting “Accounts”
in the top left corner.
Link Multiple Inboxes Together
In Mail, you can link your inboxes together, so you can see all the messages from all your
accounts in one unified inbox. Point your mouse to the lower-right of the screen and click “Settings.”
From the right sidebar, click “Manage Accounts > Link inboxes.”
Fig. 8.7: Link Multiple Inboxes Together

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A pop-up box will open. Now, simply choose the accounts you want to link and give the new
linked inbox a name.
Fig. 8.8: Link Inboxes

Use the New Task Manager
The Task Manager in Windows 10 has been completely overhauled. It’s easier-to-use, slicker,
and more feature-packed than ever. The Task Manager now manages startup programs, shows
your IP address and displays slick resource usage graphs. The new color-coding highlights the
processes using the most system resources, so you can see them at a glance.
Launching the Task Manager
The Task Manager can still be launched in the traditional ways. Press Ctrl-Alt-Delete from
anywhere and you’ll see a link to launch the Task Manager.

Fig. 8.9: Launching the Task Manager
Fig. 8.10: Toolbars

You can also right-click the taskbar and select “Task Manager.”
8.6 Security Features of Windows

Windows-based operating systems have always been plagued with a host of security flaws and
vulnerabilities. This is mainly because the systems were not designed with secure computing in
mind. They are also a popular target for hackers due to these flaws. In today’s increasingly connected
world we cannot allow our systems to be compromised without dire consequences. Windows 7 has
tried to address these issues by following a Secure Development Life Cycle (SDLC), i.e., developers

Windows 199
enforced a strict code review of all new code and they performed refactoring and code review of
older OS code.
Several of the major security improvements are given below in greater detail.
1. Date Execution Prevention (DEP)
During the execution of a process, it will contain several memory locations that do not contain
executable code. Attackers use these sections to initiate code injection attacks. After arbitrary code
has been inserted, they can carry out attacks such as buffer overflows. Data Execution Prevention
is a security technique that is used to prevent the execution of code from such data pages. This is
done by marking data pages as non-executable. This makes it harder for code to be run in those
memory locations.
DEP is intended to be used with other mechanisms such as ASLR and SEHOP. When used
together, it makes it very difficult for attacks to exploit the application using memory attacks. DEP
support, though present in Windows 7, is opt-in, i.e. it is not enabled by default, but users are encouraged
to enable DEP support.
2. Address Space Layout Randomization (ASLR)
Address space layout randomization is a technique to increase security from common memory
based attacks such as buffer overflows and stack smashing. Older versions of Windows essential
system processes often used predictable memory locations for their execution. This made it much
easier for attackers to find critical components of the process, including the program stack and
heap.
These addresses can then be used to launch buffer overflow attacks. To overcome this problem,
ASLR was devised. ASLR randomizes several sections of the program, such as the stack, heap,
libraries, etc. This makes memory addresses much harder to predict. Coupling ASLR with DEP
makes it extremely difficult to carry out memory based attacks.
3. Structured Exception Handler Overwrite Protection (SEHOP)
Structured Exception Handler Overwrite Protection (SEHOP) is a technique used to prevent

malicious users from exploiting Structured Exception Handler (SEH) overwrites. The SEH overwrite

exploit was first demonstrated in Windows XP, since then it has become one of the most popular
exploits in the hacker arsenal.
Several exploit frameworks including Metasploit make use of SEH overwrite techniques to
execute code remotely. SEH works by subverting the 32 bit exception mechanism provided by the
Microsoft
4. User Account Control (UAC)
User account control is a security feature first introduced in Windows Vista to limit administrative
privileges only to authorized users. If an application tries to perform an administrative action, the
user must authenticate before the action is carried out. This is useful, as it prevents malicious files
from executing actions with administrative privileges.
7. Improved Cryptography
Windows 7 features several enhancements in its Cryptographic subsystem. There are several
new cryptographic algorithms to choose from, including Blowfish, AES, Triple DES, etc.
Windows 7 also includes support for Elliptic curve cryptography. The Kerberos protocol in
Windows 7 has been updated to use AES encryption over DES.
8. Windows Firewall/Defender
Windows 7 includes a new and improved Windows Defender. Windows Defender is an anti-
spyware and anti adware software that is included as part of the operating system itself. Windows
Defender can be updated like an Anti-virus solution.
Windows Firewall is a host based firewall that is included with each copy of Windows. It has
been extensively overhauled in Windows 7. It now provides full support for IPsec. Windows firewall
also makes use of a new framework called Windows Filtering Platform (WFP). WFP provides
improved packet filtering capabilities that are integrated into the TCP/IP stack.
9. Improved Authentication Mechanisms
Better authentication support was introduced in Windows 7. This includes support for Biometric
access and Smart cards. User accounts can be authenticated using two-factor authentication, i.e., a
combination of password and smart card. The single sign-on feature has also been introduced. This

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can be used with smart-cards which can also be integrated with several other security services such
as EFS. Winlogon has been upgraded from GINA (Graphical Identification and Authentication) to
the Credential provider library.
8.7 Accessing User Accountsc and Getting Help

A user account allows you to sign in to your computer. By default, your computer already has
one user account, which you were required to create when you set up your computer. If you plan to
share your computer with others, you can create a separate user account for each person.
Why use separate user accounts?
At this point, you may be wondering why you would even need to use separate user accounts.
But if you're sharing a computer with multiple people for example, with your family or at the office
user accounts allow everyone to save their own files, preferences, and settings without affecting
other computer users. When you start your computer, you'll be able to choose which account you
want to use.
Types of user accounts
 Administrator: Administrator accounts are special accounts that are used for making
changes to system settings or managing other people's accounts. They have full access to
every setting on the computer. Every computer will have at least one Administrator account,
and if you're the owner you should already have a password to this account.
 Standard: Standard accounts are the basic accounts you use for normal everyday tasks.
As a Standard user, you can do just about anything you would need to do, such as running
software or personalizing your desktop.
 Standard with Family Safety: These are the only accounts that can have parental controls.
You can create a Standard account for each child, then go to the Family Safety settings in
your Control Panel to set website restrictions, time limits, and more.

To switch between user accounts:
Click the current user icon on the left side of the Start menu, then select the desired user from
the drop-down menu. The user will then need to enter a password to sign in.
8.8 Summary
The latest version of Windows is Windows 10 was introduced in 2015. It is designed to be
compatible with the hardware, software and peripherals. And updates that are always enabled help
user stay up-to-date with features and security for the supported lifetime of device.
File Explorer previously called Windows Explorer helps user work with files and folders on
OneDrive, PC and network.
Windows 7 are faster booting, Device Stage, Windows PowerShell, less obtrusive User Account
Control, multi-touch, improved window management, homegroup networking, multiple thumbnails
for combined taskbar buttons and better power management for notebooks.
Windows Explorer is the Desktop Manager, File Browser and Internet Browser, all rolled into
one package. Explorer is so integrated into the Windows framework that it was once a subject of
controversy from competing internet Browsers, who claimed that Microsoft was involved in unfair
business practices.
The Windows Accessories component is part of the Start Menu hierarchy. Windows provides
several accessories, or applications, that you can use to help you in your work.
The Windows 98 operating system is what controls the computer. It tells the machine how to
access the various pieces of hardware you have (floppy drive, hard drive, etc.) It lets you install
pieces of software, and connects you (when possible) to the internet.

 Windows 10: Microsoft operating system for personal computers.
 Task Bar: A bar at the edge of the display of graphical user interface.
 Quick Launch Toolbar: Quick Launch is a section of the Microsoft taskbar that enables
a user the ability to launch their programs.

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 Network Neighborhood: Network Neighborhood, you can browse resources on the

network.
 Control Panel: The Control Panel is a component of Microsoft Windows that provides
the ability to view and change system settings.

1. Explain File Management features using Windows Explorer.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
2. Comparison between Professional and Home Edition and with their example.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
1. Explain the best new features in Windows 10.
2. Explain the parts of desktop screen.
3. What are the components of start menu?
4. Discuss about the parts of Windows Explorer.
5. What are window accessories? Explain it components.
1. Use the __________ to enter or select a location.
(a) Back Button (b) Forward Button
(c) Address bar (d) Ribbon

2. All Windows 7 versions now support up to __________ of each type.
(a) Four tuners (b) Five tuners
(c) Six tuners (d) None
3. __________ vertically maximizes the current window.
(a) Win+ + and Win+ (b) Win+Up and Win+Down
(c) Win+Shift+Up (d) None
4. A window is a large square on the screen that represents a “conversation” with the computer
is called __________.
(a) Numbers (b) Desktop
(c) Tools (d) None
5. Sticky Keys are __________.
(a) ALT (b) CTRL
(c) SHIFT (d) All of the above
Answers:
1. (c), 2. (a), 3. (c), 4. (b), 5. (d)
8.12 References


Word Processing Basics 205
UNIT 9 WORD PROCESSING BASICS
Structure:
9.1 Introduction
9.2 Word Processor
9.3 MS-Word
9.4 Opening and Closing Documents
9.5 Text Creation and Manipulation
9.6 Formatting the Text

9.7 Table Manipulation
9.8 Summary
9.12 References

 Learn the basics about Word Processing
 Learn about opening and closing the documents

 Understand the concept of text creation and manipulation
 Understand the concept of formatting the text
 Understand the concept of Table Manipulation
9.1 Introduction
A Word Processor is a software package that helps you to create and edit the documents.
Creating a document involves typing it into the internal memory of the computer and saving it by
writing it onto the disk. Editing a document involves correcting the spelling mistakes, if any and
deleting or moving words, sentences or paragraphs. For example, the popular word processors are
WordPerfect, WordStar and Microsoft Word.
The greatest advantage of word processing software over using a typewriter is that you can
make changes without retyping the entire document. If you make a typing mistake, you simply back
up the cursor and correct your mistake. If you want to delete a paragraph, you simply remove it
without leaving a trace. It is equally easy to insert a word, sentence or paragraph in any part of a
document.
9.2 Word Processor

A word processor is a program that enables you to perform word processing functions. Word
processors use a computer to create, edit and print documents of all computer applications, word
processors are the most common.
Word processors also make it easy to move selections of text from one place to another within
a document or between documents. When you have made all the changes you want, you can send
the file to a printer to get a hardcopy.
Features of Word Processor
 Document creation, storage and retrieval.
 Type a document through the keyboard and save it on a disk.
 Edit characters, words, lines and images anywhere in the document.
 Retrieve documents from the disk.

 Move or copy paragraphs or images from one place in the document to another.
 Reduce or increase the left, right, top and bottom margins according to the requirement.
 Change the text font and style.
 Search for a particular word or phrase.
 Search for error in spelling and make corrections.
 Print a document in various formats.

Operations on Word Processor
o Insert Text: Allows you to insert text anywhere in the document.
o Delete Text: Allows you to erase characters, words, lines, or pages as easily as you can
strike out them on paper.
o Cut and Paste: Cut and paste allows you to remove (cut) a section of text from one place
in a document and insert (paste) it somewhere else. Cut means to remove an object from
a document and place it in a buffer. This is one way to delete text. However, because the
text is transferred to a buffer, it is not lost forever. You can copy the buffer somewhere else
in the document or in another document which is called pasting.
o Copy: Allows you to duplicate a section of text. When you copy a piece of data, a duplicate
of that data is placed in a temporary location. In word processing, copying refers to
duplication of a section of a document and placing it in a buffer (sometimes called a clipboard).
The term copy differs from cut which refers to actually removing a section of a document
and placing it in a buffer. After cutting or copying you can move the contents of the buffer
by pasting it elsewhere.
o Page Size and Margins: Allows you to define various page sizes and margins, and the
word processor will automatically read just the text so that it fits.
o Search and Replace: This is a feature supported by most word processors which lets you
replace a character string (a series of characters) with another string wherever the first
string appears in the document. Most word processors have two search and replace modes.

In the first mode, the word processor automatically makes all the replacement in the file. In
the second mode, the word processor requires you to approve each replacement. This is
safer because you may not want to make the change everywhere. Search and replace is
sometimes called find and replace.
o Word Wrap: In word processing, word wrap is the feature that causes the word processor
to force all text to fit within the defined margins. When you fill one line with text, the word
processor automatically jumps to the next line so that you are not required to keep track of
line lengths and to press the Return key after each line. The word processor divides lines in
such a way that a word is never split between two lines (unless the word processor supports
hyphenation). Word wrap also occurs if you change the margins. In this case, the word
processor read just all the text so that it fits within the new margins. Some word processors
allow you to turn off the word-wrap feature. This is useful for writing programs and other
types of formatted text where you want complete control over new lines.
o Print: Allows you to send a documents to a printer to get hardcopy. Word processors that
support only these features (and maybe a few others) are called text editors. Most word
processors, however, support additional features that enable you to manipulate and format
documents in more sophisticated ways. These more advanced word processors are
sometimes called full-featured word processors. Full-featured word processors usually
support the following features.
o File Management: Many word processors contain file management capabilities that allow
you to create, delete, move, and search for files.
o Font Specification: Allows you to change fonts within a document. for example, you can
specify bold, italics, and underlining. Most word processors also let you change the font
size and even the typeface.
o Foot Notes and Cross-references: Automates the numbering and placement of foot notes
and enables you to easily cross-reference other sections of the document.
o Graphics: Allows you to embed illustrations and graphs into a document. Some word
processors let you create the illustrations within the word processor others let you insert an
illustration produced by a different program.

o Headers and Footers: Header is a line or lines of text that appears at the top of each page
of a document. Once you specify the text that should appear in the header, the word
processor automatically inserts it. Most word processors allow you to use special symbols
in the header that represent changing values. For example, you can enter a symbol for the
page number, and the word processor will automatically replace the symbol for the page
number on each page. If you enter the date symbol, the word processor will insert the
current date, which will change if necessary each time you print the document. Most word
processors allow you to specify different headers, for example, one for odd-numbered
pages and another for even-numbered pages. Headers are also called running heads. Footers
are one or more lines of text that appear at the bottom of every page of a document.
o Page Numbering: The word processor automatically keeps track of page numbers so
that the correct number appears on each page.
o Layout: Allows you to specify different margins within a single document and to specify
various methods for indenting paragraphs.
o Macros: A macro is a character or word that represents a series of keystrokes. The

keystrokes can represent text or commands. The ability to define macros allows you to
save yourself a lot of time by replacing common combinations of keystrokes.
o Merges: Allows you to merge text from one file into another file. This is particularly useful
for generating many files that have the same format but different data. Generating mailing
labels is the classic example of using merges.
o Spell Checker: A utility that allows you to check the spelling of words. It will highlight any
words that it does not recognize.
o Tables of Contents and Indexes: Allows you to automatically create a table of contents
and index based on special codes that you insert in the document.
o Thesaurus: A built-in thesaurus that allows you to search for synonyms without leaving
the word processor.

o Windows: Allows you to edit two or more documents at the same time. Each document
appears in a separate window. This is particularly valuable when working on a large project
that consists of several different files.
o WYSIWYG(what you see is what you get): With WYSIWYG, a document appears on
the display screen exactly as it will look when printed.
o Mail Merging: This is a feature supported by many word processors that enables you to
do mass mailings or mailing campaigns. To use a mail-merge system, you first store a set of
information, like a list of names and addresses, in one file. In another file, you write a letter,
substituting special symbols in place of names and addresses.
9.3 MS-Word
MS-Word is a computer program that enables you to type, modify, print and save texts for
future revisions and retrievals. You enter text into the computer using a keyboard. As you type your
words are displayed on the monitor and are stored temporarily in the computer’s memory as you are
creating the document rather than on a paper.
Objectives of MS-Word
The important objectives of MS-Word are followings:
(i) Main feature is to correct the spelling as you type. Also help to locate and correct errors
quickly. Other features are to check for grammatical errors, words, underlines the text
with a green line.
(ii) Word’s ‘AutoFormat’ feature combined with the facility to insert symbols and special
characters enables you to insert special characters like 3rd, 4th, X2, H2O, etc.
(iii) You can arrange text in rows and columns using Word’s table features. These features
help you in formatting your text and tables quickly and attractively.
(iv) To create form letters, envelopes and tables you can use the mail merge features.
Microsoft Word 2007 – With New Features
Microsoft Word 2007 is the most recent Windows version of the Microsoft Office System.
Following are some new features of Microsoft Word 2007:

(i) User interface: The new user interface (UI), officially known as Fluent User Interface,
has been implemented in the core Microsoft Office applications: Word, Excel, PowerPoint,
Access, and in the item inspector used to create or edit individual items in Outlook.
(ii) Ribbon: The Ribbon, a panel that houses a fixed arrangement of command buttons and
icons, organizes commands as a set of tabs, each grouping relevant commands, and is not
customizable. Each application has a different set of tabs which expose the functionality
that application offers.
Fig. 9.1: Microsoft Word 2007 – With New Features

The ‘Ribbon User Interface’ is a task-oriented Graphical User Interface (GUI). It features
a central menu button, widely known as the ‘Office Button’. The Ribbon is designed to
make the features of the application more discoverable and accessible with fewer mouse
clicks as compared to the menu-based UI used prior to Office 2007.
(iii) Contextual Tabs: Some tabs, called Contextual Tabs, appear only when certain objects
are selected. Contextual Tabs expose functionality specific only to the object with focus.
For example, selecting a picture brings up the Pictures tab, which presents options for
dealing with the picture. Similarly, focusing on a table exposes table-related options in a
specific tab.
(iv) Live Preview: Microsoft Office 2007 also introduces a feature called “Live Preview”,
which temporarily applies formatting on the focused text or object when any formatting
button is moused-over.

(v) Mini Toolbar: The new “Mini Toolbar” is a type of context menu that is automatically
shown (by default) when text is selected. The purpose of this feature is to provide easy
access to the most-used formatting commands without requiring a right-mouse-button click,
as was necessary in older versions of the software. Because the Mini Toolbar is automatically
displayed, it remains semi-transparent until the mouse pointer is situated on the control in
order to allow an almost-unobstructed view of what is beneath it. It also appears above the
right-click menu when a user right-clicks on a selection of words. The Mini Toolbar is
currently not customizable, but can be turned off.
(vi) Quick Access Toolbar: The Quick Access toolbar, which sits in the title bar, serves as a
repository of most used functions, regardless of which application is being used, such as
save, undo/redo and print. The Quick Access toolbar is customizable, although this feature
is limited compared to toolbars in previous Office versions.
(vii) PDF: Initially, Microsoft promised to support exporting to Portable Document Format (PDF)
in Office 2007.
(viii) Open Document: Microsoft backs an open-source effort to support OpenDocument in

Office 2007, as well as earlier versions (up to Office 2000), through a converter add-in for
Word, Excel and PowerPoint and also a command-line utility.
(ix) User assistance system: In Microsoft Office 2007, the Office Assistants have been
eliminated in favour of a new online help system.
(x) Themes and Quick Styles: Microsoft Office 2007 places more emphasis on Document
Themes and Quick Styles. The Document Theme defines the colors, fonts and graphic
effects for a document. Almost everything that can be inserted into a document is
automatically styled to match the overall document theme creating a consistent document
design.
To Start MS-Word – Using the Windows Start Menu
Click on the Start button, point to Programs, followed by Microsoft Office and click on
Microsoft Office Word 2003/Microsoft Office Word 2007.
Note: For Office previous version of Office: Start  Programs  MS Office  MS word.

Immediately you will see the screen shown below. In the right hand side of the
screen, the Getting Started task pane provides help to you.
Parts of MS-Word
Title Menu Standard Formatting Minimize Restore Close

Bar Bar Toolbar Toolbar Button Button Button
Ruler Scroll Scroll

Box Arrows
Scroll Previous
Current Section Current / Cursor Line Bar Column Page Next
Page Number Total Pages point Number Number Page
Fig. 9.2: Different Types of Bars

Title Bar
This tells you which application package is currently running and which document is currently
open.
Menu Bar
This is the traditional Windows style drop-down menu. When you point to any menu title and
click once with the mouse, the menu will open, displaying all the commands available under the
menu title. Clicking on the desired command would tell word to execute that command. Some
commands have ellipses (…) in front of them. These commands have further sub commands.
Commands appearing dimmed cannot be executed unless the prerequisite functions required by that
command have been performed, e.g. you cannot use the copy or cut command from the edit menu
unless you have selected a piece of text first. Many commands also have a keyboard shortcut
specified against their names.
Standard Tool Bar
Toolbars contain buttons, drop-down menus and other controls that help you quickly alter the
appearance and arrangement of documents by executing a variety of word commands. Toolbars are
very helpful and convenient in quickly executing commands without having to go through menus.
The standard toolbar contains icons for basic functions like opening files, saving files, printing files,
cut, copy, paste etc.
Formatting Tool Bar
This contains icons for changing the look of your text (called “formatting” in computer jargon),
for example, there are icons for changing fonts, styles, font sizes, text alignment etc. Here is the list
of icons and it function:
Fig. 9.3: Formatting Tool Bar

Icon Function
Style Menu Allows you to define a group of paragraph and character formats as a style
and then the styles in a style sheet.
Font Menu Click the arrowhead to the right of the font name box to view the list of fonts
available. Scroll down to the font you want and click once to select it.
Font Size Click on the white part of the font size box to enter a value for the font size or
click the arrowhead to the right of the box to view a list of font sizes available.
Select a size by clicking on it once. A font size of 10 or 12 is best for
paragraphs of text.
Font Style Use these buttons to bold, italic and underline the selected text.
Alignment Text can be aligned to the left, center or right side of the page or it can be
justified and distributed across the page.
Line Spacing Allows you to set the amount of space between one line to another line.
Numbering It is used to set-off and emphasize sections of text and are presented by dots
or numbers.
Increase/ Change the indentation of a paragraph in relation to the side of the page.
Outside Border Add a border around selected text.
Highlight Use this option to change the color behind a selected text. The color shown on
the button is the last color used. To select a different color, click the
arrowhead next to the button.
Font Color This option changes the color of the text. The color shown on the button is the
last color chosen. Click the arrowhead next to the button to select another
color.
Scroll Tools
These help you travel within your document. You can go anywhere, up and down, right and left
in your document mainly by two ways: Using the horizontal and vertical scroll bars with the help of
the mouse or Using the keyboard by pressing PgUp, PgDn, Home, End and arrow keys.

Status Bar
Also called the Status Area, this is normally the last line on your screen. This gives the following
information about your work:
l. Current Page
2. Section Number
3. Current/total pages in the document
4. Current cursor Position (where the cursor is presently located)
5. Current Line Number
6. Current Column Number
Ruler
The Ruler lets you make changes to margins and indents and helps you create document as per
dimensions required.
Cursor
Also called “Insertion Pointer”, this denotes the place where text, graphics or any other item
would be placed when you type, overwrite or insert them. This looks like a tall, skinny toothpick and
keeps blinking so that you can locate it easily.
Mouse Pointer
When your mouse pointer looks like an I-beam you should be able to move it freely about the
screen. This is used for either placing the cursor at the desired place (take the mouse pointer there
and click) or choosing any command either from the menu or from toolbars. The mouse pointer
changes shape when in the process of doing certain tasks and the cursor disappears.
Short Cut Menu
A menu that is displayed for a selected object (also referred to as a context menu or pop-up
menu). The menu contains commands that are contextually relevant to the selection.

9.4 Opening and Closing Documents

Create a Document
The steps to create a new document or open an existing document are as follows:
From the menu, select File> New Option with a dialog Box
File > Open Option in the Dialog Box to select an existing document file.
Alter selecting a blank document or opening an existing document, you may enter text or edit
the document as below;
To insert text into a document
To enter text, just start typing! The text will appear where the blinking cursor is located. For
example, you can type the following text into it accordingly. My name is John Smith. Today I just
learn how to type using MS Word.
While typing the text in the document, the software will underline in red any words that the
software does not recognize and green for grammatical or syntax error. You should also notice that
the text you are typing automatically scrolls to the next line. You do not have to hit Return or Enter
at the end of each line. The only time you should hit Enter or Return is at the end of a paragraph.
To save a file
• From the File menu, click Save.
• From the Save in drop down menu, select the location where you want to save the file or
to the different folder by clicking on it.
• In the File name box, type in the file name that you would like to give (e.g., File1). Click on
the Save button.
Cut, Copy and Paste – using the icons on the toolbar
The icons for Cut, Copy and Paste look like this:
Fig. 9.4: Cut, Copy and Paste

The first icon is Cut, the second Copy, and the third Paste. If you want to cut text using the
icon, first highlight your text. Then click the Cut Icon. If you want to paste the text somewhere,
position your cursor in the new location then click the Paste icon. Instead of clicking the Cut icon
first, you can click the Copy icon. Then click the Paste icon to paste your text in a new location. Try
them out and see how they work.
Cut and Paste
In Microsoft Word, you can cut (delete) text from one area of a document and save that text so
it can be pasted elsewhere in the document. When you cut text, it is stored on the Clipboard. You
can also copy text. When you copy text, it is also stored on the Clipboard. Information stored on the
Clipboard stays there until new information is either cut or copied. Each time you execute Cut or
Copy, you replace the old information on the Clipboard with whatever you just cut or copied. You
can paste Clipboard information as often as you like.
Technique 1 – Cutting and Pasting with the Menu bar
1. Highlight the text you want to cut and paste.
2. From the menu bar, click Edit > Cut.
3. Move your cursor to the place where you want to paste your text.
4. From the menu bar, click Edit > Paste.
5. Your text is pasted to the new position:
Technique 2 – Right Click
For this technique, we’ll Cut and Paste Constable Tucker to the top. So do the following:
1. Highlight the text you want to Cut and Paste.
2. Click on the highlighted text with the right mouse button.
3. From the pop up menu, click “Cut” (Click with the left mouse button).
4. Your highlighted text is cut.

5. Move your cursor to the place where you want to paste the text.
6. Click the new place with your right mouse button.
7. From the popup menu, click “Paste” (Click with your left mouse button).
8. The text is pasted to the new position.
Technique 3 – Keyboard
1. Highlight the text you want to Cut and Paste.
2. Hold down the Ctrl key on your keyboard.
3. Press the letter “X” on your keyboard.
4. The text is cut.
5. Move the cursor to the place where you want to paste your text.
6. Hold down the Ctrl key on your keyboard.
7. Press the letter “V” on your keyboard.
8. The text is pasted to the new position.

Copy and Paste
In Microsoft Word, you can copy text from one area of the document and place that text
elsewhere in the document. As with cut data, copied data is stored on the Clipboard.
Technique 1 – Copy and Paste with the Menu bar
1. Highlight the text you want to Copy and Paste. In our case, the words “will not”. As in the
image below:
2. Click Edit > Copy from the menu bar
3. Move your cursor to the new location
4. Click Edit > Paste from the menu bar
5. Your text is copied to the new location

Technique 2 – Right Click
1. Highlight the text you want to Copy and Paste.
2. Click on the highlighted text with the right mouse button.
3. From the pop up menu, click Copy (Click with the left mouse button).
4. Move your cursor to the place where you want to paste your text.
5. Click the new location with your right mouse button.
6. From the pop up menu, click Paste (Click with the left mouse button).
7. Your text is pasted to the new location.
Technique 3 – Keyboard
1. Highlight the text you want to cut and paste
2. Hold down the Ctrl key on your keyboard
3. Press the letter “C” on your keyboard
4. The text is copied
5. Move the cursor to the place where you want to paste your text
6. Hold down the Ctrl key on your keyboard
7. Press the letter “V” on your keyboard
8. The text is pasted to the new position
9.5 Text Creation and Manipulation

Finding Text
Carry out the following steps to find the required words or phrases in a Word document. Press
Ctrl-F, which is a shortcut for the Edit -> Find... menu option. The Find and Replace dialog box
opens with the Find tab selected. Enter the text in the Find what text box. Choose the Find Next
command button to search for the required text.

Finding and Replacing Text
Word has an excellent feature that Finds words and phrases and replaces them with other text
In order to do so, carry out the following steps:
• Press Ctrl-H, which is a shortcut for the Edit -> Replace... menu option.
• The Find and Replace dialog box opens with the Replace tab selected.
• Enter the required text in the Find what text box.
• Enter the replacement text in the Replace with dialog box.
• Choose the Find Next command button.
Header and Footer
Lines of text displayed below the top margin or above the bottom margin of each page are
called headers and footers.
Steps to Insert Header and Footer
The steps to insert header and footer are as follows:
1. Select ‘view > Header and Footer’ from the menu bar. The Header and Footer tool bar will
appear and the top of the page.
2. Type of heading in the header box. You may use many of the standard text formatting
options such as font fact size.
3. Click the insert auto text button to view a list of quick options available.
4. Use the other options on the toolbar to add page number the current date and time.
5. To edit the footer, click the switch between header and footer button on the tool bar.
6. When you are finished adding header and footers, click the close button on the toolbar.

9.6 Formatting the Text

Formatting a Document is the way of changing the outlook of a document in a way, as you
desire. There are two major options:
1. Formatting Font
2. Formatting a Paragraph
1. Formatting Font
Applies or removes character formats from selected text or from the insertion point forward as
you type. Also allows you to changes the default formats for the current document and all other
documents that are based on the current template. It changes font style (such as bold, italic, etc.),
font size, type of underline, color and font effects (such as superscript, subscript, strike through,
hidden text, etc.). It also defines settings for the vertical position of characters and the space between
characters. In this option, you can set new defaults. Text formatting is concerned with the fonts,
font sizes and other attributes of individual character words, phrases or sentences in Word.
(a) Fonts
Word allows us to change the font used to display text. There are several fonts available like
Arial, Courier New, Times New Roman, etc. Different font sizes are also available. We can make
headings larger than the rest of the text to make them more prominent. We can also use small point
sizes to display fine print.
Example: Times New Roman – 10 Points
Times New Roman – 14 points

To change the font or the size of block of text:
1. Select the block of text
2. Select the font from the Font drop down list box.
3. Select the font size from the Font Size drop down list box.

(b) Attributes
The main attributes are bold, underline and italics. The three most commonly used attributes
are available as buttons on the Formatting Tool Bar. Select the text and then click the B button for
Bold, I button for Italics and the U button for Underline. The keyboard shortcuts for bold, italics and
underline are Ctrl-B, Ctrl-I and Ctrl-C respectively. Click on more than one of the attributes for
combinations like bold-italics and so on.
(c) Other Font Effects
The other effects available are: Strikethrough Superscript, Subscript Small Caps and All caps.
We can also use different types of underling like: double-underline, dotted underline and underline
only the words by making the appropriate selection in the underline drop down list box. Other
effects like Shadow. Outline, Emboss and engrave could also be applied (Text after the ‘and’ is
hidden). This can be done clicking in the appropriate check boxes.
(d) Changing Text Colour and Highlighting Text
The color of the text could be changed in the Font dialog box. Text could be marked by using the
Highlighter tool on the formatting tool bar. (Use the button on the left).
(e) Changing Case
Text case refers to either capital case or small case. The case of a text could be changed
through the Change case,... option in the Format menu.
2. Formatting a Paragraph
In Microsoft Word, a paragraph is a distinct unit of information that has its own formatting
characteristics, such as Alignment, Line Spacing, Indent and Tab. The process of changing the
format of a paragraph is very similar to that of changing the format of characters. The main difference
is that, instead of selecting the entire section of text to change, you only need to have the cursor in
the paragraph you wish to modify. The way you format paragraphs in a document depends on how
you intend to use the document and how you want it to look. In below, the major three options are
explained in details –

(a) Alignment of Text
Alignment means tilted towards something. Aligning the text means that moving the text to
some part of the page. Left-justified text is aligned on the left side. It is the default setting. Generally,
computer has two types of alignments:
(i) Horizontal Alignment: It determines the appearance and orientation of the edges of the
paragraph. Following are the types of Horizontal Alignments:
1. Left Alignments: All the texts, which are left aligned, are written from the left of the page.
2. Right Alignment: All the texts, which are right aligned, are written from the right of the
page.
3. Center Alignment: All the texts, which are center-aligned, are written from the middle of
the page.
4. Justification: It is the combination of left and right alignment. The text appears to be
balanced between left and right of a page. This is indicated by the highlighted left alignment
icon on the Ribbon bar. Whenever you want your text to be left justified you have to make
sure this icon is highlighted.
(ii) Vertical Alignment: It determines the paragraph’s position relative to the top and bottom
margins.
(b) Line Spacing
Line Spacing sets the amount of space between lines within a paragraph. Single spacing is the
default. The spacing for each line is set to accommodate the largest font on that line. Following are
the types of spacing:
1. Single Line spacing is the line spacing mechanism in which no any extra space is left in
between the lines of a paragraph. It is the default line spacing.
2. 1.5 Line spacing is the line spacing mechanism in which half times of single line is left in
between the lines of a paragraph.

3. Double line spacing is the line spacing mechanism in twice the space of a single line is left
in between the lines of a paragraph which means that, one line is written and one line is left
blank.
4. At least line spacing sets a minimum line spacing that word adjusts when needed to allow
larger font sizes and graphics.
5. Exactly line spacing sets a fixed line spacing that word can’t adjusts.
6. Multiple line spacing increases or decreases the spacing in %. For example, 1.2 in
multiple line spacing means that 20% increase in the current line spacing format.
Selecting Line Spacing:
1. Highlight the paragraphs you wish to change to a new line spacing.
2. Click Format, Paragraph.
3. In the Paragraph dialog box, click Indents and Spacing tab.
4. Select the line spacing you desire and click.
(c) Indent
When you type a letter or circular, you would like to draw the attention of the reader to a
particular paragraph. For this, you wish to keep some space to the left or right of the paragraph.
These extra spaces are called indents.
Page
margins
Paragraph indents
Fig. 9.5: Indent
Indentation allows you to indent your paragraph from the left or right margin. There are four
types –
1. Left Indent: Leaves space at the left of the paragraph.
2. Right Indent: Leaves space at the right of the paragraph.

3. First Line Indent: Leaves space at the beginning of first line.
4. Hanging Indent: Leaves space at the left side of a paragraph for the first line.
Step of Indenting Paragraphs:
1. On the top left ruler line, there are symbols that let you indent the left edge of a paragraph.
Indent first line
Indent all but first line
Indent all lines
2. Highlight the paragraph you wish to indent.
3. Click the indent symbol and drag it to the desire position. A line will show you the new
indent position.
4. Release the mouse button and Word will indent the paragraph you selected.
There are two buttons on the Formatting Toolbar to help you quickly indent a paragraph.
Decrease Indent and Increase Indent buttons.
(d) Space Before and Space After
Space Before sets the amount of space before the paragraph. Space After sets the amount of
space after the paragraph.
9.7 Table Manipulation

A table is made up of rows and columns of cells that you can fill with text and graphics. Tables
are often used to organize and present information, but they have a variety of other uses as well. It
behaves just like a spreadsheet or worksheet. So, the data in it can be sorted (in ascending or
descending order) and we can use formulas to calculate values in table. Merging cells and splitting
cells is also possible in table. You can use tables to align numbers in columns and then sort and
perform calculations on them. You can also use tables to create interesting page layouts and arrange
text and graphics.

Parts of a Table
o Borders and gridlines: By default, tables have a black ½-pt, single–line, solid–line border that
will be printed. If you remove this border, you will still see the gridlines that form the cell boundaries.
Gridlines are not printed.
o End marks: End-of-cell and end-of-row marks are non-printing characters that, like gridlines,
appear only on the screen.
o Cell spacing and margins: If you are using a table to arrange text and graphics – for example,
on a Web page – you can add spacing between table cells. You can also add cell “padding”
(spacing between the boundary of the cell and the text inside the cell) by changing the cell
margin.
o Nested tables: If you use a table to lay out a page, and you want to use another table to present
information, you can insert a nested table – a table within a table. Learn about nested tables.
o Table move handle and re-size handle: Use the table move handle to move the table to
another place on a page, and use the table re-size handle to change the size of a table.
Creating Table – using the Table Menu
We can create table by using ‘Table > Insert > Table’ menu. Type required number of columns
and rows in the box provide, and then will get a table. You can also create a table by drawing it with
pencil tool. It can found in the table – draw tool as shown in the figure.
Draw line Select Style Selecting Fills color Creating Table Sorting data
of line color of line
Erase line Selecting Grid/Broder Merge Split cells Sum data

Thickness of line cells
Fig. 9.6: Creating Table – using the Table Menu

To Create a Table – using the Insert Table Icon
Place the cursor at the location you wish to place the table. Click on the Insert Table icon on
the Standard toolbar and drag the mouse over the grid to select the number of rows and columns
you required.
Fig. 9.7: To Create a Table – using the Insert Table Icon
Note: You will notice that the maximum number of columns and rows are 4 × 5 Table. If you are
creating a Microsoft Word table that is more that 4 × 5, just click on the existing grid and
drag the mouse to the required columns and rows.
Steps of Editing MS-Word Table
(a) To Enter Text into a MS-Word Table: Click on any cell and start typing text or number to
the table. To move from cell to cell use the Tab key or mouse click.
(b) To Resize Column Widths and Row Heights: Change the column widths and row heights
by clicking the cell dividers and dragging them with the mouse.

(c) Aligning Data/Text in a Cell: Click on the Formatting Palette or the Formatting Toolbar
to align text. You can click on “Align Left,” “Align Center,” “Align Right,” or “Justify.” If
you have trouble figuring out which is which, hold your mouse over the options and a text
box will appear to tell you. The toolbar is located above the document window and the
formatting palette is usually to the left of the document window, but can be moved by
dragging it.
(d) To Select a Column or Multiple Columns: Move the mouse pointer to the top of the
column and the cursor will change from an I-bean to a small, thick downward pointing
arrow. Click to select the column. If you wish to select multiple columns, just drag the
mouse across the columns.
(e) To Select a Row or Multiple Rows: Move the mouse pointer to the left of the outside table
row you wish to select, until the mouse pointer changes from an I-bean to an arrow pointing
upwards and to the right. Click once to select the row. If you wish to select multiple rows,
just drag the mouse to select few rows at once.
(f) To Select the Whole Table: Click anywhere inside the table. From the Table menu, point
to Select and click on Table.
(g) To Insert a Column or Row into the Table: From the existing table, select the column or
row where you want the new one to appear. From the Table menu, point to Insert and
select the appropriate options: Columns to the Left / Columns to the Right / Row
Above / Row Below.
(h) To Delete a Column or Row from the Table: Select the column(s) or row(s) you want to
delete. From the Table menu, point to Delete and select either Columns / Rows.
(i) To Delete the Entire MS-Word Table: Click anywhere within the table. From the Table
menu, point to Delete and select Table.
OR click the Cut icon on the Standard toolbar.

(j) To Merge Cells in a Table: Select the cells you wish to combine to make a single cell.
From the Table menu, click Merge Cells.
(k) To Split Cells in a Table: To split cells into two or more cells, select the cells you wish to
split. From the Table menu, click Split Cells. From the Split Cells dialog box displayed,
enter the number of columns or rows you wish to split the cell into and then select OK or
press Enter.
(l) To Split a MS-Word Table: Place the insertion point where you want to split the table. For
example, we have a table that contains 5 rows, so place the insertion point on row 3. From
the Table menu, click Split Table. A blank row will appear in the table, above the current
row, to create a separate table.
9.8 Summary
A Word Processor is a software package that helps you to create and edit the documents.
Creating a document involves typing it into the internal memory of the computer and saving it by
writing it onto the disk.
MS-Word is a computer program that enables you to type, modify, print and save texts for
future revisions and retrievals. You enter text into the computer using a keyboard. As you type your
words are displayed on the monitor and are stored temporarily in the computer’s memory as you are
creating the document rather than on a paper.
To enter text, just start typing! The text will appear where the blinking cursor is located. For
example, you can type the following text into it accordingly. My name is John Smith. Today I just
learn how to type using MS Word.
Tables are often used to organize and present information, but they have a variety of other uses
as well. It behaves just like a spreadsheet or worksheet. So, the data in it can be sorted (in ascending
or descending order) and we can use formulas to calculate values in table. Merging cells and splitting
cells is also possible in table.

When you point to any menu title and click once with the mouse, the menu will open, displaying
all the commands available under the menu title. Clicking on the desired command would tell word
to execute that command.
Toolbars contain buttons, drop–down menus and other controls that help you quickly alter the
appearance and arrangement of documents by executing a variety of word commands. Toolbars are
very helpful and convenient in quickly executing commands without having to go through menus.
In Microsoft Word, you can cut (delete) text from one area of a document and save that text so
it can be pasted elsewhere in the document. When you cut text, it is stored on the Clipboard. You
can also copy text. When you copy text, it is also stored on the Clipboard.
In Microsoft Word, you can copy text from one area of the document and place that text
elsewhere in the document. As with cut data, copied data is stored on the Clipboard.
Applies or removes character formats from selected text or from the insertion point forward as
you type. Also allows you to changes the default formats for the current document and all other
documents that are based on the current template.
In Microsoft Word, a paragraph is a distinct unit of information that has its own formatting
characteristics, such as Alignment, Line Spacing, Indent and Tab. The process of changing the
format of a paragraph is very similar to that of changing the format of characters.
 Page Numbering: Page numbering is the process of applying a sequence of numbers (or
letters, or roman numerals) to the pages of a book or other document.
 Insurance and Banking: Bank insurance helps protect individuals who deposit their savings
in banks.
 Ruler: The ruler is a measurement tool found with some software programs that allow the
program's user to align graphics.

 Envelop in MS-Word: Word includes a feature that allows you to easily create and print
envelopes.
 Building Block: A component that fits with others to form a whole: standardized software
building blocks.

1. Explain about the formatting of document and Table Manipulation in MS-Word.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
2. Explain the various menu in MS-Word with their elements in details.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
1. Explain the features and the advantages of word processor.
2. Discuss about the new features of MS-Word.
3. How to design a document in MS-Word? Explain.
4. Explain formatting bullet and numbering of a document.
5. Discuss about the parts of the table.
6. Explain the process of printing a document.

1. Printing multiple pages and multiple copies at the same then there arises the use of
__________.
(a) Copies (b) Forward Button
(c) Collate (d) None
2. __________ is used when we want more refined shapes.
(a) Scribble (b) Pen
(c) Freeform (d) Curve
3. Spelling and Grammar tab is found under __________.
(a) Tools (b) File
(c) Insert (d) None
4. __________ add a border around selected text.
(a) Outside Border (b) Highlight
(c) Table (c) None
Answers:
1. (c), 2. (c), 3. (a), 4 (a)
9.12 References


UNIT 10 MS-EXCEL
Structure:
10.1 Introduction
10.2 Workbook
10.3 Worksheet
10.4 Microsoft Excel

10.5 Formatting in Excel
10.6 Advanced Formatting in Excel
10.7 Working with Formulas
10.8 Functions in MS-Excel
10.9 Operators in MS-Excel

10.10 Printing Worksheets
10.11 Summary
10.15 References

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 Understand the concept of Excel
 Understand the concept of Workbook, Worksheet
 Learn formatting in Excel
 Understand the concept of advanced formatting in Excel
 Explain the working with formulas
 Understand the concept of Printing worksheets
10.1 Introduction
Any grid or array of numbers and/or text in rows and columns is called a Spreadsheet. This
array or grid is a place to write down numbers and calculate them easily. The electronic spreadsheet
is an extremely useful application program for both the business and the home user. One of the
popular spreadsheet package is MS Excel. It is made up of horizontal rows and vertical columns in
the data can be stored.
Spreadsheet software makes it possible to enter data into a table format, manipulate them,
store them, print them and create reports and graphs using them. All this can be done with relative
ease compared to working by hand with the same rows and columns of data.
In a spreadsheet the rows are labeled with numbers and columns with alphabets. The intersection
of a row and a column is called a cell. The intersection of row 3 with column C is cell C3. This
naming convention is followed in all worksheets. For example, the first cell, the cell obtained from
the intersection of row 1 with column A is called A1.
There are many software companies authorizing spreadsheet programmes. Some of the most
popular ones are: Lotus 1-2-3, MS-Excel, Quatro-Pro, VP Planner, Multiplan, SoftCalc. With the
spreadsheet, we can prepare the following:
• Budgets • Annual reports
• Accounts payable and receivable • Production schedules

• Invoices • Income statements
• Loan analysis • Tax statements
• Developing business plan • Graphing trends
• Maintaining data on employees or clients • Managing inventory
• Performing standard accounting functions
10.2 Workbook
In Microsoft Excel, a workbook is a collection of one or more spreadsheets, also called
worksheets, in a single file. Below is an example of a spreadsheet called “Sheet1” in an Excel
workbook file called “Book1”. Our example also has the “Sheet2” and “Sheet3” sheet tabs, which
are also part of the same workbook.
A workbook is a file that contains one or more worksheets to help you organize data. You can
create a new workbook from a blank workbook or a template.
How to Create a New Workbook?
To create a new workbook in Microsoft Excel, follow the steps below for your version of
Excel.
1. Open Excel.
2. Click the File tab.
3. Click New.
4. Click Blank workbook.
Workbook Details
Add worksheets to a workbook using the context menu or the New Sheet/Add Sheet icon (+)
next to the current sheet tabs.
Delete or hide individual worksheets in a workbook.
Rename individual worksheets and change worksheet tab colors to make it easier to identify
individual sheets in a workbook using the context menu.

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Change from one worksheet to another in a workbook by clicking the sheet tab at the bottom
of the screen.
In Excel, use the following shortcut key combinations to switch between worksheets:
Ctrl+PgUp (page up): Move to the right
Ctrl+PgDn (page down): Move to the left
Worksheets
A worksheet or sheet is a single page in a file created with an electronic spreadsheet program
such as Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets. A workbook is the name given to an Excel file and
contains one or more worksheets. When you open an electronic spreadsheet program it loads an
empty workbook file consisting of one or more blank worksheets for you to use.
Worksheet Details
A worksheet is used to store, manipulate, and display data.
The basic storage unit for data in a worksheet is a rectangular-shaped cell arranged in a grid
pattern in every worksheet. Individual cells of data are identified and organized using the vertical
column letters and horizontal row numbers of a worksheet which create a cell reference, such as
A1, D15, or Z467.
Worksheet specifications for current versions of Excel include:
1,048,576 rows per worksheet, 16,384 columns per worksheet, 17,179,869,184 cells per worksheet
Limited number of sheets per file based on the amount of memory available on the computer.
Difference between a workbook, worksheet, and spreadsheet
Because the terms spreadsheet, workbook, and worksheet are so similar, there can be a lot of
confusion when trying to understand their differences. When you open Microsoft Excel (a spreadsheet
program), you're opening a workbook. A workbook can contain one or more different worksheets
that can be accessed through the tabs at the bottom of the worksheet you are currently viewing.
What's often most confusing is that a worksheet is synonymous with a spreadsheet. In other words,

a spreadsheet and worksheet mean the same thing. However, most people only refer to the program
as a spreadsheet program and the files it creates as spreadsheet files.
10.3 Worksheet
The computer processes data at a great speed and stores huge amounts of data. The following
important advantages are:
(i) Large worksheets can be stored effortlessly on the computer.
(ii) Making changes is simple.
(iii) Entering data is fast and easy.
(iv) Calculations on the electronic Worksheet are almost error-free that is, if the data entered is
correct, then the results are definitely correct.
(v) Extracting meaningful information is easy.
Applications of Worksheet
(a) Budgets: Worksheets are commonly used to develop and monitor budgets. The budgeted
items are usually listed across the row. The columns indicate various budget periods.
(b) Inventory Management: Many small business use worksheets to keep track of inventory.
The various inventory items are listed down the rows. The columns give the number or
items shipped and the number of items remaining in the inventory at particular times.
(c) Portfolio Management: Worksheets are used to keep track of investment portfolios. Each
investment occupies a single line.
(d) Proposal Costing: To arrive at a final bid for a contract, an executive must consider
hundreds of costs that affect the job, including wage rates, the costs of raw materials,
permits, taxes and the desired level of profits. The data related to the bid may be arranged
in the form of a Worksheet.
(e) Management Decision Support: Worksheets are commonly used to make projections of
business condition. They are used in analyzing the effects of changes in various conditions.

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Characteristics of a Worksheet
Although Worksheet software organizes data into rows and columns, it has many other
characteristics, which makes it one of the most popular applications packages. A user must understand
these characteristics so that he can develop applications using it and use it as a problem-solving and
decision-making tool. These characteristics include:
1. Table Format
2. Data Forms
3. Recalculations
4. Storage and Retrieval
5. Presentation
6. Standard Format.
10.4 Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Office Excel is a powerful and widely used tool that helps people analyze information
to make more informed decisions. Using Office Excel and Excel Services, you can share and
manage your analysis and insight with coworkers, customers and partners with greater confidence.
Here are the top 10 ways in which Office Excel can help you create spreadsheets and analyze,
share and manage information more effectively.
1. Office Excel features the Microsoft Office Fluent user interface to help you find powerful
tools when you need them. Based on the job you need to accomplish, whether it’s creating
a table or writing a formula, Office Excel presents the appropriate commands when you
need them.
2. Import, organize and explore massive data sets within significantly expanded spreadsheets.
Work with massive amounts of data in Office Excel, which supports spreadsheets that can
be up to 1 million rows by 16,000 columns.

3. Use the completely redesigned charting engine in Office Excel to communicate your analysis
in professional-looking charts. Apply rich visual enhancements to your charts such as 3-D
effects, soft shadowing and transparency.
4. Create, format, expand, filter and refer to tables within formulas because Office Excel has
greatly improved support for tables. When you’re viewing data contained in a large table,
Office Excel keeps table headings in view while you scroll.
5. Find the answers you need faster and create and use PivotTable views more easily by
dragging fields where you want them to be displayed.
6. New schemes include color gradients, heat maps, data bars and performance indicator
icons.
7. Use Office Excel and Excel Services to help share spreadsheets more securely with others.
8. Help ensure you and your organization work with the most current business information.
Control which users can view and modify spreadsheets on the server using permission-
based access.
9. Reduce the size of spreadsheets and improve damaged file recovery at the same time.
This new format provides a tremendous savings to storage and bandwidth requirements
and reduces the burden on IT personnel.
10. Take advantage of the flexibility and the new cube functions in Office Excel to build a
custom report from an OLAP database. You can also connect to external sources of data
more easily using the Data Connection Library.
Features of MS-Excel
(i) Entering and Editing Text: To enter any text, simply activate any cell by clicking on it
and starting typing. Press enter to conclude entry. If we made any mistake while typing,
simply press backspace key to erase the present contents and type the correct text. If you
notice an error after finishing the entry, activate the relevant cell and press F2 function key.

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(ii) Entering Numbers: Numbers are basic raw materials for spreadsheets. You can type
numbers either by using the number keys on top of letter keys or by using extended numeric
pad on the keyboard.
(iii) Entering Formulas: The real power of Excel lies in it being able to store complex formulas.
You can either build formulas using absolute numbers or use relative cell address like = A1
+ B1.
(iv) Entering Dates: In Excel you cannot only enter dates but can also do mathematics on
them. Here dates are stored as numbers.
(v) Alignment: Any text that you type is always left aligned within the cell. Any number that
you type is always right aligned within the cells. These alignments can be changed as per
you requirements.
Parts of MS-Excel
Spreadsheets, electronically duplicates an accountants or a book Keeper’s tools such as a

ledger pad, a pencil, an eraser and a calculator. With spreadsheets we enter and correct figures by
typing on a keyboard rather than writing with a pencil and we view the figures on the computer
screen rather than reading a ledger pad.
Once you enter data on the spreadsheet, you can apply a variety of calculations from simple
addition, subtraction, multiplication and division to trigonometric, statistical and business calculations.
Spreadsheets can sort and analyze data, create charts, graphs and figures to assess the impacts of
changes to input variables.

Title Menu Formula Standard Minimise Restore Close

Current bar bar bar Toolbar
cell
pointer
Cell Sheet tab-scrolling Sheet Horizontal Scroll Bar Vertical Scroll Bar Pointer
Name Scroll
Fig. 10.1: Parts of MS-Excel
Different Types of Bars
Title Bar
The title bar contains the control button, the application title Microsoft Excel and the sizing
buttons.
Menu Bar
The Excel menu bar contains the 9 menu pads, File, Edit, View, Insert, Format, Tools, Data,
Window and Help. The underlined letters are the hotkey letters for the menu pads. Pressing the
underlined hotkey letters along with Alt key can open a menu pad and display its contents. For
example, pressing Alt-V can open the View menu pad.

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Formula Bar
The formula bar consists of three sections. The first section contains the Name Box, which
contains the cell reference of the active cell. The second section is blank unless text, number, a
function, a formula or an expression is being entered or changed in the active cell. The three buttons
are Cancel button (X), the Enter button and the Function Wizard button (=). The Cancel button
erases the entry or the changes made to the active cell. The Enter button confirms the entry or the
changes made to the active cell. The Function Wizard button helps in entering Excel formulas and
functions in the active cell.
Status Bar
The status bar is at the bottom of the screen. It displays the current condition of the Excel work
space on the left side and the keyboard modes which determine the action task on right end. The
status changes to Edit when the contents of the active cell are being changed. The status changes to
Enter when data is being entered in the active cell. The status indicates Point when a cell reference
is being entered by pointing to it.
Toolbar
A toolbar consists of a group of icons and drop down list boxes. The icons are also called tools
or tool buttons. A tool button on the toolbar is a shortcut for a menu item on the menu bar.
Cell, Cell Address and Worksheet
In spreadsheet applications, a cell is a box in which you can enter a single piece of data. The
data is usually text, a numeric value or a formula. The entire spreadsheet is composed of rows and
columns of cells. Each CELL is assigned a name according to its COLUMN letter and ROW
number.
A spreadsheet is divided into boxes called cells. Columns are lettered A..Z, then AA..AZ,
BA..BZ and so on. There are also 65,536 rows in an Excel spreadsheet, each of them numbered.
Cell address is to identify cell by its column and its row like A3,D7.
A single spreadsheet that contains rows and columns of data is called a worksheet. In Excel, a
worksheet will have a little white tab at the bottom of the screen. A worksheet is treated like a
database table.

Row, Column and Cell Pointer
In a spreadsheet the row is defined as the horizontal space that is going across the window.
Numbers are used to designate each row’s location. The column is defined as the vertical space that
is going up and down the window. Letters are used to designate each column’s location. There are
256th columns and 65,536 rows in a spreadsheet. Cell pointer is a highlighted rectangle around a
cell that indicates the active cell.
10.5 Formatting in Excel

Formatting Cells
Formatting a cell provides some facilities by which we can change the types of data entered in
cell. Changing alignment, changing orientation, word – wrap, merging cells, font management,
adding or removing boarders, supplying patterns, protecting the cell, formatting columns and worksheets
are some of the functionalists provided in formatting the cell.
Alignment
Alignment means tilted towards something. We can align the text means that we are moving
the text to some part of the page (e.g., to the left, to the right or to the center). We have generally
following types of alignments in a spreadsheet:
(a) Horizontal Alignment
(i) General
(ii) Left
(iii) Right
(iv) Fill
(v) Justify
(vi) Center Across selection

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(b) Vertical Alignment
(i) Top
(ii) Center
(iii) Bottom
(iv) Justify
Orientation
Text can be written in any direction and any angled inclination. So, the way of writing the text
in any direction is called orientation. This can be done from the ‘Format’ > Cells, alignment tab and
Orientation option.
Word Wrap
This is the facility available in ‘format > cells > Alignment > Wrap Text’, by which we can
manage text flow in side a cell. Using ‘wrap text’ facility, the height of row will be increased (not its
width) and size of text remains same.
Shrink to Fit
When we select ‘Shrink to fit’, increases or decreases the font size in the cell in order to make
the current worksheet fit in the page. If we select ‘Auto fit’, the row height is increased or decreased
but fonts are unchanged.
Merge Cells
Making two or more cells into one cell is called merging cells. It is done when we need two
more cells as a single cell. Generally, it is used for headings.
Font Management
Using this facility, we change font types, its size, colour, type of underline and font effect.
Border and Frames
In this option, we can add or remove boarders (grids) in the worksheets, change width of
border lines, colour of borders.

Patterns
By using this option, we can supply background colour, pattern and design or any pictures in the
cell, selected range or to the whole worksheet.
Formatting Row and Columns
Using this facility, we can change width of column/row, hide the column/row and its content
and unhide column/row etc.
Formatting Sheet
By using this, we can rename sheet, hide sheet, unhide sheet and supply a background picture
or pattern to the whole sheet. But the background provided will not be available for printing. This is
called watermark.
Data Sorting
The way of arranging the data in ascending or descending order is called data sorting. To sort
the data in Excel, we should follow the following steps:
(a) Click on any cell on the database.
(b) Select the field which is to be sort.
(c) Click OK.
10.6 Advanced Formatting in Excel

These advanced formatting tutorials will help you take your spreadsheets to the next level with
conditional formats, zebra-striped tables, and more.
How to use conditional formatting? Conditional formatting allows you to apply formatting that
changes depending on the value of a cell. Learn how to use it here!
Conditional Formatting
Conditional formatting enables you to automatically draw attention to interesting, exciting,

concerning, unusual, or other data. Uses of conditional formatting include:

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1. Highlighting the highest or lowest numbers in a report.
2. Highlighting numbers above or below a certain number.
3. Highlighting specific values with specific colors.
4. Drawing attention to specific dates.
5. Highlighting cells that contain specific text.
6. Highlighting numbers within a certain range.
7. Visually displaying the values within cells.
Conditional formatting functionality includes:
1. Highlight Cells Rules. Highlight numbers greater than, less than, between, or equal to
specific numbers. Also highlight cells that include specific text, dates with a specified range,
and duplicate values.
2. Top/Bottom Rules. Highlight the top or bottom X or X% results in a data set, or numbers
that are above or below average.
3. Data Bars. Visually display values by filling portions of cells with colors based on the
values.
4. Color Scales. Visually display values by associating cell colors with the values in the cells.
5. Icon Sets. Visually display values using icons.
6. Formatting Based on Values in Other Cells. Formatting can be based on the value
within the cell itself or on the value within another cell.
10.7 Working with Formulas

In MS-Excel, formula option includes numbers, cell references, functions, operators and
parentheses. A formula entry always begins with an equal (=) sign.
For example, the cell D3 and D4 contain respectively 78 and 22. In D5, enter the formula =
D3–D4. After confirming the entry, the cell shows the result 56, while the formula bar will show the
entered formula. If the contents of either or both of these cells are changed Excel automatically

recalculates the result in cell D5. That is, if the contents of cell D3 are changed to 63, D5 will
automatically display 63–22 = 41.
Fig. 10.2: Example of using Formula

Additionally, once you have entered the formula, you can change the data and Excel will
automatically recalculate the answer for you.
Excel formulas are great for working out “What if” scenarios that compare calculations based
on changing data. Once the formula is entered, you need only change the amounts to be calculated.
You don’t have to keep entering “plus this” or “minus that” like you do with a regular calculator. So,
working out the sales tax you will pay if you spend this amount or that on an item, or calculating what
your income will be if you work so many hours a week, is easily done with Excel formulas.
Writing the Formula
Writing Excel formulas is a little different than the way it is done in math class.
Excel formulas starts with the equal sign ( = ) rather than ending with it. The equal sign always
goes in the cell where you want the formula answer to appear. The equal sign informs Excel that
what follows is part of a formula, and not just a name or a number.
Excel formulas look like this:
=3+2
rather than:
3+2=
Steps of Entering Formula in MS-Excel
Let’s try a step by step example. We will write a simple formula in Excel to add the
numbers 3 + 2.

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Step 1: Entering the data
It’s best if you first enter all of your data into the spreadsheet before you begin creating
formulas. This way you will know if there are any layout problems and it is less likely that you will
need to correct your formula later.
1. Type a 3 in cell A1 and press the ENTER key on the keyboard.
2. Type a 2 in cell A2 and press the ENTER key on the keyboard.

Step 2: Add the Equal (=) Sign
When creating formulas in Microsoft Excel, you ALWAYS start by typing the equal sign. You
type it in the cell where you want the answer to appear.
1. Click on cell C1 (outlined in black in the image) with your mouse pointer.
2. Type the equal sign in cell C1.
Step 3: Add Cell References Using Pointing
After typing the equal sign in step 2, you have two choices for adding cell references to the
spreadsheet formula.
1. You can type them in or,
2. You can use an Excel feature called Pointing.
Pointing allows you to click with your mouse on the cell containing your data to add its cell
reference to the formula.
Fig. 10.3: Add Cell References Using Pointing

After typing an equal sign in cell E3 in step 2:
1. Click on cell A1 with the mouse pointer to enter the cell reference into the formula.
2. Type a plus (+) sign.
3. Click on cell A2 with the mouse pointer to enter the cell reference into the formula
4. Press the ENTER key on the keyboard
The answer 5 should appear in cell C1.
10.8 Functions in MS-Excel

Functions carry some specific work. It minimizes a large work. A function can be of two types,
that are:
(a) User-defined Function:
A user-defined functions are defined by the user for their specific purpose, which is not available
for other users.
(b) System Defined Function:
System defined user are available to all user by default and they provide some general purpose
functionalities. Following are some types of System Defined Functions and their examples:
1. Mathematical Function
(i) SUM(): This function calculates sum of the value in the given range.
For example, = SUM(A1:A5) = SUM(A1,A4,B5,D6.D10)
(ii) Autosum: It is built- in function in Ms-Excel by which we can find out of the numbers in
selected range of cells. Its icon is . This function can be performed with the command
= SUM(rang) also.
(iii) AVERAGE(): This function calculates average of the values in given range.
For example, = AVERAGE(A1,A2,A3,A4) = AVERAGE (A1:A5)
(iv) MAX(): Finds out the largest value in the given range.
For example, = MAX(A1,A5,A7,A9) = MAX(A1:A10)

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(v) MIN(): Finds out the smallest value in the given range.
For example, = MIN(A1,A5,A7,A9) = MIN(A1:A10)
(vi) COUNT(): Counts the number of cells that contains numbers in the specified range.
For example, = COUNT (C5:C10)
2. Date Function
(i) DATE (year, month, day): Returns the serial number corresponding to the given date.
(ii) NOW(): Returns the serial number of the current date and time.
(iii) CTRL +: [colon] – It returns current time in the cell.
(iv) CTR1+: [semi colon] – It returns current ate in the cell.
3. Text Function
(i) LEFT(): It returns the strings from the left.
For Example, = LEFT(“Father”,3) the result is ‘Fat’

(ii) MID(): It returns value of a string from the middle.
For example, = MID(“Father”,3,3) , the result is ‘the’
= MID(“India”,3,2), the result is ‘di’

(iii) RIGHT(): It returns the strings from the left.
For example, = RIGHT (“FATHER”,3), the result is HER
(iv) LEN(): Returns number of characters in the given string.
For example, = LEN (“INDIA”,), the result is 5.
(v) PROPER(): Returns a string to proper case, which means that all the strings will be
displayed with each of the word’s first letter being capital.
For example, = PROPER (“ I love Indial”), the result is I love India’.
(vi) PEPT(): Repeats a given character to given number of times.
For example, = REPT(“*”,5), it displays five*.

(vii) UPPER(): Displays given string in small letters.
For example, = UPPER (“INDIA”), the result is ‘INDIA’.
(ix) LOWER(): Displays given string in small letters.
For example, = LOWER (“INDIA”), the result is ‘india’.
4. Logical Function
(i) IF (condition, true result, false result): It is used to make logical decisions. If the
condition provided is true then it displays the result which is provided at first and if the
condition is false then it displays the result which is provided at the last.
For example, = IF (A5<100,” Good”, ”Bad”). Suppose, A5 contains value

50, the result is ‘Good’.
Function Wizard
The function name and the arguments required by the function are not easy to remember when
you first begin using Excel. Excel provides the Function Wizard to help in entering functions in a
worksheet when you are not familiar with them. Carry out the following steps to enter the Sum of
cells B7 through B11 in cell B12 using the Function Wizard.
1. Click on cell B12 to move the cell selector to cell B12 and to activate it.
2. Select the Insert tab of Excel main menu.
3. Select the Function option in the Insert menu. The Paste Function dialog box opens.
4. Select the Math and Trig option in the Function Category: List box, as Sum is a mathematical
function.
5. Select Sum from the Function name: List box
6. Choose the OK command button. The Sum function dialog box opens with the range B7:B11
automatically filled in
7. Choose the OK command button. The formula = Sum (B7:B11) is entered in cell B12 by
the Function Wizard.

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The proper range could be typed in the Number 1 text box if the pre-selected range is not
proper.
If Statement
An If Statement is used in Excel to do certain actions only if something is true. For example,
you might want to print out the message “We are losing money” if total sales for the quarter are
below some amount. Otherwise, you’d just want to print out “We’re making money!”. The IF
function has three parts:
(i) The comparison you will be doing. We are using A2 < 40000.
(ii) What to do if the If statement is true.
(iii) What to do if the If statement is false.
The IF function needs to have some sort of comparison to operate properly. A very common
type of comparison is greater/less than (>/<). These math symbols can be used to form logical
expressions like “A2 < 40000”, which in English means “Cell A2 is less than 40000”.
Now that logical expression can be either true or false and the IF function lets you do something
for each result. In this little example we will be making our IF function print out something our boss
might say.
10.9 Operators in MS-Excel

Operators are symbols used to specify the type of calculation that is to be performed on the
elements of formula or show between cells and its values. There are four types of operators in MS-
Excel.
(a) Arithmetic Operators

Operators Meaning Example
+  Addition  = A1+B1, 3+5, = A1+7
–  Subtraction  = A1–B1, 3–5, = A1–7
*  Multiply  = A1*B1

/  Divide  = A1/B1
%  Percent  = 20%
^  Exponent  = 5^3
(b) Comparison Operators
=  Equal  A1 = B1
>  Greater than  A1 > B1
<  Less than  A1 < B1
>=  Greater than or Equal  A1 > = B1
<=  Less than or Equal  A1 < = B1
<>  Not equal to  A1 < > B1
(c) Text Operators
The “&” operator is called Text Operator because it combines two or more texts.
(d) Reference Operators
Reference Operators combines range of cells.
:  Range operator  B1: B5, which means from B1 to B5
,  Comma or  =Sum(B1:B5,A1:A5), which means Union

operator that find out the sum of values between
A1 to A5 and B1 to B5.

MS-Excel 255
10.10 Printing Worksheets

In the File menu choose the Print... option to display the Print dialog box. The printing options
can be selected through the dialog box. The keyboard shortcut for the Print dialog box is Ctrl+P. The
active sheet is printed according to settings specified in the Sheet tab of the Page Setup dialog box
and the settings in the Print dialog box. The active sheet will also be printed directly, without opening
the Print dialog box if the Print tool in the Standard toolbar is clicked, or if the Page Preview button
on the Standard toolbar is clicked when the Shift key is pressed.
10.11 Summary
Any grid or array of numbers and/or text in rows and columns is called a spreadsheet. This
array or grid is a place to write down numbers and calculate them easily.
Microsoft office excel 2007 is a powerful and widely used tool that helps people analyze
information to make more informed decisions. Using office excel 2007 and excel services, you can
share and manage your analysis and insight with coworkers, customers and partners with greater
confidence.
In spreadsheet applications, a cell is a box in which you can enter a single piece of data. the
data is usually text, a numeric value or a formula. The entire spreadsheet is composed of rows and
columns of cells. each cell is assigned a name according to its column letter and row number.
In the file menu choose the print... option to display the print dialog box. The printing options
can be selected through the dialog box. The keyboard shortcut for the print dialog box is Ctrl+P.
Spreadsheets, electronically duplicates an accountants or a book Keeper’s tools such as a

ledger pad, a pencil, an eraser and a calculator. With spreadsheets we enter and correct figures by
typing on a keyboard rather than writing with a pencil and we view the figures on the computer
screen rather than reading a ledger pad.
Formatting a cell provides some facilities by which we can change the types of data entered in
cell. Changing alignment, changing orientation, word – wrap, merging cells, font management,
adding or removing boarders, supplying patterns, protecting the cell, formatting columns and worksheets
are some of the functionalists provided in formatting the cell.

Conditional formatting enables you to automatically draw attention to interesting, exciting,

concerning, unusual, or other data.
In MS-Excel, formula option includes numbers, cell references, functions, operators and
parentheses. A formula entry always begins with an equal (=) sign.
The function name and the arguments required by the function are not easy to remember when
you first begin using Excel. Excel provides the Function Wizard to help in entering functions in a
worksheet when you are not familiar with them.
An If Statement is used in Excel to do certain actions only if something is true. For example,
you might want to print out the message “We are losing money” if total sales for the quarter are
below some amount.
 Spreadsheet: A spreadsheet is a sheet of paper that shows accounting or other data in

rows and columns
 Status Bar: A status bar is a graphical control element used to display certain status
information depending upon the application or device
 Toolbar: Toolbars are seen in many types of software such as office suites, graphics
editors and web browsers.
 Alignment: Arranging data to line up with a required format on a screen or printed form.
1. Explain about spreadsheet and formatting in Excel in detail.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————

MS-Excel 257
2. How is advanced formatting done in Excel? Explain.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
1. Explain different types of bar.
2. Explain Format and Tools Menu.
3. Discuss about formatting in Excel.
4. Explain the steps of entering formula in Excel.
5. Explain the types of charts.
1. Keyboard shortcut for Print dialog box is __________.
(a) Ctrl + S (b) Ctrl + I
(c) Ctrl + U (d) Ctrl + P
2. The __________ operator is called Text Operator.
(a) * (b) %
(c) & (d) None
3. LEN() __________.
(a) Returns value of a string from the middle
(b) Returns number of characters in the given string

(c) Displays given string in small letters
(d) Repeats a given character to given number of times
4. In MS-Excel, formula option includes __________.
(a) Numbers (b) Cell references
(c) Functions (d) All the above
5. __________ can manage text flow inside a cell.
(a) Wrap Text (b) Merge Cell
(c) Patterns (d) None
Answers:
1. (d), 2. (c), 3. (b), 4 (d), 5. (a)
10.15 References


MS-PowerPoint 259
UNIT 11 MS POWERPOINT
Structure:
11.1 Introduction
11.2 Features of Presentation Package (MS-PowerPoint)
11.3 Parts of MS-PowerPoint
11.4 Creating a Presentation

11.5 Advanced Formatting
11.6 Using Templates
11.7 Inserting Charts
11.8 Inserting Tables
11.9 Printing Presentations

11.10 Summary
11.14 References


 Understand the concept of MS-PowerPoint
 Understand the introduction and how to create a presentation in MS-PowerPoint
 Learn Basic and Advanced Formatting in PowerPoint
 Understand the concept of using templates and inserting charts
 Learn to insert the tables in PowerPoint
 Understand the concept of Printing Presentation
11.1 Introduction
PowerPoint is a component of Microsoft Office that is used to create professional-quality
presentations. PowerPoint is the best-selling presentation graphics software package in the world.
PowerPoint’s innovative tools and easy approach can help you make professional-looking presentations
quickly and easily.
These can be reproduced on transparency paper, 35 mm slides photo print and on-screen
presentation. PowerPoint components can be used to work on slides, organize presentation contents
with outline and generate speaker notes and audience handouts.
PowerPoint allows you to create the contents of your presentation by typing the text and
inserting pictures, sounds and animation. It also provides galleries of images and sounds. Power
Point makes the creation of any presentation simple by providing you with built-in professional
design elements called Auto Layouts and presentation templates. You can also create different
versions of a presentation for different audiences and build your contents in either a text-based
outline view. PowerPoint offers you a way to preview your show, add special effects to the slides as
displayed on-screen and rehearse the timings of each slide.

MS-PowerPoint 261
11.2 Features of Presentation Package (MS-PowerPoint)

1. Better Organization Charts and New Diagram Types
Organization charts now use the drawing tools in PowerPoint, resulting in smaller fields sizes
and easier editing. Also, PowerPoint includes a new gallery of common conceptual diagrams. You
can customize these pre-drawn diagrams with text, animation effects and a variety of formatting
styles. Choose from diagrams such as Pyramid for showing the building blocks of a relationship,
Radial for showing items in relation to a core element and more.
2. Save Background or Selection as Picture
When you want to create a presentation using the drawing tools in PowerPoint, you can save
it as a picture by right-click it. You can also save a texture or picture background from a slide in the
same way, that makes it easy to reuse these graphic elements.
3. Insert Multiple Pictures
When you want to insert pictures from files on your hard disk drive, you can select multiple
pictures and insert them all at once.
4. Picture Rotation
You can rotate and flip types of image file in a PowerPoint presentation including bitmaps.
5. Support for Audio and Video
Sounds and videos that you include in a presentation broadcast are heard and seen by the
audience, both in real-time or when archives.
6. Error Prevention and Recovery
Documents you are working on can be recovered if the program encounters an error or stops
responding. The documents are displayed in the Document Recovery task pane the next time you
open the program.

11.3 Parts of MS-PowerPoint

Title bar Menu bar Standard Toolbar Minimize Restore Close button
Drawing Toolbar
Fig. 11.1: Parts of MS-PowerPoint
The primary purpose of a presentation package is to help you create a presentation on your
computer. A presentation is simply a series of slides that contains visual information designed for the
audience. Microsoft’s PowerPoint is a presentation package using which one can effectively and
efficiently create professional looking handouts, overheads, charts and various types of visual aids
for use in a group presentation.
11.4 Creating a Presentation

Method 1: Click on New Button on the standard toolbar.
Method 2:
1. Click on File Menu New…
2. Select either of the four options (Blank presentation, From Design Template, From
AutoContent wizard, New from the existing presentation) displayed in the Task pane. From design

MS-PowerPoint 263
template: It will create a presentation with a colour scheme and a look for the slides, such as
“Ocean” or you can select any one of your choice. In this you have to provide the content of the
presentation. From AutoContent Wizard….: Through this wizard you can select the type of
presentation you want to create (Generic, Recommending a Strategy, Training, Brainstorming Session)
and PowerPoint creates an outline for the selected presentation. Refer the figure.
Method 3:
1. Click on Getting Started drop down Menu on the task pane and select “New Presentation”.
2. Select either of the Four options (Blank presentation, From Design Template, From
AutoContent wizard, New from the existing presentation) displayed in the task pane.
Method 4: Press Shortcut key “Ctrl+N” on the keyboard.
Method 5:
1. Click on Start button à New Office Document
2. Click on General Tab
3. Select Blank Presentation
4. Click on OK button
Animate Text and Objects
1. In normal view, display the slide that has the text or objects you want to animate.
2. On the Slide Show menu, click Custom Animation, and then click the Effects tab. If you
are animating a chart created in Microsoft Graph, click the Chart Effects tab.
3. Under Check to animate slide objects, select the check box next to the text or object
you want to animate.
4. Under Entry animation and sound and Introduce text (if you are animating text), select
the options you want.
5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 for every object you want to animate.
6. Click the Order and Timing tab.

7. To change the order of animation, select the object you want to change under Animation
order, and then click one of the arrows to move the object up or down in the list.
8. To set the timing, select the object and then do one of the following:
 To start the animation by clicking the text or object, click On mouse click.
 To start the animation automatically, click Automatically and then enter the number of
seconds you want to have elapse between the previous animation and the current one.
9. To preview animations, click Preview.
11.5 Advanced Formatting

Getting the slide design right is no easy task because you must strike a balance between giving
your audience the eye candy they expect and not overwhelming your message with too many
formatting bells and design whistles. With this balance as the goal, here are some design guidelines
to bear in mind when constructing your knockout presentation:
1. Consider your audience, because some designs will suit certain audiences better than others.
For example, if you’re presenting to children, a bright, happy design with kid-friendly images
will work, whereas a plain, text-heavy design will induce naptime. On the other hand, if
you’re presenting to managers or the board of directors, you’ll need a design that gets
straight to the point and has little in the way of design frills.
2. Consider your company’s image. I mean this in two ways: First and most obviously, if your
company has a set color scheme or style, your presentation should reflect that. Second, if
your company is known as one that’s staid or bold, serious or fun, your presentation should
not conflict with that image.
3. Be consistent across all your slides. This means using the same typeface and type size for
all your titles, using consistent bullet styles throughout the presentation, using the same or
similar background images on all slides, and having the company logo in the same place on
each slide. The more consistent you are, the less work your audience has interpreting the
formatting for each slide, so the more they’ll concentrate on your content.
4. However, don’t use the same layout on every slide. To help keep your audience interested,
vary the layout from slide to slide: Title Only, Text and Title, Text and Content, Content
Only, and so on.
MS-PowerPoint 265
5. For the typeface, use sans serif fonts (the ones without the little "feet" at the letter tips),
such as Arial, Comic Sans MS, Microsoft Sans Serif, and Verdana. These typefaces are
easier to read than serif typefaces (the ones with the little "feet") and are a much better
choice than fancy, decorative typefaces, which are very difficult to decipher from a distance.
11.6 Using Templates

PowerPoint comes with two types of templates:
Design Templates: Design templates contain predesigned formats and color schemes you
can apply to any presentation to give it a particular look.
Content Templates: Content Templates contain formats and color schemes just like design
templates, plus slides with suggested text for specific subjects.
You can modify any of the templates to suit your needs, or you can make a new template based
on a presentation you’ve already created. You can add the new template to the AutoContent Wizard
so that it will be available the next time you use the wizard.
Create a Design Template
1. Open an existing presentation, or use a design template to create a presentation as a basis

for your new design template.
2. Change the template or presentation to suit your needs.
3. On the File menu, click Save As.
4. In the File name box, type a name for your design template.
5. In the Save as type box, click Design Template.
You can save your new design template in one of your own folders, or you can save it with
the other design templates in the Presentation Designs folder.
Create a Content Template
1. Open an existing presentation or template that you want to base your new template on.
2. Change the presentation or template to suit your needs.

4. In the Save as type box, click Design Template.
5. In the File name box, enter a name for the new template, and then click Save.
Slide
A slide is a page, document or template where all the content of a presentation is written. It is
just like a page of paper or page of slide show. A single page in the slide show presentation is known
as a slide. A slide is a container, which can contain – texts, pictures, charts, drawing and animations,
etc. which are also known as objects.
Different Views of Slide
Normal View: Switches to normal view, where you can work on one slide at a time or organize
the structure of all the slides in your presentation
Outline View: Switches to outline view, where you can work with the structure of your file in
outline form. Work in outline view when you need to organize the structure of your file.
Slide View: Switches to slide view, where you can work on one slide at a time
Slide Sorter View: Displays miniature versions of all slides in a presentation, complete with
text and graphics. In slide sorter view, you can reorder slides, add transitions, and animation effects.
You can also set the timings for electronic slide shows.
Slide Show View: Runs your slide show in a full screen, beginning with the current slide if you
are in slide view or the selected slide if you are in slide sorter view.
Slide Show and Presentation
Collection of more than one slide together on a particular topic is known as presentation. So, a
presentation may contain different sides, different contents, different objects and different animations.
How the slides are flown from one to another is defined in slide show.
The extension for a file saved as a slide show is .pps. When you open this type of file from
your desktop, it will automatically start as a slide show. PowerPoint closes when the show ends, and
you return to the desktop. If you start the show from within PowerPoint, the presentation opens and
can be edited.

MS-PowerPoint 267
Slide Show Preparation
To start a slide show from within PowerPoint, do any of the following:
 Click Slide Show at the lower left of the PowerPoint window.
 On the Slide Show menu, click View Show.
 On the View menu, click Slide Show.
 Press F5.
Save a Presentation as a Slide Show
Following the steps to save a presentation to always open as a slide show:
1. Open the presentation you want to save as a slide show.
3. In the Save as type list, click PowerPoint Show.
11.7 Inserting Charts

A chart is a tool you can use to communicate your data graphically. Displaying charts in
PowerPoint allows your audience to see the meaning behind the numbers, and it makes showing
comparisons and trends much easier. In this lesson, you will learn how to insert charts and modify
them so they communicate information effectively.
PowerPoint uses an Excel worksheet as a placeholder for entering chart data. Therefore,
when you insert or edit a chart in PowerPoint, an Excel window will automatically open. The process
is user-friendly, but if you are totally unfamiliar with Excel, you might want to review our Cell Basics
lesson from the Excel.
To insert a chart:
1. Select the Insert tab.
2. Click the Insert Chart command in the Illustrations Group. The Insert Chart dialog box will
appear.

Fig. 11.2: To Insert a Chart

3. Select a category from the left pane of the dialog box, and review the charts that appear in
the center. If you are unsure about which chart best fits your needs, review the interactive
on the previous page.
Fig. 11.3: Select a Category

4. Select the desired chart.
5. Click OK. An Excel window will open with a placeholder for your data.

MS-PowerPoint 269
Fig. 11.4: Excel Window

If a slide layout has a content placeholder, you can also click the Insert Chart command to
insert a new chart.
11.8 Inserting Tables

Tables are another tool you can use to display information in PowerPoint. A table is a grid of
cells arranged in rows and columns. Tables can be customized and are useful for various tasks such
as presenting text information and numerical data.
Working with tables
In PowerPoint, tables are useful for organizing and presenting data. To use tables in your slide
show, you'll need to know how to insert them, apply table styles, and format them.
To insert a blank table:
1. On the Insert tab, click the Table command.
2. Hover your mouse over the diagram squares to select the number of columns and rows in
the table.

Fig. 11.5: To Insert a Blank Table

3. Click your mouse. The table will appear on the slide.
4. You can now place the insertion point anywhere in the table to add text.
To make sure your table looks good with the slide layout, you can also insert a table using the
placeholder. Click the Insert Table icon in the placeholder, then enter the desired number of rows
and columns.
To move a table:
1. Place the cursor over the edge of the table. The cursor will turn into a cross with arrows.
2. Click and drag the table to the desired location.
3. Release the mouse button to drop the table in the new location.
Modifying Tables
To resize a table:
1. Position the mouse over one of the sizing handles located around the edge of the table. The
cursor will become a pair of directional arrows.
2. Click, hold, and drag your mouse to make the table larger or smaller.

MS-PowerPoint 271
Fig. 11.6: To Resize a Table

3. Release the mouse. The table will be resized.
To add a column or row:
1. Place the insertion point in a cell adjacent to the location where you want to add a row or
column.
2. Select the Table Tools Layout tab, and locate the Rows & Columns group.
3. If you want to insert a new row, select either Insert Above or Insert Below. If you want to
insert a new column, select either Insert Left or Insert Right.
4. A new row or column will appear.
To delete a row or column:
1. Select the row or column by placing the insertion point in any cell in that row or column.
2. Select the Table Tools Layout tab.
3. In the Rows & Columns group, click Delete. A drop-down menu appears.
4. Select Delete Rows or Delete Columns.

Fig. 11.7: To Delete a Row or Column
11.9 Printing Presentations

File menu creates a blank new file based on all default values.
Print: Prints the active file or selected items to the selected printer.
Fig. 11.8: Printing Presentations

User can print all the slides in a presentation or a range of slides or a current slide or a section
within the current slide. Note that before printing user can take a print preview by clicking either
print preview button or by selecting the print preview option from the file menu. The procedure for
printing is to either select the print option from the file menu or by clicking the print button from the
standard toolbar or by pressing the Ctrl+P key combination as shortcut key.

MS-PowerPoint 273
11.10 Summary
PowerPoint is a component of Microsoft office that is used to create professional-quality
Design templates contain predesigned formats and color schemes you can apply to any
presentation to give it a particular look.
Collection of more than one slide together on a particular topic is known as presentation. So, a
presentation may contain different sides, different contents, different objects and different animations.
How the slides are flown from one to another is defined in slide show.
You can add a hyperlink to your presentation and then use it to go to a variety of locations - for
example, a custom show, a specific slide within your presentation, a different presentation altogether,
a Microsoft Word document or Microsoft Excel spreadsheet or an Internet, intranet or e-mail address.
Getting the slide design right is no easy task because you must strike a balance between giving
your audience the eye candy they expect and not overwhelming your message with too many
formatting bells and design whistles.
A slide is a page, document or template where all the content of a presentation is written. It is
just like a page of paper or page of slide show. A single page in the slide show presentation is known
as a slide.
A chart is a tool you can use to communicate your data graphically. Displaying charts in
PowerPoint allows your audience to see the meaning behind the numbers, and it makes showing
comparisons and trends much easier.
Tables are another tool you can use to display information in PowerPoint. A table is a grid of
cells arranged in rows and columns. Tables can be customized and are useful for various tasks such
as presenting text information and numerical data.
PowerPoint is a component of Microsoft office that is used to create professional-quality



 Pack and Go: The Pack and Go Wizard helps you in packing your entire presentation to
move it to another computer.
 Slide Show: A collection of pages arranged in sequence that contain text and images for
presenting to an audience.
 Custom Animation: Custom Animation is a set of effects which can be applied to objects
in PowerPoint so that they will animate in the Slide Show.
 Design Templates: A design template or template is a file that is created with an overall
layout to be used with one or more documents.
 Content Templates: A content template is a simple document that serves two purposes.
 Hyperlinks: A link from a hypertext document to another location.
 Multimedia: Using more than one medium of expression or communication.

1. How to create a presentation in a MS-PowerPoint? Explain.
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
2. Explain the features of Presentation Package (MS-PowerPoint).
——————————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————————
1. Explain the functions and applications of Presentation Packages.
2. What are the features of MS-PowerPoint? Explain.

MS-PowerPoint 275
3. Explain slide show.
4. Create a design and content template.
5. How to create a new presentation? Explain.
1. Image and Graphics includes __________.
(a) Computer-generated images (b) Comprising lines
(c) Both [a] and [b] (d) None
2. __________ contain predesigned formats and color schemes you can apply to any
presentation to give it a particular look.
(a) Design templates (b) Content Templates
(c) Both (d) None
3. __________ is a presentation within presentation.
(a) Custom show (b) Slide Transition
(c) Animation (d) None
4. __________ helps in making audience handouts.
(a) MS-Word (b) MS-PowerPoint
(c) MS-Excel (d) None
5. __________ inserts a copy of the current slide after the current slide.
(a) Symbol (b) New Slide
(c) Duplicate Slide (d) Guides
Answers:
1. (c), 2. (a), 3. (a), 4. (b), 5. (c) .

11.14 References
1. C.S. French, “Data Processing and Information Technology’, BPB Publications, 1998.
2. P.K. Sinha, “Computer Fundamentals”, BPB Publications, 1992.
3. Karl Schwartz, “Microsoft Windows 98 Training Guide”, 1998.
4. Saha and Saha, “Computer Fundamentals”, Himalaya Publication House Pvt. Ltd., Edition
2018.
5. Dr. R.G.. Saha, “Computer Application – II”, Himalaya Publication House Pvt. Ltd., Edition
2016.
6. Dr. R.G. Saha, “Computer Application in Business”, Himalaya Publication House Pvt.
Ltd., Edition 2019


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BACHELOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION /

Dr. R.G. Saha

SLM SPECIALLY PREPARED FOR

Printed and Published by:

CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Course Code: BBA104/BCM104/BTT104/BAQ102 Credits: 3

Unit 2 - History: Past Developments in Computers, Generations of Computer.

Unit 3 - Classification of Computers: Applications of Computer, Basic Components of PC,

Unit 4 - Hardware and Software: Introduction, Computer Memory, Secondary Memory.

Unit 5 - Hardware and Software: Computer Peripherals, Output Devices, Software

Unit 6 - Detailed Content: Video Display, Storage Devices, Power Supplies.

Unit 9 - Excel: Introduction, Workbook, Worksheet, Formatting in Excel, Advanced Formatting

CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Unit 1: Computer Basics 1-8

Unit 3: Classification of Computers 31 - 63

Unit 4: Storage Devices 64 - 84

Unit 5: Hardware and Software 85 - 132

Unit 6: Bringing Computer to Life 133 - 160

Unit 7: Basics of Operating System 161 - 176

Unit 8: Windows 177 - 204

Unit 9: Word Processing Basics 205 - 233

Unit 10: MS-Excel 234 - 258

Unit 11: MS-PowerPoint 259 - 276

CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

UNIT 1 COMPUTER BASICS

1.4 Limitations of Computer

1.0 Learning Objectives

 Understand the concept of Computer Basics.

 Discuss the characteristics of a computer.

 Explain the criteria for using computers.

CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

1.2 Definition of Computer

“A device capable of solving problems by accepting data, performing described operations on

CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

1.3 Characteristics of Computer

CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

1.4 Limitations of Computer

CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

1.6 Key Words/Abbreviations

 Storage: Computers have a very large storage capacity.

CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

1.7 Learning Activity

2. Give the computer concept with their merits and limitations.

3. Define computer. What are the characteristics of computer?

1.8 Unit End Questions (MCQs and Descriptive)

A. Descriptive Type Questions

2. What are the characteristics of computer?

3. Explain the criteria for using computer.

4. What are the limitations of computer?

CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

B. Multiple Choice/Objective Type Questions

1. The computers can perform large number of operations in just __________.

(a) One minute (b) One hour

(c) One second (d) None

2. The accuracy of the computers is consistently __________.

(a) Very high (b) Very low

(c) Medium (d) None

3. Large number of Data and Information is expressed in terms of __________.

(a) Kilobytes (b) Megabytes

(c) Gigabytes (d) All of the above

4. The term ‘Computer’ is derived from __________.

(a) Latin (b) German