DIGITAL FLUENCY - COMPUTER FUNDAMENTALS

FUNDAMENTALS OF COMPUTER
Evolution of computer
1. Abacus – Was Invented By Chinese (3000 BC).
2. John Napier Invented A Machine Which Consists Of 1-9 called as NAPIER BONES
(1617).
3. Leibrietzi Modified or improved Pascal’s machine (1671).
4. Charles Babbage invented Analytical Engine
(1833-1834).
5. Herman Hollerith invented tabulating Machine by using punch card for census
(1880).
6. John Vincent Atanasoff built first electronic computer
(1939)
7. IBM developed FORTRAN (Formula Translation Language)
(1957).
8. Hooper developed the COBAL (Common Business Oriented Language) (1959).
9. Dr. John Kemeny developed BASIC(Beginer’s All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code)
1964.
10. H.Edward Roberts, designed first Micro Computer (1975).
11. Personal Computers were Introduced (1980).

WHAT IS A COMPUTER?
A Computer is an Electronic device that is used for information processing. It accepts
the data & instructions, it stores data in its memory, processes & gives the results to
the user.
The term computer is derived from the Latin word “compute” which means to
calculate or manipulate.
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Advantages of a computer:

Speed Accuracy Storage Versatility

• Provides accurate • Can store very • Very flexible in
• Millions of results high volume of functioning
calculations in • Calculations are data • Can solve
seconds
100% error free • Can store any problems related
• Can process
• Always gives type of data like to any domain
large volume of 100% correct images, video, • Can perform
data text and audio
results if the repeated tasks
• Works at input is correct with consistent
supersonic speed and
speed accuracy

Objectives of Using Computers

1. To make comparisons and decisions.

2. To draw and print graphs.

3. To converse with users through terminals.

4. To perform complex and repetitive calculations rapidly and accurately.

5. To hold a program of a model which can be explored in many different ways?

6. To read and store a large amount of data and information for subsequent manipulations.

7. To automatically correct or modify certain parameters of a system under control.

8. To communicate with each other.

9. To provide answers to ‘what if questions’,

10. To record and play back audio signals.

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Generations of computer:
1. 1st generation -Computers are manufactured by using Vacuum tubes
2. 2nd generation- Transistors, Resistors, Capacitors are the semiconductor devices used
in this generation.
3. 3rd generation- Here 1000’s of Transistors, Resistors, Capacitors are integrated into
one chip.
4. 4th generation- It is manufactured by using Small scale Integrated Circuits [SSIC]
5. 5th generation- It is manufactured by using Very Large Scale Integrated Circuits
[VLSIC].
1st generation- 2nd generation-

3rd generation- 4th generation-

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5th generation-

How does a computer work?

Data Process Information

Data : It is an collection of alphabets (A-Z and a-z) and numbers(0-9). Data is like a
raw material which can be fed
to the computer through the input devices
Process : The work which is done by the CPU is called Process.
Information : The result which can be produced by the computer through the output
devices.
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MAJOR COMPONENTS OF A COMPUTER SYSTEM

 Memory
 Hard Drive or Solid State Drive
 Video card
 Motherboard
 Processor
 Power Supply
 Monitor
 Keyboard and Mouse
 Optical Drive DVD/RW
 Ethernet or Wireless card

Computers are classified into 2 parts:

COMPUTER

HARDWARE SOFTWARE

Hardware- Physical components of a computer is known as hardware.

Software- Is a Program which consist of series of instructions which enable the functioning of
the Hardware.
HARDWARE
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INPUT DEVICE- It is a device through which we can feed the data to the computer. Main
function of this device is to convert the human language to machine language i.e.; data
entered in the form of alphabets or numbers will be converted into machine language which
will be understood by the computer.
Types of input devices:
1. Keyboard 5. Scanner 9. Microphone
2. Mouse 6. OCR 10. Chip & pin reader
3. Touch screen 7. OMR 11. Barcode reader
4. Joystick 8. Web cam 12. Biometric device

1. Keyboard - Keyboards are most common and popular input device used to feed data
directly into computer. There are 104 keys. Alphabet keys are arranged in “QWERTY”
style. Largest key on keyboard is the spacebar key.
It has alphabetical keys (a to z or A to Z), numerical keys(0-9), functional keys(F1 to
F12),Special keys and navigation keys.
2. Mouse- With the advent of the Graphical User Interface (GUI) mouse has become as
common as keyboards. Mouse is a pointing device; it rolls around the flat surface
and controls the pointer (also called as mouse pointer or cursor), usually of an arrow
shape, used to select Menus tools on the tool bar, interact with programs, select text
etc.
TYPES OF MOUSE:
a. Mechanical mouse
b. Optical mouse
c. Track ball
d. Track pad
e. Track point
3. Touch screen- Touch Screen accept input by allowing the user to place their fingertip
directly on the computer screen, usually to make a selection from the menu of
choices.
Touch Screen are mostly used in;
. Automated Teller Machine (ATM)
. Public Information Kiosk
4. Joysticks- Joysticks are the devices which can be attached to the computer to play
games.
5. Scanner - Scanners are used to scan the black/white and colored images and convert
it to a digital data, which can be further processed using the specialized computer
program.
6. OCR- It is just like scanners, which is used to scan single lines in a sheet and display it
in a digital screen.
7. OMR- OMR are used in evaluating standardized test and surveys where special
marks are placed in specific or predefined location.
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8. Webcam – short for ‘web camera’ – is a digital camera that’s connected to a

computer. Used to convert videos to digital signals.
9. Microphone - It takes voice as input.
10. A Chip and PIN reader - is a device where the smart card is placed into a PIN pad
terminal. Ex- ATM cards, debit & credit cards.
11. A Barcode reader- is an electronic device that can read and output the printed
barcodes.
12. A Biometric device - Such devices use automated methods of verifying or
recognizing the identity of a living person.

PROCESSING DEVICE- All the processing of data and controlling activity of the computer is
done through CPU. CPU is a combination of ALU, CU and MU. We can represent ALU as
brain of computer and CU as heart of the computer. As Brain will do all calculation and
processing which will be controlled by the heart.
Arithmetic and Logical Unit (ALU) – ALU’s job is to carry out all arithmetic computation like
addition, multiplication, etc. and comparisons/logical operations.
Control Unit (CU) – It is the part of the CPU that directs operation, controls flow of data
through the processor, the machine cycle, and coordinates the activities of the other units
within it.
Memory unit (MU)- The main place where all the information’s are stored. Memory comes
in different sizes:

Memory unit is classified into 2 types:

1. Primary memory
2. Secondary memory
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TYPES OF PRIMARY MEMORY

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TYPES OF SECONDARY MEMORY

1. Hardisk - Hard Disk contains multiple disks, which are called as platters which are
made of aluminum. Each platter is covered with a magnetic material and the entire
unit is encased in a sealed chamber. This sealed chamber consists of platters, motor
that spins the platter and a read write head. As you cannot remove the disk from its
drive it is called hard disk or hard drive. Data stored on these platters, are stored
tracks and sectors.

2. Floppy disk- Floppy Disk stores the data in the similar manner the way hard disk
stores i.e. on tracks and sectors. The only difference is that of material used in
floppy is plastic coated with iron oxide instead of aluminum platters used in hard
disk. This flexible plastic disk is encased in a square jacket, which is made up of
cardboard or plastic to provide protection to the magnetic surface, there is thin
liner used between the magnetic surface and the plastic cover.

3. CD- Compact disc. This optical disk storage system uses laser beams of varying
intensity for writing and reading on a thin metal surface. While writing on the CD this
beam creates tiny pits on the metal surface along the predetermined tracks. While
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reading the data from the CD-ROM the laser beam reflected from pits and the land
are different manner.
Types of CD’s:
• CD-ROM (Compact Disk – Read Only Memory) – As the name says you can only read
this CD, you cannot write on this. E.g. Music CD available in Market.
• Writable CD (CD-R) – These are blank CDs on which you can write the data (typically
called as burning of CD), but once written you cannot make change on this CD.
• Re-Writable CD (CD-RW) – As the name suggests you can write on these CDs
multiple times. You can even erase the data burnt on this CD and re-write again.
• DVD – (Digital Video Disk) – these look similar like CD-ROM, it can store more data
than CD-ROM and also requires DVD Drive to read the data from it. You can’t read
data from DVD-ROM using CD-ROM Drive, but you can read data on CD-ROM using
DVD Drive.

4. SSD (SOLIDE STATE DRIVE) - A solid-state drive (SSD) is a new generation of storage
device used in computers. SSDs replace traditional mechanical hard disks by using
flash-based memory, which is significantly faster.They use a simple memory chip
called NAND flash memory, which has no moving parts and near-instant access
times.
5. Pendrive- A pen drive, or a USB flash drive, is a portable data-storage device Micro,
lightweight and handy, a pen drive can be easily carried anywhere.

MOTHER BOARD- The motherboard serves as a single platform to connect all of the
parts of a computer together. It connects the CPU, memory, hard drives, optical
drives, video card, sound card, and other ports and expansion cards directly or via
cables. It can be considered as the backbone of a computer.

• OUTPUT DEVICE- An output device is any device used to send output from a
computer to another device or user. The main function of this device is to convert the
machine language to the human language, as all processing done in computer is in machine
language.

Types of output devices

1. Monitor- It displays information in visual form, using text and graphics.
TYPES OF MONITORS:
a. CRT (cathode ray tube)
b. LCD (liquid crystal display)
c. LED (light emitting diode)
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2. Printer- It is a device which converts soft copy information to a hard copy.

Soft copy – the information which is present on the system in the digital form.
Hard copy – when the information which is in the digital form is printed on the paper.
3. Plotter- These plotters are used where printouts are required on big drawing sheets.
Normally used by Architect, Civil Engineers, Interior Decorates, Banners, Posters, etc.
4. Speakers / headphones- They convert electric signals into audio frequency.
5. Projector- It can take images generated by a computer or Blu-ray player and
reproduce them onto a screen, wall or other surface.

SOFTWARE

Software- Is a Program which consist of series of instructions which enable the

functioning of the Hardware. Software is the intelligence behind the computer.
Hardware and software are mutually dependent on each other. Both of them must work
together to make a computer produce a useful output. Software cannot be utilized
without supporting hardware. Hardware without a set of programs to operate upon
cannot be utilized and is useless.
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Software translates the instructions into the language that computers understand

A GROUP OF PROGRAMS MAKES A

SOFTWARE

Types of software
1. System software- It’s a computer software designed to operate the computer
hardware and to provide a platform for running application software. It also provides
services to computer users and application program.

O/S
An operating system is the core software that allows a computer to run as an useful
device. Operating system manages the hardware, the user interface and all other
software running on the computer.
Examples
IOS, Windows, android, Linux, etc.

2. Application software- Set of instructions designed to perform a specific task such as

word processing, accounting, library management, animation, etc. These type of
software’s mainly depend on the application.
 General purpose software- MS office Word, Excel, PPT, etc.
 Business software- Tally, SAP
 Special purpose software- ADOBE Photoshop, Corel draw, illustrator, etc.
VIRUS- VITAL INFORMATION AT RISK UNDER SEIGE
Computer viruses are small software programs that are designed to spread from one
computer to another and to interfere with computer operation. A virus might corrupt or
delete data on your computer, use your e-mail program to spread itself to other computers
or even everything on your hard disk.
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USB port
A USB port is a standard cable connection interface for personal computers and consumer
electronics devices. USB stands for Universal Serial Bus, an industry standard for short-
distance digital data communications. USB ports allow USB devices to be connected to each
other with and transfer digital data over USB cables.
What Can You Plug Into a USB Port?
Many types of consumer electronics support USB interfaces. These types of equipment are
most commonly used for computer networking:

 USB network adapters.

 USB broadband and cellular modems for Internet access.
 USB printers to be shared on a home network.

For computer-to-computer file transfers without a network, USB drives are also sometimes
used to copy files between devices.

Power cord- Alternatively known as a power cable, mains cable or flex, a power cord is the
primary cable that provides power to the computer, printer, monitor, and components
within a computer. When dealing with a laptop, the power cord is more properly referred to
as an AC adapter.
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Types of computers
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DIGITAL FLUENCY - COMPUTER FUNDAMENTALS