1 EVERYDAY USES OF COMPUTERS

Most machines are designed to do one job. Computers are different: they are
general purpose machines. By changing the program instruction, computers can be
used to process information in very different ways. For example: a word processor
program allows the computer to process text. A spreadsheet program enables the
computer to perform calculations, a database program is used for searching and sorting
records, and a browser program is used for looking at pages on internet (the internet is
the connection of computers from different parts of the world).

Computers are therefore used in almost every type of work and are found almost
everywhere. Computer equipment is called hardware and computer programs and data
are know as software. A variety of devices can be attached to computer. Input devices
are used to enter data into the computer for processing. An input device called a
magnetic character reader (MICR) is used to read characters printed using magnetic ink
character are commonly found on bank cheques.

An optical input device called a barcode reader uses the reflection of a light beam to
read a sequence of printed parallel bars call a barcode. The bars are of different
thickness and each sequence of bars represent a different number according to
standard code. Barcode labels are used to code items. Each item can be identified by a
computer, using a barcode reader to scan the labels. Barcodes are used in industry,
shops and supermarkets for stock control and to allow a computer to look up the price
of items being purchased.
2 TYPES OF COMPUTER
A computer is a device that takes in data, processes it according to program, and then
outputs the processed data in some form. There is an increasing variety of computers of
different sizes and designed for different purposes. One of the most important
considerations when buying a computer is deciding how it is going to be used.

Computers can be divided into three board categories: mainframe computers

(mainframes), minicomputers (minis), and microcomputer (micros). Mainframes are
large, powerful, expensive computers that are operated by team of professionals and
are designed to be used by many people at the same time. The most powerful
mainframes are sometimes called supercomputers. Minicomputers are really cut down
mainframes and are no longer very common.

The most common type of computer is the microcomputer. Microcomputers are

sometimes called personal computers. The abbreviation PC was originally used for
microcomputers produced by IBM corporation, but it is now sometimes used for other
types of personal computer. There is a wide variety of microcomputers but two common
types are desktop computers and portables. Desktops are small enough to sit on an
office desk and are relatively cheap. They are becoming cheaper and more powerful
and are often used for running multimedia programs, such as programs that contain
some combination of text, sound, high quality graphics, animation, and video.
Multimedia computers need to have a sound facility and usually have a CD-ROM drive.

There is an increasing variety of portable micros that can be grouped according to their
size. They can usually be powered from batteries and are useful in many different
situations. However, as computer get smaller. It becomes increasingly difficult to use
them with a keyboard. One of the reasons that notebook portables are popular is
because their screens and keyboards are just big enough to use for word processing.
They can also be powerful enough to be used for multimedia. The relative size of some
of the most common types of computers are indicated below, although there are other
types that are not mentioned and new types are currently being developed.
Supercomputers Mainframes

Minicomputers

Desktops Microcomputers
(Personal Computers)
Portables Laptops
Notebooks
Subnotebooks
Handhelds
Palmtops
3 PARTS OF COMPUTER
Most computers consist of an electronic central processing unit (CPU) to which are
attached different input devices, output devices and storage devices. The main parts of
a desktop computer are enclosed in a box called system unit. This contains an
electronic board called the motherboard that holds and connect together the main
electronic components. There are shown as follow:

⚫ Processor (microprocessor): controls the system and processes the data.

⚫ ROM (Read Only Memory): stores the program instructions the computer needs to
start up.

⚫ RAM (Random Access Memory): stores the data being processed.

⚫ Cache memory: speeds up the processing.

The motherboard usually has empty electronic connectors, called expansion slots,
into which additional electronic boards can be plugged. This allows extra electronic
components to be added. For example. More memory can be added by plugging
memory boards (called SIMMS) into the memory slots.

Sound facilities can be added by plugging a sound card into an expansion slot. This
is one way of upgrading computer. Another way is to replace the motherboard with a
newer and better one. The system unit usually also contains a small speaker, the power
supply, and some storage devices. These often include:

- a hard disk drive with a fixed disk that can store a very large amount of data;

- a floppy disks drive that uses removable floppy disks (diskette);

- a CD-ROM drive that is used for reading CD-ROM disks (particularly in multimedia
computers).

Some other devices may be included in the system unit but most input and output
devices are plugged into the back of the system unit using connectors known as ports.
Power is a function of both speed and capacity. The power of a computer depends on
the combination of all the components. When buying a computer, you can often choose
between different components. In particular, you can choose between different
processor speeds, amounts of memory and hard disk sizes. Unit of measurement
commonly used in computing are shown below:

Unit Symbol Meaning Measurement

hertz Hz Cycle per second frequency

byte b Space for one character, capacity

such as one letter, number,
punctuation, mark, symbol,
or even a space

Hertz are measured using decimal system but bytes are measured using the binary
system. The values of the unit prefixes vary in these two system as shown in the table
below:

Unit Symbol Decimal System Binary System

Kilo K 103 = 1.000 210 =1.024

Mega M 106 = 1.0000.000 220 = 1048576

Giga G 109 = 1.000.000.000 230 =1073741824

(Mhz = megahertz, Kb = kilobytes, Mb = megabytes, Gb = gigabytes)

4 KEYBOARDS AND MOUSE
A computer have a variety of input devices. This allows the user to control the
computer in different ways, or to put different kinds of data into the computer. The most
common input device is the keyboard. Another very common device is the mouse. This
is used to control the computer when the operating system has a graphical user
interface. There are different types of mice but the one illustrated in this unit is very
common.

The computer keyboard is an electronic device with keys arranged like earlier
typewriter keyboards, but with extra keys. Because the output of the keys are controlled
by the computer program, their function can vary. For example, print screen key
sometimes copies the screen to memory and copies it to printer, depending on program
used. The arrangement of the keys varies but most desktop PCs have an extended
keyboard with keys divided into sections including the main keyboard, the function keys,
the editing keys, and the numeric keypad.

The connection of computers throughout the world is known as the internet. This
allows users to send electronic mail messages (email) to each other. Each user has his
or her own unique email address. The email address is made up of two main parts, the
user identifier and the computer system identifier.

For example:
Bob. Smith @ ed.ac.uk
(user identifier) (computer system identifier)
The @ sign is used to separate these main identifiers. A dot is used to separate the
parts of each identifier. There is usually no dot at the end of an email address.

Linked document pages on the internet from what is known as the World Wide Web
(WWW). Each web page has its own unique address.Web addresses often begin with
htttp://www. The two forward slashes are commonly read as double slash. A dot is used
to separate each main part of an address and slashes are used to separate sub-areas
of the address.
5 COMPUTER VIRUS
A computer virus is an unwanted program that has entered your system without knowing
about it. It has two parts, Infector and detonator. They have two different jobs. One of the
features of a computer virus that separates it from other kinds of computer program is that
replicates itself, so that it can spread (via floppies transported from computer to computer, or
networks) to other computers.

After the Infector has copied the virus elsewhere, the detonator performs the virus’s main
work. Generally, that work is either damaging data on your disks, altering what you see on your
computer display, or doing something else that interferes with the normal use of your computer.

Do not worry too much about viruses. You may never see one. There are just a few ways to
become infected that you should be aware of. The source seem to be service people, pirated
games, entering floppies in publicly available PCs without write protect tabs, commercial
software, and software distributed over computer bulletin board system.

Many viruses have spread through pirated - illegally copied or broken - games. This is easy
to avoid. Pay for your games, fair and square. If you use a share PC or a PC that has public
access, such as one in collage PC library, be very careful about entering floppies into that PC’s
drives without a write-protect tab.

Despite low incidence of actual viruses, it can’t hurt to run virus checking program now and
then. There are two kinds of antivirus programs: virus shields, which detect viruses as they are
infecting your PC, and virus scanners, which detect viruses once they have infected you.
Viruses are something to worry about, but not a lot. A little common sense and the occasional
virus scan will keep you virus free. Remember these four points:

➢ Viruses can’t infect a data or text file.

➢ Before running an antivirus program, be sure to cold boot from write-protected floppy.

➢ Don’t boot from floppies except reliable DOS disks or your original production disks.

➢ Stay away from pirated software.

6 INPUT DEVICES
A variety of input devices can be connected to a computer to allow the user to input
different kinds of data and to control the computer in different ways. Some common input
devices and their functions are shown in the tables below:

Standard input device

Device Function

Keyboard Controlling and inputting text and numerical data.

Cursor input devices

Device Function
Mouse Common input device for use with a graphical user
interface.

It is like a mouse turned upside down.

Trackerball
Control the cursor at high speed.
Joystick
User interacts with the computer by lightly pressing
Touchscreen
their finger on a touch-sensitive area on monitor
screen

Optical input devices

Device Function

Light pen Detect s differences in reflected light and used for

drawing on the monitor screen or reading printed
optical characters or barcodes.

Used with a light pen for drawing.

Graphics tablet
A special kind of light pen for reading barcode.
 Barcode reader Used to input text and graphics from a printed page.

Scanner Used to take pictures of an object.

Digital Camera

Voice input device

Device Function

Microphone Used to input sound

7 OUTPUT DEVICES
It is common for people to spend long periods of time in front of computer. This can be
detrimental to health unless they follow a few simple guidelines. It is important that they remain
relaxed and comfortable and that they avoid eyestrain. To achieve this, they must have
appropriate furniture, lighting and computer equipment and must make sure that it is positioned
correctly. The term workstation is sometimes used to describe very powerful desktop computer
but in this unit it refers to the furniture and environment used for working with a computer.

A printer is a very common output device. It is used to printer computer output on paper.
Colour printer are available but most printing is done using a mono printer that prints only in
black. There are three main kinds of printers: dot matrix, inkjet and laser. Each type of printer
has its own advantages and disadvantages.

A monitor is the most common type of output device. It displays the output from the
computer on screen. Because the user sees the computer in action using the monitor screen,
the quality of monitor can make a tremendous difference to the way the user interacts with the
computer and feels about the computer. The display image on a monitor screen can be thought
of as being made up of a series of dots. The quality of image depends on a number factors
including:

- the number of dots: affected by the resolution

- the space between dots: affected by the aperture grill pitch ( or dot pitch)

- how often the dots are refreshed by the beam of light affected by refresh rate.

-the size of the dots: affected by the size of the screen and the resolution.

Although technical factors are discussed in this unit, subjective preference are important when
choosing a monitor. The only way to choose a good monitor is by trying to use it.
8 STORAGE DEVICES
The electronic memory inside a computer inside a computer is of limited capacity and can
only hold data when the computer is switched on. A storage device is used to store data that is
not being processed and to save the data when the computer is switched off. There are a
variety of storage media available. These include magnetic devices (for example floppy disk
drives, hard disk drives, tape drives), optical devices and magneto-optical devices.

Disk have to be treated with care if you do not want to damage them or the data stored on
them. Damage can be caused by physical strain , dust, smoke particles, fingermarks, sunlight,
heat and magnetism, depending on the type of media used. When in use, a disk rotates at high
speed and a read/write head is brought very close to its surface. If the disk is removed when the
drive is in use, the read/write head and the disk surface may be damaged. If extra labels are
attached to the disk, it can very easily get stuck in the drive. In this case, it should not be
removed forcibly in the case the drive mechanism or the surface of the disk is damaged.

A hard disk particularly easily damaged because it contains more than one disk and
read/write head. The read/write heads are extremely close to the surface of the disks and the
disks spin at a very high speed. Even a small smoke or dust particle can destroy the drive. It is
enclosed in a vacuum sealed case. If a hard disk suddenly fails completely, the disk is said o
have crashed.
When comparing storage devices, the following factors have to be taken into account:
◆ What is the storage cost per megabyte?
◆ How fast are they at reading and writing data?
◆ What is their maximum storage capacity?
◆ Do they conform to a standard?
◆ Are they fixed or removable?
◆ Do they use random or serial access?
It is important to keep back up copies of stored data. Magnetic tape is often used because it is
very cheap and can hold extremely large amounts of data. It is common to use a backup
scheme where a number of tapes are used in rotation.
9 GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE
An operating system is a group of program that tell a computes how to perform basic
function. For example: how to respond when a key on the keyboard is pressed, how to display a
character on the monitor screen, or how to read and write to a disk. The operating system is
started automatically when a computer is switch on. It is then used to start up and control other
programs. The operating system determines how the user interacts with the computer.

Some operating systems require the user to type commands, but an operating system with
a graphical user interface (GUI) makes it easier for the user to control the computer. The most
common type of graphical user interface is WIMP (windows, icons, menus, pointer) system,
such as Microsoft windows operating system.It should be noted that the recycle bin icon used in
the Microsoft windows system has the same function as trashcan icon used in the Apple Mac
system, for example to access the program that stores deleted files, and allow them to be
recovered.

When Information has to be given to the user or information has to be input by the user, a
window known as a dialog box is often used. Notice that the American spelling dialog is
commonly used in this context, although British spelling dialogue is also found. Dialog boxes
can contain a variety of elements to gather information from the user including: text boxes, drop-
down list boxes, check boxes, and command button. A find dialog box is used to gather
information from the user about the files they wish to find. Note that you can search for a piece
of text in a file, or search for a file in a folder, but you search for a file on a disk.
10 COMPUTER NETWORK
In simple terms, the understanding of computer networks is the relationship between two
or more computer systems through communication media to communicate data with one
another.

Types of Network
1. PAN (Personal Area Network)

Picture 1. Personal Area Network

Personal Area Network (PAN) is a computer network used for communication between
computer devices (including telephones and digital personal assistants) near one person. The
device may or may not belong to that person. The range of PAN is usually several meters.
PANs can be used for communication between their own personal devices (intrapersonal
communication), or for connecting to higher levels and Internet networks (an uplink). Personal
area of wired network is possible with computer buses such as USB and Fire wire. A wireless
personal area network (WPAN) can also be made possible with network technologies such as
IrDA, Bluetooth, UWB, Z-Wave and ZigBee.

2. LAN (Local Area Network)

Picture 2. Local Area Network

 Local Area Network is usually abbreviated as LAN is a computer network whose network
only covers small areas, such as campus computer networks, buildings, offices, in homes,
schools or smaller ones. Currently most LANs are based on IEEE 802.3 technology. Ethenets
use switch devices, which have data transfer rates of 10, 100, or 1000 Mbit/s. Besides Ethernet
technology, currently 802 technology.11b or commonly called Wi-fi is also often used to form
LANs.

3. MAN (Metropolitan Area Network)

Picture 3. Metropolitan Area Network

Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) is a network in a city with high-speed data transfer
that connects various locations such as campuses, offices, government, and so on.

4. WAN (Wide Area Network)

Picture 4. Wide Area Network

 WAN (Wide Are Network) is a computer network that covers a large area as an example
of computer networks between regions, cities or even countries, or can be defined as computer
networks that require routers and public communication channels. The internet is an example of
this WAN network if it's a Wide Area. The network includes the intercontinental area, so-called
global information networks or internet.

Network Topology

Network topology in telecommunication is a way of connecting telecommunications

equipment with one another so as to form a network. In a telecommunications network, the type
of topology chosen will affect the speed of communication.

Types of Topology:

1. Bus Topology

Picture 5. BUS Topology

Bus Topology Characteristics:

• Nodes - nodes are connected serially along the cable, and at both ends of the
cable are closed with a terminator
• Very simple in installation
• Very economical in cost
• Data packages intersect on a cable
• No hub is needed, which is much needed T-connector on each Ethernet card
• A problem that often occurs is that if one node is damaged, the entire network
can be down, so that all nodes cannot communicate within the network.
2. StarTopology
 Picture 6. STAR Topology

Star Topology Characteristics:

• Each node communicates directly with the concentrator

• If each data packet that enters the consentrator (HUB) is then broadcast to all
connected nodes very much (for example using a 32 port hub), then the network
performance will decrease further.
• Very easy to develop
• If one Ethernet card is damaged, or one of the cables in the terminal is broken,
then the entire network can still communicate or not down on the entire network.
• The type of cable used is usually the type of UTP.

3. Ring Topology

Picture 7. RING Topology

Characteristics of RING Topology:

• Nodes are connected serially along the cable, with a network shape like a circle
• Very simple in layouts such as bus topology
• Data packages can flow in one direction (left or right) so that the collision can be avoided
• The problem faced is the same as the bus topology, namely: if one node is damaged
then all nodes cannot communicate in the network
• The type of cable used is usually UTP or Patch Cable (IBM type 6)
4. Mesh Topology

Picture 8. MeshTopology

Mesh Topology Characteristics:

• Mesh topologies have an excessive relationship between existing equipment

• The arrangement of each piece of equipment on the network connected to each other
• If there is a large amount of equipment connected, of course this will be very difficult to
control compared to just a few devices that are connected
Passwords are commonly used to restrict access to a network and keep the system secure.
Each user of a network is given an account name and password, which determine what services
are made and what services are made available to them.