WHAT IS COMPUTER?

A computer is an electronic device that performs logical operations

on data automatically and displays the results for a human being to
see.

TWO MAJOR COMPONENTS IN A COMPUTER

1) Input devices: Input devices collect data from sources
outside of the machine and put it in the computer.
 Keyboard
 Mouse
 Scanner
 Web Camera

2)Output Devices: The output will be displayed on the computer

monitor.

 Monitor
 Printers

Computer Hardware:

Computers consist of many physical parts like CPU, RAM,

Motherboard, Graphics card etc. Each part has its own role to
play. Computer has a processor or CPU that executes or runs all
the instructions given by the user. CPU is considered as the
brain of a computer system as it processes all the information
and makes decisions on what instruction to execute next, based
on that information. The memory (RAM) stores all of the
programs and data being used in an active process.
 What are the Functions of Computers?

The function of a computer is to do calculations. A

computer has three main functions:
1) Input/Output : This is the first function of a computer
and it takes data into the system, processes the data
and outputs it. The input/output device can be a
keyboard or mouse for your personal computer or
console for video games etc.

2) Storage: It stores the data being processed by the

computer system. It is composed of RAM (Random
Access Memory), ROM (Read Only Memory) and Hard
Disk Drive(HDD). The main function of these storage
devices is to store programs, data and so on.

2) Processing : The processing function is the most

important function of a computer. It processes
everything from input into output. The processing can
be done in real time or in the background.

What is Hardware?
A computer should have all the necessary hardware parts like
CPU, keyboard, mouse, monitor etc. so that it can run the
software or program.
What is Software?
Programs are also called software. These are machine-
readable instructions that cannot be understood by humans.
An operating system is also a software programme which
controls the entire system and helps users to run different
programs like word processors, graphics editors, games etc.
Examples of programming languages are C++, Java and PHP
etc.

What is an application?
It is a program that provides a service to its users like word
processing (MS Word), graphic designing (Adobe Photoshop)
etc.

What is an Operating System?

An operating system is a set of software applications and
various supporting utilities needed by application programs,
to operate efficiently and with minimal interaction. The main
components of an operating system are:
1) Central Processing Unit (CPU): It performs all the
calculations accordingly to the instructions given by the
Operating System
2) Local Storage Units (RAM): it stores all the programs and
data being used in an active process.
3) Disks: It is used to store all the software. An operating
system keeps track of all the files and data that is being
stored on it.
4) Network Interface Cards (NIC): It manages the data
networks and allows users to connect to a network.
5) Hard Disk: It stores all the data which is loaded by means
of floppy disks, CD-ROMS, tape etc.

NAVIGATING THE INTERNET

What is a Search Engine?
A search engine is a website used to search for information
on the Internet. There are various search engines designed
by different companies and search results will vary.
Some popular search engines are:
 Bing
 Google
 Yahoo
 DuckDuckGo

An internet browser is a software program on your computer

that gives you to access the internet.
A search engine is a website you can visit to search for
information on the internet.

HOW TO NAVIGATE THE INTERNET

There are 3 ways to navigate the Internet:
 Typing a web address(URL)
Following Links
Finding a website using search engine

TYPES OF WEB ADDRESS:

.com = Commercial/Business
.edu = Educational Institution
.org = Nonprofit Organisation
.net = Internet Network
.mil = Military
.gov = Government Agency

What is URL:
URL stands for Uniform Resource Locator. URL or Web
address is the address of website on Internet. Just for eg a
street address, web address is to locate the website we want.
Parts of URL:
Eg: [Link]
http: Hypertext Transfer Protocol
www: World Wide Web
bpl: Name of the server where the website is located
org: Type of website (eg:organization)

What is a Link?
A link can be a text or image that when clicked on takes you
to another page or file , either on the website or elsewhere
on the internet.

Website vs Web page

A website is a collection of web pages.
(eg [Link] , where there are hundred of web pages
that make website.

Parts of Website:
The 6 main parts of the website are:

 Title
 Featured Content
 Search Boxes
 Tabs and drop down menus
 Sign-in/Log in
 Ads
 For searching any keyword on the page use (Cntrl+F)
 The browser automatically locates and highlights the
word(s) you are searching

What is Email?
 Email (electronic mail) is the exchange of computer-
stored messages from one user to one or more
recipients via the internet.
 Emails are a fast, inexpensive and accessible way to
communicate for business or personal use.
 Users can send emails from anywhere as long as
they have an internet connection, which is typically
provided by an internet service provider.
 Email is exchanged across computer networks,
primarily the internet, but it can also be exchanged
between both public and private networks, such as
a local area network.
 Email can be distributed to lists of people as well as
to individuals.
 The TCP/IP suite of protocols provides a flexible
email system that's built on basic protocols,
including Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) for
sending mail, and Post Office Protocol 3 (POP3) for
receiving mail.
 the Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP) can
be used for receiving mail, as it enables access to
email from any device, anywhere. With POP3, the
email message is downloaded from the email
 service and stored on the requesting device and
can only be accessed using the same device.
 Email messages are usually encoded in American
Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII)
format.
 users can also send non-text files -- such as graphic
images and sound files -- as file attachments.

MAIN COMPONENT OF EMAIL MESSAGE

A mail message transfer agent is software that

transfers emails between the computers of a
sender and a recipient. No two email addresses can
be identical, as each complete address must be
unique.

An email message consists of two main

components: header and body.

Header
Each email message comes with a header that's
structured into various fields. These fields contain
important information regarding the sender and
the recipient(s)

an email header contains the following information:

Subject: This provides a summary of the message

topic and is displayed in a separate line above the
message body. For example, a subject line might
say "Company mission statement" or "Employee
Stock Purchase Plan."

Sender (From):This field is the sender's email

address. A display name can also be shown instead
if it's associated with the email address. Most email
clients fill out this field automatically.

Date and time received (On). This field shows the

local time and date when the message was
composed. It's a mandatory header field that's
filled automatically by most email clients.

Reply-to. If a user clicks on the Reply button, this

field automatically populates the message with the
sender's email address, which now becomes the
"recipient."

Recipient (To). This field shows the first and last

name of the email recipient, as configured by the
sender.

Carbon copy (CC). The carbon copy field includes

the email addresses of the people who need to
receive the email but aren't expected to reply.
When a person presses Reply All, all of the CC
addresses receive the response.
Blind carbon copy (BCC). If a sender doesn't want
their recipient to find out who else received the
email, they could use the BCC field to enter those
addresses. The addresses in the BCC list don't
receive responses when someone presses Reply
All.

Attachments. This field contains any files that are

attached to the message.

Body
This is the content of the email.

It may contain anything the user wishes to send,

including text, videos or file attachments.

Depending on the email client used, the email body

can be formatted in either plain text or HTML.

While plain text messages can't contain special

formatting or multimedia elements, HTML emails
enable special formatting and inclusion of
multimedia options within the body of the
message.
 The message body may also include signatures or
automatically generated text that the sender's
email system inserts.

Uses of email
The following are the most common use cases for
email:
 Individual or group communications. Email is a
beneficial way to communicate with individuals or small
groups of friends or colleagues. It enables users to easily
send and receive documents, images, links and other
files. It also gives users the flexibility to communicate
with others on their own schedule.
 Notifications, reminders and follow-ups. Individuals,
small groups or organizations can send follow-up emails
after appointments, meetings or interviews, or to
remind participants of approaching events, due dates
and time-sensitive activities. Calendars with the ability
to add appointments and events are integrated into
most email platforms. These features help users with
time management by visualizing the fixed amount of
time they have in a day. This enables users to prioritize
their decisions and time.
 Conveying information to a large group of
people. Companies can use email to convey information
to a large number of employees, customers and
potential customers. Email is frequently used for
newsletters, where mailing list subscribers are sent
specific, promoted content from a company and direct
 email marketing campaigns, where an advertisement or
promotion is sent to a targeted group of customers.
 Turning leads into paying customers. Email can also be
used to make a potential sale into a completed
purchase. For example, a company may create an
automated email that's sent to online buyers who keep
items in their shopping cart for a specific amount of
time. The email may remind the customer that they
have products sitting in their cart and encourage them
to complete the purchase before the items run out of
stock.
 Reviews and surveys. Follow-up emails asking
customers to submit a review after making a purchase
may include a survey asking them to review the quality
of service or the product they've recently received.

Advantages of email
Email is a fast, reliable and portable way of communicating
with others. The following are some common benefits of
using email for both personal and professional purposes:
 Cost-effectiveness. There are various free email services
available to individuals and organizations. Once a user is
online, there are no additional charges for the service.
 Flexibility. Email provides users with a nonurgent
communication process that enables them to send a
response when it's convenient for them. This also
 encourages users to communicate regardless of their
different schedules or time zones.
 Easy access. If the user has access to the internet, then
email can be accessed from anywhere at any time.
 Speed and simplicity. Emails are quick and easy to
compose, with information and contacts readily
available. They can also be exchanged quickly with
minimal lag time.
 Mass delivery. Email makes it possible and easy to send
one message to large groups of people.
 Message filtering. Email enables users to filter and
categorize their messages. This can prevent the visibility
of unwanted emails, such as spam and junk mail, while
also making it easier to find specific messages when
they're needed.
 Message storage and retrieval. Email exchanges can be
saved and searched for easy retrieval. This enables users
to keep important conversations, confirmations or
instructions in their records and quickly retrieve them if
necessary.
Examples of email attacks
Email is the most common vector for cyber attacks. Methods
include spamming, phishing, spoofing, spear-phishing,
business email compromise and ransomware

Spamming: Email spam, also known as junk email, is

unsolicited bulk messages sent through email. The use of
spam has been growing in popularity since the early 1990s
and is a problem faced by most email users.

Recipients of spam often have had their email addresses

obtained by spambots, which are automated programs that
crawl the internet looking for email addresses.

 Phishing. This is a form of fraud in which an attacker

masquerades as a reputable entity or person in email
or other communication channels. The attacker
uses phishing emails to distribute malicious links or
attachments that can perform a variety of functions,
including extracting login credentials or account
information from victims.
 Spoofing. Email spoofing is the forgery of an email header so that the message
appears to have originated from someone or somewhere other than the actual
source. Email spoofing is a popular tactic used in phishing and spam campaigns
because people are more likely to open an email when they think it has been sent by
a legitimate or familiar source. The goal of email spoofing is to get recipients to open,
and possibly even respond to, a solicitation.