Computer Applications in Managamenet

04/28/2023
COMPUTER APPLICATIONS IN
MANAGAMENET
Compiled by Dagne G.
Target Group :Department Public
Administration and Development
Management
1
Year –II Sem-I
Instructor:- Dagne G.
CHAPTER ONE:
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INTRODUCTION TO
COMPUTERS
2
CONTENTS
Definition of Computer
Characteristics of Computers
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Generations of Computers
Classification of Computers
Applications of Computers
3
1. Definition of Computer
• Computer is derived from the word compute, which means to calculate.
• Definitions:
• A computer is an electronic device, operating under the control of
instructions stored in its own memory that can accept data (input),
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process the data according to specified rules, produce information
(output), and store the information for future use.
 Data: It is the collection of raw facts, figures & symbols.
Example: Names of students and their marks in different subjects
listed in random order.
 Information: It is the data that is processed & presented in an
organized manner.
Example: When the names of students are arranged in alphabetical
order, total and average marks are calculated & presented in a
tabular form, it is information.
 Program: Set of instructions that enable a computer to perform a
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given task.
2. Characteristics of Computers
• Speed
• Efficiency
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• Accuracy
• Reliability
• Storage capability
• Versatility
• Diligence
• Resource sharing
5
Limitations:
• The computer cannot think on its own, since it does not have
its own brain. As a machine, it can perform only what it is .
programmed to do; nothing more and nothing less.
• It needs well-defined instructions to perform any operation.
• The computers do not learn from previous experience nor can
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they arrive at a conclusion without going through all the
intermediate steps.
• The use of a computer is restricted to certain areas where
qualitative considerations are important. For instance, it can
make plans based on situations and information though it
cannot foresee whether they will succeed or not.
• Sometimes, a program works properly for some period and
then suddenly produces incorrect output. This happens
because of an error in the instruction provided by the user. 6
Therefore, computer parts require regular checking and
maintenance to give correct results.
3. Generations of Computers
First Generation (1940-56)-Vacuum Tubes
• First-generation computers were vacuum tubes/thermionic valves-based
machines.
• These computers used vacuum tubes for circuitry and magnetic drums for
memory .
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• A magnetic drum is a metal cylinder coated with magnetic iron oxide
material on which data and programs can be stored.
• The input was based on punched cards and paper tape and the output was
in the form of printouts.
• First-generation computers relied on binary-coded language, which is also
known as the machine language (i.e. language of 0s and 1s), to perform
operations and were able to solve only one problem at a time.
• Each machine was fed with different binary codes and hence was difficult to
program.
• This resulted in lack of versatility and speed.
• In addition, to run on different types of computers, instructions must be
rewritten and recompiled. 7
• Examples: ENIAC, EDVAC and UNIVAC.
Characteristics of First Generation Computers Cont’d…
 These computers were based on vacuum tube
technology.
 These were the fastest computing devices of their
times (the computation time was in milliseconds).
 These computers were very large and required a
lot of space for installation.
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 Since thousands of vacuum tubes were used, they
generated a large amount of heat. Therefore, air
conditioning was essential.
 These were non portable and very slow
equipments.
 They lacked in versatility and speed.
 They were very expensive to operate and used a
large amount of electricity.
 These machines were unreliable and prone to
frequent hardware failures. Hence, constant
maintenance was required.
 Since machine language was used, these
computers were difficult to program and use. 8
 Each individual component had to be assembled
manually. Hence, commercial appeal of these
computers was poor.
Second Generation (1956-63)-Transistors
• Second-generation computers used transistors instead of vacuum tubes, which

were superior to vacuum tubes.
• A transistor is made up of semiconductor material like germanium and silicon.
• It usually had three leads and performed electrical functions such as voltage,
current or power amplification with low power requirements.
• Since transistor is a small device, the physical size of the computer was greatly
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reduced.
• Computers became smaller, faster, cheaper, energy-efficient and more reliable
than their predecessors.
• In second-generation computers, magnetic cores were used as primary
memory and magnetic disks as secondary storage devices. However, they still
relied on punched cards for input and printouts for output.
• One of the major developments of this generation includes the progress of
machine language to assembly language.
• Assembly language used mnemonics (abbreviations) for instructions rather
than numbers; for example, ADD for addition and MULT for multiplication.
• As a result, programming became less cumbersome. Early high-level
programming languages such as COBOL and FORTRAN also came into existence 9
during this period.
• Examples: PDP-8, IBM 1401 and IBM 7090.
Characteristics of second generation computers Cont’d…
• These machines were based on transistor
technology.
• These were smaller when compared to the
first-generation computers.
• The computational time of these computers
was reduced to microseconds from
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milliseconds.
• These were more reliable and less prone to
hardware failure. Hence, they required less
frequent maintenance.
• These were more portable and generated less
amount of beat.
• Assembly language was used to program
computers. Hence, programming became
more time-efficient and less cumbersome.
• Second-generation computers still required air
conditioning.
• Manual assembly of individual components 10
into a functioning unit was still required.
Third Generation (1964-Early1970s)-Integrated Circuits
• The development of the integrated circuit was the trait of the third
generation computers.
• An integrated circuit, also called IC, consisted of a single chip (usually
silicon) with many components such as transistors and resistors
fabricated on it.
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• Integrated circuits replaced several individually wired transistors.
• This development made computers smaller in size, reliable and
efficient.
• Instead of punched cards and printouts, users interacted with third-
generation computers through keyboards and monitors and interfaced
with an operating system.
• This allowed the device to run many different applications at one time
with a central program that monitored the memory.
• For the first time, computers became accessible to majority of common
people because they were smaller and cheaper than their
predecessors.
• 11
• Examples: NCR 395 and 86500.
Characteristics of third generation computers Cont’d…
• These computers were based on
integrated circuit (IC) technology.
• These were able to reduce
computational time from
microseconds to nanoseconds.
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• These were easily portable and more
reliable than the second-generation
computers.
• These· devices consumed less power
and generated less beat. In some
cases, air conditioning was still
required. • Manual assembling of individual
• The size of these computers was components was not required;
smaller as compared to previous- therefore, it reduced the large
generation computers. requirement of labour and cost.
• Extensive use of high-level languages • However, highly sophisticated
became possible. technologies were required for
the manufacturing of IC chips. 12
• Commercial production became easier
and cheaper. • Since hardware rarely failed, the
maintenance cost was quite low.
Fourth Generation (Early 1970s-Now)Microprocessors
• Fourth generation is an extension of third-generation technology.
• Although, the technology of this generation is still based on the
integrated circuit, these have been made readily available because of
the development of the microprocessor (circuits containing millions of
transistors)
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• The Intel 4004 chip, which was developed in 1971, took the integrated
circuit one step further by locating all the components of a computer
(central processing unit, memory, and input and output controls) on a
minuscule chip.
• A microprocessor is built onto a single piece of silicon, known as chip. It
is about 0.5 cm along one side and not more than 0.05 cm thick.
• Fourth-generation computers led to an era of large-scale integration
(LSI) and very-large-scale integration (VlSI) technology. LSI technology
allowed thousands of transistors to be constructed on one small slice of
silicon material, whereas VLSI squeezed hundreds of thousands of
components on to a single chip. 13
• Ultra-large-scale integration (ULSI) increased that number to millions.
This way the computers became smaller and cheaper than ever before.
Cont’d…
• Fourth-generation computers became more powerful, compact,
reliable and affordable.
• As result, it gave rise to the personal computer (PC) revolution.
During this period, magnetic core memories were substituted by
semiconductor memories, which resulted in faster random access
main memories.
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• Moreover, secondary memories such as hard disks became
economical, smaller, and bigger in capacity.
• The other significant development of this era was that these
computers could be linked together to form networks, which
eventually led to the development of the Internet.
• This generation also saw the development of graphical user
interfaces (GU!s), mouse and hand-held devices.
• Despite many advantages, there is only one disadvantage of this
generation, that is, it required complex and sophisticated technology
for the manufacturing of CPU and other components.
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• Examples: Apple II, Altair 8800 and CRAY-1.
Characteristics of fourth generation computers Cont’d …
• Fourth-generation computers are
microprocessor-based systems.
• These computers are very small
in size.
• These are the cheapest among all
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the other-generation computers.
• These are portable and quite
reliable.
• These machines generate
negligible amount of heat, hence,
• GUI and pointing devices
they do not require air
enable the users to learn to
conditioning.
use the computer quickly.
• The production cost is very low.
• Interconnection of computers
In addition, requirement of
leads to better communication
labour and cost involved at
and resource sharing.
assembly stage is also minimal.
• Hardware failure is negligible,
so minimum maintenance is 15
required.
Fifth Generation (Present and Beyond)-Artificial Intelligence
• The dream of creating a human-like computer that would be capable

of reasoning and reaching at a decision through a series of 'what-if-
then' analyses has existed since the beginning of computer
technology.
• Such a computer would learn from its mistakes and possess the skill of
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experts.
• These are the objectives for creating the fifth-generation computers.
• The starting point of the fifth-generation computers had been set in
the early 1990s.
• The process of developing fifth-generation computers is still in the
development stage.
• However, the 'expert system' concept is already in use.
• The expert system is defined as a computer system that attempts to
mimic the thought process and reasoning of experts in specific areas.
• Three characteristics can be identified with the fifth-generation
computers. 16
Cont’d…
• Mega Chips: Fifth-generation computers will use super large-scale
integrated (SLSI) chips, which will result in the production of
microprocessor having millions of electronic components on a single
chip.
• To store instructions and information, fifth-generation computers
require a great amount of storage capacity. Mega chips may enable
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the computer to approximate the memory capacity of the human
mind.
• Parallel Processing: Computers with one processor access and
execute only one instruction at a time. This is called serial processing.
However, fifth-generation computer will use multiple processors and
perform parallel processing, thereby accessing several instructions at
one time and working on them at the same time.
• Artificial intelligence (AI): It refers to a series of related technologies
that tries to simulate and reproduce human behavior including
thinking, speaking and reasoning.
• AI comprises a group of related technologies: expert systems (ES),
natural language processing (NLP), speech recognition, vision 17
recognition and robotics.
4. Classification of Computers
• There are different types of computers.
Their difference depends on different
categories of characteristics. For example,
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some computers are designed for use by one
person, some are meant to be used by group
of people, and some are not used by people
at all. They also can be categorized by their
power, by which type of data they operate
and types of task they handle
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Cont….
• The computers can be classified according to purpose, data
handling and functionality.
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A. Classification by purpose of application
•Computers can be applied or used for different purposes. Based upon
their application, they are classified as special purpose or general
purpose computers.
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•1. Special purpose computers
•They are designed to solve a single type of problem, that is their
components and their functions are uniquely adapted to a specific
situation involving specific application.
•Examples:
 The public telephone box
 Traffic control system
 Ticket machines (used in grocery, supermarket, etc.)
 Pocket calculators etc.
 Counters 20
N.B: Most analog computers are special purpose computers.
Cont….
•2. General purpose computers
•They are designed to solve variety of problems through the use
of “stored program concept”. A program or set of instructions
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designed to solve a problem is read and stored into the memory
and then executed by the computer one by one. The same
computer can be applied to solve another set of problem using
different program. General purpose computers are more flexible
and versatile.
Examples:
Micro computers
Mini computers
Mainframe computers 21
Super computers
B. Classification by Functionality, physical size, price,
capacity and performance
1. Super computers: is the fastest, largest and most potential type of computer. They
have
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•speed of hundreds of millions of operations per second, a primary memory capacity of
about 80 million characters, a secondary memory of capacity of about 20 times its
primary memory. They are multi-user systems in intercontinental range. They can
carry out enormously complex scientific calculations. They are used to process huge
amount of data and are commonly used in space technology centers, meteorology
stations, and astronomical observatories, intercontinental communications, airline
organizations.
2. Mainframe computers: Smaller than in size and capacity, lower in speed and
memory
•capacity than the supercomputers. However, they are multi-user systems and handle
hundreds of users, usually used in large organizations. The older ones used punched
card for data input.
•They are mainly applicable by insurance companies, bank, airlines and railway 22
reservation systems, etc. an advanced mainframe made by IBM is S/390.
Cont….
3. Mini Computers: Have relatively lower speed, can handle multi-users
(ten to hundreds of users simultaneously), are smaller in size than the main
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frame computers. They use terminals for inputs and output. They were first
developed as special purpose mainframe computers, for instance, to control
machines in a manufacturing unit.
•A minicomputers work well in what are known Distributed Data
Processing (DDP). That is, a company’s processing, power is decentralized
or distributed across different computers. Example of such system is the
client/server model.
4. Microcomputers: Are the most widely used type of computers. They are
single users, can fit on desktops, are of varying capacity and easy to
handle. Microcomputers are sometimes referred to as personal
computers. They have video display unit for output purpose. Data is 23
entered through the keyboard and by the help of floppy disk.
Cont….
 Personal computer
•A term that refers to any computer system that is designed for use by a
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single person. They are desktop or portable machines. They are nearly
similar to workstations but they did not have the processing power that
workstations did and less sophisticated video display screens. E.g.
Acer’s aspire, Compaq Presario, etc
 Workstations
•Is a specialized single user computer that typically has more power and
features than standard desktop pc. These machines are popular among
scientists, engineers, and animators who need a system with greater than
average speed and the power to perform sophisticated tasks.
• E.g. Sun, Apollo, Hewlett-Packard, Next and IBM 24
•NB: The more powerful workstations are called Super micros
C. Classification by the method of operation (Processing)(Data
handling)
Computers are classified by the type of data they are designed

to process. They are classified into three:
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1. Analog
•Analog computers operate by measuring. They deal with
continuous variables; they can’t compute directly with
numbers, rather, they operate by measuring physical magnitude
such as pressure, temperature, voltage, current, etc.
Examples
•Thermometer
 Voltmeter
 Speedometer 25
Compiled by Dagne G. 04/28/2023
26
Cont…..
2. Digital computers
•The name "Digital" is given to all devices that store and process
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data in the form of 'digits' (numbers).
•A computer that performs calculations and logical operations with
quantities represented as digits, usually in the binary number system. A
digital computer is designed to process data in numerical form; its circuits
perform directly the mathematical operations of addition, subtraction,
multiplication, and division.
•Examples:
 Abacus
 Desk & pocket computers
 The general purpose computers
Digital computers have very high accuracy and speed than 27
the analog ones.
Cont……

28
Cont……
3. Hybrid computers
•The best features of analog and digital computers can be combined
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in to a single device to form a hybrid computer. Hybrid computers
process the information by collecting input data with analog
method, convert it into digital quantities, process the digital values
and convert the output from digital to analog form.
•Example: In hospital insensitive-care unit analog devices may
measure a patient’s heart function, temperature and other vital signs.
These measurements may then be converted into numbers and
supplied to a digital component in the system. This component is
used to monitor the patient’s vital signs and to send an immediate
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signal to the nurse’s station if any abnormal readings are detected.
Cont….

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7. Applications of Computers
• Science: Scientists have been using computers to develop theories and
to analyse and test the data. The high speed and accuracy of the
computer allow different scientific analyses to be carried out.
• Education: Computers have also revolutionized the whole process of
education. Currently, the
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• Classrooms, libraries and museums are efficiently utilizing computers to
make the education much more interesting.
• Medicine and Health Care: There has been an increasing use of
computers in the field of medicine. Now, doctors are using computers
right from diagnosing the illness to monitoring a patient's status during
complex surgery.
• Engineering/Architecture/Manufacturing: The architects and engineers
are extensively using computers in designing and drawings. Computers
can create objects that can be viewed from all the three dimensions.
• Entertainment: Computers are finding greater use in entertainment
industry. They are used to control the images and sounds. 31
Cont’d…
• Communication: E-mail or electronic mail is one of the communication
media in which computer is used. Through e-mail, messages and reports
are passed from one person to one or more persons with the aid of
computer and telephone line.
• Business Application: This is one of the important uses of the computer.
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Initially, computers were used for batch-processing jobs, where one
does not require the immediate response from the computer.
• Publishing: Computers have created a field known as desktop publishing
(DTP). In DTP, with the help of computer and a laser printer one can
perform the publishing job all by oneself
• Banking: Computers are extensively used in the field of banking and
finance.
• People can use the ATM (automated teller machine) services 24 hours a
day to deposit and withdraw cash.
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CHAPTER TWO:
COMPUTER SYSTEM

33
CONTENTS
• What is a System?
• Components of Computer System
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• Hardware Component
•
Input devices
• Storage devices
• Processing devices
• Output devices
• Software Component
• System software
34
• Application software
What is a System?
• A system is a group of components that work together in
coordination to achieve a common goal.
• A computer system is composed of physical components
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(hardware) and non-physical component (software) that
work together in coordination to achieve a common goal.
• The common goal of computer system is data processing.
35
Components of Computer System
• Computer system is a system that has two fundamental components:
• Hardware component and Software component.
• The primary purpose of computer systems in most businesses today is to
transform data into information that can be used by people to make decisions,
sell products, and perform a variety of other activities.
• Data can be considered the raw material - whether in paper, electronic, or
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other form - that is processed by the computer.
• In other words, data consists of the raw facts and figures that are processed
into information.
• Information is summarized data or otherwise manipulated (processed) data.
For example, the raw data of employees' is hours worked and wage rates are
processed by a computer into the information of paychecks and payrolls.
• Hardware is the physical component of the computer system that we can see,
touch and sense. It includes devices the computer system use to interact with
the external world, to process the data it has received, to store the data it has
received and processed.
• Software, on the other hand, is the set of instructions that tell the hardware
how to perform a task. Without software, the hardware is useless. 36
• Hardware and Software are analogous to Flesh and Soul of human beings
respectively.
Cont…

37
Cont….

38
39
Hardware Components
• Input devices
• The function of input devices is to accept data and convert it
into a form suitable for computer processing. In other words,
input hardware allows people to put data into the computer
in a form that the computer can use. Some examples of
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input devices are:
• Keyboard
• Mouse
• Scanner
• Joystick
• Microphone
• Touch pad
• Touch screen
40
• Light pen
• Track ball
41
Processing Unit
CPU
• Abbreviation of central processing unit.
• The CPU is the brains of the computer. Sometimes referred
to simply as the processor or central processor, the CPU is
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where most calculations take place.
• In terms of computing power, the CPU is the most important
element of a computer system.
• Many people wrongly call the system case (chassis) as CPU.
• But the chassis is a housing for devices like CPU, RAM, disks,
motherboard and expansion cards.
• On large machines, CPUs require one or more printed circuit
boards.
• On personal computers and small workstations, the CPU is
42
housed in a single chip called a microprocessor.
43
Cont’d…
CPU has three components, namely:

• The arithmetic logic unit (ALU), which performs arithmetic
(addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division) and
logical (comparison, negation, conjunction, and disjunction)
operations.
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• The control unit, which extracts instructions from memory
and decodes and executes them, calling on the ALU when
necessary.
• The Memory unit or registers, which store intermediate
results of ALU
44
Storage Devices
Storage Capacity Measurement
• Bit (Binary Digit): A bit of storage is like a light switch; it can be
either on (1) or off (0).
• A single bit is a one or a zero, a true or a false, a "flag" which is
"on" or "off", or in general, the quantity of information
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required to distinguish two mutually exclusive states from each
other. The bit is the smallest unit of storage used in computing.
• Byte: A byte is a contiguous sequence of a fixed number of bits.
In recent years, the use of a byte to mean 8 bits has become
nearly ubiquitous.
• KB (Kilo byte): A kilo byte is 210 bytes = 210 x 8 bits
• MB (Mega byte): A mega byte is 220 bytes = 220 x 8 bits
• GB (Giga byte): A giga byte is 230 bytes = 230 x 8 bits
• TB (Tera byte): A tera byte is 2 40 bytes =240 x 8 bits
• Activity: If a storage device is 23 GB, find the memory capacity 45
in a. bit b. byte c. TB
46
Primary storage
Cache memory
• Small memories on or close to the CPU chip can be made
faster than the much larger RAM (main memory).
RAM (Random Access Memory)
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• It is the working area used for loading, displaying and
manipulating applications and data.
• RAM is also volatile, losing the stored information in an
event of power loss, and quite expensive.
ROM (Read-only Memory)
• It is a class of storage media used in computers and other
electronic devices.
• Because it cannot (easily) be written to, its main uses lie in
the distribution of firmware (software that is very closely 47
related to hardware and not likely to need frequent
upgrading).
Cont’d…
Types of ROM
• Classic mask-programmed ROM chips are written to during production
and cannot change content afterwards. But there are other types of
non-volatile solid-state memory:
• PROM (Programmable Read-Only Memory) can be written to
(programmed) via a special device, a PROM programmer. The writing often
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takes the form of permanently destroying or creating internal links (fuses
or anti fuses) with the result that a PROM can only be programmed once.
• EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory) can be erased by
exposure to ultraviolet light then rewritten via an EPROM programmer.
Repeated exposure to ultraviolet light will eventually destroy the EPROM
but it generally takes many (greater than 1000) exposures before the
EPROM becomes unusable. EPROM can be easily identified by the circular
'window' in the top which allows the UV light to enter. Once programmed,
this window is typically covered by a label to prevent accidental erasure.
• EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory) allow
the entire ROM (or selected banks of the ROM) to be electrically erased
(flashed back to zero) then written to without taking them out of the 48
computer (camera, MP3 player, etc.). Flashing is much slower (in
milliseconds) than writing to RAM (in nanoseconds) (or reading from any
ROM).
Secondary Storage
• In computer storage, secondary storage, or
external memory, is computer memory that is not
directly accessible to the central processing unit of
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a computer, requiring the use of computer's
input/output channels.
• Secondary storage is used to store data that is not
in active use.
• Secondary storage is usually slower than primary
storage, or internal memory, but also almost
always has higher storage capacity and is non-
volatile, which makes it perfect for the 49
preservation of stored information in an event of
power loss.
Magnetic tape Cont’d…
• Magnetic tape is a non-volatile storage medium consisting of a magnetic
coating on a thin plastic strip. Nearly all recording tape is of this type,
whether used for video, audio storage or general purpose digital data
storage using a computer. It has large storage capacity but it is slow to access
because it is sequentially accessed.
Magnetic disk
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• Floppy Disk
• A floppy disk is a data storage device that is composed of a disk of thin,
flexible ("floppy") magnetic storage medium encased in a square or
rectangular plastic shell. Floppy disks are read and written by a floppy disk
drive. Floppy disk is cheap, and portable, but it has small storage capacity
(1.44 MB) and is unreliable.
• Hard disk
• A hard disk drive (HDD, also commonly shortened to hard drive and formerly
known as a fixed disk) is a digitally encoded non-volatile storage device
which stores data on rapidly rotating platters with magnetic surfaces. Strictly
speaking, "drive" refers to an entire unit containing multiple platters, a 50
read/write head assembly, driver electronics, and motor while "hard disk"
(sometimes "platter") refers to the storage medium itself.
Magnetic tape Cont’d…
• Magnetic tape is a non-volatile storage medium consisting of a magnetic
coating on a thin plastic strip. Nearly all recording tape is of this type,
whether used for video, audio storage or general purpose digital data
storage using a computer. It has large storage capacity but it is slow to access
because it is sequentially accessed.
Magnetic disk
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• Floppy Disk
• A floppy disk is a data storage device that is composed of a disk of thin,
flexible ("floppy") magnetic storage medium encased in a square or
rectangular plastic shell. Floppy disks are read and written by a floppy disk
drive. Floppy disk is cheap, and portable, but it has small storage capacity
(1.44 MB) and is unreliable.
• Hard disk
• A hard disk drive (HDD, also commonly shortened to hard drive and formerly
known as a fixed disk) is a digitally encoded non-volatile storage device
which stores data on rapidly rotating platters with magnetic surfaces. Strictly
speaking, "drive" refers to an entire unit containing multiple platters, a 51
read/write head assembly, driver electronics, and motor while "hard disk"
(sometimes "platter") refers to the storage medium itself.
• Optical disk Cont’d…
• CD-R
• A CD-R (Compact Disc-Recordable) is a variation of the Compact Disc invented by
Philips and Sony. CD-R is a write once, read-only optical magnetic media commonly
known as optical disc and retains a high level of compatibility with standard CD
readers (unlike CD-RW which can be rewritten but has much lower compatibility and
the discs are considerably more expensive).
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• CD-RW (Compact Disc Re-Writable)
• CD-RW is a rewritable optical disc format. Known as CD-Erasable (CD-E) during its
development, CD-RW was introduced in 1997.
• DVD(Digital Versatile Disc)
• DVD (sometimes called "Digital Versatile Disc” or "Digital Video Disc") is an optical
disc storage media format that can be used for data storage, including movies with
high video and sound quality. DVDs resemble compact discs as their physical
dimensions are the same but they are encoded in a different format and at a much
higher density.
• Flash Memory
• USB flash drives -thumb drives, handy drives-, which are used for general storage and
transfer of data between computers. It has also gained some popularity in the
52
gaming market these days. Flash memory is highly portable and it can store much
data but it is expensive.
Output devices
Display devices – softcopy output
• CRT
• Abbreviation of cathode-ray tube, the technology used in most
televisions and computer display screens. A CRT works by
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moving an electron beam back and forth across the back of
the screen.
• LCD
• Short for liquid crystal display, a type of display used in digital
watches and many portable computers. LCD displays utilize
two sheets of polarizing material with a liquid crystal solution
between them. An electric current passed through the liquid
causes the crystals to align so that light cannot pass through
them.
53
54
Printer – hardcopy output Cont’d…
• Printer is a device that prints text or illustrations on paper. There are many different
types of printers. In terms of the technology they utilize, printers fall into the
following categories:
• Daisy-wheel: Similar to a ball-head typewriter, this type of printer has a plastic
or metal wheel on which the shape of each character stands out in relief. Daisy-
wheel printers produce letter-quality print but cannot print graphics.
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• Dot-matrix: Creates characters by striking pins against an ink ribbon. Each pin
makes a dot, and combinations of dots form characters and illustrations.
• Ink-jet: Sprays ink at a sheet of paper. Ink-jet printers produce high-quality text
and graphics.
• Laser: Uses the same technology as copy machines. Laser printers produce very
high quality text and graphics.
• LCD & LED: Similar to a laser printer, but uses liquid crystals or light-emitting
diodes rather than a laser to produce an image on the drum.
• Line printer: Contains a chain of characters or pins that print an entire line at
one time. Line printers are very fast, but produce low-quality print.
• Thermal printer: An inexpensive printer that works by pushing heated pins
against heat-sensitive paper. Thermal printers are widely used in calculators and 55
fax machines.
Plotter – hardcopy output
Cont’d…
• A Plotter is also a printer that produces hard copy output.
Plotters produce high quality color graphics output by using
pens for creating images. Plotters help to draw maps from
stored data.
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Speaker – voice output
• Speaker is an electro-acoustic transducer that converts
electrical signals into sounds loud enough to be heard at a
distance.
Robot – physical output
• Robot is the most intriguing output device. Robotic device
consists of arms that can perform a preprogrammed task.
Robots are mostly used in manufacturing tasks such as spray
painting or assembling parts. Advanced robots are used in
56
scientific research such as space and undersea exploration.
Software Components
• Computer software is a set of step-by-step instructions given to
the computer in the form of programs or procedures or routines
in order to accomplish any specified task or to process the raw
data and convert it into meaningful information
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• Two Types:
• System software
• Application software
System software is a generic term referring to any computer
software that is an essential part of the computer system.
Three Types:
Operating System
Driver Software
57
Language Software
Utility Software
Cont’d…
Operating system
• An operating system (OS) is a computer program that
manages the hardware and software resources of a computer.
• At the foundation of all system software, the OS performs
basic tasks such as controlling and allocating memory,
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prioritizing system requests, controlling input and output
devices, facilitating networking, and managing files. It also
may provide a graphical user interface for higher level
functions. The operating system is considered as the boss of
the whole system.
• Basic functions of operating system are:
• input /output management
• memory management
• file management
58
• job control (process scheduling)
Cont’d…
Device driver
• Computers and their operating systems cannot be expected to
know how to control every device, both now and in the future.
• To solve this problem, operating systems essentially dictate
how every type of device should be controlled.
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• The function of the device driver is then to translate these OS
mandated function calls into device specific calls.
• In theory a new device, which is controlled in a new manner,
should function correctly if a suitable driver is available.
• This new driver will ensure that the device appears to operate
as usual from the operating systems' point of view.
• In short, device driver is a type of system software that
introduces a new device to the operating system and facilitates
the communication between the operating system and the
59
device.
Cont’d…
Language software
• Languages are used for writing instructions or software.
Basically, computer languages range from very complicated
to human but clear to computers to very easy for human
but un-understandable by computers. The following are
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some of the examples.
• Machine Language
• Machine language is the only language the computer
directly understands. It is in the form of strings of binary
numbers. A machine language instruction has at least two
parts:
• opcode – function code which specifies the function performed and
• operand address – which specifies location of data and other
instructions
60
Cont’d…
• Assembly Languages
• Assembly language is easier to use than machine language.
It is done by representing some of the most commonly
used instruction codes with some symbols. But it needs
special translating program. It is machine dependent.
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• High Level Languages
• High level languages resemble some human languages such
as English and are easier for human programmers to write.
It allows users to write in a familiar notation, rather than
numbers or abbreviations. It includes application and
system development languages, report generators, or AI
system development languages. Most of high level
languages are machine independent.
• e.g. FORTRAN, BASIC, Pascal, C, C++, Java …
61
Cont’d…
• Language translators
• Depending on the language, the translator for high level languages is either a
compiler or an interpreter.
• However, code written using assembly language is translated to machine
language by a program called assembler. Compiler and interpreter are discussed
as follows:
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• Compiler – execute later: a compiler is a language translator that converts the
entire program of a high level language into machine language before the
computer executes the program. The programming instructions of a high level
language are called source code. The compiler translates it into machine
language, which in this case is called the object code. The object code can be
saved. Thus, it can be executed later (as many times as desired).
• Examples of high level languages using compiler are: FORTRAN, Pascal, C, C ++,
and Java.
• Interpreter – execute immediately: an interpreter is a language translator that
converts each high level language into machine language and executes
immediately, statement by statement. No object code is saved, as with compiler.
Therefore, interpreted code generally runs more slowly than compiled code.
However, code can be tested line by line 62
• Examples of high level languages using interpreter are BASIC, and Visual Basic
Cont’d…
• Utility software
• Utility Programs are generally used to support, enhance or
expand existing programs in a computer system. Examples
of utility programs are
• Backup – to duplicate the data or information for safety.
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• Data Recovery – to restore data that is physically damaged or
corrupted.
• Virus Protection – Antivirus software which will eliminate
viruses from affected files or protect files from being infected
from viruses.
• Data Compression – used to compress huge files and save
memory storage.
63
• Application software Cont’d…
• Unlike system software, application software, consists of are
programs that help the end-user to perform specific, productive
tasks, such as word processing or image manipulation.
• Basically, there are four categories of application software.
• Productivity Software: The purpose of this software is to make the
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users more productive at performing general tasks. For example,
word processing, spread sheets, presentation, database managers,
accounting etc.
• Home / Personal software: The purpose of this software is mainly for
domestic and personal use. For example, cook books, medical guide,
gardening, etc.
• Education / Reference software: The purpose of this software is
mainly to learn any subject or to refer for additional information.
• For example: Encyclopedia, Dictionaries, Computer Based
Tutorials (CBT), etc.
• Entertainment software: The purpose of this software is for 64
entertainment and time passing. For example games.

Computer Applications in Managamenet

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Computer Applications in Managamenet

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04/28/2023

• Second-generation computers used transistors instead of vacuum tubes, which

• The dream of creating a human-like computer that would be capable

Computers are classified by the type of data they are designed

Compiled by Dagne G. 04/28/2023

Compiled by Dagne G. 04/28/2023

Compiled by Dagne G. 04/28/2023

Compiled by Dagne G. 04/28/2023

Compiled by Dagne G. 04/28/2023

CPU has three components, namely:

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