ICT NOTES
Continued
IMPORTANCE OF ICT TO STUDENTS
• Students can also use ICT in many ways, e.g.
• Research for study materials, e.g. use of the Internet.
• Communication with teachers, sponsors, parents and friends.
• Production of learning resources, e.g. notes and assignments.
• As a tool for self-paced learning, e.g. use of audio, video and virtual
classrooms.
CLASSIFICATION OF COMPUTERS
• There are various classes of computers.
• It is important to understand the various classes of
computers for a number of reasons, e.g.
• Different computers are used for different purposes.
• Different computers have different processing power.
• Different computers have different costs.
• Different computers require different operating conditions.
CLASSIFICATION OF COMPUTERS
• Computers can be classified on the basis of many
factors, e.g.
• Cost
• Speed of processing
• Amount of storage
• Operating environment
• Physical size
CLASSIFICATION OF COMPUTERS
• On the basis of the factors outlined above, computers
are classified as follows:
• Microcomputers
• Servers
• Minicomputers
• Mainframe computers
• Supercomputers
CLASSIFICATION OF COMPUTERS
• Microcomputer
CLASSIFICATION OF COMPUTERS
• Server Computer
CLASSIFICATION OF COMPUTERS
• Minicomputer
CLASSIFICATION OF COMPUTERS
• Mainframe Computer
CLASSIFICATION OF COMPUTERS
• Supercomputer
CLASSIFICATION OF COMPUTERS
• MICROCOMPUTERS
• They are the most widespread.
• They are also called personal computers because of being
single user.
• They include the following:
• Desktops
• Laptops
• Notebooks
• Netbooks
• Palmtops
MICROCOMPUTERS
• Desktop Computers
MICROCOMPUTERS
• Laptop Computer
MICROCOMPUTERS
• Notebook Computer
MICROCOMPUTERS
• Netbook Computer
MICROCOMPUTERS
• Palmtop Computer
WHY MICROCOMPUTERS ARE THE MOST
COMMON
• They are portable.
• They cost the least amount of money to buy.
• They use less sophisticated software and hardware.
• They can be upgraded easily.
• They do not necessarily require air-conditioned rooms.
• Their processing power can be increased by connecting
them in a network.
UNDERSTANDING A COMPUTER
What is a computer?
• A computer is an automatic electronic machine which
performs the following functions:
• Accepts data and instructions
• Stores the data and the instructions
• Retrieves data
• Processes data using the stored instructions
• Gives feedback or results in any desired format
UNDERSTANDING A COMPUTER (Continued)
• Strictly, a computer is not one item.
• A computer is a collection of different facilities which all work
together to accomplish a task.
• Therefore, a computer is a system.
• As a system, a computer consists of two main parts.
• The main parts that make up a computer are hardware and software.
• Computer = Hardware + Software
SOME UNITS OF A DESKTOP
COMPUTER SYSTEM
COMPUTER HARDWARE
• A computer is an electronic machine which accepts signals, stores the signals,
processes the signals and communicates results in human readable form.
• Computer hardware is the physical part of a computer.
• It consists of everything that can be touched, felt or seen.
• In general, computer hardware resources are in four categories as follows:
• Input
• Processor
• Storage
• Output
Computer Hardware (Continued)
.
INPUT PROCESSOR OUTPUT
STORAGE
Arrows show the flow of data within the
computer.
INPUT DEVICES
• Input devices are used to capture data into the computer.
• Input devices are also used for entering commands.
• Commands are instructions that users give to the computer to initiate
them into action.
• Since the computer’s processor can only understand and do things in
machine language, an input device is used to convert data from
human language to machine language.
Examples of input devices
Keyboard Mouse Track ball Joystick
Game Scanner Microphone
controller Camera
Examples of input devices
Touch Screen Bar code Reader Drawing Tablet
Examples of output devices
CRT Monitor LCD Monitor Impact Dot Matrix Printer
DeskJet Printer LaserJet Printer Speakers
DESKJET PRINTERS
• They use ink to print.
Advantages:
• They can print in colour.
• They are less expensive.
• They make less noise when printing.
• They are very light; some are portable.
• Their printout has good quality.
Disadvantages:
• Their ink is expensive.
• They cannot be used with carbon paper.
LASER JET PRINTERS
• They use toner and laser light.
Advantages:
• They print very fast.
• They print quietly.
• They can print in colour or black.
• Their printout is of high quality.
LASER JET PRINTERS (Continued)
Disadvantages:
• They are expensive to buy.
• Their toner is costly as well.
• They use laser light which is harmful when exposed to it.
• They consume more electrical energy.
RESOLUTION OF AN OUPUT DEVICE
• Resolution refers to the sharpness or clarity of an
output.
• Often resolution is quoted in dots per inch (dpi), i.e.
…..
• The higher the resolution of an output device, e.g. a
monitor or a printer, the better the quality of the
output.
• Among the printers, the laser jet printer gives the
highest resolution, and the impact dot matrix printer
the lowest.
STORAGE DEVICES
• Storage devices are used to store user data and computer software.
• There are three types of storage devices.
• The three types are magnetic devices, optical devices and
semiconductor devices.
MAGNETIC STORAGE DEVICES
• These use magnetic properties to store data.
• To make a storage device, a magnetic powder, e.g. iron oxide, is
coated on a material.
• Data is stored by forming a magnetic pattern on the powder, similar
to way music is recorded on audio tapes.
MAGNETIC STORAGE DEVICES (Continued)
• There are two types of magnetic storage devices:
• The two types are magnetic tapes and magnetic disks.
• Magnetic tapes are used very rarely nowadays because they are slow.
• There are two types of magnetic disk.
MAGNETIC DISKS
• The two types of magnetic disk are floppy disk and hard disk.
• The hard disk stores more data than the floppy disk.
• The hard disk is made from hard material such as aluminium.
• The floppy disk is made from soft material, i.e. plastic.
MAGNETIC DISKS (Continued)
• Floppy disks are no longer popular on modern computers.
• Floppy disks are removable from the computer.
• Hard disks are not removable from the computer.
OPTICAL DISKS
• Optical disks do not use magnetic properties to store data.
• Optical disks use laser light to store data on storage medium.
• Examples of optical disks are CDs, CD-ROMs, and DVD-ROMs.
• Optical disks store more data than floppy disks.
SEMICONDUCTOR STORAGE
• A semiconductor storage device does not use
magnetism or light to store data.
• Semiconductor storage devices use electronic chips to
store data.
• An example of a semiconductor storage device is a
flash disk.
• Flash disks store more data than floppy disks, and
they are easier to carry.
• Some flash disks store more data than CD-ROMs and
DVD-ROMs.
Examples of Storage Devices
Hard Disk Floppy Disk CD-ROM
Zip Disk Flash Disk
STORAGE CAPACITY
• The storage capacity of a storage medium is given in BYTES.
• One byte of data is equal to eight bits.
• For example, in a coding system called Extended Binary Coded
Decimal Interchange Code (EBCDIC), the letter A is represented by
11110001.
• 11110001 is one byte.
STORAGE CAPACITY (Continued)
• 1kilobyte (kB) means one thousand bytes.
• 1megabyte (MB) means one million bytes.
• 1gigabyte (GB) means one billion bytes.
• 1terabyte (TB) means one trillion bytes.
DISK DRIVES
• In the computer, a disk (floppy, hard or optical) is controlled by a
mechanism called a disk drive.
• Disk drives are identified by letters A, B, C, D, and so on.
• Disk drives A and B are no longer used on modern computers because
they control floppy disks.
DISK DRIVES (Continued)
• Disk drive C is always for the first hard disk which was installed.
• If a computer has two hard disk drives, the first is C and the second is
D.
• A computer denotes a flash disk as a removable disk.
• For a computer with one hard disk drive, flash disks are assigned
letters D, E, F, G, and so on.
• To check how many and which drives a computer has, you simply
open the My Computer folder on the Windows Desktop.
THE PROCESSOR
• This is the most important part of computer hardware.
• It has many parts that perform different functions.
• The most fundamental parts of the processor are as follows:
Control Unit – CU
Arithmetic and Logic Unit – ALU
Random Access Memory – RAM
Read Only Memory - ROM
THE PROCESSOR
.
PROCESSOR
CPU
CU
ALU
INPUT OUTPUT
RAM
ROM MAIN MEMORY
STORAGE
THE CONTROL UNIT – CU
• Controls all functions of the computer,
e.g.
• Controlling operations of input/output
(i/o) systems.
• Controlling flow of data within the
processor and between the processor
and the peripheral devices.
• Configuring and optimizing RAM to
ensure that it works efficiently.
THE ALU
• This is the unit that does the actual processing of data.
• It processes data by doing arithmetic and logic operations.
• Arithmetic means addition, subtraction, multiplication and
division.
• Logic is comparing things so as to make appropriate choices.
• The CU and the ALU are made on the same computer chip
called the Central Processing Unit (CPU) or the
microprocessor.
RAM
• RAM is temporary storage.
• When power is switched off, everything is erased from RAM.
Functions of RAM include the following:
• Receiving raw data from input.
• Receiving processed data from the ALU.
• Storing instructions required by the CU.
• Holding data awaiting output.
• Holding data awaiting storage.
ROM
• ROM stores instructions that are used to start the computer.
• Instructions in ROM cannot be erased.
• During startup, the computer follows instructions in ROM to do
the following:
• Read the amount of RAM present.
• Check that monitor, keyboard and mouse are connected and
working.
• Check that components on the motherboard are working
properly.
• Check that the hard disk drive is connected and working.
• Load the operating system software in RAM from storage.
THE BIOS
• BIOS stands for Basic Input/Output Systems.
• Every computer has specifications such as hard disk
size, memory size, and processor speed.
• A bios is a unit (usually part of the ROM) which keeps
these specifications.
• During booting, the computer uses instructions in the
ROM to check that these parameters are correct.
• Together, ROM and BIOS are called ROM-BIOS.
BASIC UNDERSTANDING OF PROGRAM EXECUTION
• The main function of the CPU is to execute, i.e. to run a
program.
• A program consists of several instructions , or steps.
• Each instruction tells the computer to perform a specific
task.
• A program is executed one instruction at a time.
• Initially a program is loaded in RAM.
• The CU, the ALU and the RAM coordinate very closely during
program execution.
HOW CU, ALU AND RAM WORK TOGETHER
• CU fetches an instruction from RAM and puts it in its CIR
(i.e. Current Instruction Register).
• CU decodes, i.e. interprets the instruction and
communicates with ALU.
• CU directs RAM to send data to ALU.
• ALU processes data and places the processed data in its
ACCUMULATOR.
• CU directs ALU to send processed data back to RAM.
• CU directs RAM to send processed data to Output or
Storage.
• Current Instruction Register and Accumulator are examples
of Registers found in the CPU.
REGISTERS OF THE CPU
• The CPU has a number of registers.
• Registers are temporary storage locations.
• Registers are used because they work faster than RAM.
• Because within the CPU data and instructions must be transferred
very quickly, the CPU places current instructions and data in the
registers.
REGISTERS OF THE CPU (Continued)
• Some of the registers of the CPU are:
1. Current Instruction Register (CIR) in the CU and is used to hold an
instruction being obeyed to process data.
2. Memory Data Register (MDR) in the CU used to hold data being
processed.
3. Accumulator in the ALU and is used to hold data that has just been
processed.
4. Memory Address Register (MAR) in the CU used to hold the
address of data being processed.
COMPUTER BUSES
• Buses are routes through which data and instructions travel from one
point to another in the computer.
• The processor has many buses that convey different signals.
• The capacity of a computer is also determined by the size of its buses.
• The greater the bus, the faster the computer because many signals
can be transferred at the same time.
PROCESOR BUSES (Continued)
• Examples of buses in the computer are:
1. Data Bus which carries data signals between the CPU and RAM.
2. Address Bus which carries addresses of data between the CPU and
RAM.
3. Control Bus which carries control signals from the CPU to all other
units.
COMPUTER SOFTWARE
• Computer hardware requires software to tell it what
to do and how to do it.
• A computer consists of many, many different types of
software.
• Every software has a specific purpose in the
computer.
• Computer software is in three types – Systems
software, Utility software, and Applications software.
OPERATING SYSTEM
• This is the most important type of software in a
computer.
• Operating system is part of systems software.
• It is the one that tells the hardware what to do and
how to do it.
• It interprets the user’s commands.
• It acts as an interface, i.e. as a link, between
applications software and the hardware.
• It directs the flow of data from input to output or
storage.
EXAMPLES OF OPERATING SYSTEMS
• Microsoft Windows 95, 98, NT, Me, 2000, XP, Server
2003 and Vista.
• Unix
• Linux
• Mac OS 9, X