Computer
Hardware
Components
Recall
Input and Output
Devices
I/O Technology
Input Devices
What Is Input?
• Keyboard
• Pointing devices
• Touch screens
• Pen input
• Motion input
• Voice input
• Video input
• Scanners and reading devices
Keyboards
Keyboards
Dome Switch Keyboards Mechanical Keyboards
Aka ‘membrane keyboard’
• Uses a thin rubber or silicon • Uses individual switches
layer with individual domes per key
per key that collapse when • More expensive
pressed • More tactile because keys
• Relatively quiet and low cost can register even if
• Can fail to register keystrokes pressed halfway
when not pressed down far
enough
Keyboards
Pointing Devices
Pointing Devices
Trackballs – essentially are upside down mechanical mice
Touchscreens
Capacitive Touchscreens Resistive Touchscreens
Rely on conductivity of objects to sense their Made up of several layers, the topmost of
location on the screen which relies on pressure to sense the location
of objects
Generally considered more sensitive and
responsive compared to resistive screens Generally considered more accurate
compared to capacitive screens
Pen Inputs
Motion Input
Audio Input
Voice Input
Image Input
Mark Sensors and Code Scanners
Magnetic Scanners
Optical Scanners
• Optical scanner generates bitmap
representations of printed images.
• A white light shines on the page or other flat
surface
• Reflected light is detected by an array of
photosensors that interpret the color on the
scanned image
• Optical Character Recognition (OCR) uses a
special-purpose processor or software to
interpret bitmap content and search for
patterns similar to printed characters
Output Devices
What Is Output?
• Text
• Graphics
• Video
• Audio
Displays
Displays
Alternative Displays
Printers
• A printer is an output device that
produces text and graphics on a
physical medium
• Impact Printers make contact with
the printing medium to produce text
• A dot matrix printer moves a
matrix of pins to press a ribbon
soaked with ink over the paper.
• Commonly still used for high-
speed printing of multicopy forms
Printers
Printers
Printers
Printers
Printers
Audio Devices
Assistive Technologies
Concepts in I/O Devices
I/O Operations and Data Transfer (1/3)
I/O Operations and Data Transfer (2/3)
I/O Operations and Data Transfer (3/3)
Device Drivers (1/5)
Device Drivers (2/5)
Device Drivers (3/5)
Device Drivers (4/5)
Device Drivers (5/5)
Buffering in I/O Devices
• Buffering is the temporary storage of data while it is being transferred between devices or
processes that operate at different speeds.
• Role in I/O:
• Buffers allow the CPU to continue other tasks while data is processed by slower
devices (e.g., printers, hard drives).
• Buffers smooth out differences in data transfer rates, preventing bottlenecks.
• Examples:
• Printing: Data is sent to a buffer (spooler) while waiting for the printer to process it at
its own pace.
• Video Streaming: Data is buffered in advance to ensure smooth playback even with
minor network fluctuations.
Caching in I/O Devices
• Caching is the process of storing frequently accessed data in a faster storage medium
(e.g., RAM) for quicker retrieval.
• Role in I/O:
• Caching improves efficiency by reducing the need to fetch data from slower storage
(e.g., hard drives) repeatedly.
• It reduces access time for data that is frequently requested, speeding up I/O
operations.
• Examples:
• CPU Cache: Stores frequently accessed instructions and data, allowing the CPU to
quickly retrieve them, improving overall system performance.
• Web Browser Cache: Stores web page elements like images and scripts, speeding up
page load times for future visits.
Addressing and Virtualization (1/3)
How devices are addressed in a system
Addressing and Virtualization (2/3)
Concept of virtualization in I/O devices
In virtualized environments, physical I/O devices are emulated as virtual devices. These
virtual devices allow multiple virtual machines (VMs) to share the same physical hardware
without direct access to it.
The virtualization layer (hypervisor) manages the communication between virtual machines
and the physical I/O devices, allowing each VM to interact with devices as if they have
dedicated access.
This helps optimize hardware usage and provides flexibility, especially in cloud environments
where resources are shared.
Addressing and Virtualization (3/3)
Use cases for virtual devices in modern systems
Cloud Environments: Virtual devices are common in cloud services where
multiple virtual machines need to share hardware resources. For example, in
a cloud data center, multiple VMs can share a single physical network
interface card (NIC) through virtual NICs, ensuring efficient use of hardware.
Development and Testing: Virtual devices are often used by developers to
simulate hardware for testing purposes without needing the actual physical
device. For instance, virtual network interfaces can be used to test software
designed for specific network hardware configurations
Performance Considerations in I/O (1/3)
Data Transfer Rate:
• This is the speed at which data moves between the I/O device and the system (usually measured in MB/s or GB/s).
Higher transfer rates mean data can be processed more quickly.
• Example: A solid-state drive (SSD) typically has a faster data transfer rate than a traditional hard drive (HDD),
which means data can be read and written faster.
Latency:
• Latency is the time delay between the moment a request is made and the time the data begins to be transferred.
Lower latency means faster response times.
• Example: In a high-performance computing (HPC) environment, low latency is crucial, especially for tasks like
video rendering, where quick data access is required.
Bandwidth:
• Bandwidth refers to the maximum amount of data that can be transferred at a given time. High bandwidth allows
more data to be transferred simultaneously, which is particularly important for applications that deal with large
volumes of data.
• Example: Servers that handle large datasets or multiple users benefit from high bandwidth to avoid slowdowns
during data-heavy operations.
Performance Considerations in I/O (2/3)
Importance of Efficient I/O in High Performance Computing (HPC)
Environments
In HPC environments—such as data centers, servers, or workstations used
for tasks like video editing or scientific simulations—efficient I/O is crucial.
Poor I/O performance can create bottlenecks, where the CPU or memory is
waiting for data from slower I/O devices, which slows down the entire system.
For example, in video rendering or database management, where large
volumes of data need to be processed quickly, inefficient I/O can significantly
reduce productivity.
Performance Considerations in I/O (3/3)
• Direct Memory Access (DMA):
• Reducing Context Switching:
• Efficient Use of Buffers and Caches: