HARAMAYA UNIVERSITY

COLLEGE OF BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS

DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMICS

BASIC COMPUTER SKILLS OF MICROSOFT APPLICATIONS (CoSc2201)

CHAPTER TWO: COMPUTER SYSTEMS

COMPILED BY: Ms. Etsub

2 CONTENTS

❑ What is Computer Systems?

❑ Components of Computer System

▪ Hardware Components

▪ Software Components
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WHAT IS COMPUTER SYSTEM?

❑ Working together of components in coordination in such a way that the input of one

component is the output of the other until a common goal is achieved.

[General Meaning]

❑ A computer system is composed of physical components (hardware) and non-

physical component (software) that work together in coordination to achieve a

common goal (data processing).

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COMPUTER SYSTEM COMPONENTS

❑ 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 and perform a variety of activities.
❑ Hardware is the physical component of the computer system that we can see, touch and sense.
❑ Software is the set of instructions that tell the hardware how to perform a task.
❑ Without software, the hardware is useless and vice versa.

o Data consists of the raw facts and figures that are processed into information.

o Information is summarized data or otherwise manipulated (processed) data.

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HARDWARE COMPONENTS … (1)
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HARDWARE COMPONENTS … (2)

❑ Generally hardware components classified in

to four major aspects.

❑ These are:

▪ INPUT DEVICE.

▪ PROCESSING DEVICE.

▪ STORAGE DEVICE.

▪ OUTPUT DEVICE.
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❑ Input devices allows user to put data into the

❑ Keyboard.
computer in a form that the computer can use.
❑ Mouse.
❑ Among the input devices.
❑ Scanner

❑ Joystick.

❑ Microphone.

❑ Touch Screen.
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KEYBOARD a peripheral device that are designed for the input of text and characters and also

to control the operation of a computer. It is a basic input device that is used to enter

data into a computer or any other electronic device by pressing keys.

• It has different sets of keys for letters, numbers, characters,and functions.

• Keyboards are connected to a computer through USB or a Bluetooth device for wireless

communication.

Peripheral->electronic equipment connected by cable or blutooth to the CPU of a computer ].

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 HARDWARE COMPONENTS | INPUT DEVICES … (2)
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 HARDWARE COMPONENTS | INPUT DEVICES … (3)
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MOUSE

❑ An input peripheral device that is rolled to direct a pointer on the

computer’s display screen.

❑ The cursor, also called an insertion point, is the symbol on the screen that

shows where data may be entered next.

❑ Mouse has two buttons: Left (Primary) and Right (Secondary) button.

❑ Operations can be performed using mouse.

▪ Selecting (single left click)

▪ Giving command (double left click)

▪ Dragging objects (press the left button and moving the mouse)

▪ Dropping objects (release the left button)

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SCANNER
❑ A scanner is a device that captures images
from photographic prints, posters,
magazine pages, and similar sources for OMR
computer editing and display.

❑ Types of Scanners.
▪ BCR- barcode reader
▪ OCR- optical character reader
▪ OMR- optical mark recognition
▪ MICR – Magnetic Ink Character
Recognition
MICR
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JOYSTICK

❑ is a pointing device that consists of a

vertical handle mounted on a base

containing one or two buttons.

❑ Joystick is often used for playing games.

MICROPHONE
❑ a device that used to inputting sound or voice data
into the computer for processing.
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TOUCH SCREENS /TOUCH PANELS / TOUCH SCREEN PANELS

❑ are display overlays which have the ability to display and receive
information on the same screen.

LIGHT PEN
❑ is a light sensitive stylus or pen like device,
connected by a wire to the computer.

TRACK BALL
❑ is another pointing device and a variant of the
mouse. It contains a rotating ball on top of the
stationery device.
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CPU [ CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT ]

❑ CPU is the brains of the computer.

❑ It is the most important element of the computer where most calculations take place.

❑ CPU has three components, namely:

▪ THE ARITHMETIC AND LOGIC UNIT (ALU), which performs arithmetic (addition, subtraction,

multiplication, and division) and logical (comparison, negation, conjunction, and disjunction)

operations.

▪ 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

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 HARDWARE COMPONENTS | STORAGE DEVICES … (1)
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❑ Devices which are used to store data.

❑ Storage devices can be classified into primary and secondary storage device.

SECONDARY STORAGE
PRIMARY STORAGE
▪ Magnetic tape
▪ RAM
▪ Magnetic disk
▪ ROM
• Floppy disk

• Hard disk

• Optical disk

• Flash disk
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CACHE MEMORY also called CPU memory, is random access memory (RAM) that a computer

microprocessor can access more quickly than it can access regular RAM.

RAM [RANDOM ACCESS MEMORY ] a type of computer memory that can be accessed randomly.

❑ RAM is a place on which programs are running.

❑ There are two different types of RAM:

❑ DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory)

❑ SRAM (Static Random Access Memory).

❑ The two types of RAM differ in the technology they use to hold data.
RAM
❑ SRAM is faster expensive than DRAM.
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ROM [READ ONLY MEMORY ]

❑ Computer memory on which data has been prerecorded. Unlike RAM, ROM keeps its data even

when power is off

❑ Once data has been written onto a ROM chip, it cannot be removed and can only be read.

❑ There are three different types of ROM:

▪ PROM (Programmable Read-Only Memory) can be written to (programmed) via a special
device, a PROM programmer.
▪ EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory) can be erased by exposure to
ultraviolet light then rewritten via an EPROM programmer.
▪ EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory) allow the entire ROM
(or selected banks of the ROM) to be electrically erased then written to without taking them out of
the computer
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Difference between RAM and ROM.

RAM ROM

✓ Volatile storage ✓ Non-volatile storage

✓ used in the normal operations of a ✓ used primarily in the start up process of a

computer after starting up. computer.

✓ writing data to a RAM chip is a faster ✓ Writing data to a ROM chip is a slow
process. process.

✓ It is read/write memory. ✓ It is read only memory

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A magnetic tape is a thin and a long plastic strip coated with a magnetizable material.

A magnetic disk operates the same way a magnetic tape does, but magnetic disks can

usually store a large amount of data than the magnetic tapes.

❑ The main advantage of the magnetic disk is that data can be read from anywhere.

❑ A magnetic disk is also more portable and faster than the magnetic tape.
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FLOPPY DISK also called a diskette, is a disk storage medium

composed of a disk of thin and flexible magnetic storage medium

▪ Sealed in a rectangular plastic carrier lined with fabric that

removes dust particles.

▪ Floppy disks are read and written by a floppy disk drive (FDD).

▪ The capacity size is 1.44MB.

HARD DISK is a data storage device used for storing and

retrieving digital information using rapidly rotating disks

(platters) coated with magnetic material.

❑ An HDD retains its data even when powered off.

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OPTICAL DISK is a flat, usually circular disc that used to store data.

❑ Includes CD [compact disk], DVD [digital video disc or digital

versatile disc].

FLASH DISK A storage module made of flash memory chips.

❑ [ Flash memory non-volatile, rewritable memory chip used

for storage ]
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Data in storage devices are measured in bit, byte mega byte, giga byte, tera byte etc.

Relationship between the measurements

❑ 1 byte = 8 bits

❑ 1 KB = 210 bytes = 210 x 8 bits=1024 bytes

❑ 1 MB= 220 bytes = 220 x 8 bits= 1024 KB

❑ 1 GB = 230 bytes = 230 x 8 bits=1024 MB

❑ 1 TB = 240 bytes = 240 x 8 bits= 1024 GB

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❑ Monitors, commonly called as Visual Display Unit (VDU),are the main output device of a
computer.

❑ It forms images from tiny dots, called pixels that are arranged in a rectangular form.

❑ Outputs can be in the form of softcopy, hardcopy or sound.

OUTPUT IN SOFTCOPY OUTPUT IN HARDCOPY

❑ Printer
❑ MONITOR
❑ Plotter
▪ CRT [ cathode ray tube ]
OUTPUT IN SOUND
▪ LCD [ liquid crystal display ]
❑ Speaker
▪ LED [ light emitted diode ]
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Monitor is a device LCD ▪ a type of display used in digital

watches and many portable
that displays outputs
computers.
from computer. ▪ LCD displays utilize two sheets of
polarizing material with a liquid
crystal solution between them.
▪ the technology used in most
televisions and computer
display screens.
▪ A CRT works by moving an
electron beam back and forth LED
CRT across the back of the screen.
▪ A technology used to produce a very thin display screen,
called a flat-panel display, used in some portable computers.
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PRINTER is a device that prints text or illustrations on paper.

Major Types Of Printer

▪ Dot-matrix

▪ Ink-jet

▪ Laser

PLOTTER is a computer printer for printing vector graphics.

❑ It 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 is device that converts electrical signals

into sounds loud enough to be heard at a distance.

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SOFTWARE COMPONENTS … (1)

❑ Computer software is a set of instructions given to the computer in order to accomplish

any specified task or to process the raw data and convert it into meaningful

information.

❑ Without software, most computers would be useless. For example, without a browser

software, you could not surf the internet.

❑ There are two software components.

I. SYSTEM SOFTWARE

II. APPLICATION SOFTWARE

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SOFTWARE COMPONENTS … (2)

❑ System software is computer software designed to operate and control the computer

hardware and to provide an essential platform for running application software. It is a

collection of programs designed to operate, control, and extend the processing

capabilities of the computer itself.

✓ Operating system

✓ Device Drivers

✓ Language software

✓ Utility software
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SOFTWARE COMPONENTS … (3)

OPERATING SYSTEM (OS)

❑ OS is a computer program that manages the hardware and software resources of a computer.

❑ The operating system is considered as the boss of the whole system.

❑ It has three major responsibilities: 1) Perform basic tasks including recognising input from keyboard, sending

output to the display screen and keeping track of files and directories on the desk. It also controls peripheral

devices.

2) Ensure that different programs and users running simultaneously do not interfere with each other.

3) Provide a software platform to run other program.

▪ Input /output management

▪ Memory management

▪ File management

▪ Job control (process scheduling)

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SOFTWARE COMPONENTS … (4)

DEVICE DRIVERS

▪ 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 device.

▪ 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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SOFTWARE COMPONENTS … (5)
COMPUTER LANGUAGE

are the languages through which user can communicate with the computer by writing program instructions.

CLASSIFICATION OF LANGUAGE

▪ Machine language is the only language the computer directly understands(AKA Binary or Low level language).

As the CPU directly understands the binary language instructions, it does not requires any translater.

▪ Assembly language is easier to use than machine language(AKA Medium level language).

▪ It is done by representing some of the most commonly used instruction codes with some symbols(Mnemonics).

computer can not understand mnemonics, so we use a translator called Assembler to translate mnemonics into binary

language. Assembler is a translator which takes assembly code as input and produces machine code as output.

▪ 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.
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SOFTWARE COMPONENTS … (6)

COMPONENTS OF HIGH LEVEL LANGUAGES

Language translators

The translator for high level languages is either a compiler or an interpreter.

Compiler – is a language translator that converts the entire program of a high level language into machine language

before the computer executes the program.

Examples FORTRAN, Pascal, C, C++, and Java.

Interpreter – an interpreter is a language translator that converts each high level language into machine language

and executes immediately, statement by statement. Python, javascripit, BASIC..

¿Cómo estás? ¿Todo bien y tu? ¿gracias, Necesitas un café? Sí, dos cafés con leche, por favor. Los cafés están aquí
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SOFTWARE COMPONENTS … (7)

UTILITY SOFTWARE

❑ Backup – to duplicate the data or information for safety.

❑ Data Recovery – to restore data that is physically damaged or corrupted(AKA

Disk checker)

❑ 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 and

uncompress for later use.

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SOFTWARE COMPONENTS … (8)

APPLICATION SOFTWARE

▪ Application software is a computer program that perform a specific functions, it may be educational,
business, or personal.

▪ Also know as an end-user program or a productivity program.

▪ Application software programs are specific in their functionality and perform the job they are
designed to do.

▪ Application software cannot run on itself but is dependent on system software to execute.
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SOFTWARE COMPONENTS … (9)
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