New Perspectives on

Essential Computer Concepts

Fundamentals of Computer Applications

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 Course Objectives
At the end of the course, you will
understand:
• The components of a • Hardware and software
computer system used to establish a
• The different types of network connection
computers • Internet, e-mail, and
• Microcomputer hardware World Wide Web
and its functions • System software
• Data representation and • Popular application
the ASCII code software
• Peripheral devices

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 What is a Computer?

A computer is a device
that:
• Accepts input
• Processes data
• Stores data
• Produces output

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 What is a Computer?
A Computer System is made
up of:
• Hardware - the physical
components
• Software - the programs or lists
of instructions
• Peripherals - the additional
components
• Peopleware - the person who uses
the computers

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What is a Computer?

Architecture or
configuration is the
design of the computer.
As in, what does the
computer consist of?

Specification is the technical

detail about each
component.
As in, how big is the
monitor?

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How a Computer Works

The hardware,
software, and you
work together to
complete assigned
tasks.

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How a Computer Works

The data you type into

the computer is called
input.

The result of the

computer processing
your input is called
output.

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 Types of Computers
The categories of computers are:
• Personal or microcomputers
– Desktop
– Notebook or Laptop
• Hand-help or PDAs
• Mainframes
• Supercomputers

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Types of Computers

Personal computers are used for general

computing tasks and fit the needs of most
users
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Types of Computers

Hand-held computers fit in the palm of

your hand and run on batteries.

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Types of Computers

Mainframes are used by

companies to provide
centralized storage,
processing, and
management for large
amounts of data.

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Types of Computers

Supercomputers are the largest and fastest

of computers, and can process an enormous
volume of data.
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Computer Hardware
Computer hardware
includes:
• Input devices
• Output devices
• Processing hardware
• Storage devices and media
• Network Devices

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 Computer Hardware
Some input devices are: A

• Keyboard w
i
• Mouse r
e
• Wireless pointer l
e
• Touch pad s
s
• Track ball
m
o
u
s
e
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 Computer Hardware
Output devices are:
Monitors and Printers are
common output devices.

CRT monitors and LCD (or

flat panel display) monitors
are two types of monitors.

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 Computer Hardware
Factors that
influence a
monitor’s quality
are:
• Screen Size

• Resolution

• Dot Pitch

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 Types of Printers
include:
Laser
A printer that produces very high-quality
print. One of the chief characteristics of laser
printers is their resolution –(how many dots
per inch - dpi) they lay down. The available
resolutions range from 300 dpi at the low end
to 1,200 dpi at the high end.

Ink Jet
A type of printer that works by
spraying ionized ink at a sheet of
paper. Magnetized plates in the ink's
path direct the ink onto the paper in
the desired shapes.
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Types of Printers
include:
Dot Matrix
A type of printer that produces characters
and illustrations by striking pins against
an ink ribbon to print closely spaced dots
in the appropriate shape. Dot-matrix
printers are relatively expensive and do
not produce high-quality output

Multifunction-
All in One
A multifunction printer that
prints, faxes, copies and scans.
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 Computer Hardware
• Multimedia devices are
peripheral devices that
include text, graphics,
sound, animation, and video.

• Speakers and sound

cards are common
multimedia output devices

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 Computer Hardware
• The most important
computer function is data
processing.

• Processing hardware is
used to process data.

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 Processing Hardware
• Computers interpret every
signal as “on” or “off.”

• 1 (“on”) and 0 (“off”) are

referred to as bits.

• Eight bits is a byte. Each

byte represents a unique
character.

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 Data Representation
Storage and memory
capacity is the amount of
data the storage device
can handle.

• Kilobyte (KB) is about one

thousand bytes
• Megabyte (MB) is about one
million bytes
• Gigabyte (GB) is about one
billion bytes

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 Processing Hardware
• The two most important
components of personal
computers hardware are
the microprocessor and
memory.
• These two factors directly
affect the computer’s price
and performance.

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 The Microprocessor
• The microprocessor is an
integrated circuit or chip on the
main circuit board inside the
computer.

• Its speed is determined by:

– Clock speed
– Word size
– Cache size

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 Memory
Computer memory is a set of
storage locations of the main
circuit board.
There are four types of memory:
• Random access memory (RAM)
• Virtual memory
• Read-only memory
• Complementary metal oxide
semiconductor memory (CMOS)

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 Memory
RAM is temporary memory
that is constantly changing
while the computer is on.

Virtual memory is extra

memory that simulates RAM
if more is needed.

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 Memory
Read-only memory (ROM) is
the permanent storage
location for a set of
instructions the computer
uses.

CMOS memory is semi-

permanent information
about where essential
software is stored.

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 Memory

A storage device receives data from RAM

and writes it on a storage medium. Later, it
can be read and sent back to RAM.

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 Storage Devices
Data is stored as files.

Executable files tell

computers how to
perform specific tasks.

Data files are created by

the user, usually with
software.

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 Storage Devices
Files are kept on storage devices.
These are:
• Magnetic storage devices - referring to the storage of
data on a magnetized medium. Magnetic storage uses
different patterns of magnetization in a magnetizable
material to store data and is a form of non-volatile
memory. The information is accessed using one or more
read/write heads.
• Optical storage devices - referring to the storage of data
on an optically readable medium. Data is recorded by
making marks in a pattern that can be read back with the
aid of light. A common modern technique used by
computers involves a tiny beam of laser light precisely
focused on a spinning disc.
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 Storage Devices
Some common magnetic
A floppy disk
storage devices are:
• Floppy disks
• Hard disk drives
• Tape drives
• Zip drives

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 Storage Devices
Some common
optical storage
devices are:
• CD-ROM drives
• DVD drives
• CD-R drives
• CD-RW drives

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 Storage Devices
CD-ROMs are for “read-only” access.
CD-R drives allow you to record data on a
CD-R disk.

CD-RW drives allow you to write data on a

CD-RW disk and access and modify data.

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 Data Communications

Data Communications
is the transmission of text,
numeric, voice, or video
data from one computer to
another.

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 Data Communications
The four essential
components of data
communi-cations are:
– Sender
– Channel
– Receiver
– Protocols

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Data Communications
A sender is the
computer that
originates the
message.

The message is sent

over a channel, such
as a telephone.

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 Data Communications
The receiver is the
computer at the
message’s destination.
Protocols are the rules that
establish the transfer of
data between sender and
receiver.

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 Data Bus
The data bus is the
communication
between
microprocessor, RAM,
and the peripherals.

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 Data Bus
An external peripheral device has a
port or cable that connects it to the
computer.

Each port connects to a controller

card, which plugs into expansion
slots.

The transmission protocol is handled

by a device driver.

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 Data Bus
Microcomputers have several
types of ports:
• Parallel
• Serial
• Small computer system interface
(SCSI)
• Musical instrument digital interface
(MIDI)
• Universal serial bus (USB)

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 Data Bus
A parallel port transmits data eight bits at a
time, and is often used to connect a nearby
printer.

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 Data Bus
A serial port
transmits data one
bit at a time, and
often connects a
mouse, keyboard,
or modem.

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 Data Bus
A SCSI connection can allow many
devices to use the same port, and are
popular on Macs and notebooks.

MIDI cards are used to record and

play back musical data.

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Data Bus

Computer
expansion
ports

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 Data Bus
USB (Universal Serial Bus) ports replace
numerous connectors with one plug and
port combination. The device you install
must have a USB connector.

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