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Tech Guide 1 Hardware: TG1.1 Components of A Computer System

This document provides an overview of computer hardware components and their evolution. It discusses the main components of a computer system including the central processing unit, primary and secondary storage, input/output devices, and communication devices. It then describes the four generations of computer hardware technology, from vacuum tubes to modern integrated circuits. Finally, it distinguishes between types of computers based on their processing capabilities, such as supercomputers that can perform massive parallel processing for scientific applications.

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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
126 views25 pages

Tech Guide 1 Hardware: TG1.1 Components of A Computer System

This document provides an overview of computer hardware components and their evolution. It discusses the main components of a computer system including the central processing unit, primary and secondary storage, input/output devices, and communication devices. It then describes the four generations of computer hardware technology, from vacuum tubes to modern integrated circuits. Finally, it distinguishes between types of computers based on their processing capabilities, such as supercomputers that can perform massive parallel processing for scientific applications.

Uploaded by

mwandida
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
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Tech Guide 1 Hardware

TG1.1 Components of a Computer System TG1.2 Evolution of Computer Hardware TG1.3 Types of Computers TG1.4 Microprocessor and Primary Storage TG1.5 Input/Output Devices

TG1.1 Components of a Computer System


Computer ardware is composed of t e following components! central processing unit "CP#$% primary storage% secondary storage% input devices% output devices% and communication devices& Communication devices are covered in detail in Tec 'uide (& T e input devices accept data and instructions and convert t em to a form t at t e computer can understand& T e output devices present data in a form people can understand& T e CP manipulates t e data and controls t e tas)s done *y t e ot er components& Primary stora!e "internal storage t at is part of t e CP#$ temporarily stores data and program instructions during processing& Secondary stora!e "e+ternal storage suc as flas drives$ stores data and programs t at ave *een saved for future use& Communication devices manage t e flow of data from pu*lic networ)s "e&g&% Internet% intranets$ to t e CP#% and from t e CP# to networ)s& , sc ematic view of a computer system is s own in -igure T'.&.& "#P"#S#$T%$G &'T'( P%CT "#S( T%)#( '$& S%*# %$ ' C+)P T#" 'SC%%. Computers are *ased on integrated circuits "c ips$% eac of w ic includes millions of su*/miniature transistors t at are interconnected on a small "less t an l/inc / s0uare$ c ip area& Eac transistor can *e in eit er an 1on2 or an 1off2 position& T e 1on/off2 states of t e transistors are used to esta*lis a *inary . or 3 for storing one *inary digit% or *it& , fi+ed num*er of *its representing specific c aracters4letters% num*ers% and special sym*ols4is )nown as a *yte% usually 5 *its& 6ecause a *it as only two states% 3 or .% t e *its comprising a *yte can represent any of 75% or 789% uni0ue c aracters& T e c aracter t at t e *yte represents depends upon on t e coding sc eme used& T e two most commonly used coding sc emes are! .& 'SC%% ,'merican $ationa- Standard Code for %nformation %nterchan!e.% pronounced ask-ee. 7& #/C&%C ,#0tended /inary Coded &ecima- %nterchan!e Code.( pronounced ebsa-dik. T'./.

E6CDIC was developed *y I6M and is used primarily on large mainframe computers& ,SCII is t e standard coding sc eme for microcomputers& T ese coding sc emes% and t e c aracters t ey present% are s own in -igure T'.&7& In addition to c aracters% it is possi*le to represent commonly agreed/upon sym*ols in a *inary code& -or e+ample% t e plus sign ":$ is 33.3.3.. in ,SCII&
Output Output Devices Devices Input Input Devices Devices 6us Mouse Mouse 6us 6us Central Processing #nit Control Control#nit,rit #nit,rit metic/<ogic metic/<ogic #nitPrimary #nitPrimaryStorage Storage 6us

Communication Communication Devices Devices

Secondary Secondary Storage Storage

E+ternal ;etwor)

1i!ure TG1.1 Components of computer hardware. ' 23us4 is a connectin! channe-. 55pic6up 1i!ure TG1.1( p. w7212>>

T'./7

C aracterE6CDIC Code,SCII Code, 6 C D E ' H I ? @ < M ; O P A B S T # C = D E F 3 . 1i!ure TG1.2 %nterna- computin! codin! schemes. 55pic6up 1i!ure TG1.2( p. 3 W7 213>> >

T e 789(c aracters and sym*ols t at are represented *y ,SCII and E6CDIC codes are sufficient 8 for Englis and =estern European languages *ut are not large enoug for ,sian and 9 ot er languages t at use different alp a*ets& nicode G is a .9/*it code t at as t e capacity to represent more t an 98%333 c aracters and sym*ols& T e system employs t e codes used *y ,SCII and also includes ot er 5
H ..33333. ..3333.3 ..3333..

T'./>

..333.3. ..333..3 ..333... ..33.333 ..33.33. ..3.33.3

alp a*ets "suc as Cyrillic and He*rew$% special c aracters "including religious sym*ols$% ..3.333. and some of t e 1word writing2 sym*ols used in various ,sian countries& "epresentin! ima!es. Images are represented *y a grid overlay of t e picture& T e ..3.33.. computer measures t e color "or lig t level$ of eac cell of t e grid& T e unit ..3.3.33 measurement of t is is called a pi0e-. -igure T'.&> s ows a pi+el representation ..3.3.3. of t e letter A and its conversion to an input code& Time and Si8e of /ytes. Time is represented in fractions of a second% as follows!
..3.3... ..3.3..3

9 )i--isecond I ./.333 second ..3..333 9 )icrosecond I ./.%333%333 second ..3..33. 9 $anosecond I ./.%333%333%333 second ...333.3 9 Picosecond I ./.%333%333%333%333 second
...333.. ...33.3. ...33.33 SiJe of a file or storage space is measured in *ytes& Measures of siJe are!

9 :i-o3yte I .%333 *ytes "actually .%37($ ...33..3 9 )e!a3yte I .%333 )ilo*ytes I .39 *ytes ...33... 9 Gi!a3yte I .3H *ytes ...3.333 9 Tera3yte I .3.7 *ytes ...3.33. 9 Peta3yte I .3.8 *ytes 9 #0a3yte I .3.5 *ytes ....3333 9 *etta3yte I .37. *ytes ....333.
....33.3 ....33.. ....3.33 ....3.3. ....3..3 ....3... .....333 .....33. .3.3333. 1i!ure TG1.3 Pi0e- representation of the -etter '. 55pic6up Ta3-e TG 1.3( p. w7 213>> .3.333.3 .3.333.. .3.33.33 TG1.2 #vo-ution of Computer Hardware .3.33.3.

Computer ardware as evolved t roug four stages% or generations% of tec nology& Eac .3.33..3 generation as provided increased processing power and storage capacity% w ile .3.33... simultaneously e+ i*iting decreases in costs% as you see in Ta*le T'.&.& T e generations .3.3.333 are distinguis ed *y different tec nologies t at perform t e processing functions&
.3.3.33. .3.3.3.3 .3.3.3.. .3.3..33 .3.3..3.

T'./(

.3.3.... .3..3333 .3..333. .3..33.3 .3..33.. .'! T e first generation computers% from .H(9 to a*out .H89% used vacuum .3..3.33 tubes to store and process information& Cacuum tu*es consumed large amounts of power% generated muc eat% and were s ort/lived& T erefore% .3..3.3. first/generation computers ad limited memory and processing capa*ility& .3..3..3 7'! T e second generation computers% .H8GK.H9>% used transistors for .3..3... storing and processing information& Transistors consumed less power t an .3...333 vacuum tu*es% produced less eat% and were c eaper% and more relia*le& ,nd .3...33. 7' computers% wit increased processing and storage capa*ilities% *egan to *e more widely used for scientific and *usiness purposes& .3...3.3 >'! Third-generation computers% .H9(K.HGH% used inte!rated circuits for 3.3.3333 storing and processing information& Integrated circuits are made *y printing 3.3.333. numerous small transistors on silicon c ips& T ese devices are called 3.3.33.3 semiconductors& >' computers employed software t at could *e used *y 3.3.33.. nontec nical people% t us enlarging t e computerLs role in *usiness& 3.3.3.33 ('! Early to middle fourth-generation computers% .H53K.HH8% used very -ar!e7sca-e inte!rated ,;<S%. circuits to store and process information& T e 3.3.3.3. C<SI tec ni0ue allows t e installation of undreds of t ousands of circuits 3.3.3..3 "transistors and ot er components$ on a small c ip& =it u-tra7-ar!e7sca-e 3.3.3... inte!ration , <S%.( .33 million transistors could *e placed on a c ip& T ese 3.3..333 computers are ine+pensive and widely used in *usiness and everyday life& <ate ('! Computers from 733. to t e present% use !rand7sca-e inte!rated 3.3..33. ,GS%. circuits to store and process information& =it 'SI% .%333 million transistors can *e placed on a c ip&

T e first ('s of computer ardware were *ased on t e Von Neumann architecture% w ic processed information se0uentially% one instruction at a time& T e fift generation "8'$ of computers uses massive-y para--e- processin! to process multiple instructions simultaneously& Massively parallel computers use fle+i*ly connected networ)s lin)ing t ousands of ine+pensive% commonly used c ips to address large computing pro*lems% attaining supercomputer speeds& =it enoug c ips networ)ed toget er% massively parallel mac ines can perform more t an a trillion floating point operations per second4 a teraflop& , floating point operation (flop) is a *asic computer arit metic operation% suc as addition or su*traction% on num*ers t at include a decimal point& T'/<# TG1.1 Hardware Generations 55pic6up Ta3-e TG 1.1( p. w7214>>
Generations 1eature Circuitry Primary storage Cycle times ,verage cost 1G Cacuum tu*es 7 @6 2G Transistors 9( @6 3G 4G,ear-y. 4G ,1=>>. 4G ,2??1. 'SI .75 M6

Integrated circuits <SI and C<SI #<SI ( M6 .9 M6 533 picosecs 9( M6

.33 millisecs .3 microsecs 833 nanosecs M7&8 million M783 t ousand M78 t ousand

7%333 picosecs >>> MHJ M.&8 t ousand

M7&8 t ousand M7&3 t ousand

T'./8

TG1.3 Types of Computers


Computers are distinguis ed on t e *asis of t eir processing capa*ilities& Supercomputers are t e computers wit t e most processing power& T e primary application of supercomputers as *een in scientific and military wor)% *ut t eir use is growing rapidly in *usiness as t eir prices decrease& Supercomputers are especially valua*le for large simulation models of real/world p enomena% w ere comple+ mat ematical representations and calculations are re0uired% or for image creation and processing& Supercomputers are used to model t e weat er for *etter weat er prediction% to test weapons nondestructively% to design aircraft "e&g&% t e 6oeing GGG$ for more efficient and less costly production% and to ma)e se0uences in motion pictures "e&g&% Jurassic Park$& Supercomputers use t e tec nology of para--e- processin!. However% in contrast to neural computing% w ic uses massively parallel processing% supercomputers use noninterconnected CP#s& T e difference is s own in -igure T'.&(& Parallel processing is also used in smaller computers w ere 7 to 9( processors are common& Silicon 'rap ics "S'I$ as added t e e0uivalent of doJens of supercomputer nodes into a single *lade *y leveraging t e in erent parallelism of t e -ield/Programma*le 'ate ,rray "-P',$ tec nology& ,ccording to S'I% t e B,SC BC.33 computation *lade% *uilt wit dual Dilin+ Cirte+ ( -P',s% can accelerate t e performance of many HPC applications *y orders of magnitude over conventional systems at a far lower cost and muc smaller footprint& 6ased onN S'lLs B,SC "Beconfigura*le ,pplication/Specific Computing$ tec nology% t e new BC.33 *lade is designed for customers w ose applications spend most of t eir time wor)ing on a set of specific routines or algorit ms& )'%$1"')#S )ainframes are not as powerful and generally not as e+pensive as supercomputers& <arge corporations% w ere data processing is centraliJed and large data*ases are maintained% often use mainframe computers& ,pplications t at run on a mainframe can *e large and comple+% allowing for data and information to *e s ared t roug out t e organiJation& )%&"'$G# C+)P T#"S )idran!e computers include minicomputers and servers& )inicomputers. )inicomputers are smaller and less e+pensive t an mainframe computers& Minicomputers are usually designed to accomplis specific tas)s suc as process control% scientific researc % and engineering applications& <arger companies gain greater corporate fle+i*ility *y distri*uting data processing wit minicomputers in organiJational units instead of centraliJing computing at one location& T ese minicomputers are connected to eac ot er and often to a mainframe t roug telecommunication lin)s&

T'./9

1i!ure TG1.4 Supercomputers vs. neura- computin!. ,@ is a CP .. 5pic6up TG 1.4( p. w7215>> Servers. Servers typically support computer networ)s% ena*ling users to s are files% software% perip eral devices% and ot er networ) resources& Servers ave large amounts of primary and secondary storage and powerful CP#s& OrganiJations wit eavy e/commerce re0uirements and very large =e* sites are running t eir =e* and e/commerce applications on multiple servers in server farms& Server farms are large groups of servers maintained *y an organiJation or *y a commercial vendor and made availa*le to customers& ,s companies pac) greater num*ers of servers in t eir server farms% t ey are using piJJa/*o+/siJe servers called rack servers t at can *e stac)ed in rac)s& T ese computers run cooler% and t erefore can *e pac)ed more closely% re0uiring less space& To furt er increase density% companies are using a server design called a *lade& , blade is a card a*out t e siJe of a paper*ac) *oo) on w ic memory% processor% and ard drives are mounted& /-ade Server. , *lade is one component in a system& 6lades can *e individual servers t at plug into a single ca*inet or individual port cards t at add connectivity to a switc & , *lade is typically a ot swappa*le ardware device& , *lade server is a server arc itecture t at ouses multiple server modules "*lades$ in a single c assis& It is widely used in datacenters to save space and improve system management& T e c assis provides t e power supply% and eac *lade as its own CP#% memory% and ard dis)& 6lade servers generally provide t eir own management systems and may include a networ) or storage switc & =it enterprise/class *lade servers% dis) storage is e+ternal% and t e *lades are dis)less& T is approac allows for more efficient failover *ecause applications are not tied to specific ardware and a particular instance of t e operating system& T e *lades are anonymous and interc angea*le& ;irtua- servers ma)e it possi*le to place multiple applications on a single p ysical server% yet run eac wit in its own operating system environment% )nown as a virtual mac ine& So% w en one virtual server cras es or is re*ooted% t e ot ers continue opera tin wit out interruption& Aor6stations. Computer vendors originally developed wor)stations to provide t e ig levels of performance demanded *y tec nical users suc as designers& =or)stations are typically *ased on BISC "reduced instruction set computing$ arc itecture and provide *ot very/ ig /speed calculations and ig /resolution grap ic displays& T ese computers T'./G

ave found widespread acceptance wit in t e scientific community and% more recently% wit in t e *usiness community& =or)station applications include electronic and mec anical design% medical imaging% scientific visualiJation% >/D animation% and video editing& 6y t e second alf of t e .HH3s% many wor)station features were commonplace in PCS% *lurring t e distinction *etween wor)stations and personal computers& )%C"+C+)P T#"S )icrocomputers( or personal computers (P s)% are t e smallest and least e+pensive category of general/purpose computers& $ote3oo6 computers are small% easily transporta*le% lig tweig t microcomputers t at fit easily into a *riefcase& $et3oo6s are smaller% more porta*le% less e+pensive% and less powerful t an note*oo)sO and are primarily for connecting to t e Internet& T'/<# TG1.2 Characteristics of $et3oo6s 55newBB Most ;et*oo)s +peratin! System CP Screen si8e )emory Hard drive Price =indows G starter Single Core Intel ,tom .3&. Inc es .'6 .93'6 or 783'6 S,T, 8(33 BPM M>33 to M(33 Ot er Options <inu+ or =indows DP ,MD ,t lon ;eo and dual Core Intel ,tom G to .7&. Inc es 7'6 Solid State Drive "SSD$ or larger S,T, ard drives M733 to M833

;et*oo)s were inspired *y O<PC DO& T e first net*oo) designed for consumers was t e ,sus EEE PC& It s ipped wit an Intel Celeron CP#% 8.7M6 of B,M% a 7'6 or ('6 Solid State Hard drive% and a <inu+ OS& ;ow most ;et*oo)s ave an Intel ,tom CP#s% .'6 of B,M% .93'6 or 783'6 S,T, 8(33 BPM ard drive% and =indows G Starter& )+/%<# &#;%C#S Platforms for computing and communications include suc mo3i-e devices as personadi!ita- assistants ,P&'s. or handheld personal computers& ,not er platform is mo*ile p one andsets wit wireless and Internet access capa*ilities often called Smartp ones& #sually% suc devices would use a micro version of a des)top operating system% suc as ,ndroid% iP one OS% =indows P one G% or =e* OS& 9 cost muc less t an PCs& 9 OSs are simpler t an t ose on a des)top PC& 9 provide good performance at specific tas)s *ut do not replace t e full functions of a PC& 9 provide *ot computer and/or communications features& 9 offer a =e* portal t at is viewa*le on a screen& T'./5

, persona- di!ita- assistant ,P&'. is a palmtop computer t at com*ines a processor wit a multitas)ing operating system using a pen "stylus$ for andwriting recognition rat er t an )ey*oard input& Some PD,s ena*le users to communicate via fa+% electronic mail% and paging% or to access online services& , smartphone as telcom and computing capa*ilities& Comparisons of smartp ones are s own in Ta*le T' .&>

Ta3-e TG1.3 Comparisons of Smartphone 55newBB

T'./H

Phones

iP one >'S

;e+us One ,ndroid 7&. T/Mo*ile% ,TQT% unloc)ed

@in 7 =indows P one OS for @I; CeriJon

;o)ia ;5 Sym*ianP > #n)nown may only *e availa*le unloc)ed

6lac)6erry Palm pre/ 6old HG33 plus 6lac)6erry =e*OS OS .&>&8&. 8&3&3&>>3 T/Mo*ile% ,TQT CeriJon% ,TQT "original Palm Pre on Sprint$

HTC ECO ,ndroid 7&. Sprint

+S shipped iP one OS with >&3 Aire-ess carrier in the nited States S re-ease date :ey3oard Camera features ,TQT

39/.G/733H 3./39/73.3 Cirtual > MP wit no flas & -irst iP one to record video =ill get full version of iP one OS (&3 unli)e iP one >' or older models& ,pps availa*le for real <CD Cirtual 8 MP wit flas

38/.>/73.3 #n)nown P ysical 5 MP wit -las G73P video Cirtual .7 MP s ots video in G73P

.3/733H P ysical >&7 MP wit flas

3./73/73.3 39/3(/.3 P ysical > MP <ED flas Cirtual 5 MP and .&>MP front facing we*cam

$ota3-e facts

Official 'oogle p one

IsnNt running =indows P one G

-irst p one to use t e open/ source Sym*ianP > OS -ree real time navigation O<ED

T e 6lac)6erry 6old continues BIM focus on *usiness users DoesnNt come wit real time navigation <CD "not touc screen$ 789M6 internal% comes wit 7'6 memory card wit support for up to >7'6 97(MHJ

Can *e used as a =i/-i otspot costs e+tra mont ly

-irst (' p one in t e #nited States and t e worldNs first (' ,ndroid p one -ree real time navigation <CD

GPS

-ree real time navigation O<ED

DoesnNt come wit real time navigation <CD

Beal time navigation cost MH&HH per mont <CD

&isp-ay

Stora!e( internaand e0pansion

.9'6 or >7'6 internal% no memory card support

8.7M6 internal% comes wit ('6 memory card wit support for up to >7'6

5'6 internal% no memory card support

.9'6 Internal% supports memory cards up to >7'6

.9'6 internal% no memory card support

.'6 internal% comes wit 5'6 memory cards wit support for up to >7'6

'pp-ication 933MHJ processor Samsung S8PC.33 "') 789M6

.'HJ 933MHJ Snapdragon Aualcomm ASD 5783 8.7M6 789M6

#n)nown

933MHJ .'HJ ,BM T'./.3 Aualcomm Corte+ ,5 Snapdragon ASD5983 8.7M6 8.7M6

#n)nown

789M6

Ta3-et PCsC#7"eaders
Ta*let PC tec nology runs touc /sensitive displays t at you can tap wit your fingers or sometimes wit a stylus% forgoing a mouse or touc pad& , ta*let PC can put t e full power of =indows G Professional in a laptop computer t atLs as simple as a pad and pen& T e iPad is a ta*let PC and e/reader from ,pple& It runs a modified version of t e iP one OS and is designed for all user input to *e done t roug t e touc screen& T ere are two different versions of t e iPad% t e > and t e =i/-i/only versions& T e >' iPad can use ,TQTNs >' networ) in t e #&S& for data% *ut not for voice& It is important to note t at t e iPad is not a p one& T e >' model includes all of t e features of t e =i/-i only model plus a *etter >' micro SIM card slot% >' antenna% and 'PS& )emory. T e iPad as t ree siJe options for internal storage% .9'6% >7'6% and 9('6& T e amount of memory you will need is important to consider *ecause t ere is no way to add more& It as no memory card slots or #S6 ports to use #S6 flas drives& However% t ere are apps t at wor) wit =e* *ased storage& 'pps. T e iPad can run t e iP oneNs 733%333: apps% w ic can *e stretc ed to fit t e larger screen& T e iPad also as some apps t at ave *een made specifically for t e iPad w ic cannot *e used on t e iP one& #7readers are devices used to read digital *oo)s% newspapers% and so fort & Most e/ readers come wit >'% wit no mont ly c arge w ic is used to connect to *oo)stores and to download some *oo)s& Most e/readers do not ave a *ac) lig t% w ic ma)es t em easier on t e eyes t an computer monitors& However% t is means an e+ternal lig t source will *e needed Rust li)e wit a normal *oo)& Comparisons of e/readers are s own in Ta*le T'.&( Ta3-e TG1.4 Comparison of e7readers. 55newBB #7/oo6 "eader Sony Beader Daily Edition PBS/ H336C G&. inc es -irst Sony Beader to come wit >' service& >' service is provided *y ,TQT T e w ole screen is a touc screen ,maJon @indle "glo*al wireless$ 9 inc es 'lo*al wires version uses ,TQT >' service Earlier versions came wit sprint >' P ysical )ey*oard *elow t e screen along wit ot er *uttons on t e sides 7'6 internal Small touc screen on t e *ottom 6arnes Q ;o*le ;oo) 9 inc es >' service t rew ,TQT it can use =i/ -i

Screen si8e Aire-ess

ser input

)emory

7' internal

7'6 internal T'./..

Supports *ot SD and Memory Sic) Duo memory cards +ther nota3-e features -ree 'oogle *oo)s and li*rary *oo)s Comes wit its own case

;o memory card support

Supports up to .9'6 memory cards Can *rowse full *oo)s for free inside a 6arnes Q ;o*le *ric) and mortar stores

Offers Te+t/to/speec w en allowed *y t e aut or and pu*lis er

Ai71i T e spread of wireless fidelity% or =i/-i% as ad a uge impact on t e a*ility to connect to t e Internet via laptops and mo*iles& =i/-i is t e common name for t e wireless networ)ing standard 537&l.* "now 537&..n$ t at is a standard feature for most laptops and PD,s& =i/-i provides t e convenience of finding a ot spot for Internet connectivity& HPLs iP,A 8(83 is t e first and eld t at as *ot wireless local area networ) "=<,;$ and 6luetoot connectivity& It also as a *uilt/in fingerprint security scanner4a small *ar Rust *eneat t e navigation *utton over w ic t e user swipes is finger to *e identified& IEEE 537&..n is t e wireless standard t at was finaliJed in 733H&

TG1.4 )icroprocessor and Primary Stora!e


)%C"+P"+C#SS+"S T e centra- processin! unit ,CP . performs all processing& T e CP# is w ere all processing is controlled% data are manipulated% arit metic computations are performed% and logical comparisons are made& T e CP# consists of t e control unit% t e arit metic/ logic unit ",<#$% and t e primary storage "or main memory$& 6ecause of its small siJe% t e CP# is also referred to as a microprocessor&

T'./.7

1i!ure TG1.5 How the CP wor6s. 55pic6up 1i!ure TG 1.5( p. W-218>> How a )icroprocessor Aor6s. T e CP# operates li)e a tiny factory& Inputs come in and are stored until needed% at w ic point t ey are retrieved and processed and t e output is stored and t en delivered somew ere& -igure T'.&8 illustrates t is process% w ic wor)s as follows! 9 T e inputs are data and *rief instructions a*out w at to do wit t e data& T ese instructions come from software in ot er parts of t e computer& Data mig t *e entered *y t e user t roug t e )ey*oard% for e+ample% or read from a data file in anot er part of t e computer& T e inputs are stored in registers until t ey are sent to t e ne+t step in t e processing& 9 Data and instructions travel in t e c ip via electrical pat ways called buses& T e siJe of t e *us4analogous to t e widt of a ig way4determines ow muc information can flow at any time& 9 T e control unit directs t e flow of data and instruction wit in t e c ip& 9 T e arit metic/logic unit ",<#$ receives t e data and instructions from t e registers and ma)es t e desired computation& T ese data and instructions ave *een translated into binar! form% t at is% only 3s and .s& T e CP# can process only *inary data& 9 T e data in t eir original form and t e instructions are sent to storage registers and are t en sent *ac) to a storage place outside t e c ip% suc as t e computerLs ard drive "discussed *elow$& Meanw ile% t e transformed data go to anot er register and t en on to ot er parts of t e computer "to t e monitor for display% or to *e stored% for e+ample$& 9 T is cycle processing% )nown as a machine instruction cyc-e( occurs millions of times or more per second& T e speed of a c ip% w ic is an important *enc mar)% depends on four t ings! t e cloc) speed% t e word lengt % t e data *us widt % and t e design of t e c ip&

T'./.>

1. T e c-oc6( located wit in t e control unit% is t e component t at provides t e timing for all processor operations& T e *eat fre0uency of t e cloc) "measured in mega ertJ SMHJT or millions of cycles per second$ determines ow many times per second t e processor performs operations& 2. T e word -en!th( w ic is t e num*er of *its "3s and .s$ t at can *e processed *y t e CP# at any one time& 3. T e 3us width. T e wider t e bus "t e p ysical pat s down w ic t e data and instructions travel as electrical impulses$% t e more data can *e moved and t e faster t e processing& , processLs bus band"idth is t e product of t e widt of its *us "measured in *its$ times t e fre0uency at w ic t e *us transfers data "measured in mega ertJ$& 4. T e p ysical design of t e c ip& T e distance *etween transistors is )nown as -ine width. Historically% line widt as *een e+pressed in microns "milliont s of a meter$% *ut as tec nology as advanced% it as *ecome more convenient to e+press line widt in nanometers "*illiont s of a meter$&

1i!ure TG1.D "unnin! a pro!ram on a computer. 55pic6up 1i!ure TG 1.D( p. w219>>

"unnin! a Pro!ram on a Computer. To see ow a program is run on a computer% loo) at -igure T'.&9& , computer program can *e stored on a dis) or on t e ard drive "drive 1C2$& To run t is program% t e operating system will retrieve t e program from its location "step . in t e figure$ and place it into t e B,M "step 7$& T en t e control unit 1fetc es2 t e first instruction in t e program from t e B,M "step >$ and acts upon it "e&g&% sends a message to t e user% via an output device% to enter a num*er% or say 1yes2 or 1no2O step ($& Once t e message is answered "step 8$ "e&g& via an input device$% it is stored in t e B,M& T is concludes t e first instruction& T'./.(

T en t e control unit 1fetc es2 t e second instruction "step 9$% and t e process continues on and on& If one of t e instructions calls for some computation% t e control unit sends it% toget er wit any relevant data stored in t e B,M% to t e arit metic logic unit ",<#$ "step G$& T e ,<# e+ecutes t e processing and returns t e results to t e B,M "step 5$& T e control unit t en 1fetc es2 one more instruction "step H$% w ic tells w at to do wit t e result4for e+ample% display it "step .3$ or store it on t e ard drive "step ..$& = en instructions are 1fetc ed%2 t ey are decoded& T e computer can process large num*ers of instructions per second% usually millions& T erefore% we measure t e speed of computers *y 1millions of instructions per minute%2 or MIPS& Para--e- Processin!. , computer system wit two or more processors is referred to as a para--e- processin! system. Today% some PCs ave 7 to 9 processors w ile wor)stations ave 73 or more& Processing data in parallel speeds up processing& <arger computers may ave a undred processors& Computer 'rchitecture. T e arrangement of t e components and t eir interactions is called computer architecture& Computer arc itecture includes t e instruction set and t e num*er of t e processors% t e structure of t e internal *uses% t e use of cac es% and t e types and arrangements of input/output "I/O$ device interfaces& Every processor comes wit a uni0ue set of operational codes or commands t at represent t e computerLs instruction set& ,n instruction set is t e set of mac ine instructions t at a processor recogniJes and can e+ecute& Today% two instruction set strategies% comp-e0 instruction set computer ,C%SC. and reduced instruction set computer ,"%SC.( dominate t e processor instruction sets of computer arc itectures& T ese two strategies differ *y t e num*er of operations availa*le and ow and w en instructions are moved into memory& , #$ processor contains more t an 733 uni0ue coded commands% one for virtually every type of operation& T e CISC design goal is for its instruction set to loo) li)e a sop isticated programming language& Ine+pensive ardware can t en *e used to replace e+pensive software% t ere*y reducing t e cost of developing software& T e penalty for t is ease of programming is t at CISC processorK*ased computers ave increased arc itectural comple+ity and decreased overall system performance& In spite of t ese draw*ac)s% most computers still use CISC processors& T e ot er approac is %#$ processors% w ic eliminate many of t e little/used codes found in t e comple+ instruction set& #nderlying BISC design is t e claim t at a very small su*set of instructions accounts for a very large percentage of all instructions e+ecuted& T e instruction set% t erefore% s ould *e designed around a few simple 1 ardwired2 instructions t at can *e e+ecuted very 0uic)ly& T e rest of t e needed instructions can *e created in software& 'rithmetic7<o!ic nit. T e arithmetic7-o!ic unit ,'< . performs re0uired arit metic and comparisons% or logic% operations& T e ,<# adds% su*tracts% multiplies% divides% compares% and determines w et er a num*er is positive% negative% or Jero& ,ll computer applications are ac ieved t roug t ese si+ operations& T e ,<# operations are performed se0uentially% *ased on instructions from t e T'./.8

control unit& -or t ese operations to *e performed% t e data must first *e moved from t e storage to t e arit metic registers in t e ,<#& "e!isters are specialiJed% ig /speed memory areas for storing temporary results of ,<# operations as well as for storing certain control information& P"%)'"E ST+"'G#. Primary stora!e( or main memory( stores data and program statements for t e CP#& It as four *asic purposes! 1. To store data t at ave *een input until t ey are transferred to t e ,<# for processing 2. To store data and results during intermediate stages of processing 3. To old data after processing until t ey are transferred to an output device 4. To old program statements or instructions received from input devices and from secondary storage Primary storage utiliJes inte!rated circuits. T ese circuits are interconnected layers of etc ed semiconductor materials forming electrical transistor memory units wit 1on/ offN positions t at direct t e electrical current passing t roug t em& T e on/off states of t e transistors are used to esta*lis a *inary . or 3 for storing one *inary digit% or *it& "o-e of /uses. Instructions and data move *etween computer su*systems and t e processor via communications c annels called *uses& , *us is a c annel t roug w ic data are passed in electronic form& T ree types of *uses lin) t e CP#% primary storage% and t e ot er devices in t e computer system& T e data *us moves data to and from primary storage& T e address *us transmits signals for locating a given address in primary storage& T e control *us transmits signals specifying w et er to 1read2 or 1write2 data to or from a given primary storage address% input device% or output device& T e capacity of a *us% called 3us width( is defined *y t e num*er of *its it carries at one time& Contro- nit. T e contro- unit reads instructions and directs t e ot er components of t e computer system to perform t e functions re0uired *y t e program& It interprets and carries out instructions contained in computer programs% selecting program statements from t e primary storage% moving t em to t e instruction registers in t e control unit% and t en carrying t em out& It controls input and output devices and data/transfer processes from and to memory& T e control unit does not actually c ange or create dataO it merely directs t e data flow wit in t e CP#& T e control unit can process only one instruction at a time% *ut it can e+ecute instructions so 0uic)ly "millions per second$ t at it can appear to do many different t ings simultaneously& T e series of operations re0uired to process a single mac ine instruction is called a machine cyc-e. Eac mac ine cycle consists of t e instruction c!cle% w ic sets up circuitry to perform a re0uired operation% and t e e&ecution c!cle% during w ic t e operation is actually carried out& Cate!ories of )emory. T ere are two categories of memory! t e register% w ic is part of t e CP# and is very fast% and t e interna- memory chips( w ic reside outside T'./.9

t e CP# and are slower& , register is circuitry in t e CP# t at allows for t e fast storage and retrieval of data and instructions during t e processing& T e control unit% t e CP#% and t e primary storage all ave registers& Small amounts of data reside in t e register for very s ort periods% prior to t eir use& T e interna- memory is used to store data Rust *efore t ey are processed *y t e CP#& Immediately after t e processing it comprises two types of storage space! B,M and BOM& "andom7access memory ,"'). is t e place in w ic t e CP# stores t e instructions and data it is processing& T e larger t e memory area% t e larger t e programs t at can *e stored and e+ecuted& More t an one program may *e operating at a time% eac occupying a portion of B,M& T e advantage of B,M is t at it is very fast in storing and retrieving any type of data% w et er te+tual% grap ical% sound% or animation/*ased& Its disadvantages are t at it is relatively e+pensive and volatile& T is volatility means t at all data and programs stored in B,M are lost w en t e power is turned off& To lessen t is potential loss of data% many of t e newer application programs perform periodic automatic 1saves2 of t e data& Many software programs are larger t an t e internal% primary storage "B,M$ availa*le to store t em& To get around t is limitation% some programs are divided into smaller *loc)s% wit eac *loc) loaded into B,M only w en necessary& However% depending on t e program% continuously loading and unloading 3-oc6s can slow down performance considera*ly% especially since secondary storage is so muc slower t an B,M& ,s a compromise% some arc itectures use ig /speed cache memory as a temporary storage for t e most fre0uently used *loc)s& T en t e B,M is used to store t e ne+t most fre0uently used *loc)s% and secondary storage "descri*ed later$ for t e least used *loc)s& T ere are two types of cac e memory in t e maRority of computer systems4<evel . "<l$ cac e is located in t e processor% and <evel 7 "<7$ cac e is located on t e mot er*oard *ut not actually in t e processor& <. cac e is smaller and faster t an <7 cac e& C ip manufacturers are now designing c ips wit <. cac e and <7 cac e in t e processor and <evel > "<>$ cac e on t e mot er*oard& Since cac e memory operates at a muc ig er speed t an conventional memory "i&e&% B,M$% t is tec ni0ue greatly increases t e speed of processing *ecause it reduces t e num*er of times t e program as to fetc instructions and data from B,M and secondary storage& &ynamic random access memories ,&"')s. are t e most widely used B,M c ips& T ese are )nown to *e volatile since t ey need to *e rec arged and refres ed undreds of times per second in order to retain t e information stored in t em& "ead7on-y memory ,"+). is t at portion of primary storage t at cannot *e c anged or erased& BOM is nonvolatileO t at is% t e program instructions are continually retained wit in t e BOM% w et er power is supplied to t e computer or not& BOM is necessary to users w o need to *e a*le to restore a program or data after t e computer as *een turned off or% as a safeguard% to prevent a program or data from *eing c anged& -or e+ample% t e instructions needed to start% or 1*oot%2 a computer must not *e lost w en it is turned off& T'./.G

Pro!ramma3-e read7on-y memory ,P"+). is a memory c ip on w ic a program can *e stored& 6ut once t e PBOM as *een used% you cannot wipe it clean and use it to store somet ing else& <i)e BOMs% PBOMs are nonvolatile&

TG1.5 %nputC+utput &evices


T e input/output "I/O$ devices of a computer are not part of t e CP#% *ut are c annels for communicating *etween t e e+ternal environment and t e CP#& Data and instructions are entered into t e computer t roug input devices ,%C+.( and processing results are provided t roug output devices. =idely used I/O devices are t e cat ode/ray tu*e "CBT$ or visual display unit "CD#$% magnetic storage media% printers% )ey*oards% 1mice%2 and image/scanning devices& I/O devices are controlled directly *y t e CP# or indirectly t roug special processors dedicated to input and output processing& 'enerally spea)ing% I/O devices are su*classified into secondar! storage devices "primarily dis) and tape drives$ and peripheral devices "any input/output device t at is attac ed to t e computer$& S#C+$&'"E ST+"'G# Secondary stora!e is separate from primary storage and t e CP#% *ut directly connected to it& It stores t e data in a format t at is compati*le wit data stored in primary storage% *ut secondary storage provides t e computer wit vastly increased space for storing and processing large 0uantities of software and data& Primary storage is volatile% contained in memory c ips% and very fast in storing and retrieving data& In contrast% secondary storage is nonvolatile% uses many different forms of media t at are less e+pensive t an primary storage% and is relatively slower t an primary storage& )a!netic tape is )ept on a large open reel or in a small cartridge or cassette& Today% cartridges and cassettes are replacing reels *ecause t ey are easier to use and access& T e principal advantages of magnetic tape are t at it is ine+pensive% relatively sta*le% and long lasting% and t at it can store very large volumes of data& , magnetic tape is e+cellent for *ac)up or arc ival storage of data and can *e reused& T e main disadvantage of magnetic tape is t at it must *e searc ed from t e *eginning to find t e desired data& T is process is called se'uential access& T e magnetic tape itself is fragile and must *e andled wit care& Magnetic tape is also la*or intensive to mount and dismount in a mainframe computer& Magnetic tape storage often is used for information t at an organiJation must maintain% *ut uses rarely or does not need immediate access to& Industries wit uge num*ers of files "e&g&% insurance companies$ use magnetic tape systems& Modern versions of magnetic tape systems use cartridges and often a ro*otic system t at selects and loads t e appropriate cartridge automatically& )a!netic dis6s( also called hard dis6s( alleviate some of t e pro*lems associated wit magnetic tape *y assigning specific address locations for data% so t at users can go directly to t e address wit out aving to go t roug intervening locations loo)ing for t e rig t data to retrieve& T is process is called direct access& , ard dis) is li)e a p onograp containing a stac) of metal/coated platters "usually permanently mounted$ t at rotate rapidly& Magnetic read/write eads% attac ed to arms% T'./.5

over over t e platters& To locate an address for storing or retrieving data% t e ead moves inward or outward to t e correct position% t en waits for t e correct location to spin underneat & T e speed of access to data on ard/dis) drives is a function of t e rotational speed of t e dis) and t e speed of t e read/write eads& T e read/write eads must position t emselves% and t e dis) pac) must rotate until t e proper information is located& ,dvanced dis) drives ave access speeds of 5 to .7 milliseconds& Magnetic dis)s provide storage for large amounts of data and instructions t at can *e rapidly accessed& ,not er advantage of dis)s over reel is t at a ro*ot can c ange t em& T is can drastically reduce t e e+penses of a data center& Storage Tec nology is t e maRor vendor of suc ro*ots& T e dis)sL disadvantages are t at t ey are more e+pensive t an magnetic tape and t ey are suscepti*le to 1dis) cras es&2 In contrast to large% fi+ed dis) drives% one approac is to com*ine a large num*er of small dis)s drives% eac wit .3/ to (3/giga*yte capacity% developed originally for microcomputers& T ese devices are called redundant arrays of ine0pensive dis6s ,"'%&.. 6ecause data are stored redundantly across many drives% t e overall impact on system performance is lessened w en one drive malfunctions& ,lso% multiple drives provide multiple data pat s% improving performance& -inally% *ecause of manufacturing efficiencies of small drives% t e cost of B,ID devices is significantly lower t an t e cost of large dis) drives of t e same capacity& To ta)e advantage of faster tec nologies% disk-drive interfaces must also *e faster& Most PCLs and wor)stations use one of two ig /performance dis)/interface standards! #nhanced %nte!rated &rive #-ectronics ,#%&#. or Sma-- Computer Systems %nterface ,SCS%.. EIDE offers good performance% is ine+pensive% and supports up to four dis)s% tapes% or CD/BOM drives& T e latest version is called Serial ,T, "S,T,$& -or details% refer to serialata&org& SCSI drives are more e+pensive t an EIDE drives% *ut t ey offer a faster interface and support more devices& SCSI interfaces are t erefore used for grap ics wor)stations% server/*ased storage% and large data*ases& +ptica- stora!e devices ave e+tremely ig storage density& Typically% muc more information can *e stored on a standard 8&78/inc optical dis) t an on a compara*ly siJed floppy "a*out (33 times more$& Since a ig ly focused laser *eam is used to read/write information encoded on an optical dis)% t e information can *e ig ly condensed& In addition% t e amount of p ysical dis) space needed to record an optical *it is muc smaller t an t at usually re0uired *y magnetic media& ,not er advantage of optical storage is t at t e medium itself is less suscepti*le to contamination or deterioration& -irst% t e recording surfaces "on *ot sides of t e dis)$ are protected *y two plastic plates% w ic )eep dust and dirt from contaminating t e surface& Second% only a laser *eam of lig t% not a flying ead% comes in contact wit t e recording surfaceO t e ead of an optical dis) drive comes no closer t an . mm from t e dis) surface& Optical drives are also less fragile% and t e dis)s t emselves may easily *e loaded and removed& In addition% optical dis)s can store muc more information% *ot on a routine *asis and also w en com*ined into storage systems& T'./.H

Compact dis6 read7on-y memory ,C&7"+). dis)s ave ig capacity% low cost% and ig dura*ility& CD/BOM tec nology is very effective and efficient for mass/ producing many copies of large amounts of information t at do not need to *e c anged! for e+ample% encyclopedias% directories% and online data*ases& However% *ecause it is a read/only medium% t e CD/BOM can *e only read and not written on& Compact dis6( rewrita3-e ,C&7"A. adds rewrita*ility to t e recorda*le compact dis) mar)et& &i!ita- ;ideo &is6 ,&;&. offers ig er 0uality and denser storage capa*ilities& /-u7ray. 6lu/ray discs offer ig er 0uality and denser storage t an DCDs& ,lso% 6lu/ray discs use ard coating tec nology to ma)e t em more scratc resistant t an CDs or DCDs& )emory PC Card. (emor! P cards "also )nown as memor! sticks$ e+pand t e amount of availa*le memory& T ey ave *een widely used% particularly in porta*le devices suc as PD,s and smart p ones& Summary. Ta*le T'.&8 summariJes t e maRor secondary storage devices% and t eir advantages% limitations% and applications& P#"%PH#"'< %$P T &#;%C#S #sers can command t e computer and communicate wit it *y using one or more input devices. Eac input device accepts a specific form of data& -or e+ample% )ey*oards transmit typed c aracters% and andwriting recogniJers 1read2 andwritten c aracters& #sers want communication wit computers to *e simple% fast% and error free& T erefore% a variety of input devices fits t e needs of different individuals and applications "see Ta*le T'.&($& Some of t ese devices are s own in -igure T'.&G toget er wit t eir usage& :ey3oards. T e most common input device is t e )ey*oard& T e )ey*oard is designed li)e a typewriter *ut wit many additional special )eys& Most computer users utiliJe )ey*oards regularly& #nfortunately% a num*er of computer users ave developed repetitive stress inRury% w ic t ey allege comes from e+cessive use of poorly designed )ey*oards& ,s a result% new )ey*oards ave *een developed t at are ergonomically designed& -or e+ample% some )ey*oards are now 1split2 in alf% loosely appro+imating t e natural angle of t e arms and wrists& T'/<# TG1.5 Comparison of Secondary Stora!e 55pic6up Ta3-e TG 1.3( p. w7224 Fwith #ditsB>
Type 'dvanta!es &isadvanta!es 'pp-ication

Magnetic Storage Devices Magnetic tape <owest cost per unit stored& Se0uential access means slow retrieval speeds& -ragileO ig cost per unit stored& E+pensive% semi permanent Corporate data arc iving& Personal computers t roug mainframes& Corporate data storage t at

Hard drive Belatively ig capacity and fast retrieval speed& B,ID Hig capacityO designed for fault

T'./73

tolerance and reduced ris) of data lossO low cost per unit stored& S,; Hig capacityO designed for large amounts of enterprise data& Hig capacityO designed for large amounts of enterprise data&

installation&

re0uires fre0uent% rapid access& Corporate data storage t at re0uires fre0uent% rapid access& Corporate data storage t at re0uires fre0uent% rapid access& Personal computers& Personal and laptop computers& Consumer electronic devicesO moving files from porta*le devices to des)top computers& Personal computers&

E+pensive&

;,S

E+pensive&

Magnetic dis)ettes Memory cards Memory stic)s

<ow cost per dis)ette% porta*ility& <ow capacityO very ig cost per unit storedO fragile& Porta*leO easy to useO less failure/ prone t an ard drives& E+pensive&

E+tremely porta*le and easy to use& E+pensive&

#S6 -las drives SSD ard drives

Porta*leO easy to useO fastO only re0uires a #S6 port not a special drive& -aster t an HDD& Hig cost per unit stored& More e+pensive t an ard drives&

Personal computers t roug corporate data storage& 6ac)up of internal ard drive&

E+panda*le Porta*leO ig capacity& storage Optical Storage Devices CD/BOM Hig capacityO moderate cost per unit storedO ig dura*ility& DCD Hig capacityO moderate cost per unit stored&

Slower retrieval speeds t an ard drivesO only certain types can *e rewritten& Slower retrieval speeds t an ard drives&

Personal computers t roug corporate data storage& Personal computers t roug corporate data storage& Personal computers t roug corporate data storage&

-MD/BOMCery ig capacityO moderate cost -aster retrieval speeds t an per unit stored& DCD or CD/BOMO slower retrieval speeds t an ard drives& 6lu/ray Hig er capacity t en DCDs up to 83'6 currently& E+pensive&

Personal computers t roug corporate data storage&

T'/<# TG1.D %nput &evices 55pic6up Ta3-e TG 1.4( p. w-225>>


Cate!ories Keying devices #0amp-es 9 Punc ed card reader 9 @ey*oard 9 Point/of/sale "POS$ terminal 9 Mouse "including roller*alls and trac)*alls$ 9 Touc screen

Pointing devices "devices that point to ob)ects on the computer screen$

T'./7.

9 Touc pad "or trac)pad$ 9 <ig t pen 9 ?oy stic) Optical character recognition "devices that 9 6ar code scanner "e&g&% at POS$ scan characters$ 9 Optical c aracter reader 9 =and reader 9 Cordless reader 9 Optical mar) reader Handwriting recognizers Voice recognizers 9 Pen "data entered b! voice$ 9 Microp one Other devices 9 Magnetic in) c aracter readers 9 Digital cameras 9 ,utomated teller mac ines ",TMs$ 9 Smart cards 9 DigitiJers "for maps% grap s% etc&$ 9 B-ID

)ice and Trac63a--s. T e Computer mouse is a and eld device used to point a cursor at a desired place on t e screen% suc as an icon% a cell in a ta*le% an item in a menu% or any ot er o*Rect& Once t e arrow is placed on an o*Rect% t e user clic)s a *utton on t e mouse% instructing t e computer to ta)e some action& T e use of t e mouse reduces t e need to type in information or use t e slower arrow )eys& , variant of t e mouse is t e trac63a--( w ic is often used in grap ic design& T e user olds an o*Rect muc li)e a mouse% *ut rat er t an moving t e entire device to move t e cursor "as wit a mouse$% e or s e rotates a *all t at is *uilt into t e top of t e device& Porta*le computers ave some ot er mouse li)e tec nologies% suc as t e glide/and/tap pad% used in lieu of a mouse& Many porta*les also allow a conventional mouse to *e plugged in w en desired& ,not er variant of t e mouse% t e optica- mouse( replaces t e *all% rollers% and w eels of t e mec anical mouse wit a lig t% lens% and a camera c ip& It replicates t e action of a *all and rollers *y ta)ing p otograp s of t e surface it passes over% and comparing eac successive image to determine w ere it is going& Touch Screens. ,n alternative to t e mouse or ot er screen/related device is a touch screen& Touch screens are a tec nology t at divides a computer screen into different areas& #sers simply touc t e desired area "often *uttons or s0uares$ to trigger an action& Sty-us. , sty-us is a pen/style device t at allows t e user eit er to touc parts of t e predetermined menu of options "as wit a weara*le computer% discussed a*ove$ or to andwrite information into t e computer "as wit some PD,s$& T e tec nology may respond to pressure of t e stylus% or t e stylus can *e a type of lig t pen t at emits lig t t at is sensed *y computer&

T'./77

Goystic6s. Jo!sticks are used primarily at wor)stations t at can display dynamic grap ics& T ey are also used in playing video games& T e Roystic) moves and positions t e cursor at t e desired o*Rect on t e screen&

#-ectronics 1orms. #-ectronic forms provide a standardiJed format w ose eadings serve as prompts for t e input& In form interaction( t e user enters data or commands into designated spaces "fields$ in forms& T e computer may produce some output after input is made% and t e user may *e re0uested to continue t e form interaction process& Electronic forms can alleviate many of t e resource/ intensive steps of processing forms% ma)ing traditional typesetting and printing T'./7>

unnecessary& -inally% processing centers do not need to re)ey data from paper/ *ased forms% since t e data remain in electronic format t roug out t e process& Ahite3oard. , white3oard is an area on a display screen t at multiple users can write or draw on& = ite*oards are a principal component of teleconferencing applications *ecause t ey ena*le visual as well as audio communication& Source &ata 'utomation. Source data automation captures data in computer reada*le form at t e moment t e data are created& Point/of/sale systems% optical *ar codes and code scanners% ot er optical c aracter recognition devices% andwriting recogniJers% voice recogniJers% digitiJers% and cameras are e+amples of source data automation& Source data automation devices eliminate errors arising from umans )ey*oarding data and allow for data to *e captured directly and immediately% wit *uilt/in error correction& T e maRor devices are descri*ed *elow& Point7of7Sa-e Termina-s. Many retail organiJations utiliJe point7of7sa-e ,P+S. termina-s. T e POS terminal as a specialiJed )ey*oard& -or e+ample% t e POS terminals at fast/food restaurants include all of t e items on t e menu% sometimes la*eled wit t e picture of t e item& POS terminals in a retail store are e0uipped wit a *ar code scanner t at reads t e *ar/coded sales tag& POS devices increase t e speed of data entry and reduce t e c ance of errors& POS terminals may include many features suc as scanner% printer% voice synt esis "w ic pronounces t e price *y voice$% and accounting software& /arcode Scanner. /arcode scanners scan t e one/dimensional ".D$ *lac)/and/w ite *ars written in t e *niversal Product ode "#PC$& T is code specifies t e name of t e product and its manufacturer "product ID$& T en a computer finds in t e data*ase t e price e0uivalent to t e productLs ID& 6arcodes are especially valua*le in ig /volume processing w ere )ey*oard energy is too slow and/or inaccurate& ,pplications include supermar)et c ec)out% airline *aggage stic)ers% and transport companiesL pac)ages "-ederal E+press% #nited Parcel Service% and t e #&S& Postal Service$& T e wand reader is a special and eld *ar code reader t at can read codes t at are also reada*le *y people& "adio 1reHuency %dentification ,"1%&. Ta!. %adio fre'uenc! identification "B-ID$ is a system of tec nologies t at use radio waves to automatically identify people or o*Rects& T e uni0ue information "usually a serial num*er$ is stored on a microc ip "tag$ t at is attac ed to an antenna% w ic can transmit to a near*y reader& T e reader t en converts t e radio waves from t e B-ID tag into digital information for t e computer to use& +ptica- )ar6 "eader. ,n optica- mar6 reader is a special scanner for detecting t e presence of pencil mar)s on a predetermined grid% suc as multiple/c oice test answer s eets&

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Sensors. Sensors are e+tremely common tec nologies em*edded in ot er tec nologies& T ey collect data directly from t e environment and input t em into a computer system& E+amples mig t include your carLs air*ag activation sensor or fuel mi+ture/pollution control sensor% inventory control sensors in retail stores% and t e myriad types of sensors *uilt into a modern aircraft& niversa- Seria- /us , S/.. T is is a low/cost interfacing port for computer perip erals& #S6 .&. as a ma+imum transfer rate of .7 M*ps t at cannot fulfill some speedy perip erals suc as e+ternal ard drives& #S6 7&3 as a ma+imum transfer rate of (53 M*ps% w ic is (3 times faster t an #S6 .&.& It is faster t an its competitor IEEE .>H( t at as a ma+imum transfer rate of (53 m*ps& T e newest #S6 standard is #S6 >&3& It is a*out .3 times faster t an #S6 7&3 wit a ma+imum transfer speed of 8'*ps& )onitors. T e data entered into a computer can *e visi*le on t e computer monitor( w ic is *asically a video screen t at displays *ot input and output& Monitors come in different siJes% ranging from inc es to several feet& T e maRor *enefit is t e interactive nature of t e device&

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