HOW THE COMPUTER WORKS

Computers are wonderful machines. They have their unique and special way of working. These
internal workings, however, continue to be a mystery to many people. Computers are not all-
powerful machines; they can do certain things but they are also limited in many ways.

WHAT THE COMPUTER CAN AND CANNOT DO

There are lot of things that a computer can do. It can help people in many ways. For
instance, a computer can help you compute your finances, grades, or other figures. It can help
you write a letter, print it, and send it to a friend. It can help you in researching information that
you need.

Computers, are considered superior machines because they can do the following:

1. They can do repetitive work. You can feed data which will be repeatedly process or analyze
for days or even months, to a computer and the computer, unlike a human, will not grow tired.

2. They can operate at a very high speed. A normal computation, which can take weeks or
months for a human, may just take the computer hours or even seconds to make. This is why
computer hours or even seconds to make. This is why computers are indepensable to scientific
calculations especially to those that involve large numbers.

3. They can compute with the highest degree of accuracy. Computers will never make
mistakes in the results of a computation, unless there is something worng with the data or
information given to them.

4. They do logical processing strictly. People can also think logically, but there are times when
they let emotions control their decisions. Computers will always follow the instructions given to
them, and will never run different from their programming.

With the above capablities, it is clear that computers have become so valuable to people
because they increase people’s natural capacity a hundred to a thousand times or more,
leading to better development in the sciences and other fields.

Computers are now utilized by people for work (word processing, spreadsheets,
presentation software); for play (games, listening to music, watching movies); for getting online
(browsing, researching, downloading); and for keeping in touch (emailing, chatting, video
conferencing).

Even with these given capabilities, however, and even in this day and age, computers
are still limited in many ways on what they can do. For example, while computers can can be
good in prviding editing advice or vocabulary and grammar tips, they cannot be by themselves
write prose or content that is good enough or comparable to that written by a human writer.
They also cannot be creative enough to draw or paint by themselves, or make works of art, and
perform other creative endeavors.

The most crucial limitation, of course, is that computers cannot think on their own. They
are not conscious about themselves or what they do. They are limited to being programmed or
being fed orders or instructions by people known as programmers. They cannot on their own
make new programs or instructions for themselves.

THE COMPUTER PROCESS

Another way of looking at computers is knowing what they can do. They can (1) receive
input, (2) process information, (3) produce output, and (4) store information. These four basic
functions are all their is to a computer, and their convergence is known as the computer
process.

Input is something that enters the computer process. It can be data fed into a computer, a
keyboard stroke, a click of the mouse, or information from other output devices. It may also
come from files or data from storage. Input naturally flows or continues into the stage called
process.

Process is the stage where data and information, as well as other inputs are processed in
various ways: converted, combined, analyzed, computed, operated on, or changed. The kind of
processing will depend on the instructions given to the computer. After the processing of data
is done, an output or result is prepared.

Output is the level where the result of the processing of data is shown. It can be the video
display of a monitor or screen. It can be the hard copy from a printer. In some cases, the output
or result is not shown immediately, but is kept in storage for future reference or retrieval.

Storage is the function of keeping and storing processed data or information. The stored data
can be referenced or retrieved in the future. Sometimes, data is retrieved for input purposes,
such as the BIOS data that is referenced and read when you open your computer. At other
times, data can be retrieved for output purposes, such as when a photo stored in your hard disk
is opened for display or printing.

Data can be stored permanently in hard disks, compact discs (CDs), digital video discs (DVDs),
USB flash disks, and other permanent storage media. It can be temporarily stored in memory
devices like the Random-Access Memory (RAM) or video memory.

The input-process-output-storage functions are all very crucial in the proper functioning of the
computer system that is why the absence or malfunctioning of any one component can be
severely limiting.

Without input, for example, the computer cannot process anything and the machine’s
functioning will be on hold, perennially waiting for data to come in and enter the system. On
the other hand, input is useless without the processing function, or if there is some problem in
it. Typing on the keyboard or clicking the mouse is not going to produce any effect because
nothing is being processed.

Consequently, data may have been inputted properly and processed accordingly, but without
output, the data will appear to be useless because the result of the processing is not seen in a
hardcopy, screen display, or any other output form.

Finally, without storage, every function and processing would have to be repeated all the time.
With data and information stored, one does not have to input, process, and output data all over
again because the result of the initial processing has already been kept in storage for future
needs.

The interplay of these four functions is such that one affects the others. This important
principle in computing is known as Garbage In, Garbage Out or GIGO, which means that if one
inputs useless, erratic, or otherwise garbage-like data or information into the machine, the
output would also be useless. For example, if you are finding the average age of your
community members and you inputted one age as 823 instead of 23, then the average age that
will be produced will surely be too high than the correct one.
Study the table below. The computer process is illustrated in the examples.

COMPUTING
INPUT PROCESS OUTPUT STORAGE
ACTIVITY
A copy of the
The photo or file
The mouse is A photo or file is photo or file is
PC use is shown on
double-clicked read stored in the
screen
hard disk
Computation is
PIN and amount New account
processed (if
to be withdrawn balance (less
amount to be Cash is
ATM withdrawal are inputted on withdrawn
withdrawn is despensed
to the ATM amount) is put
within the
machine on record
account balance)
Command is The spaceship is The game level
Joystick is processed seen going to the or stage
Gaming pushed to the (instruction for right side of the achieved is
right game object to screen to evade stored for future
go to the right) bombs pay

All computing devices and gadgets may bet categorized into input devices, output devices,
processing devices, and storage devcies because of the importance of these functions. These
devices will be discussed in the next chapter.

COMPONENTS OF THE COMPUTER SYSTEM

Aside from the different functions in the computer process, another way to understand the
workings of the computer is to know the various components of the computer system and how
their confluence or combination results to the overall workings of a computer or machine.

The following are the components of the computer system:

1. Hardware – Is the component of the computer system that once can touch and see. It
includes the different input, processing, output, and storage devices, such as, the keyboard, the
monitor, the mouse, CPU housing, the integrated circuits, the microprocessor, the hard disk,
the power cable, and even the power supply physically, among others. Hardware is something
that is “physically there.”

2. Software – Is the sets of instructions or programs that run the hardware itself. It includes the
operating system that runs the overall functioning of the machine, as well as the different
programs that allow one to create letters, connect to the Internet, or compute for numbers,
among other things. Software cannot be seen or touched, but its effects can be observed.

3. Peopleware – Is the people who use and manage computers. Included here are the ordinary
computer users who utilize the computer for their daily needs, as well as a host of computer
professionals such as computer engineers and scientists, systems designers, information
technologists, programmers, and the like. Peopleware create hardware and software.
Computer engineers, for example, design Ics, while programmers create software and
programs.

Just like the computer functions, the importance of the convergence of these three
components cannot be denied. Of course, without hardware, software is simply useless code.
Conversely, having only hardware without a program to run on is like an extra appliance or
machine that you cannot operate. It is basically good for nothing. Now, the absence of
peopleware in a setting where there is hardware and software would render everything without
a purpose; aside from the fact that without people-creators, the world would never have
known hardware and software in the first place.

HOW COMPUTER WORKS

The functions of the computer process and the components of the computer system
give a good idea of the workings of computer devices, but these do not yet reveal how
computers think.

Although there are times when computers appear to think and process information like
human beings, the fact is that computers think or handle information in an entirely different
manner.

Computers do not understand information as it appears to us people. Information,

which is something that can be communicated, may appear as words, numbers, texts, photos,
videos, and so on, but the computer does not comprehend them as such. For example, the
letter A is not understood byt he computer as letter A, but as a combination of ON and OFF
impulses.

Let us illustrate this impulse as a light bulb and in turn refer to the light bulb as a bit. By
itself, a light bulb can either be ON or OFF, which translates to just two possibilities. Just like an
ON/OFF switch, it is easy for a computer to know whether a bit is ON or OFF. Thus, a
combination of these bits can provide many possibilities, as follows:
 Each light bulb in the above illustration is considered a bit. The combination of these
eight bits (eight light bulbs) is termed as a byte. When all the eight light bulbs are OFF, the byte
represents 0; and when the eight light bulbs are all ON, the byte represents the value 255.

For example, a byte with just the third bit turned ON represents the value 32.

On the other hand, when all the light bulbs are turned ON, it represents the value 255.

Therefore, by turning some, a few, or any of the light bulbs ON and turning the others OFF, you
can represent many characters like numbers and letters in the computer’s “mind”.

Codes, like the American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII Code), were
developed to represent all the letters of the alphabet, numbers, and various other characters.
The codes, represent 256 unique patterns from one byte of data. Instructions are also given to
the computer in terms of bits of coded data.

Say, a byte with the 2nd and 8th bits turned ON represents the letter A in ASCII Code.

On the other hand, a byte with the 3rd, 4th, and 6th bits turned ON represents the number 4 in
ASCII Code.

If these many characters can be represented by just one byte, imagine how many characters
and instructions to the computer can be made using two bytes (or 16 bits or 16 light bulbs),
three bytes (or 24 bits or 24 light bulbs), and so on.

Computers can indeed understand ON/OFF switches of bits very well, but these may be difficult
for humans to do so. It is good that computers just do their analaysis of bits in an internal level
but present output in a language that people can understand.

Computers also store data and information through bits and bytes, and machines nowadays
manage data in millions and billions of bytes, which users need to be familiar with.

UNIT ABBREVIATION SIZE SYMBOL EQUIVALENT EXAMPLE

USAGE
A unit of
Bit - - - -
memory
A letter,
Byte - 8 bits B, 3, & number, or -
symbol
 One-page A file in a
Kilobyte KB 1, 024 bytes
documents computer
1 048 576
64-128 MB of
bytes
Megabyte MB A book video
memory
1 000 KB
1 073 741
824 bytes
A series or 1 GB- 2GB
Gigabyte GB group of RAM or 80
Or
books GB hard disk
1 000 MB
1 099 511
627 776
bytes 1TB – 2TB
A library or
Terabyte TB external hard
bookstore
Or disk

1 000 GB

DIFFERENT USES AND APPLICATIONS OF COMPUTERS

Aside from knowing the functions of the computer process, the components of the
computer system, as well as how computers think, it is also important to get an overview of the
different uses and applications of computers. In today’s technology-driven era, computers have
almost innumerable capabilities, but the most important uses are as follows:

1. Word Processing and Desktop Publishing. These two are probably the most popular and
widely used among the applications. Word processing pertains to communication through
words and text, such as the writing of a letter, memo, or correspondence. Desktop publishing is
the development and conversion of an idea into a publication, such as a brochure, manual, or
book. Students, writers, and publishers are the usual users of word processing and desktop
publishing programs.

2. Spreadsheets and Statistical Software. With these software, computers can be used to
calculate and process numbers. Using spreadsheets, numbers and values can be placed in rows
and columns to come up with specific computations on them. Spreadsheets are invaluable in
computing grades, payroll, and sales figures, among others. On the other hand, statistical
software is utilized for large values of numbers and statistics, such as analayzing population
figures or survey results.

3. Database Software. Because of their fast and powerful computing ability, computers can
easily manipulate, store, classify, and change data and information. With the use of database
software, information can be converted and stored into electronic form for easier retrieval and
manipulation. Health records, for example, can be transformed into electronic files for faster
retrieval of health information which may be crucial for a patient’s survival. Database software
is mostly used by government agencies, banks and financial institutions, libraries, and other
firms for bulk data processing.

4. Educational Software. Electronic books, booklets, and encyclopedias now abound, providing
students with almost limitless references for their needs. Students only need to know the
information or reference that they need. Developments in storage technology have made large
volumes of encyclopedias fit into one digital video disc (DVD), making the computer the top-of-
the-line educational tool of today.

5. Graphics and Games. Computers are also immensely capable of utilizing and producing
different kinds and forms of graphics, from simple designs to more intricate ones, charts and
graphs, as well as 3D animation. Poweerful graphics tools enable computers to provide
computer-aided designs for artists and graphics professionals. Consequently, these graphics
capabilities are utilized to come up with realistic 3D games of various kinds and features,
making computers the best gaming tools of this generation.

6. Multimedia. Audio and video in various features and format can be delivered by computers,
resulting to a wonderful multimedia experience. Even simple users can create their own home
video using simple video editing tools. Thus, computers have become the primary audio/video
creation machine. Even films have delivered cutting-edge animation and special effects using
computer technology.

7. Telecommunications and Networking. More instances of human communication are don

nowadays using the computer. With the Internet, users can email, chat, call and hold a video
conference with another user or even with many users anytime and anywhere in the world. The
computer has indeed arrived as the premiere communication tool. Moreover, social networking
sites have become an important link among long lost classmates and friends, making the
computer the unchallenged networking tool of today.
8. Artificial Intelligence. Computers are also now being used by experts to develop programs
and designs that approximate human intelligence, which is known as the field of artificial
intelligence. Programs are being developed to explored computer limits in terms of imagination
and insight, previously the monopoly of human beings. Artificial intelligence is currently applied
in military defense systems, and even in games.

9. Robotics. One very interesting use of computers is programming robots or machines that
imitate human movement or action. This field, known as robotics, is a growing technology used
today in various applications.

Robots of different shapes, sizes, and capabilities are now being deployed as workers in car
factories, or as bomb disposal or rescue machines in emergency situations. In Japan, robots that
mimic human actions such as walking, dancing, and talking have already been developed.

By understanding how computers work, the computer user could determine how he can use
the machine for his particular need. A knowledge of these basic concepts is only the start.

More Bytes

The Advent of Robots

The convergence of artificial intelligence and robotics may someday lead to the creation of a
virtual human machine that can act and think like a human being, similar to the stuff we see in
science fiction films.

Meanwhile, robots are becoming more advanced. Some examples are Mini-Andros, used by
bomb squads to locate and dispose bombs; Robug III, an intelligent walking and climbing robot
that operates in radioactive areas; AIBO, Sony’s robotic dog having 18 specialized motors to
mimi dog actions like rolling over and chasing toys, ASIMO, a humanoid robot that stimulates
the mobility of human beings, and Cog, a stimulus-response robot that responds accordingly to
various stimuli.

Computer scientists are continuing to develop robots to further aid people in different
functions.
CHAPTER REVIEW

KEY TERMS & CONCEPTS

Artificial intelligence multimedia

ASCII output
Bit peopleware
Byte process
Desktop publishing robotics
Gigabyte software
GIGO spreadsheet
Hardware statistical software
Input storage
KB word processing
Megabytes

REVIEW QUESTIONS

1. Give a working definition for the key terms given above.

2. What do you think are the best advantages of computers in terms of what they can do?

3. Describe the way computers process information and data.

4. Give the limitations of computers that you think are hindrances to their further development.
Elaborate.

5. Briefly explain the computer process and provide own example to illustrate the concept.

6. Why is output important? What would happen if computers have no way of showing output?

7. Differentiate the three components of the computer system.

8. Choose the best three uses of computers for students and tell why you chose them.

9. What is the difference between a bit and a byte? Illustrate.

10. Explain the significance of robotics in today’s generation.

DISCUSSION POINTS

1. How is computer memory different from human memory?

2. Do you think time will come when computer intelligence will approximate human
intelligence? Defend your answer.

3. Discuss some more illustrative examples of the input-process-output-storage functions,

making sure to show the concept of Garbage In, Garbage Out (GIGO).

4. For what purposes do young people use computers today?

5. Give some possible computer applications in the far future. Give future dates. Be creative.

FIGURE IT OUT

1. Write the letter of the correct answer on the blank.

____ input a. DVD

____ hardware b. Printer
____ storage c. Multimedia
____ byte d. Physical
____ Cog e. 1 million bytes
____ software f. Keyboard
____ output g. Sets of instructions
____ megabyte h. Stimulus-response
____ mini-Andros i. Bomb disposal
____ home video j. Eight bits

2. Write the number represented by the lighted bulbs in the box.

TECH PROJECTS

1. On a big illustration board, create your own original picture diagram that will illustrate the
the input-process-output-storage computer process.

2. Research on computer terms and words that are still confusing to the average user. Make
your own mini three-page computer dictionary.