Chapter - 1

 Computer is an electronic device that accepts

input, executes a set of instructions in the form
of a program and displays the output to the user.
 Computing is a process in which a person or
a computer perform mathematical or procedural
tasks.
 Two main components of a Computer are:
 Hardware – Physical components which are tangible
Eg: Motherboard, Memory devices, Monitor, Keyboard, etc.
 Software – A set of programs or instructions

 Hardware cannot function on its own. It needs software to be

operational or functional.
 Input data and instructions received through input devices
gets processed by the CPU and the result is shown through
the output devices.
 The Main/Primary memory and the Auxiliary/ Secondary
memory stores data inside the computer.
 The input devices that are attached to the computer are part
of the input unit.
 These devices take input and convert it into binary language
that the computer understands.
 Some of the common input devices are keyboard, mouse,
joystick, scanner etc.
 The output devices that are attached to the computer are
part of the output unit.
 It converts the binary data coming from CPU to human
understandable form.
 The common output devices are monitor, printer, plotter etc.
 CPU is the control centre/ brain of the computer which
controls all the processing that takes place inside the
computer.
 It consists of:
 Arithmetic Logic Unit (ALU) – to perform all calculations and
comparisons
 Control Unit (CU) – controls all functions like input, output, storage
and process. It instructs ALU which operation is to be carried out.
 Registers – High speed temporary storage areas in the CPU which
hold the operands (data) or instruction(not the whole program)
that CPU is currently processing.
 Computer memory is used to store data and instructions.
 2 types of memory : Main/Primary memory and Auxiliary/ Secondary
memory
 Memory attached to the CPU is called Main/ Primary memory or
Random Access Memory(RAM).
 This is the computer memory which is directly accessible to the CPU.
 When a program is executed, it’s data and instructions are copied to
the RAM and is stored in the memory till the end of the execution.
 RAM is volatile — the information that’s put in there disappears when
the power is turned off or when the computer is reset
 Auxiliary/ Secondary memory is where, huge volumes of data is
stored permanently. It is non-volatile in nature. Eg: Hard disk, CD,
DVD, USB Pen drive, Memory cards
 The elementary unit of memory
is a bit.
 Bit stands for Binary Digits 0 or 1.
 Combinations of these bits are
used to store data and
instructions.
 Eight bits together form a byte.
 A group of 4 bits is called a
Nibble.
 When data is deleted, its address entry is marked as free and
that much space is shown as empty to the user, without
actually deleting the data.
 That space will then be used for storing some other data.
 If data gets deleted accidentally or corrupted, it needs to be
recovered.
 Data recovery is the process of retrieving deleted, corrupted
or lost data from the secondary memory.
 It is possible only if the memory space marked as deleted is
not overwritten by some other data.
2 security concerns associated with data
1. Deletion by some unauthorized person or software. This can
be avoided by limiting access to the computer system and
using passwords for user accounts and files.
2. Unwanted recovery of already deleted data. This concern
can be mitigated by using proper tools to delete or shred
data before the disposal of any old or faulty storage device.
A set of programs (instructions) necessary to operate the
hardware is known as a software.
 It cannot be touched or viewed physically.
 Eg: -Operating systems like Ubuntu or Windows
-Word processors like MS Word
 A document or image stored in the hard disk or pen drive is
called soft copy. Its printed version is called hard copy.
 Basic requirement for a computer system to work, as any
hardware component will work only with proper instructions.
 Purpose of software is to make computer hardware useful
and operational.
 It helps the different hardware components work and
communicate with each other.
 It acts as an interface between human users and hardware.
 The system software is a collection of programs designed to
operate, control, and extend the processing capabilities of the
computer itself.
 It is generally prepared by the computer manufacturers.
 System software comprise of programs written in low-level
languages, which interact with the hardware at a very basic
level.
 BIOS, Operating System (OS), Device drivers, Programming
Language translators are all system software.
 Application software are bought by the user to perform
specific tasks like making a document or presentation,
storing and managing data, etc.
 2 main types of Application software are:
 General purpose software
 Special purpose software
 These are application software made for the common users
for day-to-day applications and uses.
 They are also called as office tools.
 Some popular general purpose software are:
 Word processor
 Presentation tool
 Spreadsheet packages
 DBMS
 These are customer specific application software made as
per the user’s requirement.
 It cannot be installed or used by any other user/ customer,
since the requirements may differ.
 Some examples are:
 Inventory management system
 School management system
 Payroll system
 Hospital Management system