INTRODCTION TO COMPUTER

A computer is an device that manipulates data by processing in order to give information .

The computer is basically composed of four parts ; keyboard, mouse, monitor and system unit.
(Discussed ahead)

Terms used in computer studies

 Input- this is to enter data in to the computer system

 Process-transformed data /information useful for decision –making
 Save-this is to store data/information in the computer system
 eDelete-this is to erase data/information from the computer system
 Restore-this is to retrieve or reverting data to previous state or location in the computer
form system
 There are more terms used in computer environment or field

HARDWARE

Generally, computers help us to perform tasks efficiently.

Hardware refers to the physical components of the computer I .e those you can
actually touch. Hardware includes ;system unit ,keyboard, monitor, mouse, disk,
modem, printer, scanner, speakers, web camera, cables, microphone.
TYPES OF COMPUTER
Personal computer
A personal computer (PC)- is a small ,relatively inexpensive computer designed for home
or office use.
There are different types of personal computers ;
 Desktop/tower computers
 Laptop(or notebook) computers
 Tablet PCs
Handheld/portable digital devices
 This computers can be used to solve different tasks .They are mobile and mostly
for personal use .They include ;
 Personal digital assistants (PDAs)
 Mobile phones
 Smartphones

Multimedia players

Main parts of a computer

Memory capacity conversation chart

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Term (Abbreviation) Approximate size
Byte (B) 8 bites
Kilobyte (KB) 102 bites/103 bytes
Gigabyte (GB) 1024 MB /109 bytes
Terabyte(TB) 1024 GB /1012bytes
Petabyte(PB) 1024 TB /1015bytes
Exabyte( EB) 1024 EB /1012bytes
Zettabyte (ZB) 1024 EB/1021bytes
Yottabyte(YB) 1024 ZB/1024bytes
Megabyte (MB) 1024 MB/10246bytes

Random Access Memory (RAM) Approximate Size

It’s a volatile storage It has a non-volatile storage
It holds the program data that the CPU It d
would be processing lose not lose data or information when
It can be written into or read from powered off
Data in at can be altered by other It can only be read from
programs Data in it can not be altered by other
It loses data when powered off programs
It stores data permanently

Storage Device media is required in order to store information . This media is referred to
as secondary or backing storage.

 Examples of secondary storage devises;

 Hard- disk-an internal storage fixed in the system unit .Other external hard
disks are connected to the computer through USB port
 USB f lash disk-external storage device
 CD-ROM-(compact Disk-read Only Memory)-an optical disk containing data .It
can only be read and can not 9. They store 600Mbs-870Mbs other types include
 CD-R(recordable can be written to once and cannot be modified,
 CD-RW (rewritable) –It can be erased and written to over and over again.
 DVD- ROOM –similar to CD-ROOM but store much data of capacity ranging from
4.7GB to 17GB.

 Memory card-is flash memory card or compact disk

Online storage-is an internet services used to store personal files for backup

Input Devices

This are devices or equipment used to enter data /information in a computer

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  They include; scanner Joy stick
 Mouse Touchpad Digital camera
 Keyboard Light pen Microphone

Typically ,a computer consist of a system unit (tower or desktop) that contains slot s for CDs/DVDs ,a
flash disk ,a keyboard, a mouse, a monitor ,a printer and a set of speakers

We use the term peripherals for any device that is connected exactly to the system unit

Input/ Output ports

computers have different/output ports where cables and peripherals connect to computers.

USB ports. support faster data transport rat s. Connects flash disk ,digital camera. mice etc to the
compute

Serial port-general purpose interface

Parallel port- connects a printer to the computer

Network port- connects a network to the computer

Fire wire port-connects digital video camera. Supports faster data transfer rates that USB ports

Computer performance

The processing speed is the rate at which hardware and software interact to manipulate data Factors
determining processing speed;

CPU clock speed-a higher clock speed means more data units processed per second

CPU design-different CPU may be designed to process larger units of the data at a time or processing
certain types of data more efficiently

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Amount of RAM –Increasing the RAM memory improves the speed of the computer

Hard disk type-different hard disk have different access speeds- the time taken to read and write
data to the hard disk. High access speed improves processing speed

Graphic card type-They enable the computer to run graphic oriented software more efficiently and
smoothly.

CD/DVD-ROM type-a fast CD/DVD-ROM drive reduces the time taken to access and move data .A 52x
speed drive is faster than a 32x speed drive for a given type of a hard disk

Number of applications running-A lot of programs running at the same time slows down the processing
speed. I t important to close down unused programs

Central processing unit CPU)

Is also known to us central processor or processor. It is the ‘brain’ of the computer .It determines the
speed at which the program instructions are carried out by the computer .CPU speed is measured in
megahertz MHz and gigahertz GHz . The higher MHz or GHz ,the faster the execution programs the
instructions by the computer

Read only memory (ROM) & Random access Memory (RAM)

These are the two types of computer system memory .Data entered through the computer the keyboard
is stored in the system memory .It is important to understand the basics of the computer storage .

Binary Digit (Bit)-the smallest unit of information .It holds only one of two values: 0 or 1.A group of eight
bits (e. g .110 10 101)make one byte.

Byte (B)-the amount of space needed to store one character (e .g .A, 1.$,% etc.) kilobyte(KB)-IS
EQUIVALENT TO 1024 bytes