CHARACTERISTICS OF COMPUTERS

A computer is an electronic device that performs mathematical and logical

operations based on a given set of instructions known as a program. A computer
accepts data, processes it, and produces information. Here, data refers to some raw
fact or figure, and information implies the processed data.

For example, if 12-12-95 is the date of birth of a student, then it is data (a raw
fact/figure). However, when we process this data (subtract it from the present-date)
and say that the age of the student is 23 years, then the outcome is information.

Data is a collection of raw facts or figures. Information comprises processed

data to provide answers to ‘who’, ‘what’, ‘where’, and ‘when’ type of questions.
Knowledge is the application of data and information to answer the ‘how’ part of the
question (refer Figure 1.1).

Instructions are the commands given to the computer which tell it what to do.
Program is a set of instructions in a language understood by computers. Software is
a set of programs. Hardware refers to computer and all its physical parts. The
important characteristics of a computer (refer to Figure 1.2) are:
Speed :

Computers can perform millions of operations per second, which means that
data that may otherwise take many hours to process is output as information
in the fraction of a second. The speed of computers is usually given in
nanoseconds and picoseconds, where 1 nanosecond = 1 × 10−9 seconds and 1
picosecond = 1 × 10−12 seconds.

Accuracy:

Computers are very fast, reliable, and robust devices. They always give
accurate results, provided that correct data and set of instructions are input to
them. Hence, in the event of an error, it is the user who has fed the incorrect
data/program is responsible. This clearly means that the output generated by
a computer depends on the given instructions and input data. If the input data
is wrong, then the output will also be erroneous. In computer terminology, this
is known as garbage-in, garbage-out (GIGO).

Automation:

Besides being very fast and accurate, computers are automatable devices that
can perform a task without any user intervention. The user just needs to assign
the task to the computer, after which it automatically controls different devices
attached to it and executes program instructions.

Diligence:

Unlike humans, computers never get tired of a repetitive task. They can
continually work for hours without generating errors. Even if a large number
of executions needs to be executed, each and every execution requires the same
duration, and is executed with the same accuracy.

Versatile:

Versatility is the quality of being flexible. These days, computers are used in
our daily life in different elds. For example, they are used as personal
computers (PCs) for home use, for business-oriented tasks, weather forecasting,
 space exploration, teaching, railways, banking, medicine, and so on. On the PC
that we use at home, we may play a game, compose and send e-mails, listen to
music, etc. Therefore, computers are versatile devices as they can perform
multiple tasks of different nature at the same time.

Memory:

Similar to humans, computers also have memory. Just the way we cannot store
everything in our memory and need a secondary medium, such as a notebook,
to record certain important things, computers also have internal or primary
memory (storage space) as well as external or secondary memory. While the
internal memory of computers is very expensive and limited in size, the
secondary storage is cheaper and of bigger capacity.

Computers store a large amount of data and programs in the secondary storage
space. The stored data and programs can be retrieved and used whenever
required. Some examples of secondary devices include optical disks (CDs and
DVDs), hard disk drives, and pen drives. When data and programs have to be
used, they are copied from the secondary memory into the internal memory,
often known as random access memory (RAM).

No IQ:

Although the trend these days is to make computers intelligent by inducing

artificial intelligence (AI) in them, they still do not have any decision-making
abilities of their own. They need guidance to perform various tasks.

Economical:

Today, computers are considered as short-term investments for achieving long-

term gains. Using computers also reduces manpower requirements and leads
to an economical and efficient way of performing various tasks. Hence,
computers save time, energy, and money. When compared to other systems,
computers can do more work in lesser time.
 STORED PROGRAM CONCEPT

All digital computers are based on the principle of stored program concept, which was
introduced by Sir John von Neumann in the late 1940s. The following are the key
characteristic features of this concept:

➢ Before any data is processed, instructions are read into the memory.

➢ Instructions are stored in the computer’s memory for execution.

➢ Instructions are stored in binary form (using binary numbers—only 0s and 1s).

➢ Processing starts with the first instruction in the program, which is copied into
the control unit circuit. The control unit executes the instructions.

➢ Instructions written by users are performed sequentially until there is a break

in the current flow.

➢ Input/Output and processing operations are performed simultaneously. While

data is being read/written, the central processing unit (CPU) executes another
instruction in the memory that is ready for execution.

A stored program architecture is a

fundamental computer
architecture wherein the computer
executes the instructions that are
stored in its memory.

John W. Mauchly, an American physicist, and J. Presper Eckert, an American

engineer, further contributed to the stored program concept to make digital
computers much more flexible and powerful. As a result, engineers in England built
the first stored program computer, Manchester Mark I, in the year 1949. They were
shortly followed by the Americans who designed EDVAC in the very same year.
Types of Stored Program Computers

A computer with a von Neumann architecture stores data and instructions in

the same memory (refer Figure 1.3(a)). This is a serial machine in which data and
instructions are selected one at a time. Data and instructions are transferred to and
from memory through a shared data bus. Since there is a single bus to carry data and
instructions, process execution becomes slower.

Later Harvard University proposed a stored program concept in which there is

a separate memory to store data and instructions (refer Figure 1.3(b)). Instructions are
selected serially from the instruction memory and executed in the processor. When an
instruction needs data, it is selected from the data memory. Since there are separate
memories, execution becomes faster.

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