UNIT I: COMPUTER SYSTEM AND ORGANIZATION

 What is a Computer?
 Features of Computer
 Components of Computer
 Hardware Components
WHAT IS A COMPUTER?
 A computer is a machine that can be programmed to accept data (input), process this data
into useful information and provides output, and store it (in a secondary storage device) for
later reuse. The processing of input to output is called IPO cycle.

Desired result
or processed
Executing the information
In the form of computer
Data and program
instructions
EXAMPLE OF INPUT-PROCESS-OUTPUT CYCLE

The sorted numbers

Sort in ascending are-65,70,80,85,95
80,70,95,85,65 order
FEATURES OF COMPUTER

 High Speed
 Accuracy
 Versatility
 Storage Capability
 Diligence
 Reduced Paper use
 COMPONENTS OF COMPUTER SYSTEM

A computer system is a basic, complete and functional hardware and software setup
with everything needed for any application.
 COMPONENTS OF COMPUTER SYSTEM

Computer receives data and instruction through “input device” which get processed in “Central
Processing Unit” and the result is shown through “output device’. The “memory unit” stores the data
and instruction. .
CATEGORIES OF HARDWARE
 The physical and tangible components of a computer which are attached to computer to
perform various operations are known as Hardware.

Input Device

Output Device

CPU

Memory/Storage Device
INPUT DEVICES

 Input devices are responsible to take data and instructions and convert in computer
understandable form.
 They are directly attached to CPU.
 Multiple input devices can be attached to computer to so that data in various forms can be
converted to computer readable form.
 Some examples of input devices are: keyboard, mouse, joystick, microphone, scanner etc.
SOME COMMONLY USED INPUT DEVICES
 Keyboard
A computer keyboard is one of the primary input devices
It is composed of buttons or keys that create letters, numbers, and symbols, that allows
data to be sent to computer on pressing the keys or buttons.
 Mouse
A computer mouse is a handheld input device
It controls a cursor in a GUI (graphical user interface) and can move
and select text, icons, files, and folders on your computer.
SOME COMMONLY USED INPUT DEVICES
 Magnetic Ink Character Reader
MICR is a character recognition technology which use magnetically
charged ink. MICR font is commonly used to print bank cheques,
deposit slips etc.
 Optical Mark Reader
OMR is the process of gathering information from human beings
by recognizing marks on a document. OMR is accomplished by
using a hardware device (scanner) that detects a reflection or
limited light transmittance on or through a piece of paper.
OUTPUT DEVICES

 An output device is a computer hardware equipment which converts information processed

by computer into human-readable form.
 Processed output can be in the form of text, graphics, audio, and video.
 Some of the output devices are Visual Display Units (VDU) i.e. a Monitor, Printer, Speakers
etc.
EXAMPLES OF OUTPUT DEVICES

VDU (video display unit), a monitor is an output device that displays video images and text. A
monitor is made up of circuitry, a screen, a power supply, buttons to adjust screen settings, and
casing that holds all of these components.
 The first computer monitors were comprised of a CRT (cathode ray tube)
and a fluorescent screen.
 Today, all monitors are created using flat-panel display technology, usually backlit with
LEDs.
EXAMPLES OF OUTPUT DEVICES

A printer is an external hardware output device that takes the electronic data stored on a
computer or other device and generates a hard copy of it. Printers are one of the most popular
computer peripherals and are commonly used to print text and photos.
Different types of printers are:
 3D printer
 Dot matrix printer
 LED printer
CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT
 The CPU also called processor is responsible for processing the data according to user given
instruction. Principal components of a CPU include –

 ARITHMETIC LOGIC UNIT (ALU) :

This unit is responsible for performing Arithmetic operation (such as Addition, Subtraction,
Multiplication and Division) as well as logical (such as AND ,OR etc.) and relational
expression(such as equal to, greater than, less than etc.)
 CONTROL UNIT:
The control unit controls the operation of the computer’s ALU, memory and input/output
devices. The control unit also provides the timing and control signals required by other
computer components.
ASSESSMENT
The physical and tangible components of a computer which are attached to computer to perform various
operations are known as _____________

Answer : Hardware

A ____________ is a handheld input device that controls a cursor in a GUI (graphical user interface)

Answer : Computer mouse

 ASSESSMENT
Which of the following is not a valid input device
a) printer
b) mouse
c) keyboard
d) OMR
Answer : a. printer

A computer can be programmed to accept ______ as input, process this to provide useful __________ as output.
a) Meaningful data, Meaningless data
b) Information , data
c) data,information
Answer : c. data,information
 ASSESSMENT
_________ font commonly used to print bank cheques, deposit slips .
a) OMR
b) MICR
c) SCANNER
d) PLOTTER
Answer : b. MICR

The ___________controls the operation of the computer’s ALU, memory and input/output devices

Answer : Control unit

COMPUTER MEMORY

 Memory is used for storing both instructions to be executed and data to be processed.

Memory

Main Secondary
Store store

RAM ROM
PARTS OF MAIN MEMORY

RAM(Random Access Memory) ROM(Read Only Memory)

 RAM portion of memory is used to store the  ROM or read only memory is permanent memory
data and instruction of the application which is which stores a set of permanent instructions
currently being executed by the CPU. known as BIOS (Basic Input Output system).
 This is non-volatile memory, i.e its contents are
 This is a volatile (temporary) memory, i.e once not erased even when power is switched off.
the computer is switched off, it’s contents will
 BIOS is designed to be the first set of instructions
be erased automatically. executed when the system is switched on . The
 This memory is a read /write memory i.e its function of BIOS is to initialize hardware and to
contents can be read and also can be changed. load Operating System software. This process of
loading Operating system in a computer is known
as Booting.
UNITS OF MEMORY
A bit stands for binary digits(0 and 1) and is the
elementary unit of the memory.
Memory is measured in terms of bytes.
A group of 8 bits is called a byte.
Other units of memory are
KB(Kilobyte),
GB(Gigabyte),
MB(Megabyte),
TB(Terabyte),
PB (Petabyte),
EX(Exabyte) ,
ZB(Zettabyte) ,
YB(yottabyte)
CACHE MEMORY

 This is a memory which works between CPU and RAM

 Cache memory is used to reduce the average time to access data from the Main memory
 It is a fast and small memory which stores the frequently used data during the execution of
an application
 It is quickly available to the CPU as Cache is faster than the RAM.
 It is also known as Static RAM (SRAM)
SECONDARY MEMORY DEVICES

As the processed data in RAM can not be stored permanently, to store the processed data Secondary
storage device is used
These devices are used to store large amount of data permanently.
The various types of secondary devices are :
 Hard disks
 CD ROMs
 DVDs
 Pen Drives ( Flash Memories)
 Blue Ray Disks
HARD DISK

 It consists of a stack of disks on a common spindle

 Each surface of the disk is coated with the magnetic
material
 Information is recorded on the surface of disks by magnetic
heads as tiny magnetic spots
COMPACT DISK (CD)

 These are optical media

 Its main uses are video and data storage
(DIGITAL VIDEO DISC ) DVDS

 It is an optical storage device

 Its main uses are video and data storage
BLUE RAY DISK(BD)

 It is an optical storage device

 Its main uses are video and data storage
PEN DRIVES(FLASH MEMORIES)

 This is a small portable memory

 This can be plugged into a computer through USB port
 ASSESSMENT

__________ memory is used to store the data and instruction of the application which is currently being
executed by the CPU
Answer : RAM

1 GB = 1024 ____________

Answer : MB
 ASSESSMENT
__________is non-volatile primary memory.

Answer : ROM

__________ memory stores the frequently used data during the execution of an application

Answer : Cache
 ASSESSMENT
__________and ________ are examples of secondary storage devices.

Answer : Hard disk , DVD

_________ is a small portable memory that can be plugged into a computer through USB port

Answer : Pen drive

SOFTWARE CONCEPTS

Besides Hardware, a computer system consists of software for its proper functioning
Software - A set of programs that govern the operations of a computer system
Categories of Software
 Application Software
These are designed to perform a specific task for the user.
 System Software
This controls internal computer operations
APPLICATION SOFTWARE

Packages
 These are designed to perform a specific type of application
Customized Software
 This is developed to meet all requirements specified by the user
PACKAGES
Different types are:
- Word processing Software
This processes textual matter and creates organized documents. Examples MSWord
- Electronic Spreadsheets
This takes data values in tabular form and analyze the data in desired manner. Example Ms-Excel
- Database Management Systems (DBMS)
This is used for creating, storing, manipulating and organizing large volume of data .
Examples MS-Access, dbase etc.
- Presentation Application software
This is used to create presentation, usually in the form of a slide show. Example- Ms-
powerpoint
CUSTOMIZED SOFTWARE
Different types are:
- School management System
This is related with school’s activities like student billing and payment, preparing result of students
- Payroll system
This is to maintain employee details like their salary etc
- Hotel management
This is used for managing various hotel related activities like booking of rooms, billing, catering etc
- Reservation System
This is used for performing operations like reservation in airline/railways of customer’s seats by
checking the availability of seats, cancellation etc.
 SYSTEM SOFTWARE

System software is a type of computer program that is designed to run a computer's hardware
and application programs.
- This is the software that controls internal computer operations.
- It is a type of software that provides the infrastructure over which programs can operate
System software can be classified into different categories:
a. Utilities
b. Operating System
c. Device Drivers
d. Translator softwares/ Language processors
SYSTEM SOFTWARE
a. Utilities -
These are set of programs that are designed to assist the computer to ensure smooth functioning of the
computer
Different types are:
- Antivirus Software
This scans the computer system for viruses and removes them.
- Compression Utility
With this ,large files can be compressed so that they take less storage area.
- File Management Software
These are used to perform file management tasks like copy, compress, move, rename,
delete or search for files .
- Disk management tools
These are used for the disk management functions of computer like disk back up , defragmentation
of disk, disk clean up.
SYSTEM SOFTWARE
b. Operating System -
 An operating system is a program that acts as an interface between the user and the
computer.
 This is to provide an environment in which the user can execute programs in a convenient
and efficient manner
Functions of operating system
 File management
 CPU management
 Device management
 Memory management functions
FUNCTIONS OF OPERATING SYSTEM

1. File management
OS Manages the files, folders and directory systems on a computer.
2. CPU management
- In a multiprogramming environment, a number of programs are stored in memory .
- The O.S decides which program is to be allocated to CPU for processing and at what
time to increase the efficiency of CPU.
3. Device management
The operating system communicates with the hardware and the attached devices.
4. Memory management functions
The operating System manages the space for different types of applications so that large
number of user’s programs can be stored.
SYSTEM SOFTWARE

c. Device Driver
This refers to a special kind of software program that controls a specific hardware device
that enables different hardware devices to communicate with the computer’s Operating
System.
SYSTEM SOFTWARE
d. Language Processors / translator software
These are the programs that are required to convert the program written by the user in any
programming language to machine language. Language Processor is also known as
Translator Software.
The various types of language processors are:
- Assembler
- Interpreter
- Compiler
LANGUAGE PROCESSORS / TRANSLATOR SOFTWARE
Assembler –
This language processor converts the program written in assembly language into
machine language.

Interpreter -
• Interpreter converts a high level language program into machine language by
converting and executing it line by line.
• If there is any error in any line, it reports it at the same time and program
execution cannot resume until the error is rectified.
• An Interpreter must always be present at the time of program execution since it
does not store the translated code
LANGUAGE PROCESSORS / TRANSLATOR SOFTWARE

Compiler -
• This also converts the high level language program into machine language
• The entire conversion takes place at one time, and along with all the errors of
the program.
• After all the errors are removed, the program is recompiled.
• Once the compilation of a program is successful , compiler is not needed in the
memory as the translated object code is stored by the compiler.
• Due to this less memory space is occupied during execution.
PROGRAMMING TOOL

 A programming tool is software program utility that aids software developers or

programmers in creating , editing , debugging, and performing any program specific
task.
 A programming tool is also known as a software development tool.
 ASSESSMENT
Two categories of software are __________and ________.

Answer : Application software, system software

_________ are set of programs that are designed to assist the computer to ensure smooth functioning of the
computer

Answer : Utility
 ASSESSMENT
Different types of packages are __________, ___________ and ________.

Answer : Word processing software, presentation software and spreadsheets

_________ scans the computer system for viruses and removes them.

Answer : Antivirus software

 ASSESSMENT
___________ and ________ are two categories of system software.

Answer : Utilities and operating system

_________ programs that are required to convert the program written by the user in any programming language to
machine language

Answer : Language processor

ASSESSMENT

A customized software to maintain employee details like their salary is ___________

Answer : Payroll software

_________ converts a high level language program into machine language by converting and executing it line by
line.

Answer : Interpreter
ASSESSMENT

Two functions of operating systems are___________ and ___________

Answer : File management and CPU management

The operation in which operating System manages the space for different types of applications so that large number
of user’s programs can be stored is _______________

Answer : Memory management operation