Lecture 02

parts of computer and input and output devices

ENGR. NUZHAT MADINA
 What are the major components of a
computer?
 All the general purpose computers requires the following hardware components
 Central processing Unit (CPU):
 The CPU stands for Central Processing Unit, is the part of a computer system that is commonly
referred to as the "brains" of a computer. The CPU is also known as the ―processor or
―microprocessor.
 The CPU is responsible for executing a sequence of stored instructions called a program. The
programs tells a computer what to do and how to do? This program will take inputs from an
input device, process the input in some way and output the results to an output device.
 Memory: It enables a computer to store, at least temporarily, data and programs.
 Input device:
 Input is any data or instructions entered to the computer. Input can be in the form of audio,
video, graphics and animations and instructions
 Any hardware component used to enter data, programs, commands, and user responses into a
computer 
 Examples 
 Key Board
 Mouse
 Digital Camera
 Webcam
 Scanner etc
 Output Device:
 An output is the data that has been processed in that form which is useful by user or machine
for future processing. Output can be in two forms Soft Copy and Hard Copy .
 Any hardware component used to show results after processing to any user and it use to send
the results of processing to the user. Output can be text, Audio, Video & graphics.
  Examples
 Monitor,  Printer
  Plotter (A plotter is a printer that interprets commands from a computer to make line
drawings on paper with one or more automated pens. Unlike a regular printer , the plotter
can draw continuous point-to-point lines directly from vector graphics files or commands.)
  Projectors,  Speakers,  Headphone etc
 Mass Storage device
 A Storage Medium (media is the plural) is the physical material on which items are kept. A
storage device is the computer hardware that records and retrieves items to and from a
storage medium. Storage devices can function as sources of input and output.
 When storage devices transfer items from a storage medium into memory – a process called
reading – they function as sources of input. When storage devices transfer items from
memory to a storage medium
 A process called writing – they function as sources of output. Types of storage media
include floppy disks, hard disks, compact discs, tape, PC Cards and microfilm etc.
 Briefly explain some peripheral devices
 A computer peripheral, or peripheral device, is an external object that provides input and output
for the computer.
 A computer device, such as a CD-ROM drive or printer, that is not part of the essential
computer, Peripheral devices can be external -- such as a mouse, keyboard, printer, monitor,
external Zip drive or scanner -- or internal, such as a CD-ROM (compact disk-Read only
memory) drive, CD-R(compact disk-recordable) drive or internal modem. Internal peripheral
devices are often referred to as integrated peripherals.
 Keyboard:
 Keyboard is an input device, that contain keys user press to enter data or instructions in to the
computer.
 You enter most input data into the computer by using a keyboard.
 This input method is similar to typing on a typewriter.
 Computer keyboards include keys that are designed to perform specific tasks. These keys
enable the user to perform complex tasks easily when using the application.
 For example, many applications use a function key to access online help for the user.
 Keyboard:
 Keyboard keys consist of
 Alphabetic keys contain alphabets from A-Z & a-z
 Numerical keys contain numbers 0-9
 Symbols keys contain many symbols like !, @, #, $, % etc
 Functional keys contain f1-f12, design for special purpose will discuss latter.
 Extra keys contain Esc, Alt, Ctrl, Backspace, Enter
 Pointing Device:
 A pointing device is an input device which is used to control a pointer on a screen. Pointer is a
small symbol on a screen.
 A pointing device is an input interface (specifically a human interface device) that allows a user
to input spatial data to a computer. CAD (computer aided drawing) systems and graphical user
interfaces (GUI) allow the user to control and provide data to the computer using physical
gestures — point, click, and drag — for example, by moving a hand-held mouse across the
surface of the physical desktop and activating switches on the mouse. Movements of the
pointing device are echoed on the screen by movements of the pointer (or cursor) and other
visual changes
 Explain the need of Processor
 Central processing unit (CPU) is an electronic circuit which executes computer programs,
containing a processing unit and a control unit.
 A processor is the thinking mechanism of the computer. While a Hard Drive/Disk holds the
data of a computer, the processor is what 'thinks' and determines how to run whatever files
are on your computer, as well as keeps them updated. Basically, if you have no processor,
your computer will sit with a load of data and take no commands, do no thinking or display
information. In simpler words it is the heart of the machine without it you can't do anything.
 A computer processor, often considered the brains of the machine, has the most significant
effect on performance and price. If you want a computer to be able to keep up with
technology over the next few years you should need a fast processor.
 Computer – CPU
(Central Processing Unit)

 CPU consists of the following features:

 CPU is considered as the brain of the computer.
 CPU performs all types of data processing operations.
 It stores data, intermediate results and instructions(program).
 It controls the operation of all parts of computer.
 Computer – CPU
(Central Processing Unit)
 CPU itself has following three components.
 Memory or Storage Unit
 Control Unit
 ALU(Arithmetic Logic Unit)
 Memory or Storage Unit
 This unit can store instructions, data and intermediate results. This unit supplies information
to the other units of the computer when needed. It is also known as internal storage unit or
main memory or primary storage or Random access memory(RAM).
 Its size affects speed, power and capability. Primary memory and secondary memory are two
types of memories in the computer. Functions of memory unit are:
 It stores all the data and the instructions required for processing.
 It stores intermediate results of processing.
 It stores final results of processing before these results are released to an output device.
 All inputs and outputs are transmitted through main memory.
 Control Unit
 This unit controls the operations of all parts of computer but does not carry out any actual data
processing operations.
 Functions of this unit are:
 It is responsible for controlling the transfer of data and instructions among other units of a
computer.
 It manages and coordinates all the units of the computer.
 It obtains the instructions from the memory, interprets them, and directs the operation of the
computer.
 It communicates with Input/Output devices for transfer of data or results from storage.
 It does not process or store data.
 ALU(Arithmetic Logic Unit)
 This unit consists of two subsections namely
 Arithmetic section
 Logic Section
 Arithmetic Section
 Function of arithmetic section is to perform arithmetic operations like addition, subtraction,
multiplication and division. All complex operations are done by making repetitive use of above
operations.
 Logic Section
 Function of logic section is to perform logic operations such as comparing, selecting, matching
and merging of data.
 Input Devices
 Following are few of the important input devices which are used in a computer:
 Keyboard
 Mouse
 Joy Stick
 Light pen
 Track Ball
 Scanner
 Graphic Tablet
 Microphone
 Magnetic Ink Card Reader(MICR)
 Optical Character Reader(OCR)
 Bar Code Reader
 Keyboard
 Keyboard is the most common and very popular input device which helps in inputting data to
the computer. The layout of the keyboard is like that of traditional typewriter, although there are
some additional keys provided for performing additional functions.
 Keyboards are of two sizes 84 keys or 101/102 keys, but now keyboards with 104 keys or 108
keys are also available for Windows and Internet.
 The keys on the keyboard are as follows:
 Keyboard
Sr.No Keys Description
1 Typing Keys These keys include the letter keys (A-Z) and digit keys (0-9) which
generally give same layout as that of typewriters.

2 Numeric Keypad It is used to enter numeric data or cursor movement. Generally, it

consists of a set of 17 keys that are laid out in the same configuration
used by most adding machines and calculators.

3 Function Keys The twelve function keys are present on the keyboard which are
arranged in a row at the top of the keyboard. Each function key has
unique meaning and is used for some specific purpose.

4 Control keys These keys provide cursor and screen control. It includes four
directional arrow keys. Control keys also include Home, End, Insert,
Delete, Page Up, Page Down, Control(Ctrl), Alternate(Alt),
Escape(Esc).
5 Special Purpose Keys Keyboard also contains some special purpose keys such as Enter, Shift,
Caps Lock, Num Lock, Space bar, Tab, and Print Screen.
 Mouse
 Mouse is most popular pointing device. It is a very famous cursor-control device having a small
palm size box with a round ball at its base which senses the movement of mouse and sends
corresponding signals to CPU when the mouse buttons are pressed.
 Generally it has two buttons called left and right button and a wheel is present between the
buttons. Mouse can be used to control the position of cursor on screen, but it cannot be used to
enter text into the computer.
 Advantages
 Easy to use
 Not very expensive
 Moves the cursor faster than the arrow keys of keyboard.
 Output Devices
 Following are few of the important output devices which are used in a computer.
 Monitors
 Graphic Plotter
 Printer
 Monitors
 Monitors, commonly called as Visual Display Unit (VDU), are the main output device of a
computer. It forms images from tiny dots, called pixels that are arranged in a rectangular
form. The sharpness of the image depends upon the number of pixels.
 There are two kinds of viewing screen used for monitors.
 Cathode-Ray Tube (CRT)
 Flat- Panel Display
 Cathode-Ray Tube (CRT) Monitor
 The CRT display is made up of small picture elements called pixels. The smaller the pixels, the
better the image clarity, or resolution. It takes more than one illuminated pixel to form whole
character, such as the letter ‘e’ in the word help.
 Most screens are capable of displaying 80 characters of data horizontally and 25 lines vertically.
There are some disadvantages of CRT:
 Large in Size
 High power consumption
 Flat-Panel Display Monitor
 The flat-panel display refers to a class of video devices that have reduced volume, weight
and power requirement in comparison to the CRT. You can hang them on walls or wear them
on your wrists. Current uses of flat-panel display include calculators, video games, monitors,
laptop computer, graphics display.
 The flat-panel display is divided into two categories:
 Emissive Displays - The emissive displays are devices that convert electrical energy into
light. Example are plasma panel and LED (Light-Emitting Diodes).
 Non-Emissive Displays - The Non-emissive displays use optical effects to convert sunlight
or light from some other source into graphics patterns. Example is LCD (Liquid-Crystal
Device)
 Printers
 Printer is an output device, which is used to print information on paper.
 There are two types of printers:
 Impact Printers
 Non-Impact Printers
 Impact Printers
 The impact printers print the characters by striking them on the ribbon which is then pressed on
the paper.
 Characteristics of Impact Printers are the following:
 Very low consumable costs
 Very noisy
 Useful for bulk printing due to low cost
 There is physical contact with the paper to produce an image
 Printers
 These printers are of two types
 Character printers
 Line printers
 Character Printers
 Character printers are the printers which print one character at a time.
 Line Printers
 Line printers are the printers which print one line at a time.
 Non-impact Printers
 Non-impact printers print the characters without using ribbon. These printers print a
complete page at a time so they are also called as Page Printers.
 These printers are of two types
 Laser Printers
 Inkjet Printers
 Characteristics of Non-impact Printers
 Faster than impact printers.
 They are not noisy.
 High quality.
 Support many fonts and different character size.
 Laser Printers

 These are non-impact page printers. They use laser lights to produce the dots needed to form the
characters to be printed on a page.
 ADVANTAGES
 Very high speed
 Very high quality output
 Give good graphics quality
 Support many fonts and different character size
 DISADVANTAGES
 Expensive.
 Cannot be used to produce multiple copies of a document in a single printing.
 Inkjet Printers

 Inkjet printers are non-impact character printers based on a relatively new technology. They
print characters by spraying small drops of ink onto paper. Inkjet printers produce high quality
output with presentable features.
 ADVANTAGES
 High quality printing
 More reliable
 DISADVANTAGES
 Expensive as cost per page is high
 Slow as compared to laser printer