Hardware vs.

Software
• Hardware
• The computer equipment
• Includes printers, monitors, disk drives, etc.
• Software
• Programs which tell the computer what to do
• Examples - word processing, gradebook, tutorials,
games, etc.

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 History of Computers
• 1st. Generation: Charles Babbage - father of
computer
• 1800’s planned analytical engine
• ENIAC - developed at end of WW II

2nd Generation
• Transistors, Compact, faster

3rd and 4th generation

• smaller, faster - use transistors and integrated circuits

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 History - Microcomputers
• Apple
• First sold in late 1970’s
• Developed by Jobs and Wozniak
• IBM Personal Computers
• First sold in 1981
• Was quickly accepted by businesses
• IBM compatibles soon developed

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 Computer - Social Impact
• Threat to privacy
• Reduce personal interactions
• Displace workers and change workplace
• Create two tiered society
• Computer failures cause great damage
• Artificial Intelligence
• Create a “new life form”
• Machines smarter than their creators

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Types of Computers – Personal

Computers (PC)

• Also called Microcomputers

• Available in desktop size,
notebook size and
handheld
• Can be IBM, IBM
Compatible or Apple
Types of Computers -
Minicomputers
• Size of filing cabinet

• Used by small and medium size companies and

institutions
• Operated by computer specialist

• Terminals allow many people to use

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Types of Computers -
Mainframes
• Very powerful

• Very fast

• Used by large corporations and governmental

agencies
• Operated by computer specialist

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 Types of Computers-
Supercomputers
• Most powerful
• Fastest
• Most expensive
• Several million dollars each
• Used only by
• Governmental agencies
• Large international corporations

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 Input Devices - Keyboard

• Most commonly used input device

• Ergonomic - fit natural hand placement

• Special keys
• Enter, Function, Ctrl, Alt, Num Lock, Esc

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Input Devices - Mouse

• Controls cursor on
screen

• May be mechanical or
optical

• Most models have a

“wheel” for scrolling
 Input Devices - Other

• Pointers (replaces mouse on notepads)

• Track point, track ball, touch pad

• Scanner

• Digital camera

• Touch screen

• Voice
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 Output Devices
• Monitor

• Printer

• Disk Drive
• Can also be input device

• Modem
• Can also be input device

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Monitors

• Made up of tiny
elements called pixels
• Each row of pixels is
called a scan line
• Picture is displayed by
an electronic beam
lighting up certain
pixels
 Monitors - Resolution
• Resolution is how sharp and clear the picture is

• How many scan lines on the screen

• 640 x 480 is low resolution
• 1600 x 1200 is high resolution

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 Monitors - Dot Pitch
• Measures the distance between pixels

• Commonly seen on monitors advertised

• .49 (not very good)
• .28 (much better)
• .26 or lower (excellent)

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 Monitors - Sizes
• Screen measured diagonally
• May also measure actual viewing area
• 14” or 15” on bargain systems

• 17” has become the standard

• 19 and 21” available but are more expensive.

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Monitors - LCD
• Liquid Crystal Display
• Similar to digital watch
• Used for notebook computers
• Should be an Active Matrix Screen
• Also used in flat screen monitors
• Much thinner than regular CRT monitor
• More expensive than regular CRT monitor

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Printers

• Laser

• Ink Jet

• Dot Matrix
 Printers - Laser

• Works similar to a copy machine

• Color printers available but more expensive

• Fast, quite, with excellent quality

• More expensive to buy and operate

• Some units scan, photocopy, and print

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 Printers - Ink Jet
• Squirts small jet of ink onto paper to form
characters
• Replaced dot matrix
• Quiet
• Does good job on color
• Good quality and reliability

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 Printers - Dot Matrix

• Strikes pins against ribbon to print

• Comes in 9 and 24 pin

• Once very popular

• Now replaced by ink jet and laser

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 Printers - Speed

• Measured in pages per minute (PPM)

• Laser printers range from 20-45 ppm

• Color printing is slower

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 Printers - Quality of Print
• One measure is dots per inch (DPI)
• 300 dpi for general purpose uses
• 600 dpi for higher quality
• 1200 dpi for photo quality
• May have different vertical and horizontal
resolution
• 600 x 300
• Other factors can affect quality

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 How Information Is Stored
• Memory consist of switches which can be either on
or off - Off=0 On=1
• Each on/off switch is called a bit
• Eight bits make up a byte
• It takes one byte to store a character
• Character can be letter, space, punctuation, etc.
• ASCII code used

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 Other Memory Terms

• Byte is eight bits

• Kilobyte (KB) is approx. 1,000 bytes

• Megabyte (MB) is approx. 1million bytes

• Gigabyte (GB) is approx. 1 billion bytes

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 Internal Memory - RAM
• RAM - Random Access Memory
• CPU can access any location as quickly as any other
• Can not only read current info but also write new
info
• Very important in determining capabilities of the
computer system
• Computer should have at least 256 megs - 512
preferred (can add to later)

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 Internal Memory - ROM
• ROM - Read Only Memory
• Can read info Stored in ROM
• Can not write new info into ROM

• Used for “internal workings” of computer

• Buyer is not very concerned with ROM

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External Memory

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 Floppy Drives

• Comes in 5 1/4” and 3 1/2”

• All systems now only have 3 1/2”

• HD - High density - comes on all current systems

• 3 1/2” - 1.44 megs

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 Hard Drives
• Built into machine
• Made up of stack of platters
• Can store much more than floppy drives
• 200 gigabytes should be minimum
• Can access info much faster than floppy
drive

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 CD ROM
• Same as music CDs
• Are read only
• Can store over 650 megs
• All programs now only sold on CD
• Make multimedia possible
• Come in different speeds - 20x, - 50x

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 DVD-ROM

• Digital Video Disk

• Can store up to 17 GB

• Can store full-length movies

• Can also read CD-ROM disk

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 CD-RW & DVD-RW DRIVES
• Allows you to write to disk
• Useful for
• Data backup
• Storage of large files
• Recording music and other multimedia files
• DVD-RW
• Allows you to write to both CD and DVD disk
• Still somewhat expensive

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 Storage Devices - Other
• USB drive
• Very popular – 64-512 MB
• Tape drive
• Similar to cassette tape
• Used for backup

• Zip drive
• 100 MB to 2 GB capacity
• Everyday use and backup

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Ports

• Connects computer to another

device

• Parallel port
• Used primarily by printers

• Serial ports
• Modem, mouse, etc.

• SCSI - chain devices

• USB –may be needed for
• Digital Cameras
• Mp3 players
• Other devices
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Networks

• Connects computers
• LAN - Local Area
• WAN - Wide Area
• Wireless
• Allows sharing of
programs, files,
printers, etc.
• Server is “main”
computer
 Programs
• Set of instructions to the computer

• Programming languages
• Machine language
• Assembly language
• Procedural languages
• Basic, Fortran, Cobol
• Object oriented languages
• Visual Basic, C++, C#, Java

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 Systems Software
• Run fundamental operations
• Loading and running programs
• Saving and retrieving data
• Communicating with printers, modems, etc.

• Examples of systems software

• DOS
• Windows 3.1, 95, 98, Me, 2000, and XP
• Unix
• Linux

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 Applications Software
• Helps you to accomplish a certain task

• Examples
• Word processing - memos, reports, etc.
• Spreadsheets - budgets, etc.
• Database - search, sort, select data
• Educational - simulations, practice
• Graphics - charts, diagrams
• Desktop publishing - pamphlets, etc.

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 Software - Legal Issues
• Commercial software
• Can only make backup copies for yourself
• Can only use on one machine at a time
• Site license - use on more that one machine

• Shareware
• Can use - make copies and give to anyone
• Should pay if you continue to use

• Freeware – can copy and use indefinitely

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 Software Viruses
• Illegal code added to a program
• May spread to many computers
• Copy files from one computer to another
• Download files by modem
• E-mail attachments
• Virus may be relatively harmless
• Writes “You’ve been stoned” on screen
• Virus may also be very damaging
• Erases everything on hard drive
• Virus may activate on a certain date

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 Virus Protection
• Be careful where you copy files from
• Do not open e-mail attachments unless you are
sure that it is safe
• Use virus protection program
• Detects and removes illegal code
• Should be updated often

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