Introduction to Information &

Communication Technology

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Introduction to
Information &
Communication Technology

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
Instructor: Ali Raza
 Outline
Fundamentals of Computing technology
• Components of a Computer
• Software VS Hardware
• Types of Computing devices
• Elements of Information System
• Applications of Computing devices
• Backing Storage Devices
• Unit of Memory
• Viruses and Anti-viruses Issues
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 FUNDAMENTALS OF
COMPUTING TECHNOLOGY

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 What Is a Computer?
• A computer is an electronic device, operating under the control
of instructions stored in its own memory

Collects Produces Stores

data Processing information output (For
(input) (output) Future Use)

Information Processing Cycle

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Information Processing Cycle

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 The Components of a Computer (1 of 3)
• Primarily, there are two (2) main components of a computer, namely;
COMPONENTS OF
COMPUTER

Hardware Software

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 The Components of a Computer (2 of 3)
• A computer contains many electric, electronic, and mechanical
components known as hardware
Input Device • Allows you to enter data and instructions into a computer

Output Device • Hardware component that conveys information to one or more people

• Case that contains the electronic components of the computer that are
System Unit used to process data

• Records (writes) and/or retrieves (reads) items to and from storage

Storage Device media

Communication • Enables a computer to send and receive data, instructions, and

Device information to and from one or more computers or mobile devices
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 The Components of a Computer (3 of 3)

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Computers
Advantages of Disadvantages of
Using Computers Using Computers

Speed Health Risks

Reliability
Violation of Privacy
Consistency
Public Safety
Storage
Impact on
Communications Environment
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Computer Software
• Software, also called a program, tells the computer what tasks to perform and
how to perform them

System Software
• Operating system
• Utility program

Application Software
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Computer Software (Cont..)
• Installing is the process of setting up software to work with the computer, printer,
and other hardware

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Computer Software (Cont..)
• A programmer develops software
or writes the instructions that
direct the computer to process
data into information

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 UTILITY SOFTWARE

 Utility Software, as name suggests, is a software designed to

perform particular tasks that help in making device perform
better and keep environment safe.
 It assists users with controlling and maintaining operations of
computer, hardware, software, or its devices.

Example : AVAST antivirus, disk tools, backup software, etc.

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 APPLICATION SOFTWARE

 Application Software, as name suggests, is a software

designed to help people with information technology and
make users more productive or assist them with personal
tasks.
 It is used to perform personal and business functions and its
main:purpose
Example is to
VLC media meetMicrosoft
player, user requirements.
Word processor, Google chrome,
accounting applications, photo editor, etc.

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Categories of Computers
Personal computers

Mobile computers and mobile devices

Game consoles

Servers

Mainframes

Supercomputers

Embedded computers
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Personal Computers
• A personal computer can perform all of its input, processing, output, and storage
activities by itself
• Two popular architectures are the PC and the Apple
• Desktop computer

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
Mobile Computers and Mobile Devices

Mobile Mobile
Computer Device
Personal computer you Computing device small
can carry from place to enough to hold in your
place hand

Examples include smart

Examples include
phones and PDAs, e-
notebook computers,
book readers, handheld
laptop computers,
computers, portable
netbooks, ultra-thins, and
media players, and
Tablet PCs
digital cameras
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Mobile Computers and Mobile Devices
(Cont..)
Notebook computer

Tablet PC

Smart phones and PDAs

E-book reader
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Mobile Computers and Mobile Devices
(Cont..)
Handheld computer
Portable media
player
Digital camera
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Game Consoles
• A game console is a mobile
computing device designed for
single-player or multiplayer video
games

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Servers
• A server controls access to the
hardware, software, and other
resources on a network
• Provides a centralized storage area
for programs, data, and information

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Mainframes
• A mainframe is a large,
expensive, powerful computer
that can handle hundreds or
thousands of connected users
simultaneously

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Supercomputers
• A supercomputer is the fastest, most powerful computer
• Fastest supercomputers are capable of processing more than one quadrillion instructions in a
single second

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Embedded Computers (1 of 2)
• An embedded computer is a special-purpose computer that functions as a
component in a larger product

Consumer Home Automation Process Controllers Computer Devices

Automobiles
Electronics Devices and Robotics and Office Machines
• Mobile and digital • Thermostats • Antilock brakes • Remote monitoring • Keyboards
telephones • Sprinkling systems • Engine control systems • Printers
• Digital televisions • Security modules • Power monitors • Faxes
• Cameras monitoring systems • Airbag controller • Machine • Copiers
• Video recorders • Appliances • Cruise control controllers
• DVD players and • Lights • Medical devices
recorders
• Answering
machines

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Embedded Computers (2 of 2)

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Elements of an Information System

Hardware Software Data

People Procedures

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Elements of an Information System

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Examples of Computer Usage

Home User Small Office/Home Mobile User

• Personal financial Office User • Connect to other computers
management • Look up information on a network or the Internet
• Web access • Send and receive e-mail • Transfer information
• Communications messages • Play video games
• Entertainment • Make telephone calls • Listen to music
• Watch movies

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Computer Applications in Society

Education
Finance
Government

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
Health Care
 Computer Applications in Society (Cont..)

Science
Publishing
Travel

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
Manufacturing
 Data Representation in Computers
Bits and bytes
Binary digits---bits
A byte comprises of 8 bits
and represents 1 character

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Data Representation in Computers

Text codes
Converts letters into binary format
ASCII
(American English symbols)
Extended ASCII
(Graphics and other symbols)
Unicode
(All languages on the planet)
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Data Representation
• Analog signals are continuous and vary in strength and
quality
• Digital signals are in one of two states: on or off
• Most computers are digital
• The binary system uses two unique digits (0 and 1)
• Bits and bytes
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Data Representation

Figure 1 The circuitry in a computer or mobile device represents

the on or the off states electronically by the presence or absence
of an electronic charge.
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Figure 2 This figure shows how a letter is converted to binary form and back.
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Hardware Components of a Computer (1 of 2)
• A computer contains many electric, electronic, and mechanical
components known as hardware

Input Device • Allows you to enter data and instructions into a computer

• Hardware component that conveys information to one or more

Output Device people
• Case that contains the electronic components of the computer that
System Unit are used to process data
• Records (writes) and/or retrieves (reads) items to and from storage
Storage Device media
Communications • Enables a computer to send and receive data, instructions, and
Device information to and from one or more computers or mobile devices
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
Hardware Components of a Computer (2 of 2)

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Architecture of Computer System
Computer system has five basic units that help the computer to perform
operations, which are given below:
1.Input Unit
2.Output Unit
3.Storage Unit
4.Arithmetic Logic Unit
5.Control Unit
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Architecture of Computer System

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 How computers
process data

? ??
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 DATA PROCESSING
Central Processing Unit
CPU

Control Unit Arithmetic/

Logic Unit
(ALU)

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 DATA PROCESSING

System Clock
 Synchronizes all computer operations

 Faster clock speed means the CPU can

execute more instructions each second

 Units: MHz and GHz

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 DATA PROCESSING
CPU Registers
Temporary storage location used by the CPU
High speed memory in CPU that stores:
1. Instruction while being decoded
2. Location from where instruction
was fetched
3. Data while the ALU processes it
4. Results of a calculation
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 DATA PROCESSING
Control Unit
Directs and coordinates most of the computer operations

4 basic operations:
 Fetch – obtain a program
instruction or data item from
memory
 Decode - translate the
instruction into commands
 Execute - carry out the
command
 Store - write the result to
memory
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 DATA PROCESSING
Arithmetic and Logic Unit
Comparison
(greater than, equal
to, or less than)
d .
. a n
.or. .not.
Arithmetic Logical
(addition, subtraction, (AND, OR,
multiplication, and NOT)
division)
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Processors (1 of 8)
• The processor, also called the central processing unit
(CPU), interprets and carries out the basic instructions
that operate a computer
• A multi-core processor is a single chip with two or more
separate processor cores
• Processors contain a control unit and an arithmetic logic
unit (ALU)

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Processors (2 of 8)

Figure Most devices connected to the computer communicate with the processor to
carry out a task.
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMAC
 Processors (3 of 8)

• The control unit is the component of the processor that

directs and coordinates most of the operations in the
computer
• The arithmetic logic unit (ALU), another component of
the processor, performs arithmetic, comparison, and other
operations

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Processors (4 of 8)
For every instruction, a processor repeats a set of four basic operations, which
comprise a machine cycle

• Figure This figure shows the steps in a machine cycle.

DEPARTMENT OF
PHARMACY
 Processors (5 of 8)

• The processor contains registers, that

temporarily hold data and instructions

• The system clock controls the timing of all

computer operations
• The pace of the system clock is called the clock speed,
and is usually measured in gigahertz (GHz)
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Processors (6 of 8)
The leading manufacturers of personal
computer processor chips are Intel and
AMD

DEPARTMENT OF
PHARMACY
 Processors (7 of 8)
• A processor chip generates heat that could cause
the chip to malfunction or fail
• Require additional cooling
• Heat sinks
• Liquid cooling technology
• Cooling pads
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Processors (8 of 8)

Figure This photo shows a heat sink being attached to the top of a processor to prevent the chip from
overheating.
DEPARTMENT OF
PHARMACY
 Storage Device
 A storage unit is a part of the computer system which is employed to store the
information and instructions to be processed.
 A storage device is an integral part of the computer hardware which stores
information/data to process the result of any computational work.
 Computer storage is of two types: It can also store information/data both
temporarily and permanently.
 Primary Storage Devices
 Secondary Storage Devices

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Types of Storage Device
1. Primary Storage Devices: It is also known as internal memory and main memory.
•This is a section of the CPU that holds program instructions, input data, and intermediate
results. It is generally smaller in size.
•RAM (Random Access Memory) and ROM (Read Only Memory) are examples of
primary storage.
2. Secondary Storage Devices: Secondary storage is a memory that is stored external
to the computer.
•It is mainly used for the permanent and long-term storage of programs and data. Hard
Disk, CD, DVD, Pen/Flash drive, SSD, etc, are examples of secondary storage.

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Memory (1 of 3)
• Memory consists of electronic components that
store instructions waiting to be executed by the
processor, data needed by those instructions, and
the results of processing the data
• Stores three basic categories of items:
• The operating system and other programs
• Applications
• Data being processed and the resulting
information
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Memory (2 of 3)
• Computers and mobile devices contain two types of
memory:
• Volatile memory
• Loses its contents when power is turned off
• Example includes RAM
• Nonvolatile memory
• Does not lose contents when power is removed
• Examples include ROM, flash memory, and CMOS
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Memory (3 of 3)
RAM chips usually reside on a memory module and are inserted
into memory slots

• Figure Memory modules contain memory chips.

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Cache Memory
Memory cache speeds the processes of the computer because it
stores frequently used instructions and data

• Figure Memory cache helps speed processing times when the processor requests data, instructions, or
information.
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 ROM
• Read-only memory (ROM) refers to memory chips
storing permanent data and instructions
• Firmware

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Cybersecurity Threat

A cybersecurity threat is a malicious and deliberate

attack by an individual or organization to gain
unauthorized access to another individual’s or
organization’s network to damage, disrupt, or steal
IT assets, computer networks, intellectual property, or
any other form of sensitive data.

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Types of Cybersecurity Threats
There are some of the most common and prevalent cyberthreats as
follows:
MAN IN THE
MALWARE RANSOMWARE
MIDDLE

PHISHING DoS ATTACK DNS ATTACK

SPEAR ADVANCED
PERSISTENT ATTACK SPYWARE
PHISHING

ADWARE VIRUS WORMS

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Types of Cybersecurity Threats
Malware
 Malware is defined as malicious software, including
spyware, ransomware, viruses, and worms, which gets
installed into the system when the user clicks a
dangerous link or email.
 Once inside the system, malware can block access to
critical components of the network, damage the
system, and gather confidential information, among
others.
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Types of Cybersecurity Threats

Phishing
Cybercriminals send malicious emails that seem to
come from legitimate resources. The user is then
tricked into clicking the malicious link in the email,
leading to malware installation or disclosure of
sensitive information like credit card details and
login credentials.
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Types of Cybersecurity Threats
• Virus
A computer virus is a malicious piece of computer code
designed to spread from device to device. A subset of
malware, these self-copying threats are usually designed to
damage a device or steal data.
• Worms
A worm is a type of virus that, unlike traditional viruses,
usually does not require the action of a user to spread from
device to device.
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Types of Cybersecurity Threats

Adware
Adware is software that displays unwanted (and sometimes
irritating) pop-up adverts which can appear on computer or
mobile device.

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Types of Cybersecurity Threats

Spyware
Spyware is loosely defined as malicious software designed
to enter your computer device, gather data about you, and
forward it to a third-party without your consent

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Types of Cybersecurity Threats

Spear Phishing
Spear phishing is a more sophisticated form of a
phishing attack in which cybercriminals target only
privileged users such as system administrators and
C-suite executives.

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Types of Cybersecurity Threats

Man in the Middle Attack

Man in the Middle (MitM) attack occurs when cyber
criminals place themselves between a two-party
communication.
• Once the attacker interprets the communication, they may
filter and steal sensitive data and return different responses
to the user.
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Types of Cybersecurity Threats
Denial of Service Attack
Denial of Service attacks aims at flooding systems, networks,
or servers with massive traffic, thereby making the system unable
to fulfill legitimate requests.
 Attacks can also use several infected devices to launch an attack on the
target system. This is known as a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS)
attack.

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Types of Cybersecurity Threats
• Advanced Persistent Threats (APT)
An advanced persistent threat occurs when a malicious
actor gains unauthorized access to a system or network
and remains undetected for an extended time.

• Ransomware
Ransomware is a type of malware attack in which the
attacker locks or encrypts the victim’s data and
threatens to publish or blocks access to data unless a
ransom is paid.
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Types of Cybersecurity Threats

DNS Attack
A DNS attack is a cyberattack in which cybercriminals
exploit vulnerabilities in the Domain Name System (DNS).

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Types of Cybersecurity Threats

Computer adware infection signs

i. An unexpected change in web browser home page
ii. Web pages that you visit not displaying correctly
iii. Being overwhelmed with pop-up ads — sometimes even if not
browsing the internet
iv. Slow device performance
v. Device crashing
vi. Reduced internet speeds
vii. Redirected internet searches
viii.Random appearance of a new toolbar or browser add-on

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
 Prevention of Cybersecurity Threats
 Use Strong Passwords  Know the Signs of Infection

 Keep Everything up to Date  Repeated error messages

 Use Antivirus Software  Unexpected shutdowns

 Use a Firewall  Computer suddenly slows

 Install a Popup Blocker down

 Install a Adblocker  Takes too long to shut down

 Beware of Email Phishing Scams or restart

 Ensure Endpoint Protection  New toolbars you didn’t

 Backup your data install

 Access Management  Changes to your homepage
 Rapidly draining battery
DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY
How to Recover a Virus infected Computer..?
Data recovery software

 Data recovery software is a type of software that enables

the recovery of corrupted, deleted or inaccessible data
from a storage device.
 This software reviews, scans, identifies, extracts and copies
data from deleted, corrupted and formatted sectors or in a
user-defined location within the storage device.

DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY