Introduction to Computers

Lecture 01
Topics

COMPONENTS OF COMPUTER HARDWARE

 Hardware
 Software
 Data
 Users

APPLICATIONS OF COMPUTERS
Components of Computer Hardware
THE COMPUTER SYSTEM
Computer is an electronic device that accepts data
as input, processes the input data by performing
mathematical and logical operations on it, and
gives the desired output. The computer system
consists of four parts:
1. Hardware
2. Software
3. Data
4. Users.
 What is in CPU?
• The computer's central processing unit (CPU) is the portion of a
computer that retrieves (It is used to retrieve, store, modify,
delete, insert and update data in database) and executes
instructions. The CPU is essentially the brain of a CAD (CAD
stands for Computer Aided Design, also known as Computer
Assisted Design or Computer Assisted Drafting system) It
consists of an arithmetic and logic unit (ALU), a control unit,
and various registers. The CPU is often simply referred to as
the processor.
Components of Computer Hardware
Hardware
The hardware consists of physical devices of the
computer. The devices are required for input, output,
storage and processing of the data. Keyboard, monitor,
hard disk drive, floppy disk drive, printer, processor and
motherboard are some of the hardware devices.

Software
is a set of instructions that tells the computer about the
tasks to be performed and how these tasks are to be
performed. Program is a set of instructions, written in a
language understood by the computer, to perform a
specific task. A set of programs and documents are
collectively called software.
Components of Computer Hardware
Data
Isolated values or raw facts, which by themselves have
no much significance. The data like 29, January, and
1994 just represent values. The data is provided as
input to the computer, which is processed to generate
some meaningful information.
For example, 29, January and 1994 are processed by
the computer to give the date of birth of a person.
Users
are people who write computer programs or interact
with the computer. They are also known as
Programmers, data entry operators, system analyst and
computer hardware engineers fall into this category.
Components of Computer Hardware
A computer is an electronic device that
1. Accepts data
2. Processes data
3. Generates output
4. Stores data.

The concept of generating output information from the input data is also
referred to as input-process-output concept.
Components of Computer Hardware
The input-process-output concept of the computer is explained as follows:
Input
The computer accepts input data from the user via an input device like keyboard. The input data
can be characters, word, text, sound, images, document, etc.
Process
The computer processes the input data. For this, it performs some actions on the data by using the
instructions or program given by the user of the data. The action could be an arithmetic or logic
calculation, editing, modifying a document, etc. During processing, the data, instructions and the
output are stored temporarily in the computer’s main memory.
Output
The output is the result generated after the processing of data. The output may be in the form of
text, sound, image, document, etc. The computer may display the output on a monitor, send
output to the printer for printing, play the output, etc.
Storage
The input data, instructions and output are stored permanently in the secondary
storage devices like disk or tape. The stored data can be retrieved later, whenever needed.
Components of Computer Hardware
Components of Computer Hardware
The computer system hardware comprises of
three main components:
1. Input / Output (I/O) Unit
2. Central Processing Unit (CPU)
3. Memory Unit:
Figure illustrates the typical interaction( a
situation where two or more people or
things communicate with each other or
react to each another) among the different
components of the computer.
Components of Computer Hardware
Input / Output Unit
The user interacts with the computer via the I/O unit. The Input unit accepts data from the user
and the Output unit provides the processed data i.e. the information to the user. The Input unit
converts the data that it accepts from the user, into a form that is understandable by the
computer. Similarly, the Output unit provides the output in a form that is understandable by the
user. The input is provided to the computer using input devices like keyboard, trackball and
mouse. Some of the commonly used output devices are monitor and printer.
Central Processing Unit
CPU controls, coordinates and supervises the operations of the computer. It is responsible for
processing of the input data. CPU consists of Arithmetic Logic Unit (ALU) and Control Unit (CU).
• ALU performs all the arithmetic and logic operations on the input data.
• CU controls the overall operations of the computer i.e. it checks the sequence of execution of
instructions, and, controls and coordinates the overall functioning of the units of computer.
Additionally, CPU also has a set of registers for temporary storage of data, instructions, addresses
and intermediate results of calculation.
Components of Computer Hardware
Memory Unit
Main Memory or Primary Memory:
Memory unit stores the data, instructions, intermediate results and output,
temporarily, during the processing of data. This memory is also called the main
memory or primary memory of the computer. The input data that is to be
processed is brought into the main memory before processing. The instructions
required for processing of data and any intermediate results are also stored in the
main memory. The output is stored in memory before being transferred to the
output device. CPU can work with the information stored in the main memory.
Secondary Memory
Another kind of storage unit is also referred to as the secondary memory of the
computer. The data, the programs and the output are stored permanently in the
storage unit of the computer. Magnetic disks, optical disks and magnetic tapes are
examples of secondary memory.
APPLICATIONS OF COMPUTERS
Computers have proliferated into
various areas of our lives. For a user,
computer is a tool that provides the
desired information, whenever
needed. You may use computer to
get information about the
reservation of tickets (railways,
airplanes and cinema halls), books in
a library, medical history of a person,
a place in a map, or the dictionary
meaning of a word. The information
may be presented to you in the form
of text, images, video clips, etc.
APPLICATIONS OF COMPUTERS
Education
Computers are extensively used, as a tool and as an aid, for imparting
education. Educators use computers to prepare notes and presentations of
their lectures. Computers are used to develop computer-based training
packages, to provide distance education using the e-learning software, and
to conduct online examinations. Researchers use computers to get easy
access to conference and journal details and to get global access to the
research material.
Entertainment
Computers have had a major impact on the entertainment industry. The
user can download and view movies, play games, chat, book tickets for
cinema halls, use multimedia for making movies, incorporate visual and
sound effects using computers, etc. The users can also listen to music,
download and share music, create music using computers, etc.
APPLICATIONS OF COMPUTERS
Sports
A computer can be used to watch a game, view the scores, improve the game,
play games (like chess, etc.) and create games. They are also used for the
purposes of training players.

Advertising
Computer is a powerful advertising media. Advertisement can be displayed on
different websites, electronic-mails can be sent and reviews of a product by
different customers can be posted. Computers are also used to create an
advertisement using the visual and the sound effects. For the advertisers,
computer is a medium via which the advertisements can be viewed globally.
Web advertising has become a significant factor in the marketing plans of
almost all companies. In fact, the business model of Google is mainly
dependent on web advertising for generating revenues.
APPLICATIONS OF COMPUTERS
Medicine
Medical researchers and practitioners use computers to access information about
the advances in medical research or to take opinion of doctors globally. The
medical history of patients is stored in the computers. Computers are also an
integral part of various kinds of sophisticated medical equipments like ultrasound
machine, CAT scan machine, MRI scan machine, etc. Computers also provide
assistance to the medical surgeons during critical surgery operations like
laparoscopic operations, etc.
Science and Engineering
Scientists and engineers use computers for performing complex scientific
calculations, for designing and making drawings (CAD/CAM applications) and also
for simulating and testing the designs. Computers are used for storing the
complex data, performing complex calculations and for visualizing dimensional
objects. Complex scientific applications like the launch of the rockets, space
exploration, etc., are not possible without the computers.
APPLICATIONS OF COMPUTERS
Government
The government uses computers to manage its own operations and also for e-
governance. The websites of the different government departments provide
information to the users. Computers are used for the filing of income tax return,
paying taxes, online submission of water and electricity bills, for the access of land
record details, etc. The police department uses computers to search for criminals
using fingerprint matching, etc.

Home
Computers have now become an integral part of home equipment. At home,
people use computers to play games, to maintain the home accounts, for
communicating with friends and relatives via Internet, for paying bills, for
education and learning, etc. Microprocessors are embedded in house hold utilities
like, washing machines, TVs, food processors, home theatres, security devices, etc.
APPLICATIONS OF COMPUTERS
The list of applications of computers is so long that it is not possible to
discuss all of them here. In addition to the applications of the
computers discussed above, computers have also proliferated into
areas like:
banks, investments, stock trading, accounting, ticket reservation,
military operations, meteorological predictions, social networking,
business organizations, police department, video conferencing,
telepresence, book publishing, web newspapers, and information
sharing.
APPLICATIONS OF COMPUTERS
Legal, Ethical and Moral Aspects of Computer

Questions of ethics and legality are essential in

many industries. Doctors, teachers, government
officials and business people all have legal and
ethical oversight to control how their professions
function. Information technology, by contrast, has
no overarching standardization in place. However,
as information technology becomes increasingly
influential, the ethical and legal considerations
become similarly relevant. Here are the four most
pressing ethical and legal issues confronting the
industry today.
APPLICATIONS OF COMPUTERS
Legal, Ethical and Moral Aspects of Computer
1. Privacy
Most people have their personal data spread
throughout the digital world. Even things thought to be
secure, such as email or private accounts, can be
accessed by unintended sources. Most employers
actively check their employees’ computer habits.
Privacy has evolving legal implications, but there are
also ethical considerations. Do people know how their
accounts are monitored? To what extent is such
monitoring occurring? As Computer World points out,
privacy concerns can easily become a slippery slope,
slowly eroding an individual’s right to privacy
completely.
APPLICATIONS OF COMPUTERS
Legal, Ethical and Moral Aspects of Computer
2. Digital Ownership
Digital mediums have allowed information to flow
more freely than before. This exchange of ideas comes
with a legal and ethical backlash. How can ownership
be established in the digital realm? Things can be easily
copied and pasted online, which makes intellectual
property hard to control. Legal notions such as
copyright have struggled to keep up with the digital
era. Companies in the music and entertainment
industries have pushed for greater legal protections for
intellectual properties while other activists have sought
to provide greater freedoms for the exchange of ideas
in the digital realm.
APPLICATIONS OF COMPUTERS
Legal, Ethical and Moral Aspects of Computer
4. Security Liability
In the past, security issues were resolved by locking a door.
Digital security is much more complicated. Security systems
for digital networks are computerized in order to protect
vital information and important assets. However, this
increased security comes with increased surveillance (the
careful watching of a person or place, especially by
the police or army, because of a crime that has
happened or is expected). All security systems have
inherent risks, which means it is a question of what risks are
acceptable and what freedoms can be forfeited. Ultimately,
IT professionals need to balance risk with freedom to create
a security system that is effective and ethical at the same
time.
THANK
YOU