Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success

INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTING (MEC 114, COM 101 & ICT 101)

INTRODUCTION
"The computer is an electronic device that store, retrieve and process the data in binary form according
to our need. It takes some input, process it, and produces some output". The word computer is derived
by the Latin word "computare," which means that "to calculate and programmable machine". The
computer is work according to the individual instructions; there is no IQ level in computers like a
human being.
The computer can process both numerical and non-numerical (arithmetic and logical) calculations.
Mostly, the computer operations are related to manipulation of data, which is stored in different types
of memory. The bit is the smallest unit of computer memory, the group of eight bits is known as
Byte. The computer can be instructed to carry out sequences of arithmetical and logical operations
automatically by computer programming, and it works with the software program. The computer shows
the decimal number through a string of binary digits; the word computer usually refers to the central
processing unit and internal memory.

Architecture of Computer

Definition and Meaning of Computer

A computer is an electronic device that responds to a specific set of instructions systematically and
executes a pre-recorded list of instructions known as programs. In simple words, computers are
machines that perform a set of functions as directed by their users.
The computer is an electronic device that can do arithmetical calculations quicker.
It takes in data in the form of input, processes it using a set of instructions, and gives out accurate
results in the form of output and finally stores the result in its memory.
All the actual parts of a computer such as a monitor, keyboard, processor which are tangible are known
as hardware of a computer.
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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
All the set of instructions known as programs installed on the computer are known as the software of
a computer.
Basically, a computer is an electronic device that can process information. The method can be anything,
though.
The addition or some more arithmetic operation may be, for example. It could otherwise only be an
instruction to a group or ungroup a specified set of data.

The computer: This amazing technology went from a government/business-only technology to being
everywhere from people’s homes, work places, to people’s pockets in less than 100 years.

The Whole Working of the Computer System

Main Characteristics of Computer

Every computer varies depending upon its size and capacity but there are many common features or
characteristics due to which the computer performs the input-output processes in an effective way.
They are as follows:
i. Speed
ii. Accuracy
iii. Storage
iv. Versatility
v. Diligence
vi. Automation
vii. Reliability
viii. Power of Remembering

Speed: Speed of a computer means the time it takes to complete any given task. The computer works
at a very lightning speed. For example, a computer takes a second to calculate 3 million calculations
rather than a human which takes years. Hence nowadays the speed of the computer is measured in
terms of microseconds, Nanoseconds, and even in Pico seconds instead of seconds or milliseconds.

Accuracy: The computers are programmed and designed in such a manner that their results are almost
100% accurate. It performs all the tasks with the same accuracy. There are very few chances of
uncertainty in results and even though an error occurs, it can happen either due to wrong input data or
unreliable programs by a programmer. Such errors are referred to as Garbage In Garbage Out (GIGO)
which means, if you provide wrong instructions to the computer then you get wrong results.
Storage: A human brain keeps only the knowledge which it thinks is important and removes the rest.
Whereas a computer can store a huge amount of data in its internal memory known as primary storage
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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
and can quickly access the data whenever required. But the internal memory is limited so to store more
data secondary storage devices are used such as DVD, Pen drives, etc. They can be carried from one
computer to another very easily. Thus sections of total data can be brought to the internal memory of
the computer whenever required. The data in the computer can never elapse and will be always
accessible and properly stored in a systematic format. The storage capacity of a computer is measured
in Kilobyte (KB), Megabyte (MB), Gigabyte (GB), and Terabyte (TB).

Versatility: Along with being accurate and diligent a computer is also a versatile device. It can perform
several types of tasks at a time if they are reduced to a certain set of logical steps. A computer can be
used for many purposes at different places such as booking air and rail tickets, weather forecasting,
listening to music, and playing games. Also at a time, one can pay his utility bills and can make a
monthly budget too. It can prepare documents, data sheets and also can make models of houses, dams,
etc.

Diligence: The ability of a computer to perform tasks without getting tired is known as diligence.
Computers are highly reliable, they do not get fed up, exhausted, or lack concentration. They can work
for hours and hours unlike humans and can give accurate or error-free results. For example, humans
will start feeling tired after 2-3 hours and will lack concentration whereas a computer will keep on
working until the results are achieved.

Automation: Automation means working automatically. A computer can work on its own without the
intervention of the person using it. Programs can be made for the computer to perform the task and
based on the sequence it executes the tasks and gives accurate results. In case an error occurs, it gives
error messages too and registers the logs.

Reliability: High reliability of a computer depends on low failure rate and easy maintenance. The
results given out by the computer are reliable as the accuracy is almost 100%.

Power of Remembering: The computer has the power of storing data or information for several years.
It cannot lose the data on its own. A person can retrieve the data whenever required and the data remains
the same after a number of years also. It gives the freedom to the user to decide on how much data to
store and how much to remove.

Limitations of a Computer
i. Lack of Intelligence Quotient (IQ)
ii. Lack of Feeling
iii. Dependency

Lack of IQ: Intelligence is the ability to collect and apply knowledge and skills. Intelligence quotient
(IQ) is a measure of your ability to reason and solve problems. It essentially reflects how well you did
on a specific test as compared to other people of your age group. Intelligence quotient (IQ) is a number
representing a person's reasoning ability. It's determined by dividing a person's score on a special test
by his or her age, then multiplying by 100.
A computer is a machine with zero IQ. It does not have any intelligence. For example, if it gives any
result, it simply does base on the set of instructions programmed for that. It cannot tell whether those
steps were correct or incorrect. So if the program is wrongly done it can give wrong results too. Each
and every small task has to be programmed in a computer to get results.

Lack of Feeling: Computers do not have feelings and emotions. They cannot make judgments as
humans can. Though they have memory but cannot work like human brain works. Humans can take

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decisions on feeling hungry and for other daily activities, whereas a computer can work only on the set
of instructions fed into it. They even cannot make a difference between the people using it.
Dependency: A computer cannot make its own decisions. It can calculate many equations in a few
seconds and give accurate results, but the sequence of equations, steps, etc can be only be programmed
by the user and not the computer. The computer cannot work without instructions from the user. Hence
it is totally dependent on its user.

HISTORY OF COMPUTER DEVELOPMENT

Generation of Computers
The time period and characteristics of each generation of computer 1st to 5th will be explained in detail
as follows:
In computer terminology, generation is a technical transition used/utilized by a computer. Until
now, five generations of computers are identified.
The generations of computers are focused on significant technological developments, such as the use
of vacuum tubes, transistors, and microprocessors, in computers.
As a result, each of the five computing generations, as well as the significant technological advances
that have led to today's electronic devices, has been thoroughly explained, with examples, advantages
(benefits), and disadvantages(drawbacks).
The first computer was invented by British mathematician “Charles Babbage” who began drawing
plans for what he called the ‘analytical engine’ in 1834 and was credited as the one who found the
building of this versatile device.
He dreamed to construct a system that could coordinate programmed the gears, rods, and wheels to do
countless things, from resolving equations to creating music.
Sadly, only a fragment had been completed of this Victorian engineering wonder.
It took another 100 years to relive the concept of a “Universal Machine” and to research its theoretical
powers by “Alan Turing”, a British mathematician.
Some of these forces were used by his code-breaking colleagues in Bletchley Park during WWII.
Their electronic system was called Colossus and cracked the most secret ciphers of Hitler.

Computer Generations
Basic Terms
Vacuum tube: It is an electronic device that controls the flow of electrons in a vacuum. It used as a
switch, amplifier, or display screen in many older model radios, televisions, computers, etc.

Transistor: It is an electronic component that can be used as an amplifier or as a switch. It is used to

control the flow of electricity in radios, televisions, computers, etc.

Integrated circuit (IC): It is a small electronic circuit printed on a chip (usually made of silicon) that
contains many its own circuit elements (e.g. transistors, diodes, resistors, etc.).

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success

Microprocessor: It is an electronic component held on an integrated circuit that contains a computer’s

Central Processing Unit (CPU) and other associated circuits.

Central Processing Unit (CPU): It is often referred to as the brain or engine of a computer where most
of the processing and operations take place (CPU is part of a microprocessor).

Magnetic Drum: It is a cylinder coated with magnetic material, on which data and programs can be
stored.

Magnetic core: It uses arrays of small rings of magnetized material called cores to store information.

Machine language: It is a low-level programming language comprised of a collection of binary digits

(ones and zeros) that the computer can read and understand.
Assembly language is like the machine language that a computer can understand, except that assembly
language uses abbreviated words (e.g. ADD, SUB, DIV…) in place of numbers (0s and 1s).
Memory: It is a physical device that is used to store data, information and program in a computer.

Artificial intelligence (AI): It is an area of computer science that deals with the simulation and creation
of intelligent machines or intelligent behave in computers (they think, learn, work, and react like
humans).

Classification of Generations of Computers

The evolution of computer technology is often divided into five generations.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
Five Generations of Computers

Generations of Computers Generations Timeline Evolving Hardware

First generation 1940s-1950s Vacuum tube based

Second generation 1950s-1960s Transistor based

Third generation 1960s-1970s Integrated circuit based

Fourth generation 1970s-present Microprocessor based

Fifth generation The present and the future Artificial intelligence based

Generation of Computer 1st to 5th

First Generation: Vacuum Tubes (1940 – 1956)
Vacuum tubes were used as the main technology in the first generation of computers. Vacuum tubes
were commonly used from 1940 to 1956. Vacuum tubes were bigger, and computers of first-generation
were very large and occupied a great deal of space in a room. Some computers of the first generation
took up a whole house. Computers in first-generation used machine language, the lowest computer
understood programming language, to carry out operations, and were only able to solve one problem
at a time. It would take days or weeks for operators to develop a new problem. The entry was based on
punched cards and paper tape. Some of the examples of First Generation of Computers are:
ENIAC
EDVAC
UNIVAC
IBM-701
IBM-650

ENIAC: Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer (ENIAC) was the first programmable,
electronic, general-purpose digital computer made in 1945. There were other computers that had these
features, but the ENIAC had all of them in one package. It was Turing-complete and able to solve "a
large class of numerical problems" through reprogramming. Although ENIAC was designed and
primarily used to calculate artillery firing tables for the United States Army's Ballistic Research
Laboratory (which later became a part of the Army Research Laboratory), its first program was a study
of the feasibility of the thermonuclear weapon. ENIAC was completed in 1945 and first put to work
for practical purposes on December 10, 1945. ENIAC was formally dedicated at the University of
Pennsylvania on February 15, 1946.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
EDVAC: Electronic Discrete Variable Automatic Computer (EDVAC) was one of the
earliest electronic computers. It was built by Moore School of Electrical Engineering, Pennsylvania.
Along with ORDVAC, it was a successor to the ENIAC. Unlike ENIAC, it was binary rather
than decimal, and was designed to be a stored-program computer. The EDVAC was a binary serial
computer with automatic addition, subtraction, multiplication, programmed division and automatic
checking with an ultrasonic serial memory having a capacity of 1,024 44-bit words, thus giving a
memory, in modern terms, of 5.6 kilobytes, and its average multiplication time was 2,900
microseconds. EDVAC was delivered to the Ballistics Research Laboratory in 1949. After a number
of problems had been discovered and solved, the computer began operation in 1951 although only on
a limited basis.

UNIVAC: Universal Automatic Computer (UNIVAC) was a line of electronic digital stored
program computers starting with the products of the Eckert–Mauchly Computer Corporation. Later the
name was applied to a division of the Remington Rand Company and successor organizations.
The BINAC, built by the Eckert–Mauchly Computer Corporation, was the first general-purpose
computer for commercial use, but it was not a success. The last UNIVAC-badged computer was
produced in 1986. UNIVAC produced a number of separate model ranges. One early UNIVAC line
of vacuum tube computers was based on the ERA 1101 and those models built at ERA were rebadged
as UNIVAC 110x; despite the 1100 model numbers, they were not related to the latter 1100/2200
series. The 1103A is credited in the literature as the first computer to have interrupts. The original
model range was the UNIVAC I (UNIVersal Automatic Computer I), the second commercial computer
made in the United States. The main memory consisted of tanks of liquid mercury implementing delay-
line memory, arranged in 1000 words of 12 alphanumeric characters each. The first machine was
delivered on 31 March 1951. The UNIVAC II was an improvement to the UNIVAC I that UNIVAC
first delivered in 1958. The improvements included magnetic (non-mercury) core memory of 2000 to
10000 words.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success

IBM-701: IBM, in full International Business Machines Corporation. The International Business
Machines (IBM) 701 is an Electronic Data Processing Machine, known as the Defense Calculator while
in development, was IBM’s first commercial scientific computer and its first series production
mainframe computer, which was announced to the public on May 21, 1952.[1] It was invented and
developed by Jerrier Haddad and Nathaniel Rochester based on the IAS machine at Princeton. IBM
701 competed with Remington Rand's UNIVAC 1103 in the scientific computation market, which had
been developed for the NSA, so it was held secret until permission to market it was obtained in
1951.[7] In early 1954, a committee of the Joint Chiefs of Staff requested that the two machines be
compared for the purpose of using them for a Joint Numerical Weather Prediction project.

IBM-650: The International Business Machines (IBM) 650 is a Magnetic Drum Data-Processing
Machine is an early digital computer produced by IBM in the mid-1950s. It was the first mass produced
computer in the world. Almost 2,000 systems were produced, the last in 1962, and it was the first
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computer to make a meaningful profit. The first one was installed in late 1954 and it was the most-
popular computer of the 1950s. The first 650 was installed on December 8, 1954 in the controller's
department of the John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company in Boston. The IBM 7070 (signed
10-digit decimal words), announced 1958, was expected to be a "common successor to at least the 650
and the [IBM] 705".[14] The IBM 1620 (variable-length decimal), introduced in 1959, addressed the
lower end of the market. The UNIVAC Solid State (a two-address computer, signed 10-digit decimal
words) was announced by Sperry Rand in December 1958 as a response to the 650. None of these had
a 650 compatible instruction set.

Advantages of First Generation of Computers

It used vacuum tubes which during those days were the only electronic component.
Disadvantages of First Generation of Computers
i. These were really expensive computers.
ii. Since magnetic drums were present, they could only store a small amount of information.
iii. As vacuum tubes are part of the first generation of computers, vacuum tubes require a large
cooling system. This is another drawback of these computers.
iv. The efficiency of work was very low.
v. Big consumption of electricity.
vi. Constant and inconsistent maintenance is not required.

The Main Characteristics of First Generation of Computers (1940s-1950s)

 Main electronic component – vacuum tube
 Main memory – magnetic drums and magnetic tapes
 Programming language – machine language
 Power – consume a lot of electricity and generate a lot of heat.
 Speed and size – very slow and very large in size (often taking up entire room).
 Input/output devices – punched cards and paper tape.
 Examples – ENIAC, UNIVAC1, IBM 650, IBM 701, etc.
 Quantity – there were about 100 different vacuum tube computers produced between 1942
and1963.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
Second Generation: Transistors (1956 – 1965)
The period of the second generation was from (1959-1965). The computer of the second generation
was invented by the two persons named "H. W. Brattain" and "W. Shockley.". Transistors were used
in the second generation of the machine rather than vacuum tubes. The transistor takes the place of the
vacuum tubes in the second generation. For computers from 1956 to 1963 transistors were used
extensively. The transistor was invented at Bell Labs in 1947. It was far superior to the vacuum tube.
Transistors were smaller than vacuum tubes and made it possible for computers to be smaller, quicker,
and cheaper to build. The transistor is allowing the computer to become smaller, faster, cheaper, more
energy-efficient, and reliable than the first-generation processor. It was a great improvement over the
vacuum tube. The computers of the second generation moved to symbolic or assembly language from
binary language. This switched to symbolic or assembled languages from cryptic binary machine
language allowed programmers to specify words for instructions. Due to assembly language, the
programmers or coders have specified the instructions in words. High-level languages such as the
early versions of COBOL and FORTRAN were also being developed at this period. The computers of
this generation still relied on punch cards for input and printouts for output. The computers of this
generation were the first type of computers which are capable to storing their instructions in
their memory and moved from a magnetic drum to magnetic core technology. The magnetic cores were
used as the primary memory and the magnetic tape and magnetic disks used as the secondary storage
devices in the second generation of computer. These computers can use batch processing and
multiprogramming operating systems. Some of the examples of Second Generation of Computers are:
Honeywell 400
CDC 1604
CDC 3600
IBM 1620
IBM 7094
UNIVAC 1108

Honeywell 400: A computer made of discrete transistors and other electronic components. In the early
1960s, the IBM 1401 and Honeywell 400 were examples. In 1957 Honeywell acquired the part of
Raytheon in Datamatic and developed in the 1950s and the early 1960s.

CDC 1604: The Control Data Corporation (CDC) 1604 was a 48-bit computer designed and
manufactured by Seymour Cray and his team at the Control Data Corporation (CDC). The 1604 is
known as one of the first commercially successful transistorized computers. (The IBM 7090 was
delivered earlier, in November 1959.) Legend has it that the 1604 designation was chosen by adding
CDC's first street address (501 Park Avenue) to Cray's former project, the ERA-UNIVAC 1103.The
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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
first 1604 was shipped to the US Navy in the 1960s. These computers can execute about 100,000
operations per second. Every 48- bit word contained two 24 bit instructions. The CPU in these
computers contained a 48-bit accumulator, a 48- bit mask register, a 15-bit program counter, and six
15 bits for index register.

CDC 3600: The Control Data Corporation (CDC) 3000 series ("thirty-six hundred" of "thirty-one
hundred") computers from Control Data Corporation were mid-1960s follow-ons to the CDC
1604 and CDC 924 systems. The CDC 3600, which added five op codes, succeeded the 1604, and "was
largely compatible" with it.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success

IBM 1620: The International Business Machines (IBM) 1620 computer was developed by IBM on
October 21, 1959. After the total production about 2000 machines, these computers were withdrawn
on November 19, 1970. This was the variable word length decimal computer with the magnetic core
memory.
The magnetic core memory of this computer can hold 20,000 decimal digits. The memory was accessed
by using two decimal numbers at the same time in these computers. Every decimal digit has six bits.
The instructions were fixed length, which is 12 decimal digit.
The architecture of IBM 1620 was very popular to the scientific and engineering community. Most of
the installations of IBM1620 used the punched card to the input/output rather than paper tape. The IBM
supplied various software for 1620, which are given below:
1. 1620 symbolic programming system which can use assembly language.
2. FORTRAN
3. FORTRAN II, which required 40,000 digits or more.

IBM 7094: The International Business Machines (IBM) 7094 is the computer of the second generation.
It was the last commercial, scientific mainframe computer, and the transistorized version of the earlier
IBM 709 vacuum tube mainframe computer. These computers used various type of operating systems
such as SOS, IBSYS, IBJOB, FMS, etc. The International Business Machines (IBM) 7094 is the Data
Processing System that featured outstanding price and performance with expanded computing power
which was built for large-scale scientific computing. This computer has seven index registers. In April
1964, the first IBM 7094 II was installed. It has dual memory bank and also improved overlap of
instruction execution. The computer systems of this generation are developed for the large scale of
scientific computing. These computers have extra index registers and support hardware double-
precision floating-point. The IBM 7094 has two models: the original IBM 7094, and another was 7094
II. The IBM 7094 had new data processing system in which the major speed effects are available for
floating-point operations, fixed-point multiply, and divide operations. It offered substantial increases
in internal operating speed. These computers increase the functional capacities to match growing
scientific workloads in the 1960s.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
The IBM 7094 had 1.4 to 2.4 time’s internal processing speed, which depends upon the individual
application. It has basic machine operating cycle of 2 microseconds. These computers have conditional
transfer instructions.

UNIVAC 1108: The Universal Automatic Computer (UNIVAC) 1108 was introduced in July 1964 as
a single-processor system. Initial customer deliveries were made in July 1965.

Advantages of Second Generation of Computers

The electron component size had reduced due to the use of transistors rather than vacuum tubes. This
led to a smaller device size than the computers of the first generation.
i. Low cost compared to computers of first-generation.
ii. Better than first-generation speed.
iii. Portable compared to the first generation.
iv. These computers have better probability as compared to the first-generation computer.
v. These computers have better speed and capacity of calculating the data in microseconds.
vi. Assembly language, punch cards were used for input in the second generation of computers.
vii. The size of the electron component is decreased due to the presence of transistors instead of
vacuum tubes.
viii. These computers are smaller in size as compared to the first generation.
ix. The accuracy of these computers was improved as compared to the previous computer.

Disadvantages of Second Generation of Computers

The computers of the second-generation are only used for a specific purpose.
i. A system for cooling was required.
ii. It needed continuous maintenance.
iii. Used only for specific purposes.
iv. We required a cooling system for the use of these computers.
v. The constant maintenance was required for these computers.

Features of the Second Generation

 We can use transistors in this generation.
 The computers of the second-generation are reliable in comparison to the first generation.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
 These computers are small in size as compared to first-generation computers.
 The computers of the second-generation produced less heat as compared to the first generation.
 The computer of this generation consumed less electricity as compared to first-generation
computers.
 These computers are faster than first-generation computers.
 The computer of the second generation was still very costly.
 AC is also required for these types of computer.
 These type of computers supported machine and assembly languages.

The Main Characteristics of Second Generation of Computers (1950s-1960s)

 Main electronic component – transistor
 Memory – magnetic core and magnetic tape / disk
 Programming language – assembly language
 Power and size – low power consumption, generated less heat, and smaller in size (in comparison
with the first generation computers).
 Speed – improvement of speed and reliability (in comparison with the first generation computers).
 Input/output devices – punched cards and magnetic tape.
 Examples – IBM 1401, IBM 7090 and 7094, UNIVAC 1107, etc.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
Third Generation: Integrated Circuits (1965 – 1971)
The period of the third generation was from 1965 – 1971. The integrated circuits are used in the
computers of the third generation. The transistors are not used in these computers. A single integrated
circuit has many transistors, registers, and capacitors grown on a single chip of silicon. The integrated
circuits (ICs) was developed by the "Jack Killby." The invention of the integrated circuit was the
characteristic feature of the third generation. This invention makes computers smaller in size, reliable,
and efficient. The transistors were miniaturized to silicon chips, known as semi-conductors that
significantly improve computer speed and efficiency. Instead of punched cards and printouts, users
interacted on keyboards and displays with third-generation computers and interfaced with an operating
system that permitted the device to run multiple applications in a central program that controls the
memory at one time. Computers had been open to the general public for the first time because they
were smaller and less costly. The remote processing, time-sharing, and multiprogramming operating
systems were used in this generation. The transistors were reduced in size and placed on silicon chips,
called semiconductors. These are capable of increasing the speed and efficiency of the computers of
the third generation. Users can interact with keyboards, monitors, and interface with an operating
system in the third generation of computers. The integrated circuit was a single component that contains
the number of transistors. The integrated circuits were small in size, less power consuming and less
expensive than transistors which are used in the previous generation of computer. The high-level
languages were improved in these type of computers. The computer of this generation created large
capacity magnetic disks and tapes and large magnetic core based on random access memory. The
FORTRAN IV and optimizing FORTRAN compilers were developed in this computer generation. The
computers of this generation reduced the size, price, and use of electricity. Some of the examples of
third generation of computers are:
PDP-8
PDP-11
ICL 2900
Honeywell-6000 series
TDC 316
IBM 360
IBM 370

Computer Architecture of the Third Generation

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
Transmission System
The third-generation transmission system is required to support multimedia services, global roaming,
and operation in multiple environments for mobile. It is also required for high-speed data services.
The cdma2000 radio transmission technology (RTT) is based on the evolution of current cdmaOne.
The cdmaOne is the multimedia system that offers additional capacity and service enhancement.

Block Diagram of the Third Generation Transmission System

PDP-8: The Programmed Data Processor (PDP-8) is a 12-bit minicomputer that was produced
by Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC). It was the first commercially successful minicomputer, with
over 50,000 units being sold over the model's lifetime. . This computer has a smaller instruction set,
which is an expanded version of the PDP-5 instruction set.
The earliest PDP-8 model, informally known as a "Straight-8", was developed and introduced on 22
March 1965 by digital equipment corporation. These computers are available in desktop and rack-
mount model. It used the diode transistor logic packaged on flip-chip cards in the machine. These
computers are the best-selling computer in history at that time. The PDP-8 computer has various
features such as low cost, simplicity, expandability. It has the ability of low complexity algorithms.
The design of these computers make programming easy to the coders, and we can use large instruction
sets. The PDP-8 uses 12 bits to the word size and arithmetic calculation. The interpreter was available
for the floating-point operation in these computers. These PDP-8 computers can perform the
calculation similar to contemporary electronic computers. The memory address space is also 12 bits in
these computers. The PDP-8 was designed in parts to handle the telecommunication and text. The six-
bit character codes were used widespread at a time in these type of computers. The PDP-8 have 3-bit
opcode, so there are only eight instructions.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
PDP-11: The Programmed Data Processor (PDP-11 ) is a series of 16-bit minicomputers sold
by Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) from 1970 into the 1990s, one of a set of products in
the Programmed Data Processor (PDP) series. In total, around 600,000 PDP-11s of all models were
sold, making it one of DEC's most successful product lines. The PDP-11 is considered by some experts
to be the most popular minicomputer.

ICL 2900: International Computers Limited (ICL) was a British computer hardware, computer
software and computer services company that operated from 1968 until 2002. It was formed through a
merger of International Computers and Tabulators (ICT), English Electric Computers (EEC) and Elliott
Automation in 1968. The ICL 2900 Series was a range of mainframe computer systems announced by
the British manufacturer ICL on 9 October 1974. The company had started development under the
name "New Range" immediately on its formation in 1968. The range was not designed to be compatible
with any previous machines produced by the company, nor for compatibility with any competitor's
machines: rather, it was conceived as a synthetic option, combining the best ideas available from a
variety of sources.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success

Honeywell 6000: The Honeywell 6000 computer series were the versions of general electric’s 600
series mainframe computers, manufactured by Honeywell International, from 1970 to 1989. The
Honeywell 6000 used various operating systems such as GCOS, Multics, and CP-6, etc. Different types
of model exist in this series, and those models were the 6070, 6060, 6050, 6040, and 6030. The even
number models include the enhanced instruction set feature, which added decimal arithmetic and
storage to storage operations. The CPU of these computers operated on 32-bit words. The Honeywell
6000 series systems were said "memory oriented." The memory module contained 128k words. One
system can support one or two memory modules for a maximum of 256k words. The memory
protection and relocation have used the base and bound register in the processor.

TDC 316: The Torpedo Data Computer (TDC) was an early electromechanical analog computer used
for torpedo fire-control on American submarines during World War II.

IBM 360: The International Business Machines (IBM) System/360 (S/360) is a family of mainframe
computer systems that was announced by IBM on April 7, 1964, and delivered between 1965 and 1978.
These computers are used for both commercial and scientific purpose. These are the most expensive
computer systems, which used microcode to implement the instructions.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success

Model diagram of IBM 360 computer series.

IBM 370: The International Business Machines (IBM) System/370 (S/370) is a model range
of IBM mainframe computers announced on June 30, 1970 as the successors to the System/360 family.

Advantages of Third Generation of Computers

i. Relative to second-generation machines, these machines were cheaper.
ii. They were quick and reliable.
iii. IC usage on the computer gives the computer a smaller size.
iv. In addition to reducing the computer’s size, IC also increases the computer’s performance
compared with previous computers.
v. This computer generation is highly capable of storing.
vi. The mouse and keyboard are used for input rather than punch cards.
vii. They used an operating system to help control their resources and used time-sharing and
multiple programming.
viii. This reduces the device time to nanoseconds from microseconds.
ix. These computers have good data storage.
x. The computers of the third generation can calculate the data in nanoseconds.
xi. The maintenance cost of these computers is very low as compared to the previous generation.
xii. The computers of the third generation are used for general purpose.
xiii. These computers are used as an operating system to better resource management and also
used time-sharing and multi-programming.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
Disadvantages of Third Generation of Computers
i. IC chips are not easy to maintain. or It’s hard to maintain IC chips
ii. The high technology requires to manufacture the integrated circuit chips or Advanced
technology was needed for the development of IC chips
iii. The air conditioner was required for these computers or Air conditioning was required

Features of the Third Generation

 The integrated circuits (ICs) are used in the computer of this generation.
 These computers are more reliable as compare to previous generations.
 These are small in size.
 The computer of the third generation supports the high-level language.
 These consumed lesser electricity.
 The AC is also required in this generation of computer.
 The maintenance is not good in the third generation of computer.
 The computers of this generation are faster in speed.
 These type of computers generate less heat
 These are very costly computers.

The Main Characteristics of Third Generation of Computers (1960s-1970s)

 Main electronic component – integrated circuits (ICs)
 Memory – large magnetic core, magnetic tape / disk
 Programming language – high level language (FORTRAN, BASIC, Pascal, COBOL, C, etc.)
 Size – smaller, cheaper, and more efficient than second generation computers (they were called
minicomputers).
 Speed – improvement of speed and reliability (in comparison with the second generation
computers).
 Input / output devices – magnetic tape, keyboard, monitor, printer, etc.
 Examples – IBM 360, IBM 370, PDP-11, UNIVAC 1108, etc.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
Fourth Generation: Microprocessors (1972 – 2010)
The period of the fourth generation was from 1971-1980. The (VLSI) huge scale integrated circuits are
used in the computers of this generation. In 1971, the Intel 4004 chip included all of the components
of the computer from the main processing unit, from the memory to the controls for input and output.
With thousands of integrated circuits built into a single silicon chip, the microprocessor brought the
fourth generation of computers. These circuits have 5000 transistors and other circuit elements. The
computers of the fourth-generation become more powerful, compact, reliable, and affordable. In
combination with built-in circuits, microprocessors have made it possible for computers to switch to a
desk and to introduce a laptop. There are various advanced features such as time-sharing, real-time
networks, distributed operating system were used in the fourth generation. All high-level language
like C, C++, Java, PHP are used in this generation. These computers are also used in the LSI (large
scale integration). The fourth generation is the extension of the third generation. The computer of the
first generation filled the entire room space, but these computers can fit in the palm. The
microprocessor chips are used in this generation of computers. The object-oriented programming was
used in the fourth generation of computer. Various types of language exist in object-oriented
programming such as Java, Visual Basic, etc. These object-oriented programs are designed to solve
specific problems and require little specialized user training. This includes query language and
application generators. The Intel was the first company which can develop the
microprocessors. IBM developed the first personal computer related to the fourth generation. These
computers required a minimal amount of electricity to run. The fourth generation of the computer had
the first supercomputer that was able to perform many calculations accurately. These supercomputers
are also used in networking. The storage capacity increased up to several gigabytes or even terabytes.
Some of the examples of Fourth Generation of Computer are:
DEC 10
STAR 1000
PUP 11
CRAY-1(Supercomputer)
CRAY-X –MP (supercomputer)
IBM 4341

DEC 10: Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC)'s PDP-10, later marketed as the DECsystem-10, is
a mainframe computer family manufactured beginning in 1966 and discontinued in 1983. 1970s models
and beyond were marketed under the DECsystem-10 name, especially as the TOPS-10 operating
system became widely used. The original PDP-10 processor is the KA10, introduced in 1968. It uses
discrete transistors packaged in DEC's Flip-Chip technology, with backplanes wire wrapped via a semi-
automated manufacturing process. Its cycle time is 1 μs and its add time 2.1 μs.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success

STAR 1000: These computers were designed, manufactured, and marketed by the Control Data
Corporation. The CDC Star 100 is the type of STAR1000 computer, which was vector supercomputer.
These computers were designed, manufactured, and marketed by the control data corporation. That
was one of the first machines to use the vector processor to improve the performance on scientific
applications. These computers were the first supercomputers which can use the integrated circuits. The
name STAR has constructed the words Strings of binary digits that made up of arrays. The speed of
these computers was 100 million floating-point per second.

PUP 11: A potentially unwanted program (PUP) or potentially unwanted application (PUA)
is software that a user may perceive as unwanted or unnecessary. It is used as a subjective tagging
criterion by security and parental control products. Such software may use an implementation that can
compromise privacy or weaken the computer's security. Historically, the first big companies working
with potentially unwanted programs for creating revenue came up in the US in the mid-2000s, such
as Zango. These activities declined after the companies were investigated, and in some cases indicted,
by authorities for invasive and harmful installs.
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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
CRAY-1(Supercomputer): The Cray-1 was a supercomputer designed, manufactured and marketed
by Cray Research. Announced in 1975, the first Cray-1 system was installed at Los Alamos National
Laboratory in 1976. Eventually, over 100 Cray-1s were sold, making it one of the most successful
supercomputers in history. It is perhaps best known for its unique shape, a relatively small C-shaped
cabinet with a ring of benches around the outside covering the power supplies and the cooling system.
From 1968 to 1972, Seymour Cray of Control Data Corporation (CDC) worked on the CDC 8600, the
successor to his earlier CDC 6600 and CDC 7600 designs. The 8600 was essentially made up of four
7600s in a box with an additional special mode that allowed them to operate lock-step in
a SIMD fashion.

CRAY-X –MP (Supercomputer): The Cray X-MP was a supercomputer designed, built and sold
by Cray Research. It was announced in 1982 as the "cleaned up" successor to the 1975 Cray-1, and
was the world's fastest computer from 1983 to 1985 with a quad-processor system performance of 800
MFLOPS.[4] The principal designer was Steve Chen. The X-MP's main improvement over the Cray-1
was that it was a shared-memory parallel vector processor, the first such computer from Cray Research.
It housed up to four CPUs in a mainframe that was nearly identical in outside appearance to the Cray-
1.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success

IBM 4341: An International Business Machines (IBM) 4341 with two million characters of main
storage offers a lower purchase price and an instruction execution speed up to 3.2 times that of a
System/370 Model 138 with one million characters. The IBM 4341 Processor announced today features
advanced large-scale integration technology to provide new and intermediate system users with
significantly improved price/performance. Introduced in 1979, the 4341 featured advanced large-scale
integration technology to provide new and intermediate system users with significantly improved
price/performance. It was available with maximum storage of either two million or four million
characters. The compact processor is compatible with System/370 and offers large processor storage,
fast internal operating speeds and reduced power and cooling requirements.
Advantages of Fourth Generation of Computers
i. It had the fastest calculation capacity and the dimension is smaller than the previous computer
generation.
ii. Heat generation was negligible.
iii. The size was smaller compared to previous computers.
iv. There was a need for less maintenance.
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v. In this type of machine, all types of high-level language may be used.
vi. These computers are used for the general purpose.
vii. There is no need for the air conditioner when we use the computer of the fourth generation.
viii. The computer of the fourth generation was more reliable than the previous generation.
ix. These computers can perform the calculation of data in picoseconds.
x. The computer of the fourth-generation consumed less electrical power as compared to the
previous generation of computer.
xi. The heat generation is less as compared to the previous computer.
xii. The maintenance cost is very low in the fourth generation of computer.
xiii. These computers are microprocessor-based systems.
xiv. The memory storage is increased in the computers of the fourth generation.
xv. The processing power and speed have increased in these computers.
xvi. The size of peripheral devices become small in the fourth generation.
xvii. The networking features were developed in the computers of the fourth generation.
xviii. The output was more reliable and accurate now in these computers.
xix. These computers are less need to repair.
xx. The computers of the fourth-generation are mainly used for commercial production.
Disadvantages of Fourth Generation of Computers
i. The design and manufacture of microprocessors are very complex.
ii. In certain cases due to the prevalence of ICs, air conditioning was required.
iii. For the production of ICs, advanced technology was needed.
iv. The latest technology is needed for the manufacturing of microprocessors.
Features of the Fourth Generation
 The vast scale integrated circuits are used in the fourth generation of computer.
 The computers become easily available in this generation.
 No AC required when we use the computer of the fourth generation.
 We have great development in the field of computer network during the fourth generation.
 These computers are very small in size.
 The computers of the fourth generation were portable and reliable.
 These computers are very cheap.
 The computers of the fourth generation were used in pipeline processing.
 The concept of the internet was introduced in this generation of computer.
 We can use personal computers in the fourth generation of computers.

The Main Characteristics of Fourth Generation of Computers (1970s-Present)

 Main electronic component – very large-scale integration (VLSI) and microprocessor.
 VLSI– thousands of transistors on a single microchip.
 Memory – semiconductor memory (such as RAM, ROM, etc.)
 RAM (random-access memory) – a type of data storage (memory element) used in computers that
temporary stores of programs and data (volatile: its contents are lost when the computer is turned
off).
 ROM (read-only memory) – a type of data storage used in computers that permanently stores data
and programs (non-volatile: its contents are retained even when the computer is turned off).
 Programming language – high level language (Python, C#, Java, JavaScript, Rust, Kotlin, etc.). A
mix of both third- and fourth-generation languages
 Size – smaller, cheaper and more efficient than third generation computers.
 Speed – improvement of speed, accuracy, and reliability (in comparison with the third generation
computers).
 Input / output devices – keyboard, pointing devices, optical scanning, monitor, printer, etc.
 Network – a group of two or more computer systems linked together.
 Examples – IBM PC, STAR 1000, APPLE II, Apple Macintosh, etc.

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Fifth Generation: (1980-Onwards)

The period of the fifth generation is 1980-onwards. The VLSI technology develops into ULSI (ultra
large scale integration) technology in the fifth generation. These are used in the production of
microprocessor chips which have ten million electronic components.
The Fifth-Generation Computers are based on parallel processing hardware and artificial intelligence
software. The artificial intelligence is the trending branch of computer science which interpret the
meaning and methods of making computers that behave like human beings. This generation is in the
developmental stage. All the high-level languages are used in the fifth generation of computer. The
main aim of the fifth-generation is to make the devices which are capable of self-learning and self-
organization. Some of the examples and various types of computers of Fifth Generation of Computers
are:
Desktop
Laptop
NoteBook
UltraBook
Chromebook

Desktop: The desktop computers are the personal computers which are designed to use at a regular
basis. We need a desk or table due to its size and power requirements. This type of computer has
physical hardware that makes a computer run and connects to input devices such as to monitor,
keyboard and mouse, etc.
These computers commonly used for organizations as well as personal use such as gaming or
education. The Desktop computer also includes the processor and the motherboard that is the main
circuit board to the computer system. Almost the Desktop computer contains a built-in modem and
multi Giga-byte magnetic storage drive.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success

Architecture Diagram of Desktop Computer

Laptop: The laptop is the small, portable, personal computer with the "clamshell" form factor. These
types of the computer having the thin LCD or LED computer screen. We can fold these laptops for
transportation and also suitable for mobile use. These computers are no need of desk or table like
Desktop computers. We can fit these computers in any person's lap, that's why it is known as the laptop.
These types of computers are smaller than a briefcase so, we can easily use laptops in temporary spaces
such as airport, libraries, colleges, etc. The cost of laptop computers more than the desktop with the
same functionalities. These laptops are more difficult to design and manufacture. We can convert any
laptop computer into the desktop computer by connecting some peripherals such as a printer or large
monitor. These computers have an attached keyboard and touchpad. The laptop computer has several
ways of connecting to the network. The laptop computers have lightweight as compare to the desktop
computer.

Notebook: The notebook computers are less on-screen thickness. Sometimes the notebook computers
are known as laptops. The costs of these computers are also more than desktop computers. The
notebook computer is extremely lightweight computer than others. The display screen is the main
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difference between the notebook computer and another computer. The screen of this computer
produces very sharp images. The notebook computers are considered as the family of laptop. These
computers are mainly used for web browsing. The notebook computers become popular from recent
time (since 2007).

The Architecture of the Notebook Computer

Ultrabook: Ultrabook is a marketing term, originated and trademarked by Intel, for a category of high-
end laptop computers. They were originally marketed as featuring ultra-thin form factor and light
weight design without compromising battery life or performance, and when the term was originated
they generally were enough smaller than average laptop models to qualify as subnotebooks. As
ultrabook features became more mainstream in the mid-late 2010s, explicitly branding laptop models
as ultrabooks became much less frequent. As of 2021, while Intel maintains the Ultrabook trademark,
it is rarely used for new models and has been superseded in Intel's own marketing by the Intel Evo
branding. In 2011, Intel Capital press officer Jordan Balk Schaer announced a new fund to support
startups working on technologies in line with the company's concept for next generation
notebooks. The company set aside a million fund to be spent over the next three to four years in areas
related to Ultrabooks. Intel announced the Ultrabook concept at Computex in 2011. The Ultrabook
would be a thin (less than 0.8 inches thick) notebook that utilized Intel processors, and would
emphasize portability and a longer battery life than other laptops[3][4] By this marketing initiative and
an associated million fund, Intel hoped to influence the slumping PC market against rising competition
from smartphones and tablet computers, which are typically powered by competing ARM-based
processors. Ultrabooks competed against other subnotebooks, including Apple’s MacBook Air, which
has similar form specifications and was powered until 2020 by Intel CPUs, but was not advertised
under the Ultrabook brand.

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Chromebook: Chromebooks are a new type of computer designed to help you get things done faster
and easier. They run Chrome OS, an operating system that has cloud storage, the best of Google built-
in, and multiple layers of security. Chromebooks aren’t like other laptops. They run Chrome OS, an
operating system made by Google. They are powerful, so they can handle what’s important to you and
designed in a way that makes them easy to use. Watch this video to learn even more about the new way
to laptop. The main difference between Chromebooks and laptops is of course the operating system.
While laptops run on the most popular operating system Windows, Chromebooks run on web-based
Chrome OS, which is basically a skinned version of the Chrome browser with some added
functionalities.

Fifth Generation: Artificial Intelligence (2011 – Present)

Fifth-generation artificial intelligence-based computing devices are still emerging, although a range of
technologies is still being used today, such as voice recognition. The use of parallel computing and
superconductor systems helps to understand artificial intelligence. The nature of computers will
dramatically alter in future years with quantitative computing, molecular and nanotechnology. The goal
of computing of the fifth generation is to create devices that respond to natural language input and can
learn and organize themselves. One of the most well-known examples includes iPhone Siri from Apple
and Windows 8 and Windows 10 from Cortana from Microsoft. The Google Search Engine also uses
AI to search. This generation of computer is completely based on artificial intelligence and parallel
processing hardware, and artificial intelligence includes the various terms which are given below:
Robotics.
Neural Networks.
Game Playing.
Develop the expert system to decide a real-life situation.
Natural Language Processing.

Robotics: The robotics is the branch of engineering and science which includes mechanical
engineering, electronic engineering, information engineering, computer science, and many others. It
deals with the design, construction, operation, and use of robots as well as the computer system for the
control of robots. The Robots can be used for various kind of situations and purposes. The robots are
the type of machine which can perform actions similar to human being according to individual
instruction. NASA uses robots in many various ways. The robotic rods on spacecraft used to move a
massive object in space. The humans are given commands to the robots, and then they follow those
commands. The Robots who can explore the surface of mars have rovers for this purpose.
There are various kinds of airplane robots which can fly without the presence of pilots. In these days,
the NASA is researching the particular type of robots that will work with people and help them.

Neural Networks: The neural networks are the set of algorithms which can help us in the clustering
and classification. These neural networks are designed to recognize the patterns. These networks
interpret the sensory data through a type of machine perception, labeling, or clustering of raw data.
The patterns are in numerical forms which are recognized by the neural networks. They help us to
group the unlabeled data according to similarities among those example inputs, and these networks can
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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
classify the data. "Waren Mc Culloch" and "Walter Pitts" develop a computational model for neural
networks based on mathematics and algorithms known as threshold logic. This neural network model
was based on the two approaches. The first approach focus on the biological processes in the brain,
and another approach was focused on the application of neural networks related to artificial
intelligence. The neural network is a network or circuit of neurons. This network is either a biological
neural network, made up of real biological neurons or an artificial neural network for solving
complicated artificial intelligence problems. The biological neural network is the group which are
chemically connected or functionally associated with neurons. The single neuron connected to many
other neurons, and the total number of neurons and connections in the neural network is very extensive.

Game Playing: The game playing is the design of artificial intelligence programs which can play more
than one game successfully. The computers are programmed to play various games, likes chess, etc.
These programs are designed with the help of complicated algorithms, which cannot be transferred to
another context. If the general game playing system is well designed then, it would be able to help in
other areas such as to provide the intelligence to search and rescue missions. There are various types
of different game playing systems, which can use their languages to define the game rules.
The game playing is a crucial domain of artificial intelligence. Every player wants to win the game and
try his best so, everyone tries to make the possible moves at each turn. The searching techniques
like breadth-first search are not sufficient for this branching factor, which is very high. We need another
search procedure that can improve:

 Generate procedure so that only right moves can generate as compare to complicated movements.
 We also need to improve our test procedure so that the best move can be explored first then, the
other steps come.

Minimax search procedure is a very common technique of game playing in artificial intelligence. It is
the depth-first search with limited search procedures. These types of searches are used for games like
chess and tic-tac-toe.

Natural Language Processing: The natural language processing is the subfield of artificial
intelligence. It is used for the interaction between the computer and human languages. The natural
language processing is mainly used to program computers to process and analyze a large amount of
natural language data. The challenges in natural language processing are involved in speech
recognition, NLP understanding, and natural language generations. The natural language processing
generally started from the 1950s. When we want an intelligent system like the robot to perform
according to our instruction then, we need processing of natural language. The natural language
processing always refers to artificial intelligence method of communicating with the intelligent system
by using a natural language such as English.

Advantages of Fifth Generation of Computers

i. It operates quicker and more efficiently.
ii. This is available in various sizes and features.
iii. This offers more user-friendly graphical interfaces on the device.
iv. The computers of this generation are more reliable and work faster than previous computers.
v. These computers are available in various size and unique features.

Disadvantages of Fifth Generation of Computers

i. They need all high-level languages that need to be mastered.
ii. Are more sophisticated.
iii. They may replace humans causing unemployment in the future.
iv. The computer of the fifth generation makes the human brain dull and doomed.
v. We have to use sophisticated and complex tools in this generation.

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Features of the Fifth Generation
 This generation of computer is using the ULSI (ultra large scale integration) technology.
 The development of natural language processing is growing in the fifth generation.
 The growth of artificial intelligence increased in the computer of this generation.
 These computers have advancement in parallel processing.
 The computer of the fifth-generation has more user-friendly interfaces with multimedia features.
 These computers are available at a cheaper rate.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
The Main Characteristics of Fifth Generation of Computers (The Present and the Future)
 Main electronic component: based on artificial intelligence, uses the Ultra Large-Scale Integration
(ULSI) technology and parallel processing method.
 ULSI – millions of transistors on a single microchip
 Parallel processing method – use two or more microprocessors to run tasks simultaneously.
 Language – understand natural language (human language).
 Power – consume less power and generate less heat.
 Speed – remarkable improvement of speed, accuracy and reliability (in comparison with the fourth
generation computers).
 Size – portable and small in size, and have a huge storage capacity.
 Input / output device – keyboard, monitor, mouse, trackpad (or touchpad), touchscreen, pen,
speech input (recognise voice / speech), light scanner, printer, etc.
 Example – desktops, laptops, tablets, smartphones, etc.

Uses of Computer
Computers are playing a vital role in almost every field and making our day-to-day tasks more
manageable. Computers were only used to perform complex numerical calculations in a previous time,
but they have reached too far and now perform many different roles. They are now performing diverse
set functions from complicated calculations to generating business reports, bill generation to education,
programming or development to entertainment, etc. Because of their characteristics and powerful
functionalities, computers are used in various fields, such as homes, businesses, government offices,
research organizations, educational institutions, medical, entertainment, etc. Computers have taken
industries and businesses to a whole new level.

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Computer can bring people closer together and facilitate contacts between them using Email, Chatting,
Videoconferencing, Mobile Phones and Social Medias. It saves time, efforts and money compared with
letters used, before making influence of computers in human life. Computer technology affects the way
people communicate, the way they learn, and the way they do business. The ability to use computer
technology effectively has become a distinct advantage in school and work. It has the ability to store,
retrieve, and process data. You may already know that you can use a computer to type documents, send
email, play games, and browse the Web. You can also use it to edit or create spreadsheets,
presentations, and even videos. The most common uses of computers in different fields:

Business
Currently, computers can be seen in almost every business. Computers are almost part of a business
setup because they increase productivity and help race in a competitive environment. In businesses,
computers are primarily used to store and manage accounts and personal data, maintain projects, track
inventory status, and make reports and presentations. Besides, computers are best suited for transaction
processing because they are more accurate and faster than humans. Computers also help people analyze
their investment, expenses, profits, sales and many other aspects of the business. Almost every business
uses computers nowadays. They can be employed to store and maintain accounts, personnel records,
manage projects, track inventory, create presentations and reports. They enable communication with
people both within and outside the business, using various technologies, including e-mail. They can be
used to promote the business and enable direct interaction with customers.

Science
Scientists are amongst one of those people who use computers as their primary work tool. In science,
research and engineering, computers are best suited for collecting, analyzing, categorizing, and storing
the data. They also help scientists to exchange data with each other both internally and internationally.
Computers enable scientists from different locations (such as different countries) to work together on
the same project with cloud support. Besides, computers play a crucial role in launching, maintaining,
controlling spacecraft, and operating many other technologies. Scientists were one of the first groups
to adopt computers as a work tool. In science, computers can be used for research, sharing information
with other specialists both locally and internationally, as well as collecting, categorizing, analyzing,
and storing data. Computers also play a vital role in launching, controlling, and maintaining space craft,
as well as operating other advanced technology.

Government
In the government sector, computers are beneficial. They are getting used to performing various
functions in different departments and improving their services' quality, efficiency, and productivity.
Some examples of such services are city planning, traffic control, law enforcement, infrastructure
developments, and tourism. In most cases, the primary purposes of using computers are performing
data processing tasks, maintaining citizens' database, and promoting a paperless environment. Apart
from this, computers are playing a crucial role in the country's defense system. They are helping in
missile development, rocket, satellite launches, etc. Various government departments use computers
to improve the quality and efficiency of their services. Examples include city planning, law
enforcement, traffic, and tourism. Computers can be used to store information, promote services,
communicate internally and externally, as well as for routine administrative purposes.

Health and Medical

Computers are radically changing the methods of diagnosis in hospitals. They are used for maintaining
patients' information, records, live monitoring of patients, X-rays, and more. Everything is being
digitized with the help of computers. Computers help configure lab-tools, monitor heart rate, and blood
pressure, etc. Doctors get extra advantages in treating patients with proper drugs and medicines.
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Additionally, computers enable doctors to exchange patient's data easily with other medical specialists.
Besides, advanced surgical devices are based on robotics that helping surgeons to conduct complex
operations and surgeries remotely. Computers control lab equipment, heart rate monitors, and blood
pressure monitors. They enable doctors to have greater access to information on the latest drugs, as
well as the ability to share information on diseases with other medical specialists.

Education
Computers are broadly getting used in the education field. They help people get different educational
materials (such as images, videos, e-books, etc.) in one place. All such information can be accessed
through the Internet. Additionally, computers are best suited for online classes, online tutoring, online
examinations, and creating assignments and projects. Apart from this, they can also be used to maintain
and monitor student performance and other information. Computers can be used to give learners audio-
visual packages, interactive exercises, and remote learning, including tutoring over the internet. They
can be used to access educational information from intranet and internet sources, or via e-books. They
can be used to maintain and monitor student performance, including through the use of online
examinations, as well as to create projects and assignments.

Industry
Computers are used in industries to perform various tasks, such as maintaining inventory, interior
designing, designing samples or virtual products, communicating over video conferencing, and more.
Online marketing has made it easier for people to buy products in rural areas. Online trading in stock
markets has also seen a significant revolution due to its easy participation potential. Computers have
enabled people from different levels of different locations to participate easily in stock marketing.

Banking
Banking has become so advanced in the past few years. Most countries use online banking systems
where customers can access their data directly using computers and the Internet. People can check their
account balance, transfer money, and pay online bills, including credit cards. Besides, Banks use
computers to perform transactions and store customer data, transaction records, etc. Banks have
reduced the number of manual errors, number of employees, and costs to a great extent by using
computers. ATMs are the best example of computers that are helping people to withdraw and deposit
the money themselves. Most banking in advanced countries now takes place online. You can use
computers to check your account balance, transfer money, or pay off credit cards. You can also use
computer technology to access information on stock markets, trade stocks, and manage investments.
Banks store customer account data, as well as detailed information on customer behavior which is used
to streamline marketing.

Entertainment
Computers nowadays are one of the best mediums for entertainment. Computers can be used to watch
movies, play games, listen to music, etc. Computers combined with MIDI instruments can be used to
record audio through artificial instruments. Besides, people can also enjoy recording their videos with
webcam and apply several entertaining AI effects. Several Photo editor programs are also available
with fabulous powerful features. Computers are now used in virtually every branch in the wider
entertainment industry. They can be used to make, record, edit, play, and listen to music. They can be
used to capture, edit and watch videos. They can be used for playing games.

Training
Most companies use computers to provide training to their employees. Computer-based training helps
companies save their time, money, and increase productivity. Also, computer-based training can be

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used to train employees for large distances in various locations. This will eliminate travel time and
costs, making the training process much more comfortable and smoother.

Arts
Computers have become part of art, photography, dance, and culture. Computers with advanced
features allow users to draw their projects directly on it. Besides, people can use computers to digitize
their photos. There are several photo editor software that can help people edit and customize their
photos. Apart from this, the dance's movements and steps can be shown live with animations' help.
Computers are now used in virtually every branch of the arts. Computers can be used to create
drawings, graphic designs, and paintings. They can be used to edit, copy, send, and print photographs.
They can be used by writers to create and edit.

Sports
In today's technologically developed world, computers are being used in almost every sport. There are
many sports activities where computers are making things possible. In sports, computers are mainly
used to maintain scoreboards, records, and other statistics. Furthermore, they are used to analyze player
movements and make various in-game decisions. Computers help make complex in-game decisions
(especially in umpiring), which cannot be seen by human eyes.

Robotics
Robotics is one of the emerging fields of technology that uses computers for science and engineering
as well as designing machines. These machines can be virtual (such as software bots) and physical ones
that can reduce or eliminate human workload. Additionally, some machines can perform heavy tasks
that humans cannot complete, or that may take a long time to complete. Car manufacturing was one of
the first examples where robots helped to assemble car parts and perform many other heavy tasks.
However, nowadays, robots are beneficial in many fields, such as exploring areas where conditions are
difficult for humans, helping the military, helping law enforcement and helping health professionals,
etc. Robotics is an expanding area of technology which combines computers with science and
engineering to produce machines that can either replace humans, or do specific jobs that humans are
unable to do. One of the first use of robotics was in manufacturing to build cars. Since then, robots
have been developed to explore areas where conditions are too harsh for humans, to help law
enforcement, to help the military, and to assist healthcare professionals.

Safety and Security with Surveillance

Computers are capable of working together with different equipment, tools, and technologies. When it
comes to safety, computers are widely being used with the security camera. Almost every private and
government organizations are equipped with security cameras to monitor people and goods. Also, these
cameras are helping security intelligence agencies to identify terrorists or criminals in public places.
Computers attached with a fingerprint scanner and face-recognition technology have made it harder
for fraudsters to use fake identities and take government benefits using someone else's identity.
Security systems have become so powerful with the introduction of computer technology and the
Internet. Computers are increasingly being combined with other technologies to monitor people and
goods. Computers combined with biometric passports make it harder for people to fraudulently enter
a country or gain access to a passenger airplane. Face-recognition technology makes it easier to identify
terrorists or criminals in public places. Driver plates can be auto-scanned by speed cameras or police
cars. Private security systems have also become much more sophisticated with the introduction of
computer technology and internet technology.

Publishing
Computers are one of the first choices when it comes to publication. Computers are mainly used for
designing newsletters, novels, posters, magazines, or newspapers, etc. They are suitable for almost
every type of publication. Computers can be seen in both types of publishing methods, either its hard-
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copy or e-books. Apart from this, computers play a vital role in blogging and writing articles on
websites. Computers can be used to design pretty much any type of publication. These might include
newsletters, marketing materials, fashion magazines, novels, or newspapers. Computers are used in the
publishing of both hard-copy and e-books. They are also used to market publications and track sales.

Weather Forecasting
Weather forecasting is never easy for humans because it depends on many factors that are continually
changing. It is almost impossible for humans to predict the weather without using a computer. The
weather forecasting process involves complex computation and monitoring of data from satellites and
many other technological devices. The computer has made it a little easier to predict weather conditions
because it can process information from different sources and make complex calculations related to it,
which are necessary for forecasting. Computers process enormous amounts of meteorological
information during weather forecasting. The world's weather is complex and depends upon a multitude
of factors that are constantly changing. It's impossible for human beings to monitor and process all the
information coming in from satellite and other technologies, never mind perform the complex
calculations that are needed to predict what is likely to happen in the future. Computers can process
the large amounts of meteorological information.

Communication
Computers have become one of the primary sources of communication. Modern computers come with
a built-in webcam and microphone to make use of communication easier. People can use software like
Skype and Hangout to connect with other people over the Internet. Because of the videoconferencing
feature, people can connect with audio and video. Computers help families connect to their relatives,
businesses to organize meetings, and companies to take interviews, between two different locations
that are too far. Apart from this, older communications methods such as emails are also still used
widely. Computers have made real-time communication over the internet easy, thanks to software and
videoconferencing services such as Skype and Zoom. Families can connect with audio and video,
businesses can hold meetings between remote participants, and news organizations can interview
people without the need for a film crew. Modern computers usually have microphones and webcams
built-in nowadays to facilitate software like Skype, or web-based services like Zoom. Older
communications technologies such as email are also still used widely.

Retail and Trade

Computers can be used to buy and sell products online - this enables sellers to reach a wider market
with low overheads, and buyers to compare prices, read reviews, and choose delivery preferences. They
can be used for direct trading and advertising too, using sites such as eBay, Craigslist, or local listings
on social media or independent websites.

Marketing
Computers enable marketing campaigns to be more precise through the analysis and manipulation of
data. They facilitate the creation of websites and promotional materials. They can be used to generate
social media campaigns. They enable direct communication with customers through email and online
chat.

Transport
Road vehicles, trains, planes, and boats are increasingly automated with computers being used to
maintain safety and navigation systems, and increasingly to drive, fly, or steer. They can also highlight
problems that require attention, such as low fuel levels, oil changes, or a failing mechanical part.
Computers can be used to customize settings for individuals, for example, seat setup, air-conditioning
temperatures.
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Navigation
Navigation has become increasingly computerized, especially since computer technology has been
combined with GPS technology. Computers combined with satellites mean that it's now easy to
pinpoint your exact location, know which way that you are moving on a map, and have a good idea of
amenities and places of interest around you.

Working from Home

Computers have made working from home and other forms of remote working increasingly common.
Workers can access necessary data, communicate, and share information without commuting to a
traditional office. Managers are able to monitor workers' productivity remotely.

Military
Computers are used extensively by the military. They are used for training purposes. They are used for
analyzing intelligence data. They are used to control smart technology, such as guided missiles and
drones, as well as for tracking incoming missiles and destroying them. They work with other
technologies such as satellites to provide geospatial information and analysis. They aid
communications. They help tanks and planes to target enemy forces.

Social and Romance

Computers have opened up many ways of socializing that didn't previously exist. Social media enables
people to chat in text or audio in real time across large distances, as well as exchange photographs,
videos, and memes. Dating sites and apps help people to find romance. Online groups help people to
connect with others who have similar interests. Blogs enable people to post a variety of views, updates,
and experiences. Online forums enable discussions between people on specialist or general topics.

Booking Vacations
Computers can be used by travellers to study timetables, examine route options, and buy plane, train,
or bus tickets. They can be used to explore and book accommodation, whether traditional hotels, or
through newer services, such as Air BnB. Guided tours, excursions, events, and trips can also be
explored and booked online using computers.

Components of Computer
The different components (parts) of a computer system and the vital role of each part plays in
a computer system. The computer’s internal architecture varies from one computer model to another.
But the basic structure remains the same for all computer systems. There are various types of storage
systems use to store data. There are some essential elements of computer such as hardware,
software, data, and connectivity. In the absence of these elements, no computer can operate. These
components are responsible for making computers work. There are mainly five major components of
a computer. They are as follows:
i. Input Unit
ii. Storage Unit
iii. Central Processing Unit (CPU)
iv. Control Unit
v. Output Unit

Input Unit
Input Unit is the link between the user and the computer. The function of an input unit is to transfer the
raw data or information from the user to the computer. The data enters the computer through various
input devices such as Keyboard or pointer devices. Data through the keyboard is provided by pressing
the keys by the user whereas in pointer devices such as a mouse, joystick, etc. the data is transferred
by pointing on the screen. Irrespective of the forms in which the data have been received, the input
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devices must translate the information into the binary codes which the primary memory of the computer
can understand. Further, the data is used by the Central Processing Unit to process it and generate the
output. These input devices are becoming increasingly popular nowadays from smartphones to ATM
devices. In a nutshell, the functions of an input unit are:
 It transfers the raw data from the external world to the computer
 It converts the raw data into binary codes which are computer-readable format
 It delivers the translated data to the CPU for further processing

Storage Unit
The storage unit stores all the data or information required before, during, and after the processing.
The data that is transferred to the computer through input devices have to be first stored before
processing it. Also, the immediate results obtained in between the processes must be stored and
ultimately the results achieved in the last after the processing of data have to be stored somewhere
before passing to the output units. Hence the storage unit stores all the data and provides it to the
computer as and when required for its processes. The storage in the computer is measured in Bits and
Bytes. There are two types of storage unit: Primary Storage unit and Secondary storage unit.
The primary storage unit is also known as Random Access Memory (RAM) which is the internal
memory of the computer. RAM stores data and instructions temporarily on the computer. It is
volatile and loses its contents when the power is lost.
The secondary storage is non-volatile and stores all the data and information permanently. The
CPU cannot access directly the secondary storage data. For using the data it has to be first
transferred from secondary storage to the primary storage unit.
In a nutshell, the functions of the storage unit are:-
 Store all the data and instructions received from the input devices
 Also, store the results obtained during ongoing processes.
 Stores the results obtained after the execution of the processes.

Central Processing Unit (CPU)

Once the data is received by input devices and stored in the primary storage unit, the computer now
has to further process the data as per the instructions provided. The unit in which the data is processed
is called Central Processing Unit (CPU) or Processor or Microprocessor. It is the main unit of the
computer as all the operations are controlled by it. In other words, it works as the brain of the computer.
As a human brain controls every part of the body, similarly the CPU controls every part of the
computer. The operations performed by the CPU are called the instruction set. The instruction set is
basically a machine language in the form of sequences of 0 and 1. All the major calculations such as
addition, subtraction, etc. and comparisons of data are done inside the CPU. Internally the CPU further
consists of two other units known as: Arithmetic and Logical Unit and Control Unit.

Arithmetic and Logic Unit (ALU): Arithmetic and Logical Unit is a digital electronic circuit
present inside the CPU which carries out the arithmetic and logical operations. The data is
transferred from the primary storage unit to the arithmetic and logical unit to carry out the
processes. The intermediate results obtained during processing are also stored back in the storage
unit. Thus the exchange of data between the ALU and storage unit continues until the result is
obtained, stored in the storage unit, and finally sent to the output unit. The temporary storage area
inside the CPU from which ALU takes the data is called Register which is a group of cells used
for the memory addressing, data manipulation, and processing.
Some registers are used for the internal purposes and hence cannot be accessed while some registers
are accessible and can be used for general purposes.
The rate at which the CPU completes its one processing cycle is known as clock speed and is measured
in Megahertz or Gigahertz.

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The faster the speed of the CPU, the faster the computer can operate. In a nutshell, the functions of the
Central Processing Unit are:
 It receives all the data from storage and input devices
 It controls all the operations of the computer.
 It executes the processes based on the set of instructions provided

Control Unit: The control unit is in charge of all the operations of a processor. It is the task of the
Control Unit to communicate the processor, arithmetic & logic unit, and input/output devices on
how to respond to the instructions that have been sent to the processor. It helps the processor to
select which data is to be processed, what instructions are to be interpreted, and how to complete
the instructions provided. The control unit functions by receiving input data which it converts into
control signals and then they are sent to the processor.
Thus acting as a central nervous system it manages, and coordinates the entire computer system without
performing on any actual ongoing processes. In a nutshell, the functions of the control unit are:
 To coordinate the data movement
 It helps in the interpretation of instructions
 It converts the data from input devices into control signals

Output Unit
The output unit is the final component of the computer. It works exactly opposite to the input device.
It provides the results or information from the computer to the user. As said earlier that a computer
works with binary code (sequence of 0 and 1), therefore the results it gives are also in the same code.
Hence the output unit converts those binary codes into data that is easily understandable by the users.
The devices used to display the output to the users are called output devices.
Some of the examples of output devices are monitor, printer, screen, speaker, etc. In a nutshell, the
functions of an output unit are:
 It displays or provides the final results of the process to the user
 It converts the binary coded results into the human acceptable form.

HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE

Computer Hardware
Hardware refers to the physical components of a computer. Computer Hardware is any part of the
computer that we can touch these parts. These are the primary electronic devices used to build up the
computer. Examples of hardware in a computer are the Processor, Memory Devices, Monitor, Printer,
Keyboard, Mouse, and the Central Processing Unit.

Computer Software
Software is a collection of instructions, procedures, documentation that performs different tasks on a
computer system. Computer Software is a programming code executed on a computer processor. The

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code can be machine-level code or the code written for an operating system. Examples of software are
Ms Word, Excel, Power Point, Google Chrome, Photoshop, MySQL etc.

Difference between Hardware and Software

Computer hardware is any physical device used in or with your machine, whereas software is a
collection of programming code installed on your computer's hard drive. In other words, hardware is a
product you can hold in your hand, whereas software cannot be held in your hand. You can touch
hardware, but you cannot touch software. Hardware is physical, and software is virtual.
For example, the computer monitor you are using to read this text, and the mouse you are using to
navigate this web page are computer hardware. The Internet browser allowing you to view this page,
and the operating system that the browser is running on are considered software. A video card is
hardware, and a computer game is software. You can touch and feel the video card, and the computer
uses it to play a computer game, but you cannot touch or feel the programming code that makes up the
computer game.
Further information and examples
All software utilizes at least one hardware device to operate. For example, a video game, which is
software, uses the computer processor (CPU), memory (RAM), hard drive, and video card to run. Word
processing software uses the computer processor, memory, and hard drive to create and save
documents.
Hardware is what makes a computer work. A CPU processes information and that information can be
stored in RAM or on a hard drive. A sound card provides sound to speakers, and a video card provides
an image to a monitor. Each of these are examples of hardware components. Hardware that is not
required by the computer is referred to as a peripheral.

Hardware Software
Hardware is a physical parts computer that Software is a set of instruction that tells a
cause processing of data. computer exactly what to do.
It is manufactured. It is developed and engineered.
Hardware cannot perform any task without Software cannot be executed without
software. hardware.
As Hardware are physical electronic We can see and also use the software but
devices, we can see and touch hardware. can’t actually touch them.

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It has four main categories: input device, It is mainly divided into System software,
output devices, storage, and internal Programming software and Application
components. software.
Hardware is not affected by computer Software is affected by computer viruses.
viruses.
It cannot be transferred from one place to But, it can be transferred.
another electrically through network.
If hardware is damaged, it is replaced with If software is damaged, its backup copy
new one. can be reinstalled.
Ex: Keyboard, Mouse, Monitor, Printer, Ex: Ms Word, Excel, Power Point,
CPU, Hard disk, RAM, ROM etc. Photoshop, MySQL etc.

Can a computer run without software?

In most situations, yes, a computer can run without software being installed. However, if an operating
system or interpreter is not found, it either generates an error or doesn't output any information. A
computer needs an operating system that allows both the user and software to interact with the
computer hardware. Installing programs onto the computer, in addition to an operating system, gives
the computer additional capabilities. For example, a word processor is not required, but it allows you
to create documents and letters.

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UNDERSTAND THE INPUT-PROCESS-OUTPUT ALGORITHM WITH THE FOLLOWING IN MIND
A computer is described as an electronic device because; it is made up of electronic components and
uses electric energy (such as electricity) to operate.

A computer has an internal memory, which stores data & instructions temporarily awaiting processing,
and even holds the intermediate result (information) before it is communicated to the recipients through
the Output devices. It works on the data using the instructions issued, means that, the computer cannot
do any useful job on its own. It can only work as per the set of instructions issued. A computer will
accept data in one form and produce it in another form. The data is normally held within the computer
as it is being processed.

Central Processor
A central processing unit (CPU), also called a central processor, main processor or just processor, is
the electronic circuitry that executes instructions comprising a computer program. The CPU performs
basic arithmetic, logic, controlling, and input/output (I/O) operations specified by the instructions in
the program. This contrasts with external components such as main memory and I/O circuitry, and
specialized processors such as graphics processing units (GPUs).
The form, design, and implementation of CPUs have changed over time, but their fundamental
operation remains almost unchanged. Principal components of a CPU include the arithmetic–logic
unit (ALU) that performs arithmetic and logic operations, processor registers that supply operands to
the ALU and store the results of ALU operations, and a control unit that orchestrates the fetching (from
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memory), decoding and execution of instructions by directing the coordinated operations of the ALU,
registers and other components.

Most modern CPUs are implemented on integrated circuit (IC) microprocessors, with one or more
CPUs on a single IC chip. Microprocessor chips with multiple CPUs are multi-core processors. The
individual physical CPUs, processor cores, can also be multithreaded to create additional virtual or
logical CPUs.

An IC that contains a CPU may also contain memory, peripheral interfaces, and other components of
a computer; such integrated devices are variously called microcontrollers or systems on a chip (SoC).

Array processors or vector processors have multiple processors that operate in parallel, with no unit
considered central. Virtual CPUs are an abstraction of dynamical aggregated computational resources.

The fundamental operation of most CPUs, regardless of the physical form they take, is to execute a
sequence of stored instructions that is called a program. The instructions to be executed are kept in
some kind of computer memory. Nearly all CPUs follow the fetch, decode and execute steps in their
operation, which are collectively known as the instruction cycle.
Fetch
The first step, fetch, involves retrieving an instruction (which is represented by a number or sequence
of numbers) from program memory. The instruction's location (address) in program memory is
determined by the program counter (PC; called the "instruction pointer" in Intel x86 microprocessors),
which stores a number that identifies the address of the next instruction to be fetched.
Decode
The instruction that the CPU fetches from memory determines what the CPU will do. In the decode
step, performed by binary decoder circuitry known as the instruction decoder, the instruction is
converted into signals that control other parts of the CPU.
Execute
After the fetch and decode steps, the execute step is performed. Depending on the CPU architecture,
this may consist of a single action or a sequence of actions. During each action, control signals
electrically enable or disable various parts of the CPU so they can perform all or part of the desired
operation. The action is then completed, typically in response to a clock pulse. Very often the results
are written to an internal CPU register for quick access by subsequent instructions. In other cases results
may be written to slower, but less expensive and higher capacity main memory.

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Control Unit
The control unit (CU) is a component of the CPU that directs the operation of the processor. It tells the
computer's memory, arithmetic and logic unit and input and output devices how to respond to the
instructions that have been sent to the processor.
It directs the operation of the other units by providing timing and control signals. Most computer
resources are managed by the CU. It directs the flow of data between the CPU and the other
devices. John von Neumann included the control unit as part of the von Neumann architecture. In
modern computer designs, the control unit is typically an internal part of the CPU with its overall role
and operation unchanged since its introduction.[62]
Arithmetic Logic Unit
Symbolic representation of an ALU and its input and output signals
The arithmetic logic unit (ALU) is a digital circuit within the processor that performs integer arithmetic
and bitwise logic operations. The inputs to the ALU are the data words to be operated on
(called operands), status information from previous operations, and a code from the control unit
indicating which operation to perform. Depending on the instruction being executed, the operands may
come from internal CPU registers or external memory, or they may be constants generated by the ALU
itself.
When all input signals have settled and propagated through the ALU circuitry, the result of the
performed operation appears at the ALU's outputs. The result consists of both a data word, which may
be stored in a register or memory, and status information that is typically stored in a special, internal
CPU register reserved for this purpose.

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Address Generation Unit
Address generation unit (AGU), sometimes also called address computation unit (ACU),[63] is
an execution unit inside the CPU that calculates addresses used by the CPU to access main memory.
By having address calculations handled by separate circuitry that operates in parallel with the rest of
the CPU, the number of CPU cycles required for executing various machine instructions can be
reduced, bringing performance improvements.
Memory Management Unit
Many microprocessors (in smartphones and desktop, laptop, server computers) have a memory
management unit, translating logical addresses into physical RAM addresses, providing memory
protection and paging abilities, useful for virtual memory. Simpler processors,
especially microcontrollers, usually don't include an MMU.
A CPU cache[64] is a hardware cache used by the central processing unit (CPU) of a computer to
reduce the average cost (time or energy) to access data from the main memory. A cache is a smaller,
faster memory, closer to a processor core, which stores copies of the data from frequently used
main memory locations. Most CPUs have different independent caches, including instruction and data
caches, where the data cache is usually organized as a hierarchy of more cache levels (L1, L2, L3, L4,
etc.).
Voltage Regulator Module
Many modern CPUs have a die-integrated power managing module which regulates on-demand
voltage supply to the CPU circuitry allowing it to keep balance between performance and power
consumption.
Integer Range
Every CPU represents numerical values in a specific way. For example, some early digital computers
represented numbers as familiar decimal (base 10) numeral system values, and others have employed
more unusual representations such as ternary (base three). Nearly all modern CPUs represent numbers
in binary form, with each digit being represented by some two-valued physical quantity such as a "high"
or "low" voltage.

Related to numeric representation is the size and precision of integer numbers that a CPU can represent.
In the case of a binary CPU, this is measured by the number of bits (significant digits of a binary
encoded integer) that the CPU can process in one operation, which is commonly called word size, bit
width, data path width, integer precision, or integer size. A CPU's integer size determines the range of
integer values it can directly operate on.[g] For example, an 8-bit CPU can directly manipulate integers
represented by eight bits, which have a range of 256 (28) discrete integer values.
Integer range can also affect the number of memory locations the CPU can directly address (an address
is an integer value representing a specific memory location). For example, if a binary CPU uses 32 bits
to represent a memory address then it can directly address 232 memory locations. To circumvent this
limitation and for various other reasons, some CPUs use mechanisms (such as bank switching) that
allow additional memory to be addressed.

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Program
A computer Program is a set of related instructions written in the language of the computer & is used
to make the computer perform a specific task (or, to direct the computer on what to do).
A set of related instructions which specify how the data is to be processed. A set of instructions used
to guide a computer through a process. Data: Is a collection of raw facts, figures or instructions that do
not have much meaning to the user. Data may be in form of numbers, alphabets/letters or symbols, and
can be processed to produce information.

Types of Data.
There are two types/forms of data:
Digital (Discrete) data
Digital data is discrete in nature. It must be represented in form of numbers, alphabets or symbols for
it to be processed by a computer. Digital data is obtained by counting.
E.g. 1, 2, 3 …
Analogue (Continuous) data:
Analogue data is continuous in nature. It must be represented in physical nature in order to be processed
by the computer. Analogue data is obtained by measurement.
E.g. Pressure, Temperature, Humidity, Lengths or currents, etc.
The output is in form of smooth graphs from which the data can be read.

Data Processing
It is the process of collecting all items of data together & converting them into information.
Processing refers to the way the data is manipulated (or handled) to turn it into information.
The processing may involve calculation, comparison or any other logic to produce the required result.
The processing of the data usually results in some meaningful information being produced.
Information: is the data which has been refined, summarized & manipulated in the way you want it, or
into a more meaningful form for decision-making. The information must be accurate, timely, complete
and relevant.
All electronic digital computers today, used a binary i.e., Base-2 numeral system. Decimal digits are
based on powers of 10, where every digit one moves to the left represents another power of 10: ones
(100), tens (101), hundreds (102), thousands (103), etc. Thus, the decimal number two hundred fifty-
five‖ is written as 255, conceiving of it arithmetically as the sum of 2 hundreds, 5 tens, and 5 ones.
Thus, to store this number, ENIAC would only have to turn on 3 vacuum tubes, but there are still a
total of 30 vacuum tubes required just to represent all of the possibilities of these three digits.

On the other hand, binary digits also known as bits are based on powers of 2, where every digit one
moves to the left represents another power of 2: ones (20), twos (21), fours (102), eights (103), sixteens
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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
4
(10 ), etc. Thus, in binary, the number eighteen would be written in Base-2 as 10010, understood
arithmetically as the sum of 1 sixteen, 0 eights, 0 fours, 1 two, and 0 ones:

Likewise, the number two-hundred fifty-five‖ would be written in binary numerals as 11111111,
conceived arithmetically as the sum of 1 one-hundred twenty eight, 1 sixty-four, 1 thirty-two, 1 sixteen,
1 eight, 1 four, 1 two, and 1 one :

Why on earth would computer engineers choose to build a machine to do arithmetic using such a
cryptic, unfamiliar form of writing numbers as a binary, Base-Two numeral scheme? Here’s why. In
any digital numeral system, each digit must be able to count up to one less than the base. Thus, in the
case of the Base-10 system, counting sequence of each decimal digit runs from 0 up to 9, and then back
to 0. To represent a decimal digit, then, one must be able to account for all 10 possibilities in the
counting sequence, 0 through 9, so one must either use a device with ten possible states, like the ten-
position gear used in the Pascaline, or ten separate devices, like the ten separate vacuum tubes used for
each digit in the ENIAC. However, the binary numeral system is Base-2. Thus, given that its digits
also need only to be able to count as high as one less than the base, this means that the counting
sequence of each binary digit runs from 0 only up to 1, and then back again to 0 already. In other words,
whereas ten different numbers can appear in a decimal digit, 0 through 9, the only number that will
ever appear in a binary digit is a 0 or a 1. Thus, rather than having to account for the 10 possibilities of
a decimal digit, one can represent a binary digit with only a single device that has two possible states.
For example, one could represent each binary digit with a simple on/off switch, where the on position
represents a 1 and the off” position represents a 0:

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On-off switch for representing the 1 or 0 of a binary digit.

"Inputting" an eight digit binary number into this domino "machine."

if this domino machine has "output" an eight digit binary number.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
Input-Output Mechanism
A simple model of information processing in which a given input automatically produces a given
output. An input–output mechanism is a closed system in which information is subjected to a fixed
sequence of pre-set operations and there is no interaction with the environment during throughput.
Some behaviourist theories have been criticized as reducing the human organism to an input–output
mechanism. Keyboards, mouse, scanners, etc are some of the input devices while printers, monitors,
headphones, etc are some of the output devices. Another important element of a hardware system is
computer memory.

Input Mechanism
A simple model of information processing in which a given input automatically produces a given
output. An input–output mechanism is a closed system in which information is subjected to a fixed
sequence of pre-set operations and there is no interaction with the environment during throughput. An
input device is something you connect to a computer that sends information into the computer.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
In computing, an input device is a piece of equipment used to provide data and control signals to an
information processing system, such as a computer or information appliance. Examples of input
devices include:
 Keyboards
 Mouse
 Scanners
 Cameras
 Joysticks
 Microphones

Input: What Goes In

Input is the data that you put into the computer system for processing. Here are some common ways
of feeding input data into the system: Typing on a keyboard. Computer keyboards operate in much the
same way as electric typewriter keyboards. The computer responds to what you enter; that is, it
"echoes" what you type by displaying it on the screen in front of you. Pointing with a mouse. A mouse
is a device that is moved by hand over a flat surface. As the ball on its underside rotates, the mouse
movement causes corresponding movement of a pointer on the computer screen. Pressing buttons on
the mouse lets you invoke commands. Scanning with a flatbed scanner, wand reader or bar code reader.
Flatbed scanners act like a copying machine by using light beams to scan a document or picture that is
laid upon its glass face. A great way to send pictures through email! Bar scanners, which you have seen
in retail stores, use laser beams to read special letters, numbers, or symbols such as the zebra-striped
bar codes on many products. You can input data to a computer in many other interesting ways,
including writing, speaking, pointing, or even by just looking at the data.

Input Devices of Computer

As mentioned above the input devices allow the users to send signals to the computer to perform a
certain task. The receiver at this end is the Central Processing Unit (CPU) which then sends the signal
to the output devices. Input devices further classify according to modality like visual or audio, discrete
or continuous, and is it direct or indirect.
Some of the classifications are:
1. Keyboard Devices
 Keyer
 Keyboard
 Lighted Program Function Keyboard (LPFK)

2. Pointing Devices
 A mouse sitting on a desk.
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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
 A computer mouse
 3D mice
 Joysticks
 Pointing sticks
3. Composite Devices
 Wii Remote
 Wii Remote with attached strap
4. Game controller
 Gamepad (or joypad)
 Paddle (game controller)
 Jog dial/shuttle (or knob)
 Wii Remote
5. Visual Devices
 Digital camera
 Digital camcorder
 Portable media player
 Webcam
 Microsoft Kinect Sensor
 Image scanner
 Fingerprint scanner
 Barcode reader
 3D scanner
 Laser rangefinder
 Eye gaze tracker
 Medical Imaging
 Computed tomography
 Magnetic resonance imaging
 Positron emission tomography
 Medical ultrasonography
6. Audio Input Devices
 Microphones
 MIDI keyboard or another digital musical instrument

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
Input Device Picture Meaning and Usefulness
Keyboard  It is one of the most commonly used input devices
to enter data to the computer by pressing of keys.
 A keyboard can be connected to a computer either
by USB (wired) or Bluetooth (wireless).
 Most of the keyboards in modern times have a
QWERTY layout.
Mouse  It is the simplest handheld device used to move a
cursor or a pointer across the screen.
 Earlier the mouse used to have a rollerball
integrated beneath the device for movement
sensor but the modern mouse comes with optical
technology (laser) that controls cursor
movements by a visible or invisible light beam.
 The mouse is normally used on a flat surface and
has two buttons – right and left and a scroll wheel
in the centre.
Joy Stick  It is a pointing device similar to a mouse. It has a
handle with a spherical ball at upper and lower
ends.
 The lower ball helps in its easy movement.
 The movement of the joystick controls the cursor
or a pointer on the screen.
 It can move in all the four directions and enables
the user to easily control the cursor movement.
 Therefore it is used mainly for playing games or
computer-aided design.
 There are different types of joystick such as
displacement joystick, finger-operated joysticks,
isometric joystick, hand-operated joystick, etc.
Light pen  A light pen is also a pointing device that looks
like a pen.
 It is a light-sensitive device used to draw or write
on the screen.
 It includes a photocell and an optical system
placed inside a small tube.
 As soon as the tip of the pen moves on the screen
the photocell sensing element of the pen detects
the screen location and sends the corresponding
signal to the CPU.
Graphic Tablet  A graphic tablet also known as a digitizer is an
input device that is flat and comes with a pen or
stylus.
 It converts the hand-drawn work into a digital
image. The user can draw like a pencil with the
help of a stylus on the flat surface and the
drawing appears on the computer screen.
 They also can capture the user’s signature and
convert it into a digital format.
 Thus it allows converting the drawings or text
into a format, suitable for computer processing.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
Touch screen  It is nowadays used widely in portable devices
such as smartphones, palmtops, tablets, and
laptops to interact with the computer with the help
of your fingers or stylus.
 It is also used in other areas, medical fields,
kiosks, ATMs, room automation, a lot of devices
such as cameras, Car GPS, etc. to have a suitably
intuitive, rapid, or accurate interaction by the user
with the display’s content.
 There are two main types of touch screens
– Resistive and Capacitive touch screens
Microphone  It is an input device to transfer sound into the
computer.
 The analogue sound waves are converted into
electric signals and are further transformed into
digital data and saved in the computer.
 The microphones are used for adding sound to the
presentation, gaming, chatting, voice recognition,
etc.
 The different types of microphones are the
dynamic microphone, condenser microphone,
ribbon microphone, etc .
Scanner  A scanner is an input device which reads an image
or character from a hard copy document and
converts it into a digital file (pdf).
 Optical character recognition techniques are used
in scanners to convert images into digital files.
 The digital image can be saved, edited, printed,
and also can be shared via email.
 There are different types of scanners available in
the market such as flatbed scanner, handheld
scanner, sheet-fed scanner, drum scanner, photo
scanner, etc.
Magnetic Ink  It is a device which can recognize the characters
Character or details on documents that are printed with a
Reader(MICR) special magnetic ink.
 MICR is a device commonly present in banks as they
deal with many cheques every day
 This device is mainly used in banks for the only
reason that it can process a large number of
cheques within minutes with accuracy and is
practically tamperproof.
 The bank’s code number and cheque number have
magnetic ink present in them allowing machines to
read the letters.
 This process is Magnetic Ink Character Recognition
that has fewer errors and is very fast.
Optical Character  It is a technology capable of reading handwritten
Reader(OCR) or printed text on documents and converts them
into digitized text or electronic files (PDFs).
 OCR copies the details using a scanner and the
inbuilt software converts the document into a
two-colour black and white bitmap version.
 It is also a reading device that reads printed text by
scanning it character by character.
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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
 It first converts them into machine-readable code
and saves them in the system memory.
Optical Mark Reader  It is an optical scanner to recognize marks by pen
(OMR) and pencil and is commonly present in educational
institutions to check objective exam papers.

Bar Code Reader  It is an automatic input device that uses visible

red light to scan or ‘read’ the barcode.
 The reflected light is translated into an analogue
signal that is decoded by the computer to identify
the product details from the database.
 It is a reading device but to read barcode data like on
goods, books, etc.
 It can be a handheld scanner or a stationary one but
they both scan the image by converting it to
alphanumeric value on the computer.
Webcam  A Webcam is a hardware input device which is
either connected to the computer by a USB or
inbuilt (in laptops) and is capable of taking still
picture or motion video of the user or an object in
front of it.
 The photos taken care of the compact digital type
which can be uploaded or used over the internet.
Track Ball  A common accessory for notebooks and laptops, that
works as a replacement for a mouse.
 With a similar structure, it has a half inserted ball
which the fingers move to send signals for cursor
movement.
 It is kind of stationary taking very little space.
 It comes in a ball, button, and square shape as well.
Digitizer Responsible for converting analog information into
digital form, a digitizer converts signals into numeric
values stored in a computer. The computer can now
do anything with it as long as the camera is pointing
out the image. A graphic tablet is also a digitizer
converting graphics into binary data. It is ideal for
drawing and image manipulation applications.

Central Processor
The Processor and Memory: Data Manipulation
In a computer the processor is the centre of activity. The processor, as we noted, is also called the
central processing unit (CPU). The central processing unit consists of electronic circuits that interpret
and execute program instructions, as well as communicate with the input, output, and storage devices.
It is the central processing unit that actually transforms data into information. Data is the raw material
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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
to be processed by a computer. Such material can be letters, numbers, or facts like grades in a class,
baseball batting averages, or light and dark areas in a photograph. Processed data becomes information,
data that is organized, meaningful, and useful. In school, for instance, an instructor could enter various
student grades (data), which can be processed to produce final grades and perhaps a class average
(information). Data that is perhaps uninteresting on its own may become very interesting once it is
converted to information. The raw facts (data) about your finances, such as a paycheck or a donation
to charity or a medical bill may not be captivating individually, but together, these and other acts can
be processed to produce the refund or amount you owe on your income tax return (information).
Computer memory, also known as primary storage, is closely associated with the central processing
unit but separate from it. Memory holds the data after it is input to the system and before it is processed;
also, memory holds the data after it has been processed but before it has been released to the output
device. In addition, memory holds the programs (computer instructions) needed by the central
processing unit.

Output Mechanism
The output devices take care of displaying the result after data processing by the input device. It may
be in image, graphic, textual or audio form. These devices show the visual elements on the display. An
output device is something you connect to a computer that has information sent to it. The information
on the screen is soft copy and some of the important output devices are:
1. Monitors
 Cathode-Ray Tube (CRT) Monitor
 Flat-Panel Display Monitor
2. Printers
 Impact Printers
 Character Printers
i. Dot Matrix Printer
ii. Daisy Wheel
 Line Printers
i. Drum Printer
ii. Chain Printer
 Non-impact Printers
 Laser Printers
 Inkjet Printers

3. Speakers
4. Projector
5. Plotter
6. Braille Reader
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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
7. Television
8. Video Card
9. Sound Card
10. Global Positioning System (GPS)
11. Headphones
12. Speech-Generating Device
13. Computer Output Microfilm (COM, or Microfiche)

Output: What Comes Out

Output, the result produced by the central processing unit, is a computer's whole reason for being.
Output is usable information; that is, raw input data that has been processed by the computer into
information. The most common forms of output are words, numbers, and graphics. Word output, for
example, may be the letters and memos prepared by office people using word processing software.
Other workers may be more interested in numbers, such as those found in formulas, schedules, and
budgets. In many cases numbers can be understood more easily when output in the form of charts and
graphics. The most common output devices are computer screens and printers. Screens can vary in
their forms of display, producing text, numbers, symbols, art, photographs, and even video-in full
colour. Printers produce printed reports as instructed by a computer program, often in full colour. You
can produce output from a computer in other ways, including film and voice output.

Output Device Picture Meaning and Usefulness

Monitors  The visual display units are the most important
output device responsible for showing the visual
made of pixels to the user.
 The pixels decide the image sharpness.
 There are two types of viewing screen on the
monitor:
-Cathode-Ray Tube (CRT) Monitor
-Flat-Panel Display Monitor
Printers  The primary feature is to print information on paper.
It is mainly of two types:
-Impact Printers
-Character Printers

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
Speakers  An output device that produces sound after receiving
a command from the computer.
 They support the computers as well as other
hardware devices.
 Now, there are also wireless speakers with Bluetooth
technology.
Projector  This is an optical device that presents visuals on the
screen, stationary and moving both.
 They are present at movie theatres, auditoriums, etc.
 It connects to the computer and displays the image
on it on a larger screen.
Plotter  It is a device to make graphics, prints and other
vector images to give a real life illustration vibe.
 It is mandatory to have a graphic card to use the
device.
 The pen like device that comes with it helps in
replicating the exact design on the computer.
Braille Reader  Made for the blind users, this device is to process
computer data in braille format.
 It allows users with low or no vision to recognize the
data as the braille reader put data on the paper in
embossed format.
 They can run their fingers over it to understand
everything easily.
Television  A very common output device present in most of the
households is a display output device.
 It portrays video and audio files on the screen
according to the user’s needs.
 Before we had CRT screens but now most of us use
plasma displays.
Video Card  This device goes inside the sockets of a motherboard
of the computer system.
 It improvises the digital content appearance in other
output devices.
 It is very important now with many people having
multiple devices just for personal use.
Sound Card  The sound card controls the output of sound signals,
enabling devices like speakers and headphones to
work.
 The sound card is known as an expansion card,
which means it can be added to the motherboard.
 Although a sound card is not essential to a
computer's basic functionality, you need one if you
wish to play games, watch movies, listen to music,
and use audio and video conferencing.
Global Positioning  A device to help users with directions, GPS uses
System satellite technology to track geographical location of
the users.
 There is a continuous latitudinal and longitudinal
calculation to have an accurate result every time.
 Most of the vehicles and smart devices have GPS as
an inbuilt feature.

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Headphones  Similar to speakers, this device has a lower sound
frequency.
 They can’t be easily heard in large areas like grounds
and parks but are only accessible to a single person
using the device.
 A headset is another name for them.

Speech-Generating  SGDs, also known as voice output communication aids,

Device (SGD) generate text to speech.
 A user types something and when the command is sent,
the SGD reads the sentence out loud.

Computer Output  COM is used to create a film image of the page sent from
Microfilm (COM, a computer.
or Microfiche)

Both Input and Output Devices of Computer

There are many devices that have characteristics of both input and output devices. They can receive
data as well as give out a result becoming useful for both purposes. Some of them are:
1. USB Drive – It is a detachable device which can receive data from any computer as well as send out
data to other devices.
2. Modems – It is responsible for transmitting data from one device to another using telephonic lines.
3. CD and DVD Drives – Saves data from the computer in the given format and can also send out data
to other devices with disk space.
4. Headset – It has a speaker which is an output device and a microphone which is an input device.
5. Facsimile – This is a fax machine with scanner being an input device and printer being the output.
6. Modem: A modem sends and receives information over a telephone line or cables.
7. Touch Screen: Touch screens accept input in the form of touch and display the output from the
computer.
8. Network Card (NIC): A network card is an expansion card for a computer that allows the device
to connect to the network or internet.

Difference between Input Devices and Output Devices

S/N Input Device Output Device
1. Accepts user data Reflects user data
2. The user commands them Processor commands them
3. Conversion of friendly instruction into a machine Conversion of machine’s
friendly instructions to user needs
4. Sends data to the processor for execution Sends processed data back to the
user.
5. Helps computer in receiving data Helps computer in displaying data
6. Complex design structure Less complex design structure

Example – Keyboard, Image Scanner, etc. Ex: Monitor, Printers, etc.

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SOFTWARE
The arithmetic power that such hardware provides is useless unless it can be put into service
performing useful calculations in correct sequences involving meaningful numbers. It is computer
software that provides such meaningful, useful direction. Indeed, it is the rise of software that has
enabled computers to evolve from mere number crunchers into technologies that now enrich so many
areas of human life. Consider the analogy of computing one's taxes. A calculator can certainly be of
assistance in this process, speeding up and improving the accuracy of the arithmetic that is involved.
However, a calculator cannot compute your taxes for you. Rather, it is the tax form that specifies which
arithmetic operations should be performed, in what order, and with what numbers. In this sense, a tax
form has much in common with a computer program, which is a also a defined sequence of actions
involving correct information that, when performed, produces a desired result. For example, in the case
of the tax software that is widely available today, the computer program is modelled after the program
for human action that is prescribed by the tax form.

TYPES OF SOFTWARE
They are set of computer programmes that operates and perform specific task. This programmes are
detailed step by step instruction that tells a computer how to carry out a specific task. They are written
in programming languages such as basic, Pascal, etc. It is usually distributed in one or more diskettes.
There are two types of software which are.
Software are made up of two types, which are: System Software and Application Software
System Software: The system software are programs and series of instruction arranged in sequence,
used by computer for effective operation, software combines favourable with hard ware to help use
computer user. The system software can also be defined as already installed programs by the
manufacturers.
System Software is the type of software which is the interface between application software and
system. Low level languages are used to write the system software. System Software maintains the
system resources and gives the path for application software to run. An important thing is that
without system software, system cannot run. It is a general purpose software. System software can be
divided into two parts, namely: Operating System and Translator:
Operating System: An operating system is a computer program, works as interface between user and
hard ware and provides common services for computer programs. The entire process or functionality
of computer system depends on the operating system. It is developed by using C++, C, and assembly
languages.
An operating system performs some variety of tasks like, It manages files and directory creation and
deletion, process creation, deletion, synchronization, memory allocation and deallocation. An
operating system also prevents the computer system from unauthorized access and secures the
resources, information and data. Its examples are Microsoft Windows, Linux, Unix, DOS.

Operating System: These are the part of system software that enables the compute to do some work
of its own without interruption of the users. There are various types of operating system e.g. Ms
DOS, Windows, Novel, Unit, Macintosh etc. (note: Novel and Unit are basically network
programmes).
The translator: This is the part of system software that enables the computer changes human
language to machine language.
Machine Language: These are language that the computer understand, this language are writing
using the combination of O.S and I.s.
Example of computer language are
(i) Interpreter
(ii) Complier
(iii) Assemblers

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
Application Software: Application Software is one of the type of software which runs or executes as
per user request. It runs on the platform which is provided by system software. High level languages
are used to write the application software. High level languages such as java, C, C++ etc are used to
develop the application software. Application software is a specific purpose software which is intended
to perform some task grouped together. Without an operating system application software cannot be
installed. Its examples are Photoshop, VLC media player, Mozilla Firefox, Opera, Google chrome etc.
The main difference between System Software and Application Software is that without system
software, system cannot run on the other hand without application software, system always runs. These
are software that can only be run when the required software are installed.
The application software can further be divided into two which are
Application package: these are software that are designed and developed by software companies,
such as Microsoft office,
Corel Suit Graphics, etc.
User application/tailor made package: these are specially developed by computer programmers,
companies and analyst to meet their specific needs.
3. People’s ware: These are the computer users. The computer hardware and software are not complete
without the computer people’s ware (users).
Application Software: It is designed to help accomplish a certain type of task like typing letters,
calculating, designing, etc. example are Word Processing, Database Management, and Spreadsheet.

It can be clearly seen that the system and application program or software depend upon the operating
system which is act as the interface between user and computer hardware.

Difference between System Software and Application Software

S/N System Software Application Software
1. System Software maintain the system Application software is built for specific
resources and give the path for tasks.
application software to run.
2. Low level languages are used to write the While high level languages are used to write
system software. the application software.
3. Its a general purpose software. While its a specific purpose software.
4. Without system software, system can’t While without application software system
run. always runs.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
5. System software runs when system is While application software runs as per the
turned on and stop when system is turned user’s request.
off.
6 System Software programming is Application software programming is
complex than application software. simpler as comparison to system software.

Example of system software are Example of application software are

operating system, etc. Photoshop, VLC player etc.

Difference between Application Software and Operating System

S/N Application Software Operating System
1. A computer program which is intended A system computer program that manages
to perform some task classified along. hardware and software resources and provides
common services for computer programs.
2. Application software is downloaded Operating system comes installed on the
from internet. device purchased.
3. It is developed by using virtual basic, It is developed by using C++, C, and assembly
C++, C, JAVA. languages.
4. It is usually in Megabytes (MB). While it is usually is Gigabytes (GB).
5. It is built to perform some specific tasks. It works as interface between user and
hardware and perform some variety of tasks
like memory management, scheduling, process
management etc.
6. It always depends upon operating But it does not depend upon application
system. software.it provides the path to execute or to
run the application software.
7. It runs when the user desires to run the it boots up when the user wants and run until
application. the user switches off the machine.

It’s examples are Photoshop, VLC It’s examples are Microsoft Windows, Linux,
player etc. Unix, DOS.

Windows Application
It is an application that can run on the windows platform. Graphical user interface forms can be
created using this. We can create web applications using IDE Microsoft Visual Studio. This can be
done using a variety of programming languages such C#, C++, J#, Visual Basic and many more.
Windows applications on a computer system –

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
Web Application
Web application is an application that runs on web browser making use of web server. It makes use
of is Microsoft IIS configuration i.e., Internet Information Services (in developing web applications).
A variety of web applications using .net can be made. These include many ranging from simple
HTML pages to highly interactive business applications.
Examples of Web applications –

Difference between Windows Application and Web Application

S/N Windows application Web application
1. It is installed in the windows platform using Web application is installed on web
Windows operating system. server.
2. It is accessible only from system in which it is It can be accessed from anywhere
installed. around world using internet.
3. This application can be directly executed using IIS aka internet information services
operating system on system. server is needed to run web applications.

4. It Can Run only on Windows platform. It can run on a variety of platforms

including is Mac, Linux, Solaris,
Android etc.
5. It is specific to bit. If it is designed for 32-bit OS, it The web application is independent of
will not work for 64-bit operating system. type of system.

Examples: Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Image Ready, Examples: Chrome, Internet Explorer,
Adobe Photoshop, MS Excel, Ms Word, MS Firefox
Powerpoint

Programming Languages and Compiling

As was noted earlier, a modern electronic computer still remains, at its most fundamental hardware
level, a binary, digital arithmetic machine. The processor that is at its core operates on data‖ that are
understood to be binary numbers. Each digit of such a data item consists of either a 0 or 1 and is
represented and sent to the processor in the form of an electrical signal with a voltage that is evaluated
to be either high or low which in turn serves to flip certain of the processor’s on/off transistor switches
in such a way that mimics the inputting of this binary number into the processor. Similarly, each of the
basic arithmetic operations that the processor performs – e.g., addition, subtraction, multiplication, and
division – is itself described by a unique binary number. Thus, the instruction to perform a certain
arithmetic operation can itself be sent to the processor as a binary number. A collection of binary digits
represented as high/low electrical signals trigger the processor in such a way as to perform the
particular chain reaction of transistor switches that mimics that particular arithmetic operation. This
reaction then outputs a representation of the binary number that is the correct result for that operation
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with the given data. Thus, at the most fundamental level, a software program that a computer’s
processor performs consists of a very long stream of binary numbers, some of which represent a
particular arithmetic operation to be performed and others of which represent the data to be used in that
operation.
100011 00011 01000 00000 00001 00100
MACHINE LANGUAGE
The form in which information is denoted or represented by a combination of “1” and “0”s is called machine
language. Programs and data are ultimately represented in machine language in memory and other hardware of
the computer. To start with computer programmers used machine language for programming. It was tedious
since each operation that the computer has to perform is denoted by a particular combination of”1” s and”0”s.
Also each computer had its own machine language code. One has to remember all these codes to write a program.
While machine language had the drawbacks mentioned above, it was very efficient in using computer circuits.
There was no necessity for software to convert since we can directly represent the machine language in the
computer circuits without the necessity of conversion.

Features of Machine Language

1. Translation Free
2. First Programmer
3. High Speed

ASSEMBLY LANGUAGE
As computer field advanced, computer scientists felt the necessity of making computer programming
easier. They invented computer languages that are easy to remember and use. These languages called
assembly language uses mnemonic codes. for Example: For adding two quantities X and Y, You may
code as follows. ADD X Y ADD is called operation code that tells the computer what operation it has
to perform. X and Y are called operation addresses. These refer to the memory addresses where the
quantities you want to add are stored. X refers to the location of first quantity and Y the second quantity.
These are called symbolic address, since they do not refer to any fixed address. Software called
assembler translates this assembly language program into machine language program which you can
load into computer memory and execute.

Features Assembly Language

1. The assembly language uses mnemonic codes, for programming. So it is easier for the programmer
to use assembly language than machine language for programming.
2. The assemblers, in addition to translating the assembler language program into machine language,
list the program statements (called source code) and also the syntax errors that the programmer
committed.

HIGH LEVEL LANGUAGES

During 1960s computers started to gain popularity and it became necessary to develop languages that
were more like natural languages such as English so that a common user could use the computer
efficiently. Since assembly language required deep knowledge of computer architecture, it demanded
programming as well as hardware skills to use computers. Due to computer’s widespread usage, early
1960s saw the emergence of the third generations programming languages (3GL). Languages such as
COBOL, FORTRAN, BASIC, and C are examples of 3GLs and are considered high-level languages.
High level languages are similar to English language. Programs written using these languages can be
machine independent. A single high-level statement can substitute several instructions in machine or
assembly language. Unlike assembly and machine programs, high-level programs may be used with
different types of computers with little or no modification, thus reducing the re-programming time.

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Features of High-Level Languages
1. Compilers
2. Readability
3. Machine Independent
4. Easy Debugging
5. Easier to Maintain
6. Low Development Cost

The resulting object program can be executed. However, the Processing environment is one of the
simplest to use. When it is started, a simple "sketch window" appears that has six buttons at the top, a
program editor window below this, and a text output window at the bottom, as pictured on the right in
figure below.

The program editor currently contains no program code i.e., it contains an empty program. But if we
click the leftmost (Run) button  at the top of the sketch window, another window (pictured on the
left in figure below) appears. It is called the visual output window because it contains graphical output
produced by a program. In this example, no output is displayed because the program is empty.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
A program without any useful code is not very interesting, so we add this line: println("Hello World!");
as shown in figure b. Once again, we click the Run button. The output: Hello World! Appears in the
text output window. (No output appears in the visual output window because we are outputting text,
not graphics.) To obtain a simple graphic representation in addition to the text output, we could add
the line ellipse (50, 50, 50, and 50)
This will produce an ellipse with centre (50, 50), and major and minor axes both 50 (pixels) that is, a
circle with centre (50, 50) and radius 50 in the visual output window as shown in Figure 1-3. 4

And if we wanted to add some colour, the two lines of code: background (0); fill (0, 0, 255); as shown
in figure below can be added to fill the background with one colour (black as specified by the colour
value 0, which indicates no light) and the circle with another (blue as specified by the red green blue
colour triple indicating no red, no green and full intensity, 255, blue).

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
If we prefer to have a more realistic picture of the earth, we need only download an image file of
the Earth into the folder containing our program and modify the program as shown in figure below.

Computer Memory
Another important element of a hardware system is computer memory. It is where all the data goes
either temporarily or permanently. It is mainly of two types – volatile memory and non-volatile
memory. Volatile memory needs the power to function and store information like static RAM or
dynamic RAM.
Dynamic one is complicated to handle in terms of interface and thus requires regular refresh cycles.
Meanwhile, SRAM has a better interface but requires six transistors per bit.
Non Volatile Memory doesn’t require power to retain information and some of the examples are:
ROM, Flash memory, Optical Disks, etc.

RAM in a Computer
RAM stands for Random-Access Memory, but what does that mean? Your computer RAM is
essentially short term memory where data is stored as the processor needs it. This isn't to be confused
with long-term data that's stored on your hard drive, which stays there even when your computer is
turned off.

ROM in a Computer
ROM is an acronym for Read-Only Memory. It refers to computer memory chips containing permanent
or semi-permanent data. Unlike RAM, ROM is non-volatile; even after you turn off your computer,
the contents of ROM will remain. Almost every computer comes with a small amount of ROM
containing the boot firmware.

STORAGE DEVICE
Secondary Storage
Secondary storage provides additional storage separate from memory. Secondary storage has several
advantages. For instance, it would be unwise for a college registrar to try to keep the grades of all the
students in the college in the computer's memory; if this were done, the computer would probably not
have room to store anything else. Also, memory holds data and programs only temporarily. Secondary

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storage is needed for large volumes of data and also for data that must persist after the computer is
turned off.
The two most common secondary storage mediums are magnetic disk and magnetic tape. A magnetic
disk can be a diskette or a hard disk. A diskette is usually 3-1/2 inches in diameter (in some rare cases
older disks are 5-1/4 inches). A diskette is removable so you can take your data with you. Hard disks,
shown in figure below, have more storage capacity than diskettes and also offer faster access to the
data they hold. Hard disks are often contained in disk packs shown in Figure 6 that is built into the
computer so your data stays with the computer. Disk data is read by disk drives. Personal computer
disk drives read diskettes; most personal computers also have hard disk drives. Modern personal
computers are starting to come with removable storage media, like Zip disks. These disks are slightly
larger than a diskette and can be inserted and removed like a diskette, but hold much more data than a
diskette and are faster for the CPU to access than a diskette. Most modern computers also come with a
CD-ROM drive. A CD is an optical disk, it uses a laser beam to read the disk. CD's are removable and
store large volumes of data relatively inexpensively. Some CD drives are read only memory (ROM),
which means that your computer can read programs from CD's, but you cannot save data to the CD
yourself. Recently CD-RW drives and disks have become widely available that allow you to create
your own CDs by "writing" data such as music and photos to the CD.
Apart from the main memory we also have we also have an auxiliary storage device that act as a
backup. That is, it assist the main memory in storing information that are not presently required. i.e.
disks, video cd’s, etc they can store information for a very long period time.

FIXED DISK
A fixed hard drive is one where the disk mechanism is “permanently” mounted inside a drive case,
computer, or other device. The drive cannot be physically replaced or removed without opening up the
device or case it resides in, unscrewing it, and disconnecting any attached data and power cables.

REMOVABLE DISK
A removable disk is media that enables a user to move data between computers without having to open
their computer. A removable disk is sometimes referred to as a removable drive, removable storage,
or removable media.
Examples of removable disks
Card Reader (e.g., SD Card and Memory card reader.)
Floppy diskettes
CD, DVD, Blu-ray disc
Tape drive cartridges
USB thumb drives

Difference between Hard Disk and Removable Disk

A hard drive consists of spinning platters along with a roving head which can read data that are
magnetically imprinted on the platters. On the other hand, flash disks store data without moving parts.
This makes them less likely to fail as they generate very little heat.
DISK: They are used for recording with the microcomputers. The amount of information they can
hold depends on the sizes, density or type. i.e. floppy disk, CD, Hard Disk.
FLOPPY DISK: It is a round magnetically coated plastic disk inside a protective jacket. They are two
sizes 5.25 or 3.5 inches and have different storage capacity’s. The 5.25 inches floppy disk is inside a
hard plastic case.

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Part of a Diskette
Protective Case: This keeps dirty, dust and other harmful material from touching the delicate surface
of the diskette.
Label: This is where you can write on the disk.
Diskette Hub: The round hole in the middle of the diskette where the disk drive mechanism actually
touches the disk to make it spin.
Readwrite Opening: This is where the computer get or put information off or into a diskette.
Media: This is the surface of the diskette that is shiny and looks kind of reddish or brownish. This is
the actual place where the information reads/writes from/to.
Write Project Notch: This helps you prevent accidental damage to a diskette.
Write Project Tab: A small piece of silver in the box that your diskette came with and also serves as
the lock.

Handling of a Diskette
1. A diskette should not be folded or bent.
2. The exposed area should not be touched.
3. Diskette should be returned to the file jacket after use.
4. Diskette should be inserted carefully into the drive.
5. Do not place the diskette in a hot environment or near magnetic objects.

Compact Disk (CD): A non-magnetic optional disk used range amount of information. A CD can
store 600mb of information, equivalent to over 1700 double density floppy disk.
Hard Disk: This referred to the hard disk drive that stores data/information and not the part that
records or reads from it.

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Magnetic tape, which comes on a reel or cartridge shown in figure below, is similar to tape that is
played on a tape recorder. Magnetic tape reels are mounted on tape drives when the data on them needs
to be read by the computer system or when new data is to be written on the tape. Magnetic tape is
usually used for creating backup copies of large volumes of data because tape is very inexpensive
compared to disks and CDs.

Categories of Software
Generally speaking, software can be categorized as system software or applications software. A subset
of system software is an operating system, the underlying software found on all computers.
Applications software, software that is applied, can be used to solve a particular problem or to perform
a particular task. Applications software may be either custom or packaged. Many large organizations
pay programmers to write custom software, software that is specifically tailored to their needs. We will
use several forms of system software (e.g. Windows 2000, MacOS) and several application software
programs (e.g. Word, Excel, PowerPoint) in this course.
Some Task-Oriented Software
Most users, whether at home or in business, are drawn to task-oriented software, sometimes called
productivity software that can make their work faster and their lives easier. The collective set of
business tasks is limited, and the number of general paths towards performing these tasks is limited,
too. Thus, the tasks and the software solutions fall, for the most part, into just a few categories, which
can be found in most business environments. These major categories are word processing (including

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desktop publishing), spreadsheets, database management, graphics, and communications. We will
present a brief description of each category here.

Word Processing/Desktop Publishing

The most widely used personal computer software is word processing software. This software lets you
create, edit, format, store, and print text and graphics in one document. In this definition it is the three
words in the middle-edit, format, and store-that reveal the difference between word processing and
plain typing. Since you can store the memo or document you type on disk, you can retrieve it another
time, change it, reprint it, or do whatever you like with it. You can see what a great time-saver word
processing can be: unchanged parts of the stored document do not need to be retyped; the whole revised
document can he reprinted as if new. As the number of features in word processing packages has grown,
word processing has crossed the border into desktop publishing territory. Desktop publishing packages
are usually better than word processing packages at meeting high-level publishing needs, especially
when it comes to typesetting and color reproduction. Many magazines and newspapers today rely on
desktop publishing software. Businesses use it to produce professional-looking newsletters, reports,
and brochures-both to improve internal communication and to make a better impression on the outside
world.
Electronic Spreadsheets
Spreadsheets, made up of columns and rows, have been used as business tools for centuries (Figure
below). A manual spreadsheet can be tedious to prepare and, when there are changes, a considerable
amount of calculation may need to be redone. An electronic spreadsheet is still a spreadsheet, but the
computer does the work. In particular, spreadsheet software automatically recalculates the results when
a number is changed. This capability lets business people try different combinations of numbers and
obtain the results quickly. This ability to ask "What if . . . ?" helps business people make better, faster
decisions. In this course, we use Microsoft's Excel spreadsheet application software.

Database Management
Software used for database management-the management of a collection of interrelated facts-handles
data in several ways. The software can store data, update it, manipulate it, report it in a variety of views,
and print it in as many forms. By the time the data is in the reporting stage-given to a user in a useful
form-it has become information. A concert promoter, for example, can store and change data about
upcoming concert dates, seating, ticket prices, and sales. After this is done, the promoter can use the
software to retrieve information, such as the number of tickets sold in each price range or the percentage
of tickets sold the day before the concert. Database software can be useful for anyone who must keep
track of a large number of facts. Database software is shown in figure below.

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Graphics
It might seem wasteful to show graphics to business people when standard computer printouts are
readily available. However, graphics, maps, and charts can help people compare data and spot trends
more easily, and make decisions more quickly. In addition, visual information is usually more
compelling than a page of numbers. We use Microsoft's PowerPoint and Adobe's Photoshop
application software for graphics. We use it in two ways: for doing original drawings, and for creating
visual aids to project as a support to an oral presentation.
Desktop
The information that appears on the computer soon after the computer is turned on. The desktop
contains a number of icons, or images, that you can click on to start programs.

Icon
A small picture or image representing a command (such as print), a file, or a program. When you
click or double-click on an icon, you start a command, open a file, or launch a program.

Folder(s)
Similar to storing files in a physical file cabinet, you store computer files, such as documents or
pictures, in a folder. To open a folder you double-click on the folder icon with the left mouse button.
When you open a folder its contents will appear in a window.

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Cursor
A small image on the screen indicating where you are pointing; the mouse controls the movements of the cursor.
The cursor can appear in different forms, including:

Browser
Software, such as Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, Google Chrome or Safari are used to access the
web.

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Clicking
Pressing and releasing a button on a mouse to select or activate the area on the screen where the cursor
is pointing. Usually, you click on the left side of the mouse (called a left click). For more advanced
functions, you click on the right side of the mouse called a right click).

Menu
The menu bar contains commands that you select to make choices in a program.

WINDOW(S)
A window is a separate viewing area on a computer display screen in a system that allows multiple
viewing areas as part of a graphical user interface (GUI). Windows are managed by a windows manager
as part of a windowing system. A window can usually be resized by the user.
A framed area of a computer screen that appears in front of the desktop. Sometimes the appearance of
a window means that you have entered another website or it may mean you are still on the same website.
You can have multiple windows open at a time. The active window moves to the front of the others.
Click on the minimize button to hide a window, often indicated by an underscore (_) or minus sign (-)
in a top corner. The window disappears, but you can bring the window back by clicking on its button
in the task bar (see diagram).
Windows may refer to any of the following:

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Microsoft Windows called Windows

Before the release of Microsoft Windows, Microsoft users were used to the single task command
line operating system MS-DOS. Because Microsoft names most of its products with one word, it
needed a word that best described its new GUI operating system. Microsoft chose "Windows" because
of the multiple windows that allow different tasks and programs to run at the same time. Because you
cannot trademark a common name like "Windows," it's officially known as "Microsoft Windows". The
first version of Microsoft Windows was version 1.0, released in 1985.
Microsoft Windows (also referred to as Windows or Win) is a graphical operating system developed
and published by Microsoft. It provides a way to store files, run software, play games, watch videos,
and connect to the Internet.
Microsoft Windows was first introduced with version 1.0 on November 10, 1983. Over a dozen
versions of Windows were released after that, including the current version, Windows 10.
Editions of Windows
Starting with Windows XP, Microsoft has published various editions of Windows. Each of
these Windows editions has the same core operating system, but some editions have additional features,
at an additional cost. The two most common editions of Windows for home computers are Windows
Home and Windows Professional.
Windows Home
Windows Home (also called Win Home) is the basic edition of Windows. It provides all the
fundamental functions of Windows, such as connecting to the Internet, browsing the web, watching
videos, using office software, and playing video games. It is the least expensive edition of Windows,
and it comes preinstalled on many new computers.

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Windows Pro
Windows Professional (also called Windows Pro, or Win Pro) is an enhanced Windows edition, for
power users, and small to medium sized businesses. It includes all the features of Windows Home,
plus the following:

Business Editions
Windows Professional for Workstations and Windows Enterprise provide advanced features for
professional studios and large businesses. For more information, refer to the side-by-side comparison
in the official Microsoft Windows business edition comparison chart.
Microsoft Windows
Windows 11
Windows 10
Windows 8 and 8.1
Windows 7
Windows Vista
Windows XP
Windows 2000
Windows NT
Windows ME
Windows 98
Windows 95
Windows 3.1 and 3.11

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MS-DOS (Microsoft Disk Operating System)

MS-DOS stands for Microsoft Disk Operating System and is also known as Microsoft DOS. MS-
DOS was the Microsoft-marketed version of the first operating system (OS) to be widely installed on
personal computers (PCs).
It was essentially the same OS that Bill Gates's young company developed for IBM as Personal
Computer - Disk Operating System (PC-DOS).

LINUX
Linux is the best-known and most-used open source operating system. As an operating system, Linux
is software that sits underneath all of the other software on a computer, receiving requests from those
programs and relaying these requests to the computer's hardware.

UNIX
Unix is an operating system. It supports multitasking and multi-user functionality. Unix is most widely
used in all forms of computing systems such as desktop, laptop, and servers. On Unix, there is a
Graphical user interface similar to windows that support easy navigation and support environment.

VIRUS AND ANTIVIRUS

Virus can be defined as a piece of rebellious software which puts itself inside another programme and
duplicate itself by spreading from memory to storage and even into diskette. This affect the well-
functioning of other programs and the program may become malfunctions or inaccessible. They
produce variety of symptoms in the system. Some even multiply without much change. They can
damage files and hard disk. There are various types of virus which include file infector and Trojan
horse.
File Infector: A file infector virus adds code to the file that runs program. When the program is running
the virus spread to other program. This virus is very effective and can damage files and program e.g.
anti com viruses. This set of virus can only be removed by using an antivirus programme from a clean
disk.

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Trojan Horse: These are the most destructive viruses and are difficult to recognize once they infected
file or disk they may not be removed again. One thing about this virus is that they are distinguished as
legitimate programs.

HOW TO PREVENT AGAINST VIRUS

Virus can be prevented through the following ways:-
1. Install anti-virus software’s on your system that will automatically detect virus when virus
infected disk is inserted.
2. Turn the system essential files to read only. Files like command.com, config.sys and auto
exe.bat and programmes executable files.
3. Rightly protect your disk if allowed scan it first before using it.
4. When a virus is discovered stop work immediately and cleanse the virus from such disk then
boot the system again.
5. Make sure the computer environment is always clean and free from dust.
6. Don’t eat anything that will attract insect and throw it into the computer system.
7. Always be current with latest antivirus and have a copy on your computer.

ANTIVIRUS
No matter how dangerous and destructive a virus can be, there is antivirus program to clean such virus.
Antivirus are program written to prevent, cleanse and attach virus infected file or disk. There are many
antivirus programme, they include central processing antivirus (CPAV), Microsoft antivirus (MAV),
f piol antivirus, doctor Solomon antivirus (toolkit), windows 95 antivirus, Norton antivirus (NNAV),
windows 97, 98 and 2000 antivirus.

EXAMPLE OF VIRUS
VIRUS NAME TYPE FILES INFECTED
AID TROJAN COM
DEMON TROJAN COM
LEPROSY TROJAN COM
RECOVERY 382 TROJAN COM
AIRCOP BOOT BOOT SECTOR
BLOODY BOOT BOOT SECTOR
DISK KILLER 2 BOOT BOOT SECTOR
HAND HONG BOOT BOOT SECTOR
AMOEBA FILE COM
CEMENTERY FILE COM
DADA FILE COM
TERRO FILE COM

COMPUTER BUTTON
Power Button: This button turns your computer on or off.
Turbo Button: This button toggles between off and on. If ON increase the speed, if OFF reduces it.
Reset Button: This button restarts your system if there is a system failure.
Keylock Button: This button helps your computer with the system key. Thereby prevent others from
using it.

COMPUTER LIGHT
They are up to 5 light in the CPU.
Power Indicators: Comes on when you switch on the system.
Turbo: Comes on when the turbo button has been put on.

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Add (Hard Disk Drive): Comes on when the computer is reading from hard disk or copying
information to a hard disk.
Add (Floppy Disk Drive): This is found on the floppy disk drive comes up when computer is reading
or writing information from/to the floppy disk.
Digital Speed: This displays a digital number which represents speed at which your computer works.

TASK BAR AND START BUTTON

The task bar is a horizontal line located at down of your computer screen or window, its function is to
display an activeor running program in your computer. Start button is located at the left hand side of
your task bar, it is the menu button of your computer, this is thelocation you will find all your
application in your computer.
RECYCLE BIN
Recycle bin is just like a waste bin, were all your deleted files are been saved or kept after deleted
from your computer.
HOW TO DELETE FILES TO THE RECYCLE BIN
1) Right click on the file, folder, application, etc. you which to delete,
2) Left click on delete 3) Left click on yes

HOW TO RESTORE A DELETED FILE FROM RECYCLE BIN

1) Right click on recyclebin, and left click on open or double-click to open
2) Right click on the file you which to restore and left click on restore or double click to restore
3) Theleft click restoreif display. Note: any file, folder or application deleted from the recycle bin
cannot be recovered again.

HOW TO SET DATE AND TIME

Go to the right side of the task bar, click on the time and date showed, a dialog box will appear, set
the time and date, then left click on ok.
HOW TO SCAN A DEVICE, FILE, FOLDER, APP, ETC
Right click on the file, folder, etc, left click on scan, and left click on ok
MICROSOFT PUBLISHER DEFINITION OF PUBLISHER
This is an application package designed by micro office for graphical designing typing of document.
Publisher can also be defined as a package that is modifying for already made design. A publisher is
already made design.
TYPE OF PUBLICATION SET
1) The blank page size
2) Advertisement
3) Banners etc

THINGS THAT CAN BE FOUND IN MICROSOFT PUBLISHER

1) Title Bar
2) Menu Bar
3) Standard Bar
4) Formatting Bar
5) Control Buttons
6) Formatting Publication
7) Scroll Bar
8) Object Bar
9) Electronic

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Title Bar: this is a bar located at the top of Microsoft polisher window or embedment: The title bar
display the name of document or application you are working on
Menu bar: this bar is located directly under the title bar, the menu true all the availablecommands in
any application package
Standard Bar: this bar is located directly neat themenu bar by different and it is madeup of icons
arepictorial that serves as standard to themenu command
Formation Bar: these bar is located directly under the standard by default the formatting bar is been
used for your text edition and formatting your graphical designing
CONTROL BUTTONS
This is located at the right hand side of the title bar there are three control buttons we have:-
1) Minimizebutton
2) Restored down
3) Close respectively buttons

Minimizebutton:- this is to bring down entirely the application or window you areworking on 
Restoredown:- this is used to reducean activewindow to an adjustablesize  Closerespectively:- this
button use to end an activeapplication running on your desktop
Format Publication: Format Publication: - This is bar used in editing your publication set Scroll
Bar: - This is a bar used to movearound in an electronicpage.
There are Two Type of Scroll Bar:-
1) Vertical scroll bar
2) Horizontal scroll bar
 Vertical scroll bar: - This is used to moveyour electronicpageleft and right
 Horizontal scroll bar: - This is used to moveyour electronicpageup and down.
Object Bar: - This is a bar set aside for typing your publication set the object cannot be used in
formatting object
Electronic Page: - This is space set aside for typing your document and designing of graphical work.
BARS IN PUBLICATION
MENU BAR: There are several thing found in the menu bar

FILE MENU 
New: This is used in creating a new blank document in another window  Open:- This is a used to
open am assisting  Save: This is a command in which we used to in storing document for future use.
 Save as: This is command that save an already saved document with a different name and location
 Close: This is a command used to close an active window  Page set up: - This command used in
setting electronic page on how you want the width, height, paper, orientation. /  Print setup:- This
command is used in setting your document on how you want to look like after printing  Print preview:-
This is used in viewing your document or show you how your works look after printing
EDIT MENU
 Undo: This command is to undo a done work.
 Redo: This command is use to redo a work that has already been undo
 Cut: This is use to remove a selected text or shape from its position
 Copy: This command is use to collect a duplicate of a selected text or shape without removing the
original from its position
 Office clipboard: This command display a dialog box where all the shape and text that is been copied
or cut is display
 Paste: This command is use to display a particular text or shape that is been copied or cut
 Delete text: This command is use to delete selected text from the document.

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 Delete object: This command is use to delete a selected object from the document
 Delete page: This command is use to delete a particular page.
 Move page: This command is use to move a selected page from one window to another
 Select all: This command is use to select all text in the document
 Find: I t enable you to search or look a particular text, word or sentence in your document
 Replace: This command enable you to replace a word or group of words in the document with another
 Go to: This command is use to take you where you want to go in your document. E g. paragraph,
page, etc

VIEW MENU
 Task pane: This command display a dialog box where an active command is display
 Tool bars: This command is use to insert and to remove the bars in your Microsoft publisher
 Rulers: This command is use to insert and to remove the ruler on your document
 Picture: This command is use to instruct your view towards the picture in your document.
 Header & footer: This command is use to insert a text or write–up at the top or bottom of the page
 Zoom: This command is use to zoom your page higher or lower.
 Insert menu: This menu consist of several command in it
 Page: This command is use to insert a new blank page in that same active window, either before
current page or after the current page.
 Duplicate page: This command is use to double an active page
 Section: This command is use to insert a section page to the document
 Page Number: This command is use to insert number into your page
 Date & Time: This command is use to insert the current date or time into the current document you
are working on
 Symbols: This command is use to insert symbols that are not on your keyboard Unicode characters.
 The Gallery object: This command is to insert a design from the object gallery dialog box.
 Picture: This command is use to insert an already saved picture from your computer to your
electronic page.
 Text box: This command is use insert a box in which your text is been type in.
 Text file: This command is use to insert a text saved file from your computer
 Object: This command is used to insert an embedded object into the document.

STANDARD BAR
The standard bar consist of shortcuts to your Menu bar such as
 New: This is used in creating a new blank document in another window
 Open: - This is a used to open am assisting
 Save: This is a command in which we used to in storing document for future use.
 Print preview: - This is used in viewing your document or show you how your works look after
printing
 Undo: This command is to undo a done work.
 Redo: This command is use to redo a work that has already been undo
 Cut: This is use to remove a selected text or shape from its position
 Copy: This command is use to collect a duplicate of a selected text or shape without removing the
original from its position
 Office clipboard: This command display a dialog box where all the shape and text that is been copied
or cut is display
 Paste: This command is use to display a particular text or shape that is been.

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Shortcut Keys of Computer A-Z | Meaning, Uses of F1 to F12 Keys
Know the Shortcut Keys of Computer A-Z
In this write-up, we have compiled the major shortcut keys of the computer. We have listed down over
100 shortcut keys in computer and other applications.
Explore the Ctrl and F keys shortcuts and usage. Alongside, know the shortcut keys for Microsoft
Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook. Also, these are the lists of some Windows, YouTube, and
chrome shortcut keys to go through.
Shortcut Keys
A shortcut key refers to a special key combination that makes a specific command to be executed.
Usually, shortcut keys are the combination of Ctrl or Alt keys with other keys. These serve as a quick
way to serve and execute a command and fasten up processes.
The Use of F1 to F-12 Keys
The operating system or currently running program defines special functions for the function or F-
keys. These keys are labelled as F-1 to F12. These are often combined with Ctrl or Alt keys.
The lists of the common functions of the F-keys. However, not all programs support the function keys.
They might differ based on the setting of your system or control panel.
KEYS USAGE
F1 Help key in almost every program. When pressed, it opens a help screen of the application or
program you are using. F key + WINKEY opens the Microsoft Windows help and support
center press the key to open the task paneF1 key enters the CMOS Setup
F2 In Microsoft Windows (all versions) – Renames a highlighted file, folder or icon edits the
active cell in Microsoft Excel To open document window in MS Word – Ctrl+Alt+F2 To
display a print preview in MS-Word – Ctrl + F2 To rename a selected file or folder quickly
F2 key enters the CMOS Setup
F3 To open the search feature in Windows Explorer, Firefox and Chrome To repeat the last
entered command in MS-DOS or Windows Command Line Change the lowercase to
uppercase in the highlighted text in MS Word Opens the mission control on an Apple computer
that runs the MacOS X operating system
F4 In Windows 95 to XP, opens the find Window To close the open window or shut down the
system – Alt+ F4 Closes the open window or tab in the active windows in Microsoft Windows
– Ctrl+F4 In Explorer, it places the cursor in the address bar
F5 Refreshes or reloads the active pages, programs or documents Forces a complete refresh of
the web page – Ctrl+F5In MS PowerPoint, it starts a slideshow In MS Word, it opens the ‘find,
replace and go to’ window
F6 In most of the internet browsers, it moves the cursor to the address bar lets you switch between
Word documents by Ctrl+Shift+F6
F7 Used for checking spellings and grammar in the Microsoft programs F7+Shift runs a
Thesaurus check of the highlighted word
F8 To enter the Windows Startup Menu and to access the Windows safe mode Enables the extend
mode for arrow keys MacOS, it displays a thumbnail image for all workspaces
F9 It refreshes the document in Microsoft word you can send and receive e-mail in Outlook With
Ctrl+F9, you can insert empty fields in a Word fileIt displays a thumbnail for each window in
a single workspace with MacOS 10.3 or later
F10 Opens the menu bar of an open application maximizes the window in Word with Ctrl+F10
With Shift+10, it works the same as right-click on any highlighted file, icon or internet link
F11 With F12, you can enter and exit full-screen mode You can add a new spreadsheet in Excel
with Shift+F11 It hides all the open windows and shows the desktop
F12 It opens the ‘Save As’ window in MS word to open a document in MS Word, use Ctrl+F12
With Shift+12, you can save the MS Word document you can print a document with
Ctrl+Shift+F12 It shows and hides the dashboard in MacOS 10.4 or later versions

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List of Basic Computer Shortcut Keys

The compilation of the basic computer shortcut keys that every user should be aware of which are as
follows:
SHORTCUT KEYS DESCRIPTIONS
Alt + Tab Used to switch between the open programs. Hold the Alt key and press
the Tab key to navigate between programs
Alt + E Access the Edit option in the current program
Alt+ F Access the File menu in the current program
Alt + Enter Opens the properties for the selected file, shortcut, folder, document etc.
Alt + F4 Closes the currently open window or program
Ctrl + A It selects all the content of the page which includes the image and other
elements
Ctrl + B Users can ‘bold’ the highlighted text with this
Ctrl + C You can copy the selected text, image or another object on a page or file
Ctrl + V The option to paste the copied data any number of times
Ctrl + D Used to access the font preferences window that has several options like
font size, style, colour and more
Ctrl + N Opens a new file, document or browser in respective programs or
applications
Ctrl + O Open a file in the current or active software
Ctrl + K Widely used to insert a hyperlink in the selected text
Ctrl + P Opens the print preview option of the active document or page
Ctrl + S Saves the file or document
Ctrl + Y Redo and repeats the last performed action
Ctrl + Z Undo the actions
Ctrl + Home Brings the typing cursor to the beginning of the document
Ctrl + Left Arrow To move one word to the left in the text
Ctrl + Right Arrow To move one word to the right in the text
Ctrl + Esc To open the start menu
Ctrl + Shift + Esc To open the Windows Task Manager
Shift + Delete Used to delete selected texts or files or folders permanently
Shift + Insert Pastes the copied item
Shift + Home Highlights the text from the current position to the line beginning
Home Brings the typing cursor to the beginning of the line
End The typing cursor goes to the end of the current line

List of Shortcut Keys for Special Characters

There are plenty of commonly used special characters which take time to find and insert in text.
This makes it time-consuming. We have listed some keyboard shortcuts for the commonly used special
characters below:-
SHORTCUT KEYS SPECIAL CHARACTER
Alt 33 !
Alt 34 “
Alt 35 #
Alt 36 $
Alt 37 %
Alt 38 &
Alt 39 ‘
Alt 128 Ç
Alt 129 ü
Alt 130 É
Alt 141 ì
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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
Alt 156 £
Alt 157 ¥
Alt 159 ƒ
Alt 171 ½
Alt 172 ¼
Alt 0190 ¾
Alt 225 ß
Alt 230 µ
Alt 0128 €
Alt 0140 Œ
Alt 0153 ™
Alt 0169 ©
Alt 0174 ®
Alt 0179 ³
Alt 0198 Æ
Alt 145 æ
Alt 0191 ¿
Alt 0176 °
Alt 0177 ±
Alt 0162 ¢

List of Window Key (Winkey) Shortcuts

The windows key has plenty of uses in the form of a shortcut key which are listed down as follows:-
SHORTCUT KEYS DESCRIPTIONS
Window key Open and close the start menu
Winkey + D Minimize all opened windows Restore the minimized windows
Winkey + E Open a computer window or hard disk drives
Winkey + M Minimize all opened program windows
Winkey + F Displays a search or find data window
Winkey + L Lock the computer or switch users
Winkey + R Opens the run dialogue box
Winkey + U Opens the ease of access centre window
Winkey + V Opens the clipboard app
Winkey + P Choose a presentation display mode
Winkey + X Opens the windows mobility centre
Winkey + up arrow Maximizes the window
Winkey + down arrow Minimizes the window
Winkey + left arrow Maximizes the window to the left side of the screen
Winkey + right arrow Maximizes the window to the right side of the screen
Winkey + Shift + M Restores all windows
Winkey + Tab Allows switching between open programs. Press the Winkey and keep
pressing tab to switch between programs
Winkey + Pause/ Break Opens the system properties dialogue box
Winkey + Number Option to open the programs pinned to the taskbar as per their position on the
taskbar
Shift + Winkey + Number Option to open the new window of the program pinned to the taskbar
according to their location
Alt + Winkey + Number Opens the jump list for the program pinned to the taskbar

List of Computer Shortcut Keys for YouTube

We have compiled a list of the widely used YouTube shortcut keys which will make
your streaming experience easier. The list is as follows:-

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SHORTCUT KEYS DESCRIPTIONS
K or Spacebar Play or pause the videos on YouTube
Home or Zero Starts the video all over again from the beginning
End Jump to the end of the video or play the next video
L and J L forwards the video with 10 seconds J rewinds the video with 10 seconds
Numbers 1 to 9 Jumps the video in the form of a percentage 1 implies 10%, 2 implies 20%
and so on
F Switches the video to full-screen or theatre video
T Switch the video between theatre and normal mode
M Mutes the YouTube video
Right arrow Fast forward the video by 5 seconds
Left arrow Fast backwards the video by five seconds
Up arrow Increases the volume while watching videos on full-screen mode. Click on the
video before using the key on normal mode.
Down arrow Decreases the volume while watching videos on full-screen mode. Click on
the video before using the key on normal mode.

List of Computer Shortcut Keys for Google Chrome

Explore the list of most widely and commonly used chrome shortcut keys in the list below:-
SHORTCUT KEYS DESCRIPTIONS
Home Moves to the beginning or top of the page
End Moves at the bottom of the page
Spacebar Move down the page
Shift + Spacebar Move up the page
F11 Shows the current website in full-screen mode and exit the mode
Alt + Home Open the homepage in chrome browser
Alt + left arrow Return to the previous page
Alt + right arrow Go to the next page
Ctrl + (Plus) + To zoom in a page
Ctrl + (Minus) – To zoom out a page
Ctrl + 0 Reset the browser zoom to default
Ctrl + 1 to 8 Switch to one of the opened tabs on the tab bar as per the order of placement
Ctrl + 9 Switches to the last opened tab on the tab bar
Ctrl + A Selects all the content on the page
Ctrl + D Add bookmark for the currently open page
Ctrl + F Opens the find bar to search text on the current page
Ctrl + Enter Add .com extension quickly in the web address
Ctrl + O Open a file in the browser
Ctrl + Shift + Del Access the clear browsing data window to clear the browsing history
Ctrl + Shift + O Opens the bookmark manager
Ctrl + H Open the history window
Ctrl + J Open the downloads window
Ctrl + K or E Moves the text cursor to the search bar
Ctrl + L Takes the cursor to the browser address bar and selects all the text in there
Ctrl + N Opens a new browser window
Ctrl + Shift + N Opens a new window in incognito mode
Ctrl + R or F5 Refreshes the current page or browser
Ctrl + U Displays the source code of the web pages
Ctrl + tab Moves to the right side of the browser from one tab to another
Ctrl + Shift + tab Moves to the left side of the browser from one tab to another
Ctrl + Shift + W Closes the currently selected window
Ctrl + left click Opens a search result link in the new tab without leaving the current page
Ctrl + Shift + Left click Opens a search result link in the new tab and switches to the new tab
Ctrl + Shift + T Reopen the last closed tab(s)

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Spacebar Move down the page
Shift + Spacebar Move up the page
Home Move to the beginning or the top of page
End Moves to the end or bottom of the page

MICROSOFT OFFICE
Microsoft Office, or simply Office, is a family of client software, server software, and services
developed by Microsoft. It was first announced by Bill Gates on August 1, 1988, at COMDEX in Las
Vegas. Initially a marketing term for an office suite (bundled set of productivity applications), the first
version of Office contained Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, and Microsoft PowerPoint.
Microsoft Word is a word processor included in Microsoft Office and some editions of the now-
discontinued Microsoft Works. The first version of Word, released in the autumn of 1983, was for
the MS-DOS operating system and introduced the computer mouse to more users. Word 1.0 could
be purchased with a bundled mouse, though none was required. Following the precedents of Lisa
Write and MacWrite, Word for Macintosh attempted to add closer WYSIWYG features into its
package. Word for Mac was released in 1985. Word for Mac was the first graphical version of
Microsoft Word. Initially, it implemented the proprietary .doc format as its primary format. Word
2007, however, deprecated this format in favour of Office Open XML, which was later standardized
by Ecma International as an open format. Support for Portable Document Format (PDF) and Open
Document (ODF) was first introduced in Word for Windows with Service Pack 2 for Word 2007.

Microsoft Excel is a spreadsheet editor that originally competed with the dominant Lotus 1-2-3 and
eventually outsold it. Microsoft released the first version of Excel for the Mac OS in 1985 and the
first Windows version (numbered 2.05 to line up with the Mac) in November 1987.

Microsoft PowerPoint is a presentation program used to create slideshows composed of text,

graphics, and other objects, which can be displayed on-screen and shown by the presenter or printed
out on transparencies or slides.

Microsoft OneNote is a notetaking program that gathers handwritten or typed notes,

drawings, screen clippings and audio commentaries. Notes can be shared with other OneNote users
over the Internet or a network. OneNote was initially introduced as a standalone app that was not
included in any Microsoft Office 2003 edition. However, OneNote eventually became a core
component of Microsoft Office; with the release of Microsoft Office 2013, OneNote was included
in all Microsoft Office offerings. OneNote is also available as a web app on Office on the web,
a freemium (and later freeware) Windows desktop app, a mobile app for Windows
Phone, iOS, Android, and Symbian, and a Metro-style app for Windows 8 or later.

Microsoft Outlook (not to be confused with Outlook Express, Outlook.com or Outlook on the web)
is a personal information manager that replaces Windows Messaging, Microsoft Mail,
and Schedule+ starting in Office 97; it includes an e-mail client, calendar, task manager and address
book. On the Mac OS, Microsoft offered several versions of Outlook in the late 1990s, but only for
use with Microsoft Exchange Server. In Office 2001, it introduced an alternative application with a
slightly different feature set called Microsoft Entourage. It reintroduced Outlook in Office 2011,
replacing Entourage.

Microsoft OneDrive is a file hosting service that allows users to sync files and later access them
from a web browser or mobile device.

Microsoft Teams is a platform that combines workplace chat, meetings, notes, and attachments.

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Windows-only apps
Microsoft Publisher is a desktop publishing app for Windows mostly used for designing brochures,
labels, calendars, greeting cards, business cards, newsletters, web sites, and postcards.
Microsoft Access is a database management system for Windows that combines
the relational Access Database Engine (formerly Jet Database Engine) with a graphical user
interface and software development tools. Microsoft Access stores data in its own format based on
the Access Database Engine. It can also import or link directly to data stored in other applications
and databases.
Microsoft Project is a project management app for Windows to keep track of events and to
create network charts and Gantt charts, not bundled in any Office suite.
Microsoft Visio is a diagram and flowcharting app for Windows not bundled in any Office suite.
Mobile-only apps
Office Lens is an image scanner optimized for mobile devices. It captures the document (e.g.
business card, paper, whiteboard) via the camera and then straightens the document portion of the
image. The result can be exported to Word, OneNote, PowerPoint or Outlook, or saved in OneDrive,
sent via Mail or placed in Photo Library.
Office Mobile is a unified Office mobile app for Android and iOS, which combines Word, Excel,
and PowerPoint into a single app and introduces new capabilities as making quick notes, signing
PDFs, scanning QR codes, and transferring files.[16]
Office Remote is an application that turns the mobile device into a remote control for desktop
versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint.
Server applications
Microsoft SharePoint is a web-based collaborative platform that integrates with Microsoft Office.
Launched in 2001, SharePoint is primarily sold as a document management and storage system, but
the product is highly configurable and usage varies substantially among organizations. SharePoint
services include:
 Excel Services is a spreadsheet editing server similar to Microsoft Excel.
 InfoPath Forms Services is a form distribution server similar to Microsoft InfoPath.
 Microsoft Project Server is a project management server similar to Microsoft Project.
 Microsoft Search Server
Skype for Business Server is a real-time communications server for instant messaging and video-
conferencing.
Microsoft Exchange Server is a mail server and calendaring server.

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Web services
Microsoft Sway is a presentation web app released in October 2014. It also has a native app
for iOS and Windows 10.
Delve is a service that allows Office 365 users to search and manage their emails, meetings,
contacts, social networks and documents stored on OneDrive or Sites in Office 365.
Microsoft Forms is an online survey creator, available for Office 365 Education subscribers.
Microsoft To Do is a task management service.
Outlook.com is a free webmail with a user interface similar to Microsoft Outlook.
Outlook on the web is a webmail client similar to Outlook.com but more comprehensive and
available only through Office 365 and Microsoft Exchange Server offerings.
Microsoft Planner is a planning application available on the Microsoft Office 365 platform.
Microsoft Stream is a corporate video sharing service for enterprise users with an Office 365
Academic or Enterprise license.
Microsoft Bookings is an appointment booking application on the Microsoft Office 365 platform.

MICROSOFT WORD
Definition of Microsoft Word
This is an application package design for typing skills, typing of document and for graphical designing.
Microsoft word belongs to a family called the Microsoft office. Microsoft office is a programmed
design by micro-soft companies and has Microsoft attached to their names. E.g. Microsoft word,
Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Publisher Etc.

Things That Can Be Found in Your Microsoft Word 2007

TITLE BAR
This is located at the top of the Microsoft environment. Its function is to display the name of the active
document and application you are working on
The title bar consists of three (3) control button namely: -
Minimize Button: this is use to bring down entirely the active window you are working on
Restore down button: this issue to reduce to reduce to window to an adjustable size
Close respectively button: this is use to exit the current window or end the current application you are
working on.

OFFICE BUTTON
This is the biggest button you can see in your Microsoft word 2007.
The Office Button Consist of several Command in it, which are:
New: This is use of open a new blank page or document in another window.
Open: This command is used to open an already saved file or document in the computer.
Save: This command is used to store your file or document for further uses. When you save a file the
first time it will display a dialog box where you choose the location and name you want your file to be
saved with or saved to
Save As: this command helps you to store an already stored file or document into the computer but
with a different name and location.
Note: A file that is already saved cannot be saved as with same name in same location.
Print: This command consists of three buttons in it which is: Print: this enable you to output your work
physically through a printer, the print command display a dialog box where you can choose your
printer, printer, copies, page range, etc.
Quick Print: this enable to output you work physically through the printer without displaying the dialog
box.
Printer Preview: this command is use to your work on how it will look like after printing.
Word Option: this command is used to customize your Microsoft word.
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Close: this command is used to end an active window.
Scroll Bar: This command is a bar that is used to move around the electronic page there are two types
of scroll bar we have which are:
Vertical Scroll Bar: This type of scroll bar is used to move the electronic page up and down Horizontal
Scroll Bar: This type of scroll bar is used to move the electronic page left and right
ELECTRONIC PAGE: This is blank page set aside for typing of document and designing of graphical
work.
CURSOR: this is a continuous blinking vertical line that indicates where you typing start.
TAB: there are several tabs in Microsoft word 2007, which are
HOME TAB: The home tab consist of several command in it which are
CLIPBOARD: The clip board consist of several option such as the
Paste: This command is use to display an already copy or cut object or text.
Copy: This command is use to collect a duplicate or same picture of an object or text without removing
the original, and save it for paste
Cut: This command is use to take the original object or text from its position and save them in the clip
board for paste
NOTE: Each object or text must be selected before copy or cut. Also if an object or text that is been
copied without displaying the clipboard window, will be deleted if another text or object is copied or
cut.

FONT
The font is set of command that help in typing and arranging of work. These sets of commands are
Font Style: This command is use to change the character of a selected text or font
Font Size: This command is use to increase or decrease the size of your selected font or text Grow
Font: This command is use to automatically increase your selected font.
Shrink Font: This command is use to automatically decrease your selected font.
Bold: This command is use to darken your selected font
Italic: This command is use to slant or bend your selected font
Underline: This command is use to draw a line under your selected font.
Strikethrough: This command is use to draw a line across your selected font
Superscript: This command is use to raise your font up to power Subscript: this command is use to
bring down your font to the base.
Change Case: This command is use to change the font write up style to either
UPPERCASE, Sentence case, lowercase, Capitalize Each Word, tOOGLE cASE Text
Highlight Colour: This command is use give highlighted or selected text a particular highlight color.
Font Color: this command is use to change your font colour Font dialog box: this is the complete font
box where all font command are found

PARAGRAPH
Thereareseveral command in the paragraph menu which are:
Bullet: The bullet command helps in numbering your work with symbols
Numbering: The numbering command helps in numbering your work alphabetically, numerically, etc
Multi-level list: This command is use in numbering your work in a different way.
Decrease Indent: This command is use to move your selected font or text to left.
Increase Indent: This command is use to move your selected font or text to the right.
Sort: This command is use to arrange your text ascending or descending form
Left Align: This command is use to stack your text from the left.
Center Align: This command is use to bring your text to the centre or helps in stacking your text in the
centre.

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Right align: This command is use to take your text to the right or helps in stacking your text in the right
Line spacing: This command is use to give or determine the space you need in between your text.
Shading: This is use to colour the back ground behind your highlighted text.
Borders: This is use to inert border to a selected or highlighted text.
Paragraph Dialog Box: This shows the box where the entire paragraph command found.

STYLES
This option helps in selecting and already edited text formant
EDITING: Thereareseveral commands on the editing menu which are
Find: The find consist of three tabs in it which are the Find: I t enables you to search or look a particular
text, word or sentence in your document.
Go to: This command is use to take you where you want to go in your document. E.g. Paragraph, Page,
etc
Replace: This command enables you to replace a word or group of words in the document with another
INSERT TAB: Insert tab is the tabs that basically need to do with inserting shapes, table, etc. the insert
tab consist of several options which are.
PAGES: The pages option consist of three command which are
Cover Page: This command is use to insert an already formatted or designed cover page to your
document, all your need to do is edit.
Blank Page: This command is use to insert blank electronic page below the active one.
Page Break: This command is use to start a next page at the current position your cursor is.

TABLES
Table: This command is use to insert or draw columns and rows into your document.

ILLUSTRATION
Picture: This command is use to insert an already saved picture from our computer to your document
Clip Art: This command is use to insert clipart into your document including drawing, movies, sound
or stock photography to illustrate a specific concept
Shapes: This is use to insert ready-made shape to your document such as rectangle, oval, stars, banner,
e.t.c.
Smart Art: This command is use to insert smart art graphic to visually communicate information. Smart
art graphic range from graphical list and process diagrams to more complex graphics, such as Venn
diagram and organization charts.
Chart: this command is to insert a chart to illustrate and compare data, e.g. pie, bar, line, e.t.c

HEADER & FOOTER

The header & footer menu has three command which are
Header: this command is use to insert a text or write-up at the top of the page.
Footer: this command is use to insert text or write-up at the down of the page.
Page Number: this command is use to insert number into your page.
NOTE: Any inserted header, footer and page number inserted will appear in your page after printing.
TEXT: The text menu has several command and button on it which are
Text box: this command is use to insert a box in which your text is been typed in.
Quick parts: this enable you to insert reusable pieces of content, including fields, document properties
such as title and author or any preformatted snippet you creates.
Word Art: this command helps you to insert decorative text to your document.
Drop Cap: this command is use to create a large capital letter at the beginning of a paragraph
Signature line: this command is use to insert a signature line that specifies the individual who must
sign.
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Date & Time: this command is use to insert the current date or time into the current document you are
working on.
Object: this command is use to insert an embedded object into the document.
SYMBOLS: The symbols consist of two options which are
Equation: this command is use to insert common mathematical equations or build up your own
equations using a library of math symbols.
Symbols: this command is use to insert symbols that are not on your keyboard such as copyright
symbols, trademark symbols, paragraph marks and Unicode characters.

PAGE LAYOUT TAB:

This tab consists of several options which are:
THEMES: Themes: This command is use change the overall design of the entire document, including
colours, fonts and effects.
Themes Colour: This command is use to change the colour of the current theme in your document.
Theme Font: This command is use to change the font of the current theme in your document. Theme
Effect: This command is use to change the effect of the current theme in your document.

PAGE SETUP
This option is used for the setting of our electronic page and it’s consist of several command
Margins: This command is use select the margin size for the entire document of the current section.
Orientation: This command is use to switch the electronic page between landscape and portrait.
Size: This command is use to choose the paper size for the current document
Columns: This command is use to split text into two or more parts in your document.
Breaks: This command is use to add page, section or column break to the current document Line
Numbers: This command is use to add line number in the margins alongside of each line of the
document Hyphenation: this command allow words to break line between the syllables of words.

PAGE BACKGROUND
This option is use to beautify your electronic page, and it’s consist of several command.
Watermark: This command is use to insert ghosted text behind the content of the page. This is often
use to indicate that the document must to be treated specially.
Page Colour: This command is use to choose a colour for the background of the page.
Page Borders: This command is use to add or change the border around the page.

PARAGRAPH
This option is use to adjust indent and spacing in your document, and it consist of several command.
Indent Left: This is used to move in the left side of a paragraph to a certain amount.
Indent Right: This command is used to move in the right side of a paragraph to a certain amount.
Spacing Before: This command is use to change the spacing between paragraphs by adding space above
the selected paragraph
Spacing After: This command is use to change the spacing between paragraphs by adding space below
the selected paragraph.

ARRANGE
This option is use to arrange your object in your document and it consist of several command.
Position: This command is use to position the selected object on the page
Bring to Front: This command is use to bring to front a selected object so that no part of it is hiding
behind another object.
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Send to Back: This command is use to send the selected object behind all objects.
Align: This command is use to align the edges of multiple selected objects. You can also centre them
or distribute them evenly across the page.
Group: this command is use to combine objects together so that they can be treated as one.
Rotate: This command is use to rotate or flip the selected object.

REFERENCE TAB:
The reference tab consists of several commands which are discussed
TABLE OF CONTENTS: The table of content option consists of several commands which are
Table of contents: This command is use to add table of content to your document. Once you have added
a table of content click add text button to add entries to your table of content
Add Test: This command is use to add current paragraph as an entry in the table of contents
Update Table: This command is to update the table of contents so that all the entries refer to the current
page number.

FOOTNOTES
The footnotes option contain several command in it which are
Insert Footnote: this command is use to add a footnote to the document. And note that footnote is
automatically renumbered as you move your test around the document.
Insert Endnote: This command is use to add an end note to your document. Inserted endnotes are place
at the end of the document.
Next Footnote: This command is use to navigate the next footnote in your document. Show note: this
command is use to scroll the document to show where the footnotes and endnotes located.

CITATIONS & BIBLIOGRAPHY

This option consist of several command which are
Insert Citation: This command is use to cite a book, journal article, or other periodical as the source for
a piece of information in the document.
Manage sources: This command is use to view the list of source sited in the document.
Style: This command is use to choose the style of citation to use in the document.
Bibliography: This command is used to add a bibliography which list the entire source cited in your
document.

CAPTIONS
The caption consist of the following command
Insert Caption: This command is use to add a caption to picture or other image caption can be defined
as a line of text that appears below an object to describe it.
Insert Table of Figures: This command is use to insert a table of figures into the document
Update Table: This command is use to update the table of figures to include all of the entries in the
document
Cross-reference: This command help you refer to item such as heading figures and table by inserting a
cross reference as. “See Table: 6 below” or “Turn to page 8”

INDEX
The index option consist of several types command which are
Mark Entry: This command includes the selected text in the index of the document
Insert Index: This command is use to insert index to the document. Index is a list of keywords found
in the document along with the page numbers the words appear on.
Update Index: This command is use to update the index so that all the entries refer to the correct page
number.
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MAILING TAB
The mailing tab consist of several option which are
CREATE Envelopes: This command enables you create envelope sizes and print envelope.
Labels: This command enables you to create and print labels. And more much option that include Start
Mail Merge, W rite and Insert Fields Preview Result and Finish options

VIEW TAB
The view tab consist of several options which are the
DOCUMENT VIEW
Print Layout: This command enables view the document as it will appear on the printed page
Full Screen Reading: This command enables view the document in full screen, view in order to
maximize the space for reading or commenting on the document.
Web Layout: This command enables view the document as it would look like as a web page.
Outline: This command enables view the document as an outline and also views the outline tools
Draft: This command enables view the document as draft to quickly edit the text. Certain element in
the document such as header and footer will not be visible in this view.

SHOW/HIDE
This option deals with the activation and deactivation of
Ruler: This command turns on the ruler to measure and line up object in your document
Gridlines: This command turns on the gridlines to which you can align object in your document.
Message Bar: This command is use to turn on the message bar to which to complete any requires action
in your document.
Document Map: This command is use to open a document map which enable you navigate through a
structural view of the document
Thumbnails: This command opens the thumbnails pane, which you can use to navigate a long document
through a small picture of each page.

ZOOM
This option deals with the view of the document and it consist of several command
Zoom: This command is use to open the dialog box to specify the zoom level of the document. In most
cases you can also use the zoom button in the status bar. 100%: This command is use to view the
document in 100% of the normal size
One Page: This command is use to zoom the document, so that an entire page fits the windows
Two pages: This command is use to zoom the document so that two pages fits the window
Page Width: This command is use to zoom the document so the width of the page matches the width
of the window.

WINDOW
This option deals with the effect of the entire window
New Window: This command is use to open a new window containing a view of the current document.
Arrange All: This command is use to tile all open program window side by side on the screen
Remove Split: This command is use to divide the current window into two parts so that you can view
different section of the document at the same time.
View Side by Side: This command is use to view two document side by side so that you can compare
their content.
Synchronous Scrolling: This command is use to synchronous the scrolling of two documents so that
they can scroll together

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Reset Window Position: This command is use to reset the window position of the document being
compared side by side so that they share the screen equally.
Switch Windows: This command is use to switch to a currently open window.

List of Shortcut Keys in Microsoft Word

These are the lists of the commonly used Microsoft Word shortcut keys as follows:-
SHORTCUT KEYS DESCRIPTIONS
Ctrl + E It aligns the selected text to the centre
Ctrl + F Opens the find or search dialogue box
Ctrl + G To go to or jump to any page. Opens the ‘find, replace and go to’ dialogue
box
Ctrl + H To replace any words in the document or file
Ctrl + I Italicizes or un-italicizes the selected texts
Ctrl + J Justifies the selected text
Ctrl + L It aligns the selected text to the left of the screen
Ctrl + M The users get the option to indent
Ctrl + Q Removes the formatting of the paragraph
Ctrl + R It aligns the selected text or line to the right of the screen
Ctrl + S Saves the document or file
Ctrl + T Creates a hanging indent for a paragraph
Ctrl + U Underlines the selected text
Ctrl + W Closes the currently open document or file quickly
Ctrl + X Cuts the selected text in the document
Ctrl + Shift + L Creates a bullet point in the file quickly
Ctrl + Shift + > Increases the font size by 1 pts up to 12 pt. after 12, increases by +2 pts
Ctrl + Shift + < Decreases the font size by 1 pt when below 12 and by 2 pts when above 12
Ctrl + [ Increase the font size by +1 pts
Ctrl + ] Decrease the font size by -1 pts
Ctrl + 0 It toggles 6 pts of spacing above the paragraph
Ctrl + 1 Gives a single space line
Ctrl + 2 Gives a double space line
Ctrl + 5 Makes 5 space between lines of a paragraph
Ctrl + Spacebar Resets the selected text to the default font
Ctrl + Home Moves the typing cursor to the beginning of the document
Ctrl + Alt + 1 Changes text format to Heading 1
Ctrl + Alt + 2 Changes text format to Heading 1
Ctrl + Alt + 3 Changes text format to Heading 3
Ctrl + F1 Shows or hides the ribbon
Ctrl + F2 Opens the document preview in word
Shift + F3 Change the case option to change the text from upper case to lower case or
a capital letter at each word’s beginning
Shift + F7 Check the thesaurus of the selected word
Shift + Alt + D Inserts the current date
Shift + Alt + T Inserts the current time
Shift + Enter Creates a soft break
Shift + Shift + * Hide or view the non-printing characters
Alt + F, A To use the save as option. Alt + F displays the dialogue box and Alt + A the
save as option.
Ctrl + Delete Deletes the word that is right to the cursor
Ctrl + Backspace Deletes the word that is left to the cursor

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MICROSOFT EXCEL HOW TO SET PAGE
 Click pageset –up tab
 Click sizeand select A4
 Click on orientation and select either landscapeor portrait
 Highlight thewholeindicated area and click on home tab
 Click on borders
 Select all borders
HOW TO CALCULATE THE SUM, MIN, MAX & AVERAGE

To calculate the sum, go to your formula bar and type= SUM(B1: D1) ENTER
To calculate the min, go to your formula bar and type= MIN(B1: D1) ENTER
To calculate the max, go to your formula bar and type= MAX B1: D1) ENTER
To calculate the average, go to your formula bar and type= AVG(B1: D1) ENTER

HOW TO CALCULATE ANGLES

HOW TO CALCULATE
To calculate the sin, go to your formula bar and type= SIN (A2) ENTER
To calculate the cos, go to your formula bar and type= COS (A2) ENTER
To calculate the tan, go to your formula bar and type= TAN (A2) ENTER

HOW TO GET SUM TOTAL

= SUM (B2: B4) ENTER (Do the Same for All)

HOW TO KNOW IF THE ANGLE IS GRATER THAN 1

Use this formula = if (B2> 1,’ YES,’’ ‘’ NO’’) ENTER (Do the same For All)

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HOW TO PLOT CHART
Highlight the data you want to plot the chart in your sheet
Click insert tab
Click chart
Click on any chart of your choice

HOW TO COMPUTE STUDENT PERFORMANCE

To calculate the total sum type this formula = sum (B1: C1) ENTER
To calculate the average type this formula = AVG (B1- B2) ENTER
To differentiate one score from the other use this formula = sum (B4- D3) ENTER

HOW TO COMPUTE MONTHLY PAYMENT OF A COMPANY

HOW TO CALCULATE IT
To calculate percentage type this formula = Sum(20%*D1)Enter
The D1 is the salary
For total allowance type this formula = sum (E1:G1)Enter
You input the national prov. Amount in the entire cell (for example in the table)
To get the total reduction = sum (H1+ I1) Enter i.e. Tax + National province

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To get Gross pay = sum (D1+ K1)Enter i.e. Basic sar. + Total reduction
To get Net pay = sum(K1-L1)Enter i.e. Total reduction –Grosspay
HOW TO CALCULATE RESULT WITH GRADE

HOW TO CALCULATE THE GRADE

= IF(C1< = 99.9,” A1” ,= IF(C1< = 89.9,” B2” ,= IF(C1< = 79.9,” C3” ,= IF(C1< = 70.9,” C4” ,=
IF(C1< = 60.9,” C5” ,= IF(C1< = 50.9,” C6” ,= IF(C1< = 35.9,” D 7” ,= IF(C1< = 25.9,” E8” ,=
IF(C1< = 15.9,” F9” ))))))))) enter
To calculate the remark, copy the formula from the grade cell and paste it on the remark cell and edit
the = IF(C1< = 99.9,” Excellent” ,= IF(C1< = 89.9,” V.good” ,= IF(C1< = 79.9,” Credit” ,= IF(C1< =
70.9,” Credit” ,= IF(C1< = 60.9,” Credit” ,= IF(C1< = 50.9,” Credit” , = IF(C1< = 35.9,” Pass” ,=
IF(C1< = 25.9,” Poor” ,= IF(C1< = 15.9,” Fail” ))))))))) enter
List Shortcut Keys for Microsoft Excel
Interaction and working with excel is made easy and faster with these Microsoft Excel shortcut keys
which are listed below as follows:-
SHORTCUT KEYS DESCRIPTIONS
Ctrl + Shift + ; Inserts the current time
Ctrl + ; Inserts the current date
Ctrl + D Fills down the cells with the content of the selected cell
Ctrl + L or T Opens create table dialogue box
Ctrl + N Creates new document in the workbook
Ctrl + P Prints the current sheet or document
Ctrl + Q Opens a quick analysis option for the selected cells with data
Ctrl + U Underlines all the selected texts
Ctrl + Pg up and Pg down Navigate to one worksheet from another in the same excel document
Ctrl + F6 Moves from one document to another document in MS Excel
Ctrl + F9 Minimizes the current window
Ctrl + F10 Maximizes the current window
Ctrl + Shift + “ Copies and pastes the content of the cell into the cell just below it
Ctrl + Shift +! Apply comma format in digits
Ctrl + Shift + $ Apply currency format to numbers
Ctrl + Shift + % Apply percentage sign to numbers
Ctrl + Space Selects the entire active column
Ctrl + Shift + ( Unhide the hidden rows
Ctrl + – (minus) Opens a delete dialogue box
Ctrl + Shift + = Opens an insert dialogue box
Ctrl + Shift + ^ Makes an exponential form of any number
Ctrl + Shift + & Makes a border around the selected cell
Ctrl + Shift + _ Removes the border around the selected cell
Ctrl + Home Moves the cursor to the beginning of the worksheet
Ctrl + End Moves the cursor to the last cell on the worksheet with text
Ctrl + up arrow Extends the cell’s area up by one cell
Ctrl + down arrow Extends the cell’s area down by one cell

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Ctrl + F3 Opens the name manager
Ctrl + F5 Restore the window size
Ctrl + F11 Inserts a macro sheet
Ctrl + 0 Hides the selected columns
Ctrl + 1 Opens the format cells
Ctrl + 5 Put a strikethrough
Ctrl + 9 Hide the selected rows
Shift + Space Selects the entire active rows
Shift + F3 Opens the excel formula window
Shift + F5 or Ctrl + F Opens the find and replace dialogue box
F2 Edit the selected cell
F4 Repeats the last action
F7 Check the spellings of the text
F10 Activates the menu bar
F11 Create a chart in excel
Alt + = Use the formula to sum the data of the above cells
Alt + ‘ Access the style dialogue box
Alt + F8 Displays the macro dialogue box
Alt + F11 Opens the visual basic editor
Alt + Shift + F1 Creates a new worksheet

MICROSOFT POWER POINT

Microsoft Power Point is a program/package designed by Microsoft Office used for presenting lectures
and seminars with the aid of computers. Instead of using the conventional blackboard to list out the
details of the topic, power point can be used to organize it. Most banks and schools now used it for
both internal and external presentations. One interesting feature of power point is its Animation
Facility. Animation entails giving text and objects special effects that make them change form and
move in different directions. Animation is also used in carton production and television adverts.

How to Launch Microsoft PowerPoint

Step One
 Left click on your start button in your task bar,
 Left click or select all program
 Left click or select Microsoft office
 Left click Microsoft Power Point

Step Two
 Right click on your desktop background
 Left click on new
 Left click on Microsoft Power Point
 Rename the document or leave it default
 Double-click or left click on the document or right click and left click open.

Measure Options in Microsoft PowerPoint

1. Presentation: this consists of the information or list of point your wish to organize your lecture with
2. Slide: a slide is simply the page or platform on which you type in the content of your presentation
to take.
3. Template: this is an already pre-designed slide containing very colourful backgrounds and special
arrangement
4. Blank Presentation: This is an empty slide on which you can create a presentation of your own taste
or choice.
5. Design: this is the area you set, beautify and modify your blank page.
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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
How to Present a Simple Animation
 Open your M.S Power Point,
 Choose either text box, or word art for your text, choose any picture or clipart of your choice
 Click on Animation tab, and then click on custom animation
 Select you text or picture then click on add effect on your custom animation window on your right
side of your screen.
 Your can apply more than one effect on a text or picture, or you need to do is perform same step
from 2 to 4
List of Microsoft Power Point Shortcut Keys
Make working with Microsoft PowerPoint easier with this list of the widely used shortcut keys for
Microsoft PowerPoint.
SHORTCUT KEYS DESCRIPTIONS
Ctrl + D Creates a copy of the selected slides
Ctrl + M Inserts a new blank slide below the selected slide
Ctrl + T Opens the font window
Ctrl + U To add or remove an underline from the selected content
B Changes the display to black during slide show
Shift + F3 Change the case option to change the text from upper case to lower case or a
capital letter at each word’s beginning
Shift + F5 Start the slide show from the selected slide
Shift + F7 Check the thesaurus for the selected word
Shift + F9 Shows or hides the grid on the slide in MS PowerPoint
Ctrl + F1 Show or hide the ribbon
Ctrl + Shift + > Increases the font size of the selected text
Ctrl + Shift + < Decrease the font size of the selected text
Ctrl + Shift + = Changes the selected text into a subscript
Ctrl + Spacebar Changes the selected text to the default font type and size
Alt + N, P Insert a picture or image in your file

List of Microsoft Outlook Shortcut Keys

The list below has the widely and commonly used shortcut keys for Microsoft-Outlook for you to
explore and use.
SHORTCUT KEYS DESCRIPTIONS
Alt + S Used to send an e-mail
Ctrl + M Used to send and receive all e-mail
Ctrl + Q To mark the selected e-mails as read
Ctrl + U To mark the selected e-mail as unread and underline the highlighted text
within an e-mail
Ctrl + R To reply to an e-mail
Ctrl + F To forward an e-mail
Ctrl + N In the mail section – create a new-email In the calendar section – create a
new appointment in your calendar
Ctrl + Y Opens the ‘Go to’ folder
Ctrl + Shift + A Create a new appointment in your calendar from any section of the Outlook
Ctrl + Shift + O Opens the outbox
Ctrl + Shift + I Opens the inbox
Ctrl + Shift + K To add a new task
Ctrl + Shift + C To create a new contact
Ctrl + Shift + J To create a new journal entry
Ctrl + Shift + V To move an e-mail to folder

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success
MICROSOFT ENCARTA
Microsoft Encarta is a discontinued digital multimedia encyclopaedia published by Microsoft from
1993 to 2009. Originally sold on CD-ROM or DVD, it was also available on the World Wide Web via
an annual subscription, although later articles could also be viewed for free online with advertisements.
By 2008, the complete English version, Encarta Premium, consisted of more than 62,000 articles,
numerous photos and illustrations, music clips, videos, interactive content, timelines, maps, atlases and
homework tools.
Microsoft published similar encyclopedias under the Encarta trademark in various languages,
including German, French, Spanish, Dutch, Italian, Portuguese and Japanese. Localized versions
contained contents licensed from national sources and more or less content than the full English
version. For example, the Dutch-language version had content from the Dutch Winkler
Prins encyclopedia.

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 Diligence, Determination, and Discipline are Keys to Excellent Success

INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTING
(INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHONLOGY)

MEC 114
DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING
THE FEDERAL POLYTECHNIC, ADO-EKITI, EKITI STATE, NIGERIA.

COMPUTER ACRONYM
C – Central Processing Unit (CPU)
O- Operating System (OS)
M- Memory (RAM & ROM)
P- Processor (Processing of Data)
U- Unit (Control Unit [CU], Arithmetic & Logic Unit [ALU])
T- Transferring of Data & Transformation of Data
E- Execute, Encoder & Decoder
R- Resources/Receivers

PREPARED BY

ENGR. TUNJI JOHN ERINLE

(CEng, P. Eng.)
MIAENG, MNSE, MNSPE(St), MStudIEAust, MISME, MASME, MNIMechE,
MCSME(St), MCMES(St), MISINDE, MSAE, MAutoEI, E-MAIAA, MISAI, MISCE,
MAIChE(St), MACS(As), MASTM(St), MMSN, MNMS, E-MTMS, MNACE(St),
MSSPC(St), MAMPP(St), MNiCA, MFAMA, MISOR, MIEOM(As), MASSP(St),
MNISafetyE, MASCE, MICE(St), MCMAA(St), MNIWE, MCIWM(St), MAAEES(St),
MNATE, MASAP, MIAOIP(As), MISPRS, MISSUP, MIAOP(As), MISDS(As),
MAPA(St), E-MAMA.
Registered, Certified & Professional Mechanical Engineer. “Electromechanical Expert”
Web of Science Researcher ID: https://app.webofknowledge.com/author/record/34771091; ResearcherID: https://www.researcherid.com/rid/E-7752-2018
Scopus Author ID: https://scopus.com/authid/detail.url?authorId=57214232158; ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Tunji_Erinle
Google Scholars: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=t4fXFU8AAAAJ&hl=en; Semantic Scholar: https://www.semanticscholar.org/author/T.-Erinle/98810365
Index Copernicus: https://journals.indexcopernicus.com/search/details?id=49798; Academia.edu: https://www.independent.academia.edu/TunjiJohn
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0557-9931; Publons: https://www.publons.com/researcher/3352417/tunji-john-erinle/;
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tunji-john-erinle-337514159;
Mendeley: https://www.mendeley.com/search/?page=1&query=tunji%20john%20erinle&sortBy=citationCount

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