Unit A: Computer

and Internet Basics

 Learning Objectives
Define a personal computer and describe
computer use in daily life
Explain the four basic functions of a computer
system
Identify the main computer categories
Describe digital devices that can be part of a
personal computer

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 Learning Objectives (continued)
Define software and give examples of
operating systems
Define the Internet and explain how to
navigate Web pages
Explain ways to use the Internet and digital
devices to communicate with others
Explain how to protect your digital data and
devices

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 Computers in Your World
Digital revolution – Change brought on by use
of digital technology/devices
Digital technology as a part of daily life

Figure A-1: Computers are a part of daily life

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 Computers in Your World
(continued)
Computer - An electronic device that:
 Accepts input
 Processes data
 Stores data
 Produces output

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 Computers in Your World
(continued)
Computer system includes:
 Hardware - Electronic and mechanical parts
• System Unit – Houses important components
• Peripheral devices – Hardware to expand
functionality
 Software – Programs/codes of instructions

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 Computers in Your World
(continued)
Input devices:
 Keyboard
 Mouse
 Touch screen, etc.
Output devices:
 Monitor
 Printer
 Speakers, etc.

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 Computers in Your World
(continued)
Digitization:
 Process of converting text, numbers, sound,
photos, and video into data that can be
processed by digital devices
Digital convergence:
 Blending several technologies into a single
product

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 How Computers Work
Turn on/power up/booting a computer:
 May need to enter user ID and password
Computer program/software:
 Instructions telling a computer how to carry
out processing tasks

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 How Computers Work
(continued)
Processor/microprocessor:
 Processes data
 Central processing unit (CPU) – Main
processor
Memory:
 Temporarily holds data waiting to be
processed
Storage:
 Holds data on a permanent basis

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 How Computers Work
(continued)
File:
 Named and stored collection of data
Filename:
 Meaningful label given to file
Storage medium:
 Hard disk
 CD or DVD
 Flash drive, etc.

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 Figure A-3: Basic computer parts and functions

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 Types of Computers
Types of personal computers:
 Desktop computers
 Portable computers
• Notebook computers (sometimes called laptop
computers)
• Netbooks
• Tablet computers
Handheld computers include:
 Smartphones
 Electronic readers

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 Figure A-6: Examples of portable personal computers

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 Types of Computers
(continued)
Workstations:
 Powerful desktop computers designed for
specialized tasks
Mainframe computers:
 Large, expensive computers that can process
data for thousands of users
Supercomputers:
 Fastest computers that can handle tasks too
complex for other computers

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 Types of Computers
(continued)
Servers:
 Special networked computers that share/serve
data to other computers
Video game consoles:
 Currently not considered replacements to
personal computers

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 Personal Computers
Basic parts of a desktop personal computer
system:
 System unit
 Display device – monitor
 Keyboard
 Mouse
 Storage devices:
• Hard disk drive
• USB flash drive
• Optical drives

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 Personal Computers
(continued)
Basic parts of a desktop personal computer
system (continued):
 Sound system
 Printer
 Web cam
 Digital media players
 Digital cameras
 Network and Internet access device
• Modem

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 Figure A-9: Typical desktop computer system with examples of
peripherals

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 Computer Software
Operating system (OS):
 Master controller for all activities within a
computer system
 Classified as system software
Computer platform:
 Determines hardware and software of system
 PC platform – Windows operating system
 Mac platform – Macintosh OS
 Linux OS

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 Computer Software
(continued)
Graphical user interface (GUI) – Displays on-
screen graphical controls
Application software – Programs that help
perform tasks
Apps/mobile apps – Programs that run on
mobile devices
Sharing files – Depends on system
compatibility

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 Figure A-11: Popular elements of a GUI

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 The Internet and the Web
The Internet – World’s largest computer
network:
 Accessed via routers through an Internet
Service provider (ISP) using either
wires/cables or wireless access
Web (short for World Wide Web):
 Collection of Web pages, interconnected
through the use of hypertext or links

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 The Internet and the Web
(continued)
Uses of the Internet:
 Communicate with others:
• Electronic mail (also called email)
• Chat group
• Instant messaging (IM)
• Internet telephony – Voice Over IP (VoIP)
• Blog
 E-commerce
 Research

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 The Internet and the Web
(continued)
Web Browser – Software to view Web pages
Web site – Group of Web pages
 Home page – Main page of Web site
Search site – Provides search capabilities
 Keyword – Describes search criteria
 Search engine – Uses keywords to locate
Web sites

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The Internet and the Web (continued)
URL (Uniform Resource Locator) –
Location/address of Web resources:
 Every Web page has a unique URL

Figure A-14: Parts of a URL

HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol):

 Communications standard used to transport
Web pages over the Internet

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 Figure A-15: Navigating a Web page

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The Internet and the Web (continued)
Web Application – Software accessed through
a Web Browser
Cloud Computing – Data stored on the Web

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 How to Communicate Using
Digital Devices
Email – Electronic mail
Email account:
 Need an email provider, such as an Internet
service provider, university, Gmail, Hotmail,
etc.
 Email address – Unique identifier

Figure A-16: Parts of an email address

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 How to Communicate Using
Digital Devices (continued)
Email message parts:
 Recipient’s email address
 Address of additional recipients
 Message subject and body
 Optional – File attachments

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 How to Communicate Using
Digital Devices (continued)
Internet Forum – Web site where users can
post/discuss by topic/thread
Wiki – Collaborative Web site allowing posted
material to be edited by users
Text messages - Typed messages sent using
smartphones or other mobile devices

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 How to Communicate Using
Digital Devices (continued)
Social networking – Online activity allowing
registered members to communicate with
others in the network

Figure A-18: Social networking with friends, family, and coworkers

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 How to Protect Your Privacy,
Data, and Devices
Computer vulnerabilities:
 Physical Damage
 Theft
 Unauthorized access
 Malware and viruses
 Loss of hardware and/or data

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 How to Protect Your Privacy,
Data, and Devices (continued)
Computer safeguards:
 Updated operating systems
 Installed anti-virus and anti-malware software
 Strong passwords
 Important data backed up
 Physically anchored/locked computers

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 Table A-1: Ways to protect your privacy

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 Talking Points:
Who Is Reading Your E-Mail?
Think of email as a postcard rather than a
letter
 FBI has e-mail scanning technology
 Many U.S. businesses monitor employee
email
 Email may be forwarded to others
 Email providers store backups and can gather
data from them
 Court decisions seem to state that email
messages on an organization’s system are the
property of the organization
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 Summary
This unit introduced:
 Computer in your world
 How computers work
 Types of computers
 Personal computers
 Computer software
 The Internet and the Web
 How to communicate using digital devices
 How to protect your privacy, data, and devices

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 What Is an Information System?
System
 Collection of elements and procedures that
interact to accomplish a goal
• Football game, transit systems, etc.
Information System
 A system used to generate the information
needed to support the users in an organization
Digital Ecosystem
 The collection of people, products, services, and
business processes related to a digital element
• Apple digital ecosystem = Apple hardware,
software, and online services

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 What Is an Information System?

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 What Is an Information System?
The Need for System Development
 Systems development
• Process of designing and implementing a new
or modified system
 System development may be required
because of:
• New laws (Sarbanes-Oxley Act, HIPAA etc.)
• Changes to the legal requirements for retaining
business data (e-disclosure, etc.)
• Introduction of new technology

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 What Is an Information System?
Enterprise Architecture
 Provides a detailed picture of an organization,
its function, its systems, and the relationship
among them
 Allows managers to organize and maximize
the use of IT resources and make better
decisions
 Not easy to develop and requires time and
effort, but once in place, it is an invaluable
decision support tool

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 What Is an Information System?
Business Intelligence (BI)
 The process of gathering, storing, accessing,
and analyzing data in order to make better
business decisions
 Business analytics (BA)
• The process of analyzing data to evaluate a
company’s operations
 Data Warehouse
• Comprehensive collection of data about a
company and its customers
• Data mart is smaller and typically stores data
related to a particular subject or department
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 What Is an Information System?
 Data Mining
• The use of intelligent software to find subtle
patterns that may not be otherwise evident
• Can identify processes that need improvement
• Can be used for customer profiling
• Web Mining
– Data mining used in conjunction with Web data
• Text Mining
– Analysis of text-based data (online forms,
emails, call-center notes)

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 What Is an Information System?
• Social media analytics – mining and analyzing
data from blogs and social media sites
• Often used with the massive amounts of data
generated today – called Big Data

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 How It Works Box
Big Data … For Everything
Sports teams, casinos, airlines, museums, and more
are gathering and analyzing big data
Point Defiance Zoo &
Aquarium uses big data
analytics to uncover
patterns and trends to help
drive ticket sales, enhance
visitor experiences, and
raising awareness of
wildlife conservation

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 What Is an Information System?
Users of Information Systems
 Used by one person or all employees
 Enterprise Systems
• A system that is used throughout an entire
enterprise
 Inter-enterprise Systems
• Used by a business and its suppliers and other
business partners
 Some information systems are designed for
management decision making

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 What Is an Information System?
User Groups
 Executive managers
 Middle managers
 Operational managers
 Nonmanagement workers
 External users

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 Types of Information Systems

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