FUNDAMENTAL

COMPUTER CONCEPTS

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ATENEO COMPUTER SCIENCE CENTER
Ateneo de Davao University
 Outline
 Computers
 definition
 reasons for studying
 shaping up the workplace
 capabilities and limitations
 basic devices of a computer
 types of computers
 Terminologies
What’s a Computer?
 An electronic device that can interpret and
execute program instructions to accept
data (input) and process such data to
produce and store useful information.
Why study computers?

 Education
 Employment
 Productivity
 Capability
 Fun
Shaping up the Workplace
 Multi-purpose workstations
 prepare reports, compute budgets/payroll
 Presentation tool
 present reports, visual content
 Networking
 reservation systems, inventory systems
 Design Tool
 advertising, art, sound studio, engineering
Capabilities
 Accuracy
 Self-Checking
 Automatic
 Speed
 Repetitiveness
 Store and Recall Information
Accuracy – A computer can process data quickly with 100% corrections if it
is fed with the right data input.

Self Checking – it verifies the correctness of its work to ensure that all data
are accurate.

Automatic – can operate by itself all data and instructions are fed properly
into it.

Speed – can process and calculate large amount of data and problems at
very fast rate.

Repetitiveness – can do a job or a task as many times as you want it done.

Store and Recall Information – can keep information for later use. It can
also retrieve or get information from a disk or the memory.
Limitations
 A computer cannot do what is not instructed
to do.
 A computer cannot correct wrong
instructions.
 A computer cannot perform creative thinking.
 A computer is prone to viruses.
 A computer is subject to physical failure and
occasional breakdown.
Synergy

- combined action or functioning.

- The interaction of two or more agents

or forces so that their combined
effect is greater than the sum of their
individual effects.
Computers can only carry out instructions that
humans give them.

Computers can process data accurately at far

greater speeds than people can, yet they are
limited in many respects.

Combining the strength

of machines with human
strengths creates
synergy.
Some people call synergy the “2 + 2 = 5” rule.

Synergy (from the Greek “work together”)

Occurs when combined resources

produce output that exceeds the sum
of the outputs of the same resource
employed separately.
A computer works quickly and accurately;
human work relatively slowly and make
mistakes.

A computer cannot make independent

decisions, however, or formulate steps for
solving problems, unless programmed to
do so by humans.
A human-computer combination
allows the results of human thought
to be translated into efficient
processing of large amounts of data.
 HUMANS COMPUTERS

Think Calculate and perform programmed

logical operations extremely rapidly

Have common sense Store and retrieve data and

information extremely rapidly

Can make decisions Perform complex logical and

arithmetical functions accurately

Can instruct the computer Execute long, tedious operations

what to do
 HUMANS COMPUTERS

Can learn new methods Perform routine tasks less

and techniques expensively than humans.

Can accumulate expertise Are adaptable (can be programmed

and reprogrammed)
Basic devices of a computer

4 Device Categories

 InputDevices
 Output Devices
 Storage Devices
 Communication Devices
 Input Devices
 Used to enter data into the computer for
processing.
 Input Devices

Mouse

Keyboard Joystick

Touchscreen Trackball
Input Devices—The Keyboard
 The keyboard is the most widely used input
device.
 As you press keys on the keyboard, an
electrical signal representing that key is sent to
the computer.
 Keyboards are divided into sections.
Input Devices—The Keyboard (cont.)

 Typewriter keys: The standard alphabetic and

numeric characters you would find on a typewriter
 Function keys: Special keys that perform some
specific function for the application being run
 Numeric keypad: Used for mathematical
operations
 Directional keys: Used to move the cursor around
the screen
Input Devices—The Mouse
 The mouse is a pointing device that rolls
around on a flat surface and controls the
location of the pointer on the screen.
 The mouse performs the following functions:
 Pointing: Placing the on-screen pointer at a
specific place
 Clicking: Pressing and releasing the
mouse button
Input Devices—The Mouse (cont.)
 Mouse functions (cont.)
 Dragging: Holding down the mouse button and
dragging an object to a new location by dragging the
mouse
 Double-clicking: Pressing and releasing the mouse
button twice very quickly
 Right-clicking: Pressing the right mouse button
Other Pointing Devices
 Other devices that control the on-screen
pointer:
 Trackball: This is like a mouse turned upside
down. You roll a ball around with your fingers
to control the location of the pointer.
 These frequently are found on notebook
computers.
Other Pointing Devices (cont.)
 Joystick and wheel: Joysticks consist of a
metal or plastic handle mounted on a base
that you can move in any direction to move
the pointer or other object.
 These typically are used for video games.
 Most have buttons that can be pushed or

clicked to control input/output.

Other Input Devices
 Pointing stick: A pressure-sensitive device
that resembles a pencil eraser; found mostly on
notebook computers.

 Graphics tablet: A flat drawing surface

connected to the computer
 The user draws on the surface, and the figures or
writing on the tablet can be input to the computer for
processing.
Other Input Devices (cont.)
 Touch display: Screens that contain pictures or
shapes that the user can press to input that data.

 Stylus/digital pen: Used with mobile devices to input

data.
Other Input Devices (cont.)

 Touchpad: Used mostly in laptop/notebook

computers.
Other Input Devices (cont.)
 Audio/voice input: Inputting sound and/or
voice
 These usually require a microphone and
special voice recognition software to be
installed on the computer.
Other Input Devices (cont.)
 Scanners: Devices that can convert a graphical
image into a digital image and input it to the computer.
 Types of scanners include
 Image scanners for scanning images and text

 Bar code scanners to read product bar codes

 Magnetic scanners to read the magnetic strip on a

credit card
Other Input Devices (cont.)
 Digital cameras: Used to take pictures and store them on a
magnetic disk instead of on film
 Their images can be input directly into the computer.

 Video input: Input from a camcorder or VCR using video

capture cards
Other Input Devices (cont.)
 Biometric input: Uses fingerprint, face,
handwriting, and voice for identification
Output Devices
 Used to display/present the results of
data processing to the users.
Output Devices

Speaker

Printer

Monitor
Storage Devices
 Used to store data/instructions before and after they are
used or processed.
 Main Storage, Secondary Storage.
Storage Devices

Compact Disc

Diskette Hard Disk

Magnetic Storage Devices
 Floppy disks: Small, portable disks that hold
a limited amount of data
 Hard disks: Large-capacity and fast-access
storage devices
 Zip disks: Auxiliary storage devices that can
hold large quantities of data and can be
portable
 Magnetic tape drives: Used for making
system backups and storing large quantities of
data
Optical Storage Devices
 CD-DA: Audio CD
 CD-R: This drive allows you to read and to
write to a compact disk
 CD-ROM: Can hold large amounts of data,
but is read-only access
Optical Storage Devices (cont.)
 CD-RW: Can be written on several times
 DVD-ROM: Read-only DVD format
 DVD-R: Similar to CD, but holds more data;
read-only
 DVD-RW: Can be written on several times
 PhotoCD: Used for storing digital
photographs on a CD
Solid-State Storage Media

 Non-volatile removable media

 Miniature mobile media
 Uses integrated circuits
 USB flash drive
 Connects to the computer via a USB port
Communication Devices
 Used to transmit/receive data and “talk”
with other computers.
Communication Devices

Modem

Router

Hub
Multiplexer
Switch
Types of Computers
 Microcomputers
 Minicomputers
 Mainframes
 Supercomputers

*Based on size, capacity and purpose

Microcomputers
 also called personal computers.
 smallest, cheapest, most popular type.
 power and speed are ever-increasing.
 size and cost are ever-decreasing.
Microcomputers
Microcomputers

Portable Computer

Desktop Computer

Laptop Computer

Home Computer
Microcomputers
Minicomputers
 the middle-class of computer size and
power.
 popular with small and medium-size
businesses.
 used mainly as servers (file, web,
process).
Minicomputers
Mainframes
 big, powerful, fast and expensive.
 serve hundreds of users at the same time.
 executes millions of instructions per
second.
 used for high-volume data processing.
 kept in carefully controlled environment
(cool and dust-free).
Mainframes
Supercomputers
 extremely fast and expensive.
 serve hundreds of users at the same time.
 executes billions of instructions per
second.
 perform vital tasks.
 mostly used in scientific, industrial and
military research.
Supercomputers
Terminologies

 Central Processing Unit (CPU)

 referred to as the “brains of the computer”.
 supervises the execution of program instructions.

 System Unit
 the hardware unit that houses the CPU, memory,
disk drives, ports and other circuit boards.

 System Board / Motherboard

 the main circuit board to which all computer system
components connect.
Terminologies
 Random Access Memory (RAM)
 the computer’s main memory.
 it is volatile since the contents of the memory are lost
when there is no power.
 Read-Only Memory (ROM)
 a software in hardware module from which the
computer can read data, but not write.
 Ports
 a socket on the exterior of a computer’s system unit into
which a peripheral device may connect.
Terminologies
Keyboard
primary device for entering data and telling the computer what to
do.

Mouse
a small device that simplifies the task of positioning the cursor on
the monitor screen.

Light Pen
an electronic device that is used to point/click at the monitor.

Graphics Tablet
can trace the movement of a pen-like device over a board-type
tablet to form graphical shapes.
 Printer
 primary output devices used to generate information
 outputs are called “hard copies” or “printouts”
 Monitor
 used to present visual output such as text and graphics
Multiplexers
 receives data at low speed from several terminals and
transmits them at high speed to the computer
 Modem (Modulator-Demodulator)
 converts digital signals to analog and vice-versa so that
it can transmit data through telephone lines
NEXT
Assignment

1. What is information?
2. What are the characteristics of Information?
3. What is Data Processing System (DPS)?
4. What are the elements of a DPS?
5. What are the 3 components of an EDP
system?
6. Cite some advantages and disadvantages of
an EDP System?