COMPUTER BASICS

TYPES OF COMPUTERS 1. SUPERCOMPUTERS are used to process very large amounts of information including processing information to predict hurricanes, satellite images and navigation. A supercomputer is a computer with a high level of performance compared to a general- purpose computer.

2. MAINFRAMES are used by government and businesses to process very large amounts of information. Mainframes - are computers used primarily by large organizations for critical applications; bulk data processing, such as census, industry and consumer statistics, enterprise resource planning; and transaction processing.

3. MINI-COMPUTERS is a type of computer that possesses most of the features and capabilities of a large computer but is smaller in physical size. A minicomputer fills the space between the mainframe and microcomputer, and is smaller than the former but larger than the latter. Minicomputers are mainly used as small or mid-range servers operating business and scientific applications.

4. PERSONAL COMPUTERS(PC) - also known as PCs, smaller and less powerful than the others. They are used in homes, schools, and small businesses. A personal computer (PC) is a multi- purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and price make it feasible for individual use. PCs are intended to be operated directly by an end user, rather than by a computer expert or technician.

Networks A network is a group of computers that share information and hardware. The computers are connected together using copper phone wires, fiber optic cables, or radio waves. Our computers are on a network here at school...Look under the table and see the blue wires that connect your computer to the network. The internet is many networks around the world that are all connected together to make 1 huge network.

PARTS OF COMPUTER HARDWARE - refers to the physical parts of a computer and related devices. Internal hardware devices include motherboard, hard drives, and RAM. External hardware devices include monitors, keyboards, mice, printers, and scanners. SOFTWARE - can be thought of as the variable part of a computer and hardware the invariable part. Software is often divided into application software programs that do work users are directly interested in and system software which includes operating systems and any program that supports application software.

TYPES OF HARDWARE 1.INPUT DEVICES - An input device is a hardware or peripheral device used to send data to a computer. An input device allows users to communicate and feed instructions and data to computers for processing, display, storage and/or transmission.

2. OUTPUT DEVICES - is any device used to send data from a computer to another device or user. Most computer data output that is meant for humans is in the form of audio or video. Thus, most output devices used by humans are in these categories. Examples include monitors, projectors, speakers, headphones and printers.

3. STORAGE DEVICES - is any computing hardware that is used for storing, porting and extracting data files and objects. It can hold and store information both temporarily and permanently, and can be internal or external to a computer, server or any similar computing device. A storage device may also be known as a storage medium or storage media.

TYPES OF SOFTWARE Application Software - is a program or group of programs designed for end users. These programs are divided into two classes: system software and application software. While system software consists of low-level programs that interact with computers at a basic level, application software resides above system software and includes applications such as database programs, word processors and spreadsheets. Application software may be bundled with system software or published alone. Operating System Software - An operating system (OS), in its most general sense, is software that allows a user to run other applications on a computing device. While it is possible for a software application to interface directly with hardware, the vast majority of applications are written for an OS, which allows them to take advantage of common libraries and not worry about specific hardware details.

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