INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTERS

COURSE OBJECTIVES
o Know the basic concepts of computers
o Improve on his/her typing skills (accuracy and speed)
o Use Word Processors, Presentations and Spreadsheets

COMPUTER
o A programmable, electronic device that accepts data, performs operations on that data, presents the results,
and stores the data or results as needed
o INPUT – entering data into the computer
o PROCESSING – performing operations on the data
o OUTPUT – presenting the results
o STORAGE – saving data, programs, or output for future use

Why learn about computers?

o Pervasive computing
o Computers have become an integral part of our lives
o Basic computer literacy
o Knowing about and understanding computers and their uses
Data vs. information
o Data – raw, unorganized facts; can exist in many forms (text, graphics, audio and video)
o Information - data that has been processed into a meaningful form
o Information processing – the conversion of data into information
Example
o Data
o Each student’s test score is one piece of data.
o Information
o The average score of a class or of the entire school is information that can be derived from the given
data.

COMPONENTS OF A COMPUTER
o HARDWARE – physical parts of a computer
o SOFTWARE – also called programs or instructions
used to tell the computer hardware what to do.
o PEOPLEWARE – people involved in a computer
system; people who make the computers work and
those who use them
o Computer Users – (end users) people who
use the computer to obtain information
o Programmers – computer professionals
whose primary job responsibility is to write
programs that computers use (Programmer,
Systems Analyst, Database Administrator)
HARDWARE
o Input devices - Used to input data into the computer
o Processing devices - Perform calculations and Control computer’s operation
o Output devices - Present results to the user
o Storage devices - Used to store data on or access data from storage media
o Communications devices - Allow users to communicate with others and to electronically access information

SOFTWARE
o Also called programs
o Consists of related instructions, organized for a common purpose
o Tells the computer what task to perform and how to perform them
o Usually installed on a computer
o Types : System Software & Application Software

SYSTEM SOFTWARE
o Consists of programs that control or maintain the operations of the computer and its devices
o Serves as the interface between the user, the application software and the computers hardware
o OPERATING SYSTEM – a set of programs that coordinates all the activities among computer hardware
devices (DOS, Windows, MacOS, Linux, Unix)
o UTILITY PROGRAMS – allows users to perform maintenance-type tasks usually related to managing a
computer and its devices or programs
APPLICATION SOFTWARE
o Consists of programs designed to allow people to perform specific tasks or applications using a
computer EXAMPLES: Word Processing Programs, Photoediting, Spreadsheet Programs, Games,
Multimedia Programs, E-mail Programs, Database Programs, Web browsers

CATEGORIES OF COMPUTER
Speed, price, size, processing power
o Embedded Computers – tiny computers embedded into products to perform specific function or tasks for that
product (ATM machine, Cell Phone)
o Personal Computers – microcomputer; designed to be used by one person at a time(desktop, notebook)
o Mobile Computers and Mobile Devices – mobile phones/devices with computing and Internet capabilities
(Smartphones, PDA (personal digital Assistant) portable media players)
o Game Consoles – mobile computing device for single-player or multiplayer video games (Microsoft Xbox 360,
Nintendo Wii, Sony PS3)
o Servers – control access to the HW, SW and other resources on a network; host to a small group of users
o Mainframes – powerful computers used to host a large amount of data and programs available to a wide group
of users (IBM zSeries, System z9 server)
o Supercomputers – extremely powerful computers used for complex computations and processing
Advantages DISADVANTAGES
(+) SPEED (-) HEALTH RISK
(+) RELIABILITY (-) VIOLATION OF PRIVACY
(+) CONSISTENCY (-) IMPACT ON LABOR
(+) STORAGE (-) IMPACT ON ENVIRONMENT
(+) COMMUNICATIONS (-) PUBLIC SAFETY

Green computing – involves reducing the electricity consumed and environmental waste generated when using a
computer i.e recycling, regulating manufacturing , extending life

COMPUTER NETWORKS AND THE INTERNET

o Communicate with and meet other people
o Conduct research and access a wealth of information and news
o Shop for goods and services
o Bank and invest
o Participate in online training
o Engage in certain activities such as planning vacations, online games, listening to music, watching or editing
videos, and reading books, magazines
o Download music & videos
o Share information, photos and videos

NETWORKS & THE INTERNET

o COMPUTER NETWORK – a collection of computers and other hardware devices connected together, often
wirelessly via communication devices and transmission media
o Allows users to share resources(hardware, software, data and information as well as to communicate
with electronically with one another)
o ONLINE – when computer connects to a network
o SERVER (host) – any computer that provides services and connections to other computers on a network
o controls access to the resources on the network
o CLIENT
o INTERNET – worldwide collection of networks that connects millions of businesses, government agencies,
educational institutions and individuals
CONNECTING TO THE INTERNET
ISP – a company that provides individuals , business organizations internet access, usually for a fee
o Cable Internet Service – provides high speed Internet access through the cable tv network via cable
modem
o DSL (digital Subscriber Line) provides high speed internet access using regular copper telephone lines
o FTTP – (fiber to the premises) – uses fiber optic cable
o Fixed wireless – uses a dish shaped antenna to communicate with a tower location via radio signals
o Cellular radio network – computers with wireless modems
o Wi-Fi – (Wireless Fidelity) – uses radio signal to compatible wireless technology
o Satellite Internet Service – via satellite to a satellite dish that communicates with a satellite modem
o Dial-up – slow speed technology that transmits data and information using an analog pattern

Computers and the internet

o www (worldwide web) – web; global library of information available to the internet
o Contains billions of electronic documents(web pages)
o Service of the internet
o TIM BERNERS-LEE – creator of the world wide web
o Web pages – a document containing text, graphics, animation, audio and video; contains hyperlinks to other
documents
o Web site – a collection of related web pages usually belonging to an organization or an individual
o Web server – a computer that is continually connected to the internet and hosts web pages that are accessible
through the internet
o Web browser – a program used to access and view web pages (Google Chrome, IE..)
o Podcast – recorded audio stored on a web site that can be downloaded to a computer or a portable media
player
o W3C – World Wide Web Consortium
o Oversees research and sets standards and guidelines for many areas of the internet
o Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN)
o a nonprofit organization that does:
o IP address space allocation
o protocol parameter assignment
o domain name system management
o root server system management functions previously performed under U.S. Government contract
o ICANN was created in the fall of 1998 in response to a policy statement issued by the US Department of
Commerce. This statement called for the formation of a private sector not-for-profit Internet
stakeholder to administer policy for the Internet name and address system
o responsible for managing and coordinating the DNS to ensure universal resolvability

INTERNET ADDRESS
o INTERNET ADDRESS
o Numerical or text-based addresses used to identify resources accessible through the internet
o URLs – identifies web pages
o E-mail address – uniquely identify a person on the internet
o E-mail (electronic mail) electronic messages sent from one user to another over the internet or other
network
o IP Address (IP – Internet Protocol)
o Numeric based such as 207.46.197.32 (4 groups of numbers)
o Unique (no two computers with same IP address
o uniquely identifies each computer device connected to the internet
 o DOMAIN NAME
o Text based internet address that uniquely identifies a computer on the internet (microsoft.com)
o identifies who owns the computer and either the type of entity or location
o Domain names
o A period separates the different parts of a domain name.
o Rightmost part identifies the type of organization or its location (TLD)
o ICANN – Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers – assigns and controls top level domains
o DOMAIN NAME SYSTEM – is the method that the internet uses to store domain names and their corresponding
IP addresses
o DNS server – translates the domain names to its associated IP Address

ORIGINAL
INTENDED USE NEW TLDs INTENDED USE
TLDs
.com Commercial businesses .aero Aviation industry

.edu Educational institutions .biz Businesses

.gov Government organizations .coop Coop organizations

International treaty
.int .info Resource sites
organization
.mil Military organizations .jobs Employment sites

.net Network providers .travel Travel-oriented sites

.org Noncommercial organization

UNIFORM RESOURCE LOCATOR (URL)

o URL: Uniquely identifies a Web page
o (Also Web address) consists of a protocol, a domain name, and sometimes path to a specific web page or
location on a web page.
o Protocol is a set of rule & regulation that determine how the data is transmitted over the network
o Hypertext Transfer Protocol (http) is typically used to display Web pages (https is used for secure Web
pages
o File Transfer Protocol (ftp) is often used for file exchange
WEB PAGE URL

TYPES OF WEB SITES

o Portal – web site that offers a variety of internet services from a single location
o news- newsworthy material
o informational-factual information,
o business/marketing – promotes or sells products
o Wiki - a collaborative web site that allows users to create, add to, modify, or delete the web site (wikipedia)
o Blog – informal web site consisting of time stamped articles in a diary or journal format, usually listed in
reversed chronological order; specific opinions and ideas of others
o Social networking web site – an online social network that encourages members to share their interests, ideas,
stories, photos, music and videos with other registered users (Facebook, MySpace)
o Web applications – a web site that allows users to access and interact with software from any computer or
device that is connected to the internet (Google docs, windows live hotmail)

Rules of netiquette
o Netiquette – (internet etiquette) the code of acceptable behaviors users should follow while on the internet
o Keep messages short
o Be Polite
o Avoid sending flames or spam
o Use emoticons
o Identify spoiler(read FAQ)
o Never read someone’s private e-mail
o Use descriptive subject lines
o Don’t Shout (using capital letters)