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Introduction
Historical Perspective Classification Of Computers Elements Of Computing Process Characteristics of Computer Advantages and Limitations of Computers
Introduction
Computer is an electronic device which can
compute and process data. Computer can store, process and retrieve data whenever required. Computers can do computations with not only all kinds of numbers but also with alphabets, pictures, sound, images and voice (multimedia) It is capable of producing accurate results from the inputs given and is very reliable.
Historical Perspective
Generation Years Circuitry Characterized By
First
Second Third
1951 to 1959
1959 to 1963 1963 to 1975
Vacuum tubes
Transistors Integrated Circuit VLSI
Fourth
1975 to present
Classification Of Computers
Supercomputers Mainframes Minicomputers Workstations and Microcomputers Computers on the move portable computers (laptop, notebook, etc) Docking station Palmtop computers Smart cards Embedded computers
All the above are necessary for the computer to perform a useful task.
Characteristics of Computer
They are fast.
They are reliable They are accurate They can store massive amounts of information They can move information very quickly from one
place to another
Speed computations can happen very fast Versatility in terms of taking inputs it can process multiple types of data Accuracy results generated by a computer are very accurate
Incapability to take decisions on their own, like human beings Capability to distinguish valid from invalid data Requires regular maintenance
Parts of a Computer
Input Devices
Output Devices
Input Devices
Keyboard The keyboard is very much like a standard typewriter with few additional keys. When any key is pressed it sends electronic signal with unique identification to the computer. There are 101 keys in standard keyboard but nowadays keyboards with more than 101 keys are also available.
Input Devices
Mouse It is an input device that controls the movement of the cursor on a display screen. A mouse is a small object that can be rolled along a hard flat surface. The name is derived from its shape, which looks a bit like a mouse. As the mouse is moved, the pointer on the display screen moves in the same direction. Mouse contains at least one button and sometimes as many as three, which have different functions depending on what program is running.
Input Devices
Scanner It is one of the device, mostly used in designing etc and provides input to computers. These inputs are used for processing and manipulation, there are some specific scanners built for special purposes like OCR, MICR or BCR.
Output Devices
Visual Display Unit (VDU) It is a device looks like TV this is used to display output, termed as monitor. It uses cathode ray tube (CRT) to display text, images, drawings etc when a key is pressed Control Unit (CU) gets intimated and sends instructions for drawing that character on the monitor, this is example of VDU functionality.
Output Devices
Printers : A printer is a device that prints text or illustrations on paper and in many cases on transparencies and other media. There are many different kinds of printers: a. Daisy-wheel printer b. Dot-matrix printer c. Ink-jet printer d. Laser printer e. WD and LED printers f. Line printer g. Thermal printer
Computer Networks
A network is a group of two or more computer systems linked together. A network consists of five basic components:
Terminals 2. Telecommunication Processors 3. Telecommunications Channels and Media 4. Computer 5. Telecommunication Software
1.
systems linked together. A network consists of five basic components: 1. Terminals include video display terminals and other end user workstations. Any input/output device that uses a network to transmit or receive data is a terminal. 2. Telecommunication Processors These are devices which support data transmission and reception between terminals and computers. These devices such as modems, multiplexers and front-end processors perform a variety of control and support functions in a network.
3. Telecommunications Channels and Media : The media over which data are transmitted and received are called telecommunication channels. They use combinations of media such as copper wires, coaxial cables, fiber option cables, microwave systems to interconnect the other components of a network. 4. Computer : Networks interconnect computers of all sizes and types so that they can carry out their information processing assignments. 5. Telecommunication Software : These are programmers that reside in host computer systems, communication control computers and end user computers.
Computer viruses
A computer virus is an actively infectious computer program that place copies of itself into other applications and programs but not into data files. A virus is a manmade program or piece of code that causes an unexpected, usually negative, event.
Operating Systems
All the working details are taken care by the operating system. It takes care of all the intermediate activities required in accomplishing the task submitted. E.g. Microsoft Windows, DOS, XENIX, Mac OS, OS/2, UNIX, MIVS, etc
Schedule Jobs Manage Hardware and Software Resources Maintain System Security Enable Multiple User Resources Sharing Handle Interrupts Maintain Usage Records For large systems, the operating system has even greater responsibilities and powers. It is like a traffic policeman ; it makes sure that different programs and users running at the same time do not interfere with each other.
Introduction to MS Word
MS Word is word processing software where text could be manipulated to produce documents such as memos, class notes, letters, term papers and other written text. Not only could computers process numbers they could also process words. Nowadays word processing has become one of the principal applications used on personal computers.
Introduction to MS-Excel
Excel is known as a spreadsheet application. A spreadsheet still uses the idea of a large sheet of paper into which numbers are entered. A spreadsheet is a highly interactive computer program that consists of a collection of rows and columns that are displayed on screen in a scrollable window. A workbook is an excel file where the data is stored and it consists of many worksheets. Worksheet is a grid made up of horizontal rows and vertical columns. Macros is a very small program that allows you to customize Excel so that it makes tasks easier.
Accounting Packages
Accounting, in simplest terms is keeping track of our Income, Expenses, Assets and Liabilities. This is true for a business, for a household and for an individual. Some basic documents used in financial accounting system are: 1. Voucher 2. Journal 3. Ledger Some main reports prepared in the financial accounting system are : 1. Trial Balance 2. Profit and Loss Report 3. Balance Sheet
TALLY EES
Tally is a versatile accounting package and is also based on a windowing interface. All screens in Tally are viewed as windows processing the following : - A title bar that displays the name of the application - A tally icon to the left (of the user) that pulls down a menu comprising restore, move, size, minimize and maximize menu items - Three small buttons to the right (of the user) that activates minimize, maximize and closure of the window. - These menu items and buttons are invoked through the usual short cut keys and hot keys as any other window based application.
E.X. Next Generationclassified into the All accounting entries in E-X have been
following groups :
Receipts Payments Purchase Sales Purchase Return Sales Return Journal Debit Note Credit Note Cash and Bank Transfers (Contra) Withdrawals / Deposits
Database Design
MS Access is a powerful multi-user DBMS developed by Microsoft Corp. It can be used to store and manipulate large amount of information and automate repetitive task, such as maintaining an inventory, e.g. generating invoices. Database Management System (DBMS) A DBMS is a set of systems software programs that manages the database files.
Databases
Database is a collection of related and ordered information, organized in such a way that information can be accessed quickly and easily.. In a database, data are integrated and related so that software programs provide access to all the data. A database system comprises of five major parts namely : 1. Hardware 2. Software 3. People 4. Procedures 5. Data
Databases
A single user DBMS supports only one user at a time. A multi-user DBMS supports multiple users at the same time. A DBMS that supports a database located at a single site is called a centralized DBMS. A DBMS that supports a database distributed across several different sites is called a distributed DBMS.
FOXPRO
FOXPRO comes under the category of Relational Database Management Systems It offers all the features of a programming language and power tools for designing such as customized menus, screens and reports. FoxPro is very popular mainly due to its menu driven interface and interactive environment. It is available for both DOS and WINDOWS environments.
MS Access 2000
Microsoft Access 2000 for Windows is a database management system, or DBMS which helps us, manage data stored in a computer database. MS Access 2000 is a DBMS package from Microsoft. The latest version of Access 2000 provides a plethora of new features designed to help us use the Internet and develop World Wide Web applications.
E-Commerce
E-Commerce is defined as buying and selling of products and services over the Internet, but there are many more aspects to it. E-commerce is a system that includes not only the transactions that center on buying and selling goods and services to directly generate revenue, but also those transactions that support revenue generation, such as generating demand by those goods and services, offering sales support and customer service or facilitating business partner.
E-Commerce
From a communication perspective, electronic commerce is the delivery of information, products, services or payments via telephone lines, networks or any other means From a business process perspective, electronic commerce is the application of technology towards the automation of business transactions and workflows. From a service perspective, electronic commerce is a tool that addresses the desire of firms, consumers and management to cut service costs while improving the quality of goods and increasing the speed of service delivery. From an online perspective, electronic commerce provides the capability of buying and selling products and information on the Internet and other online services.
E-Commerce
E-commerce endeavors to improve the execution of business transactions over various networks. These improvements may result in more effective performance and greater economic efficiency. E-Commerce enables the execution of information laden transactions between two or more parties using interconnected networks. E-Commerce can be viewed as a production process that converts digital inputs into value added outputs through a set of intermediaries.
Web Commerce
Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) is a transfer of
structured data for processing from computer to computer using agreed formats and protocols. Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT) Value Added Networks (VAN)
Internet Contd
Connections : These are basically two ways of getting connected to the internet 1. Dedicated Access helps to access the internet directly and throughout the day 2. Dial up Access the computer can be connected to the net by dial up access by means of a modem. Other ways Bulletin boards Mail call Wireless Systems
Internet Services
E-Mail or Electronic Mail is an electronic form of regular mail. The Internet Service Provider (ESP) delivers the message conveyed in the email to the recipient. One of the major advantages of email is that it is very easy to use, very fast and much cheaper than sending regular mail.
Hyperlink
Hyperlinks are also known as links. Each link in a web
page refers to another web page. When we click on a link, the browser fetches the page connected to the link which in turn can contain more links to other places over the net. A hyperlink can be a word, a group of words, a picture of a part of a picture. It helps in retrieving information from different places and is easy in retracing paths as each page having a link contains a reference to the previous page. In this system, all the related information can be listed under the main topic. The system of interlinked documents is known as Hypertext.
Hypertext
Hypertext is the method of presenting information through highlighted items. Hypertext system allows creation of links from two topics to the same document effecting connections between the pieces of information
Search Engines
Search engines and directories are web searching features. A directory is meant for browsing. It is organized in a particular manner for easy and productive browsing. The bigger directories have built in search engines which are more convenient as both browsing through the directory and using the search engine are possible. The directories that come with the built-in engines are Yahoo!, Lycos and Excite. On the other side, the search engines alike Alta Vista, Open Text, Inktomi and WWW worm do not have a directory.
Internet Opportunities
Cryptography : Cryptography is the science of securing data. It is the process of transforming plain text or original information into an unintelligible form so that it may be sent over unsafe channels of communication. Encryption : covers all techniques to encipher or encode a transmission of information. Replacing the letters in a message with a corresponding number or by the next letter in the alphabet is a form of encryption.
Front page 98
Introduction to Front Page 98 In the front page editor you create, design and edit World Wide Web pages. As text, images, tables, form fields and other elements are created to the page the Front Page Editor displays them as they would appear in the Web browser. FrontPage Editor creates all the HTML code so it is not necessary to learn how to create Hypertext Markup Language (HTML).
Outlook 2000
Microsoft Outlook 2000 is the Windows messaging system. It includes customizable email, scheduling, task and contact tracking tools to help you efficiently manage your office activities. Outlook 2000 also includes a group called Other Shortcuts. The most common shortcut bar (Outlook Shortcuts) are : Outlook Today, Inbox, Calendar, Contacts, Tasks, Journal, Notes, Deleted Items