COMPUTER SKILLS

Mutebi Joe

Department of Computing
Kampala International
University
 Course Objectives
● Define the term computer and discuss the four basic
computer operations: input, processing, output, and
storage
● Define data and information
● Explain the principal components of the computer
and their use
● Describe the use of storage media – floppy disks,
hard disks, and other storage media
● Discuss computer software and explain the
difference between system software and application
software
 Objectives con’t…
● Identify several types of personal computer
application software
● Discuss computer communications channels
Loading…
and equipment and the Internet and World Wide
Web
● Explain how to purchase, install, and maintain a
personal computer
● Define e-commerce
 What is a computer?
● Computer
● an electronic device, operating under the control
of instructions (software) stored in its own memory
unit
● this memory unit can
● accept data – input
● manipulate data – process
● produce information – output
● store results for future use - storage
 Devices that comprise a computer

system
Monitor Speaker
(output) (output)
System unit
(processor, memory…)
Printer
(output)

Loading…
Storage devices
(CD-RW, Floppy,
Hard disk, zip,…)
Mouse
(input)
Scanner Keyboard
(input) (input)
 What does a computer do?
● Computers perform four general operations
● input, process, output, and storage
● Information processing cycle
● inputting, processing, outputting, and storing make-up this
cycle
● Processing requires data
● data – collection of raw facts, figures, and symbols given to
a computer during the input operation
● Manipulate data to create information
● information – data that is organized, meaningful, and useful
 Why is a computer so powerful?
● Power is derived from the computer’s capability to
perform the information processing cycle with speed,
reliability, and accuracy
● The computer’s capacity to store huge amounts of
data and information
● The computer’s ability to communicate with other
computers
 How does a computer know
what to do?

● It must be given a detailed set of instructions

● These instructions are called a computer program or
software
● Executes one program instruction after another until
the job is complete
 What are the components
of a computer?

● Six primary components

● input devices
● the processor
● memory
● output devices
● storage devices
● communications devices
● The processor, memory, and storage device are
housed in a box-like case called the system unit
 Input Devices
● Input device – any hardware component the allows
you to enter data, programs, commands, and user
responses into a computer
● primary input devices
● keyboard
● mouse
● other input devices
● digital camera
● scanner
● Microphone
● Joystick
● touchpad
 Input Devices con’t…
● The Keyboard
● desktop computer keyboard typically has 101 to 105 keys
● handheld computers use an onscreen keyboard and use a
stylus to select keys
Loading…
 Input Devices con’t…
● The Mouse
● a pointing device that fits under the palm of your hand
● control the movement of the pointer on the screen and
make selections from the screen
● one to five buttons
● bottom is flat and contains a mechanism or ball that
detects movement
● notebooks have a pointing device built into the keyboard
 Processor

● Processor or central processing unit (CPU) –

interprets and carries out the basic instructions that
operate a computer
● made up of the control unit and arithmetic/logic unit
● control unit – interprets the instructions
● arithmetic/logic unit – performs the logical and arithmetic
processes
● 42 million transistors and performs operations 10 million
times in a tenth of a second
Processor
 Memory
● Memory or random access memory (RAM) –

electronic components that store instructions waiting

to be executed by the processor, data needed by
those instructions, and the results of processed data
● consists of one or more chips on the motherboard
● motherboard or system board – main circuit board to
which electronic components are attached
● memory is measured in kilobytes or megabytes
● 1 kilobyte (K or KB) = 1,000 memory locations
● 1 megabyte (M or MB) = 1,000,000 memory locations
● memory location or byte – stores one character
 Output Devices
● Output devices – make information from processing
available for use
● can be presented in many forms
● printed report or displayed on a screen
● printers and display devices are common output devices
for word processing, spreadsheets, and database
management
 Output Devices con’t…
● Printers
● two kinds of printers

● impact printers – strikes an inked ribbon against the

paper (dot matrix printer)
● Nonimpact printers – form characters by means other
than striking a ribbon against paper (ink-jet printers or
laser printers)
● advantage – print higher-quality text and graphics,
better job printing different fonts, quieter, can print in
color
 Output Devices con’t…
● Display devices – an output device that visually
conveys text, graphics, and video information
● monitor – plastic or metal case that houses a display
device
● two types of monitors – CRT and LCD
● cathode ray tube (CRT) – television- like, most common
● LCD or flat panel monitor – uses a liquid display crystal, similar to
a digital watch
● surface of screen is composed of individual picture
elements called pixels
● resolution of 800 x 600 = 480,000 pixels
● each pixel can be illuminated to form parts of a character or
graphic shape on the screen
 Storage Devices
● Storage devices – used to store instructions,
data, and information not being used in
memory
● six types of storage devices
● Floppy disks
● zip disks
● optical discs
● Tape
● Hard Disk
● Miniature Storage Media
 Storage Devices con’t…
● Floppy disks or diskette
● portable, inexpensive storage medium that consists of a
thin, circular, flexible plastic disk with a magnetic coating
enclosed in a square-shaped plastic shell

● typically can store up to 1.44 megabytes of data or

1,474,560 characters
● a portable storage medium
● portable means you can remove the medium from one
computer and carry it to another computer
● floppy disk drive – device that can read from and write to a
floppy disk
 Storage Devices con’t…
● Floppy disks con’t…
● a type of magnetic disk, which uses magnetic patterns to
store items on its surface
● read/write storage media
● can access (read) data from and place (write) data on a magnetic
disk
● must be formatted
● formatting – process of preparing a disk for reading and
writing by organizing the disk into storage locations called
tracks and sectors
● track – a narrow recording band that forms a full circle on the
surface of the disk
● sector – capable of holding 512 bytes of data
● 80 track per side and 18 sectors per track
● access time – time required to access and retrieve data
Floppy disks con’t…
 Storage Devices con’t…
● Zip Disk – portable magnetic media
● can store up to 750 MB
● can be built-in or external
● make it easier to transport many files or large

items
● graphics, audio, or video files
● back up important data and information
● backup – a duplicate of a file, program, or disk that
you can use in case the original is lost, damaged, or
destroyed
 Storage Devices con’t…
● Hard disks – consists of one or more rigid
metal platters coated with a metal oxide
material that allows data to be recorded
magnetically
● data is recorded on a series of tracks
● spin 5,400 to 7,200 revolutions/minute
● number of platters vary
● storage capacity one billion characters to more
than 200 billion characters
● 1 billion bytes = 1 gigabyte (GB)
Hard disks
 Storage Devices con’t…
● Optical discs – storage medium that consists
of a flat, round, portable, metal storage
medium
● 4.75 inches in diameter
● less than 1/20 of an inch thick

● Two types of optical discs

● CD
● DVD
● Variety of formats
● CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-ROM, DVD+RW
 Storage Devices con’t…
● CD-ROMs or compact disc read-only memory- type
of optical disc that uses laser technology for
recording
● can contain audio, text, graphics, and video
● can only read, cannot erase or modify the content
● holds 650 MB – 1 GB of data
● CD-R or compact disc-recordable – multisession
optical disc that you can record your own items on
● can read from many times
● can write on each part only one time
● cannot erase
 Storage Devices con’t…
● CD-RW or compact disc-rewritable – an erasable
disc you can write on multiple times
● write and rewrite data, instructions, and information
multiple times
● DVDs – technology that can be used to store large
amounts of text and even cinema-like videos
● DVD-ROM or digital video disc-ROM – high capacity

optical disc
● store 4.7 GB to 17 GB
● read-only
 Storage Devices con’t…
● DVD+RW or DVD-rewriteable – can erase and
record multiple times
● major use
●
Loading…
edit videos from a video camera or VCR, stored and
edited on your computer, and then written to a DVD+RW
disc
● Tape – magnetically coated ribbon of plastic
housed in a tape cartridge capable of storing
large amounts of data and information at a low
cost
● primarily used for long-term storage and backup
 Storage Devices con’t…
● Miniature Storage Media – rewritable media
in the form of a flash memory card
● solid-state device that consists entirely of
electronics and contain no moving parts
● used with PDAs, digital cameras, music players,
and smart phones
● used to store digital images, music, and

documents
 Communications Devices
● Communications device – hardware
component that enables a computer to send
(transmit) and receive data, instructions, and
information to and from one or more
computers
● widely used communication device is the modem
● communications occur over transmission media
● cables, telephone lines, cellular radio networks, and
satellites
● some are wireless
 Computer Software
● Two types of software
● system software
● application software
● System software – programs to control the
operations of computer equipment
● operating system – set of programs that tell the computer
how to perform the functions of loading, storing, and
executing an application program and how to transfer data
● booting – when a computer is turned on, the operating
system is loaded into the computer’s memory from auxiliary

storage
● graphical user interface (GUI) – visual cues or icon
symbols
 Computer Software con’t…
● Application Software – programs that tell a
computer how to produce information
● examples – personal information manager,
accounting, computer-aided design, desktop
publishing, picture and video editing, and
educational
● commonly used applications – word processing,
electronic spreadsheet, and presentation graphics
● software package – Microsoft Office
 Computer Software con’t…
● Word processing software – used to create,
edit, format, and print documents
● advantage – users can easily make changes to
the document
● Electronic spreadsheet software – user can
add, subtract, and perform user-defined
calculations on rows and columns of numbers
● eliminates tedious recalculations, easily converted
into a graphic form
 Computer Software con’t…
● Database software – user can enter, retrieve,
and update data in an organized and efficient
manner
● Can access data in different ways and create
custom reports
● Presentation graphics software – allows
users to create documents called slides to be
used in presentations
 Networks and the Internet
● Network – collection of computers and devices
connected via communications media and devices
such as cables, telephone lines, modems
● users can share resources, such as hardware devices,
software programs, data, and information
● saves time and money
● LAN or local area network – network that connects
computers in a limited geographic area
● computer lab, offices, groups of buildings
● WAN or wide area network – network that covers a large
geographical area
● districts offices of a national corporation
 Networks and the Internet con’t…
● The Internet – worldwide collection of
networks that links together millions of
computers by means of modems, telephone
lines, cables, and other communications
devices and media
● world largest network
● use the Internet for a variety of reasons
● Sending messages (e-mail), accessing information,
shopping, meeting and conversing with people, and
accessing sources of entertainment and leisure
 Networks and the Internet con’t…
● Connect to the Internet in one of two ways
● through an Internet service provider
● through an online service provider
● Internet service provider (ISP) – organization that
supplies connections to the Internet for a monthly fee
● Online service provider (OSP) – provides access to
the Internet, but it also provides a variety of other
specialized content and services
 Networks and the Internet con’t…
● The World Wide Web or the Web – contains
billions of documents called Web pages
● most popular segment of the Internet
● Web page – document that contains text,
graphics, sound, and/or video and has built-in
connections, or hyper-links, to other Web
documents
● Web site – related collection of Web pages
● Web browser – software program used to access
and view Web pages
 Networks and the Internet con’t…
● Uniform Resource Locator or URL – unique Web
page address
● consists of a protocol, domain name, and sometimes
the path to a specific Web page or location in a Web
page
● URLs begin with http://
● http stands for hypertext transfer protocol
● domain name – identifies the Web site, which is stored on a
Web server
● Web server – computer that delivers (serves) requested
Web pages
 Networks and the Internet con’t…
● Electronic Commerce or e-commerce –
conducting business activities online
● Three types of e-commerce
● Business to consumer (B2C) – sale of goods to
the general public
● Consumer to consumer (C2C) – one consumer
selling directly to another
● Business to business (B2B) – goods and services
to other businesses