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Zayna Khan 08/02/10 SECTION 1 Types and Components of Computer Systems Candidates should be able to: 1. define hardware, giving examples; 2. define software, giving examples; 3. describe the difference between hardware and software; 4. identify the main components of a general-purpose computer: central processing unit, main/internal memory (including ROM and RAM), input devices, output devices and secondary/backing storage; 5. identify operating systems, including Graphic User Interface, command line interface; 6. identify different types of computer including Personal Computer or desktop, mainframe, laptop, palmtop and Personal Digital Assistant. Define “hardware” and give 3 examples Hardware: Is the physical parts of the computer system – the parts that you can touch and see. Example 1: Motherboard Example 2: CPU Example 3: Keyboard Define “software” and give 3 examples Hardware: Software is a collection of instructions that can be ‘run’ on a computer. These instructions tell the computer what to do. Software is not a physical thing Example 1: Windows Vista Example 2: Mac OS X Example 3: Microsoft Word Describe the difference between hardware and software Computer hardware is the physical components that make up the computer system. Hardware is useless without software to run on it. Software is instructions that tell computer hardware what to do. Software is useless unless there is hardware to run it on. For a computer system to be useful it has to consist of both hardware and software. Zayna Khan 08/02/10 For each of the following, find a photo and briefly describe its purpose: CPU The CPU is the 'brain' of the computer. It is the device that carries out software instructions. RAM Random Access Memory (RAM) is the part of the computer that temporarily stores the instructions that the computer is running, and the data it is processing. RAM is a volatile storage device. ROM Read-Only Memory (ROM) is used in most computers to hold a small, special piece of software: the 'boot up' program. This software runs when the computer is switched on or 'boots up'. The software checks the computer’s hardware and then loads the operating system. ROM is non-volatile storage. Define “Operating System” A special type of software, called the operating system (OS), tells the computer how to use all the different devices it can be connected to. e.g. printer, disk drive, keyboard, etc. (Extra devices such as these are celled peripherals) Briefly describe these two types of Operating System interface and give two examples of each: Command-line The user would see nothing but a black screen. They would have to type a command to make anything happen. (Difficult to use, only suitable for expert users) MAC OS, X Window System Graphical User Interface A GUI is an interface built around visual (graphical) things. A GUI is sometimes called a WIMP interface: Windows, Icons, Menus, Pointer Windows Vista, Windows XP Zayna Khan 08/02/10 For each of the following, find a photo and briefly describe: Desktop PC Is a personal computer (PC) in a form intended for regular use at a single location, as opposed to a mobile laptop. Laptop A portable computer small enough to use in your lap Mainframe A large, powerful computer able to manage very many simultaneous tasks and communicate with very many connected terminals; used by large, complex organizations (such as banks and supermarkets) Palmtop*† A pocket-sized computing device, typically having a display screen with touch input or a miniature keyboard PDA*† A personal digital assistant (PDA) is a handheld computer, also known as a palmtop computer. Minicomputer* A computer smaller than a mainframe, but larger than a microcomputer Supercomputer A mainframe computer that is one of the most powerful available at a given time * These are practically out of date but it’s worth being able to identify them. † There is no well-defined difference between a Palmtop and a PDA – both have been superseded by smartphones (e.g. Blackberry)