PARTS OF A COMPUTER (Class III, IV And V) Thinking Of .

PARTS OF A COMPUTER(Class III, IV and V)Read the content very carefully and analyze each word by actuallythinking of various programs/ parts you deal with and are familiar too.You are pretty familiar with your TV, maybe too familiar! The TV is mostly anoutput machine or device. This means that the stuff, be it information or junk,flows from the TV out to you. It also has some input controls so that you cangive it some input. These are the volume control, the on and off switch and thechannel changerSo output is the flow of information to you and input is the flow from youto the device.Lets analyze a computer. Computers have: Parts to receive inputParts to give outputParts to do workParts to remember things while the power is on (short termmemory- RAM- random access memory) Parts to remember things when the power is off (long termmemory- ROM- read only memory, )1

What is kind of surprising is how much effort is spent giving input andgetting output, and how little is actually spent on doing work! By work Imean big arithmetic calculations or searching through long lists for acertain item.So now, the parts of the computer.The Parts of a ComputerItemDutyMonitor (screen)OutputPrinterOutputProcessorWork2

KeyboardInputMouseInputModemInput and OutputMemory (RAM)Short term storageFloppy DisksExternal storageHard DisksLong term storageThe computers main job is to run programs. Programs are instructions in alanguage that computers and programmers understand. A programmer, or ateam of programmers writes a program and saves it on a long term storagedevice like a floppy drive, pen drive, a hard disk or a CD-ROM.Then, when you want to run that program, you type its name and the computergoes and gets the program off the hard drive, or wherever it is stored, andbrings it into its short term storage, called RAM, and runs the program.3

How computer organizes information: You are familiar with the concepts offiles and folders. Let’s go through it in some more detail.The idea about files and directories is very important and actually if you can geta firm grasp of files, you are then on the downward side of the learning curve.If you understand files, you’ll be able to figure out most things, and a lot of theblack magic involved in using a computer, and a lot of the fear, will simplydisappear. These lessons will spend a lot of time talking about files.First lets take a quick overview of files and then we will make comparisonsbetween files and things you already know.What do we mean by Files?Files are clumps of computer data stored somewhere in your computer. Each file hasa name, a location, and a length, and usually a date of when it was last changed.Files are stored in several places. on floppy diskson hard driveson CD'spen drivein the computers memory (RAM)in the computers special read only memory (ROM)on tapes of a tape back-up device.Any files that are in the memory of the computer are lost when the power is turnedoff. That is not as scary as it sounds because what you usually have in memory isonly a temporary copy of the file, the original stays on the hard drive or floppy orwherever it is usually kept. Pretty well the only time the original is in memory is whenyou are creating a new file and haven't saved it yet. That is you are working on it.What Do Files Do?Files hold and store information that can be read by the computer. That's allthey do.What Kinds of Files Are There?All files are basically the same, they all have a name, a location, a date andthey all hold information. However, they can hold lots of different kinds ofinformation, so we often think of this as different kinds of files for example theycan store pictures like a Paint program file or text like a MS Word file. Actuallyit is just the type of information that is different.4

Here are some of the main types of files you will encounter. They often havecertain letters at the end of their names so you can tell from their names whatsort of information is inside. Some files you can easily look at the informationinside and many others you can't, at least not without a program that isspecifically designed to look inside that type of file.NameWhat's insideWhat does it do?anything.comA list ofinstructions forthe computer, aprogramIt runs, you execute it by typingthe name or double clicking onitanything.exe(executablefile)A list ofinstructions forthe computer, aprogramIt runs, you execute it by typingthe name or double clicking onit. Bigger and more commonthat .com'sanything.batA list ofinstructions forthe computer, aprogramIt runs, you execute it by typingthe name or double clicking onit. Usually small and quite easyfor you to makereadme.txtText, that isreadableinformation.It is there for you to read.anything.gifGraphicalinformationWhen viewed using a graphicsprogram, you can see thepicture.TextualinformationWhen viewed using a browserprogram, you can see the textin a pretty format. Whenviewed using an ordinary editor,you can see the text and thecodes that make it pretty.lesson3.htmJust think of some common programs and associated file type/s that you havebeen making/ using in school eg doc files are MS Word files.What do you do with files?What you do with a file depends on the type of information that it holds, butsome things can be done with all files.5

Run them - if they hold a program.Look inside them, if they hold graphics information or text.Listen to them, if they hold audio information.Copy them - this is one of the main things you will do. When you run aprogram, what actually happens is that the file, with the program inside, iscopied from the long term storage device into the RAM, where its' list ofinstructions are executed (run). You also copy files from a floppy to your harddrive or from one place on your hard drive to another.Move them - This is like copying except that the original is NOT left behind. Itis often safer to copy a file from one place to another and then delete theoriginal, once you are sure the copy went well.Delete them. When you no longer need a particular file, you can zap it.Create them. When you compose a document in a word processor or anyother program such as an editor or spreadsheet, you are creating a new file.Usually saving goes hand in hand with creating.Computer HardwareA good way to recognize computer hardware is to think of it as the things about acomputer that you can get your hands on. At the beginning of this lesson, youidentified several parts of the computer that make up visible computer hardware: thescreen, the mouse, the keyboard and the big box. You may also see a printer and amodem.Input and OutputThe computer mouse and the keyboard are both hardware devices that allow you tocommunicate with the computer. It is through these devices that the computer canlearn what you want the computer to do. These two devices are called input devices.Can you think of some more input devices?The computer screen, or the monitor, is the way that the computer communicates withyou. The computer monitor is also called an output device. The printer is anotheroutput device. What about speakers?More on Input: The MouseLearning how to use the input device, the mouse. You learned that when you movethe mouse a white arrow/vertical black line on the screen moves in correspondence.You also learned that when you click the left mouse button when the arrow is pointedto a particular area of the screen, you can control what happens on the screen.By pointing and clicking the mouse you can also place on the screen a point known asthe cursor. The cursor is the point on your computer screen where your computer isready for input. It may appear as a still or flashing vertical or horizontal line or as abox. When you type, information will be entered at the point of the cursor.6

More on Input: The KeyboardThe computer keyboard offers a range of special functions that are important tomaster in order to use a computer best as a tool for information literacy. In addition,some special function computers you use will not have a mouse and will only allowyou to communicate with the computer through its keyboard. Knowing how to touchtype will enable you to work quickly when you use a computer. Knowing somekeyboard basics is essential when using a computer.The diagram below highlights important features of a computer keyboard:Sometimes computer keys work together to perform a pre-defined operation. It isimportant when using these combinations of keys that you press all of them at thesame time. Stretch those fingers!There will be times when you are using a computer when the only way the computerwill register your message is if you hit the enter key after you have typed in someinformation. This is true with database or searching programs such as an electroniclibrary catalog or a search engine on the World Wide Web. Unlike a typewriter,however, when you are using your computer for word processing, you do not have tohit the enter key at the end of a line. Word processors (MS Word) will automaticallywrap the typing around to the next line.Remember to hit the space bar in between words. Many computer programs have adictionary built into them, but the computer does not automatically know where words7

break. The tab key will allow you to jump ahead a few spaces when your computer isworking as a word processor, or down or over to another fill-in area when you areworking with a computerized form- like MS Excel.The shift key allows you to capitalize letters when you are using your computer as aword processor. In addition, the shift key, as well as the control and the alt key arekeys that are often used in combination to perform special functions with yourcomputer.The top row of the keyboard has keys called function keys. These keys are labeledwith the letter F and the numbers 1-12. Before the Windows operating system becamethe major operating system for personal computers, many computer programs werewritten which assigned special capabilities to the computer keyboard function keys.Some programs you use may instruct you to use these keys.The back arrow key located on the right side of the row of number keys allows you tomove the cursor to a position where you were previously. Moving backward with thisarrow key may or may not erase the information that was previously typed there. Thisdepends on what software you are using.The home key will take you to the beginning of a line on the screen and the end keywill take you to the end of a line.Page Up and Page Down allow you to move through complete screen in a singlestep. Remember that when a file is brought onto a computer screen work orpresentation area, the file appears as though it is on a single, long sheet of paper thatis as long as the information it holds requires it to be. The arrow keys also allow youto move through your screen of material.The insert key allows you to type over material you have already typed. The deletekey allows you to erase.The print screen key may work alone or may work in combination with another key toallow you to print what is on the screen. Using print screen is a quick alternative tomore elegant ways of printing your files from any Windows program.The numeric pad on the right side of your keyboard allows you an alternative methodof using the computer keyboard numbers for calculation purposes. The numeric padnumbers are labeled for multipleFunctions.Remember when you are using a computer these important communication, or inputand output points. Your computer will not know that you are sending the messagesunless you have used the mouse or the keyboard; your computer may have theanswer to your question but you'll have to look at the screen to read it.8