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1. Hardware – the physical components you can see and touch

and 2. Software – the sets of instructions

which direct the hardware

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Keyboard Mouse Trackball Touchpad Game Controller Scanner Digital Camera

Stylus Pen Touch Screen Microphone Optical Code Reader And more!!

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The things you use to put information into the computer

Monitors: CRT and LCD (Flat Panel) Printers: Laser, Ink Jet, Thermal Multifunction Devices Projectors Speakers LCD Panels

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The components you use to “see” the information

Motherboard◦ Central Processing Unit (CPU) Processor (Pentium, Celeron)

and clock (MHz-GHz)

◦ Memory chips: Random Access Memory (GB+)

◦ Connections to/other cards/devices Sound/Graphics/Video Cards Network Interface (Ethernet) Card

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The components that interpret, calculate and process the information

Network Interface

Card (NIC) Card

Video Card

Sound Card

First Generation Ports◦ Parallel (LPT) for

printers◦ Serial (COM) (Keyboard,

Mouse)◦ PS/2 (Mouse)

Newer Technology Ports◦ USB 2.O◦ Ethernet◦ Firewire

View different ports

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The components you use to create a permanent record of information. To store programs/data between sessions.

Modems◦ Dial-up◦ DSL◦ Cable

Router

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Cable Modem

DSL Modem

Wireless Router

Cable Router

The components you use to send information to other computers

COMMUNICATIONS

PROCESSINPUT OUTPUT

STORAGE

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System Software

Application Software

ProgrammingLanguages

Operating Systems (think of the O/S as the office manager; what you “see” when you start up the PC) e.g. Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Linux, Unix, Mac OS X

Device Drivers: instructions needed for the O/S communicate with peripheral (printer, camera, etc.)

Utilities: programs for hardware/software management to detect, repair, prevent problems.

Controls the operations of the computer hardware. There are three kinds of System Software:

Creates environment in which we work Loads, stores, executes, application

software Disk Management: data, files, space Keeps date/time Maintain PC security Detects equipment failure Allocates system resources (e.g.: how

much memory is used for which task, communicates w/input/output/storage devices)

System Software:

Word Processing (for manipulating text) Spreadsheets (for calculating data) Database (for file/records management) Graphics: Presentation, Design, Paint & Draw,

Desktop Publishing (electronic arts and crafts!) Browsers (for looking at things on the Web) Email (for

receiving/composing/reading/sending electronic mail)

Games (fun stuff) Accounting & Finance (necessary stuff) and more...

The programs you use to perform specific tasks

Can purchase a packaged program (at Staples, Best Buy…wherever) OR

Have an application custom designed by a programmer

Copyrights Laws apply—cannot pass on! Shareware: software you can use for a free trial

period (30-90 days?) Freeware: software you can legally pass-on w/nc! Software Suites: two or more programs sold under

"umbrella" name, e.g.: MS Office “Versions” refer to new updates of programs

◦ MS Office: Office 95, Office 97, Office 2000, Office XP, Office 2003, Office 2007, Office 2010, Office 2013)

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Hardware

System Software

Application Software

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