how computers operate

be familiar with acronyms and how data flows through computer

what is the definition of a computer?

an electronic device that processes data, converting it into information that is useful to people

what is every computer, regardless of its type, controlled by?

programmed instructions, which gives the machine a purpose and tell it what to do

at its base, how is a computer programmed?

by using binary code

what is data?

raw facts and figures (numbers and letters)

when does data become information?

when we give context to data and do something with it

when did the first PC come out?

in 1974, titled Altair 8800

when did the Apple 1 come out, and who created it?

in 1976 by Wosniak and Jobs

when did the Apple II come out, and what was so significant about it?

came out in 1977

it featured a plastic case, a keyboard, and it was capable of color graphics

when did the IBM PC come out?

in 1981, it was the introduction of MS-DOS

this creation was pivotal for the evolution of PC’s

when did the Apple Macintosh come out, and what was revolutionary about it?

in 1984, and it featured GUI’s which pioneered a Xerox PARC

what are the four types of computers?

personal

mainframe

mobile

supercomputer

where are personal computers used?

in homes, offices, etc.

where are mainframes used?

in large organizations, like banks and insurance companies

connects through terminals (like ATMs)

what are examples of mobile computers?

phones, tablets, laptops

what is a supercomputer?

the fastest and most expensive computer

solves trillions of calculations per second

what are the four parts of the computer system?

1. hardware (the computer)

2. software (programs)

3. data (information)

4. user (people)

what is the hardware?

the mechanical devices that make up the computer

what does a computer’s hardware consist of?

interconnected electronic devices that you can use to control the computer’s operation, input, and output

what is software?

a set of instructions that makes the computer perform tasks

(tells the computer what to do)

what is a computer’s primary job?

to process the tiny pieces of data in various ways, converting them into useful information

are computers autonomous?

no computer is considered completely and totally autonomous

however, one can argue that some computer systems are complete without a person’s involvement

what does RAM stand for?

random access memory

what does CPU stand for?

central processing unit

what does the motherboard (a.k.a. the “foundation”) do?

provides connections to each device in your computer

what does the hard drive do?

stores information

what does PII stand for?

personally identifiable information

what does the GPU stand for?

graphics processing unit

what does OS stand for?

operating system

what does LAN stand for?

local area network

what does the LAN do?

connects the computer to the network

what does HDD stand for?

hard disk drive

what does SSD stand for?

solid state drive

what is the computer workflow?

input

memory

processing

output

what is taking in information called?

input

what is storing information known as?

memory (or storage)

what is chewing information known as?

processing

what is spitting out results called?

output

what are some examples of the core components used in the computer workflow?

keyboard and mouse are used as input

that input goes to the chip (the processor)

the chip communicates with the hard drive or flash memory (the storage)

the storage and the processor communicate back and forth

once the storage and processor are done communicating, it goes back to the processor and to the screen or printer (the output)

what is the most popular OS/computer?

Windows

what are some basic input devices?

keyboard

mouse

touchscreen

scanner

camera

joysticks

USB drives

external HDDs

what are some output devices?

monitor

speaker

printer

what are three main types of monitors?

CRT monitor

LCD monitor

touch screen monitor

what are the CRT monitors best known for?

for affordable and high-quality images

known for being a very big monitor

how did CRT monitors display images?

there would be a projector in the back of the monitor, and it would project onto the screen

what is the LCD monitor best known for?

sleek styling

saves space

more expensive than a CRT monitor

what does LCD stand for?

liquid crystal display

what is a touch screen monitor best known for?

easy input

no keyboard or mouse necessary

quick navigation through programs

what are the two main types of printers?

laser printer

ink-jet printer

what is a laser printer best known for?

fast printing

high-quality work

more expensive than ink-jet printer

what is an ink-jet printer best known for?

affordable color and black varieties

what is the main difference between HDDs and SSDs?

hard disk drives have spinning disks

• it’s like a record player, it spins and has a needle that tries to find the information you are looking for

solid state drives have no moving parts and are much faster

why are HDDs slower than SSDs?

the hard disk drives have to spin and try to find the information you are looking for

why is it easy to recover data from SSDs?

whenever you delete something on an SSD, it is never truly deleted

why are most modern computers using SSDs instead of HDDs?

they are both almost the same cost

the performance of a solid state drive is much better than a hard disk drive

what does ROM stand for?

read-only memory

what are some portable storage devices?

CD-ROM

DVD-ROM

flash drives

external hard drives (can be HDD or SSD)

what is the storage amount for a byte?

string of 8 bits

what is the approximate equivalent of a byte?

1 character

what is the order of data storage units from smallest to biggest?

byte

kilobyte

megabyte

gigabyte

terabyte

petabyte

exabyte

zettabyte

yottabyte

what are the increasing increments of data storage units?

start at a byte (8 bits)

then goes up by the 1,000’s