Module 1: Introduction to Computers

COMPUTER
FUNDAMENTALS AND
PROGRAMMING IN C

MODULE 1 NOTES
INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTERS

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1. Introduction to Computers
1.1 Computers - A computer, in simple terms, can be defined as an electronic device that is
designed to accept data, perform the required mathematical and logical operations at high speed,
and output the result.
• In the past, computers were extremely large in size and often required an entire room for
installation.
• These computers consumed enormous amounts of power and were too expensive to be
used for commercial applications.
• Therefore, they were used only for limited tasks, such as computing trajectories for
astronomical or military applications
1.2 Characteristics of Computers
The important characteristics of a computer are discussed in the following text.

i. Speed
▪ Computers can perform millions of operations per second.
▪ The speed of computers is usually given in nanoseconds and picoseconds,
▪ where 1 nanosecond =1 × 10−9 seconds and 1 picosecond = 1 × 10−12 seconds.
ii. Accuracy
▪ A computer is a very fast, reliable, and robust electronic device.
▪ It always gives accurate results, provided the correct data and set of instructions are input to it.
▪ In the event of an error, it is the user who has fed incorrect program or data is responsible.
▪ This clearly means that that the output generated by a computer depends on the given
instructions and input data.
▪ If the input data is wrong, then the output will also be erroneous.
▪ In computer terminology, this is known as garbage-in, garbage-out (GIGO).

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iii. Automation
▪ Computers are automatable devices that can perform a task without any user intervention.
▪ The user just needs to assign the task to the computer, after which it
automatically controls different devices attached to it and executes program instructions.
iv. Diligence

▪ Unlike humans, computers never get tired of a repetitive task.

▪ It can continually work for hours without creating errors.

▪ Even if a large number of executions need to be executed, each and every execution requires
the same duration, and is executed with the same accuracy.
v. Versatile

▪ Versatility is the quality of being flexible.

▪ Today, computers are used in our daily life in different fields.

▪ For example, they are used as personal computers (PCs) for

✓ home use, business-oriented tasks, weather forecasting, space exploration, teaching

▪ Therefore, computers are versatile devices as they can perform multiple tasks of different
nature at the same time.
vi. Memory

o Similar to humans, computers also have memory.

o Just the way we cannot store everything in our memory and need secondary media, such as a
notebook, to record certain important things, computers also have internal or primary memory
(storage space) as well as external or secondary memory.

o While the internal memory of computers is very expensive and limited in size, the secondary
storage is cheaper and of bigger capacity.
o The computer stores a large amount of data and programs in the secondary storage space.

o The stored data and programs can be retrieved and used whenever required. Secondary
memory is the key for data storage.

o Some examples of secondary devices include floppy disks, optical disks (CDs and DVDs), hard
disk drives (HDDs), and pen drives.

o When data and programs have to be used, they are copied from the secondary memory into the
internal memory, often known as Random Access Memory (RAM).

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vii No IQ

▪ Although the trend today is to make computers intelligent by inducing artificial

intelligence (AI) in them, they still do not have any decision-making abilities of their own.
▪ They need guidance to perform various tasks.

viii. Economical

▪ Using computers also reduces manpower requirements and leads to an elegant and
efficient way of performing various tasks.
▪ Hence, computers save time, energy, and money.
▪ When compared to other systems, computers can do more work in lesser time.
▪ For example, using the conventional postal system to send an important document takes
at least two to three days, where as the same information when sent using the Internet (e-
mail) will be delivered instantaneously.
1.3 Stored Program Concept

• All digital computers are based on the principle of “stored program concept”.

• Stored Program Concept was introduced by Sir John von Neumann in the late 1940s.

• The following are the key characteristic features of this concept:

✓ Before any data is processed, instructions are read into memory.
✓ Instructions are stored in the computer’s memory for execution.
✓ Instructions are stored in binary form (using binarynumbers—only 0s and 1s).
✓ Processing starts with the first instruction in the program, which is copied into a control unit circuit.
✓ The control unit executes the instructions.
✓ Instructions written by the users are performed sequentially until there is a
break in the current flow.
✓ Input/Output and processing operations are performed simultaneously.

✓ While data is being read/written, the central processing unit (CPU) executes
another program in the memory that is ready for execution.

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1.3.1 Types of Stored Program Concept

▪ A computer with a Von Neumann architecture stores data and instructions in the
same memory.

▪ There is a serial machine in which data and instructions are selected one at a time.

▪ Data and instructions are transferred to and from memory through a shared data bus.

▪ Since there is a single bus to carry data and instructions, process execution becomes slower.
▪ Later Harvard University proposed a stored program concept in which there was a
separate memory to store data and instructions.
▪ Instructions are selected serially from the instruction memory and executed in the processor.
▪ When an instruction needs data, it is selected from the data memory.
▪ Since there are separate memories, execution becomes faster.

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o First Generation (1942–1955)

❖ Hardware Technology - First generation computers were manufactured using thousands of
vacuum tubes

❖ A vacuum tube is a device made of fragile glass.

❖ Memory- Electro magnetic relay was used as primary memory and punched cards were
used to store data and instructions.

❖ Software Technology- Programming was done in machine or assembly language.

❖ Used for Scientific applications.
❖ Examples: ENIAC, EDVAC, EDSAC, UNIVAC I, IBM 701.
❖ Highlights
• They were the fastest calculating device of those times.
• Computers were too bulky and required a complete room for storage.
• Highly unreliable as vacuum tubes emitted a large amount of heat and burnt frequently.
• Required air-conditioned rooms for installation.

Figure 1.3 Vacuum tube

o Second Generation (1955–1964)
❖ Hardware Technology - Second generation computers were manufactured using transistors.
❖ Transistors were reliable, powerful, cheaper, smaller, and cooler than vacuum tubes.
❖ Memory - Magnetic core memory was used as primary memory, magnetic tapes and magnetic disks
were used to store data and instructions.

❖ These computers had faster and larger memory than the first generation computers.

❖ Software Technology- Programming was done in high level programming languages.

❖ Batch operating system was used.

❖ Used for Scientific and commercial applications.

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❖ Examples - Honeywell 400, IBM 7030, CDC 1604, UNIVAC LARC.

❖ Highlights
• Faster, smaller, cheaper, reliable, and easier to use than the first generation computers.
• They consumed 1/10th the power consumed by first generation computers.
• Bulky in size and required a complete room for its installation.
• Dissipated less heat than first generation computers but still required air-conditioned rooms.
• Costly.
• Difficult to use.

Figure 1.4 Transistors

o Third Generation (1964–1975)

❖ Hardware Technology - Third generation computers were manufactured using
integrated chips (ICs) .

❖ ICs consist of several components such as transistors, capacitors, and resistors on a single
chip to avoid wired interconnections between components.

❖ These computers used SSI and MSI technology.

❖ Mini computers came into existence.

❖ Memory - Larger magnetic core memory was used as primary memory, larger capacity
magnetic tapes and magnetic disks were used to store data and instructions.

❖ Software Technology Programming was done in high levelprogramming languages such as

FORTRAN, COBOL, Pascal, and BASIC.

❖ Time sharing operating system was used.

❖ Software was separated from the hardware.

❖ This allowed users to invest only in the software they need.

❖ Used for Scientific, commercial, and interactive online applications.

❖ Examples - IBM 360/370, PDP-8, PADP-11, CDC6600.

❖ Highlights
• Faster, smaller, cheaper, reliable, and easier to use than the second generation computers.
• They consumed less power than second generation computers.
• Bulky in size and required a complete room for installation.

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• Dissipated less heat than second generation computers but still required air-conditioned rooms.

Figure 1.5 Integrated circuits

o Fourth Generation (1975–1989)

❖ Hardware Technology - Fourth generation computers were manufactured using ICs with LSI (Large
Scale Integrated) and later with VLSI technology (Very Large Scale Integration).
❖ Microcomputers came into existence.
❖ Use of personal computers became widespread.
❖ High speed computer networks in the form of LANs, WANs, and MANs started growing.
❖ Memory- Semiconductor memory was used as primary memory, large capacity magnetic disks were
used as built-in secondary memory.
❖ Magnetic tapes and floppy disks were used as portable storage devices.

❖ Software Technology- Programming was done in high level programming language such as C
and C++.
❖ Graphical User Interface (GUI) based operating system (example: Windows) was introduced.

❖ It had icons and menus among other features to allow computers to be used as a general purpose
machine by all users.

❖ UNIX was also introduced as an open source operating system.

❖ Apple MacOS and MS DOS were also released during this period.

❖ All these operating systems had multi-processing and multi- programming capabilities.

❖ Used for Scientific, commercial, interactive online, and network applications.

❖ Examples: IBM PC, Apple II, TRS-80, VAX 9000, CRAY-1, CRAY-2, CRAY-X/MP
❖ Highlights
• Faster, smaller, cheaper, powerful, reliable, and easier to use than the previous generation
computers.

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Figure 1.6 VLSI chip

o Fifth Generation (1989–Present)

• Hardware Technology-Fifth generation computers are manufactured using ICs with ULSI (Ultra
Large Scale Integrated) technology.

• Super computers use parallel processing techniques.

• Memory – Semiconductor memory is used as primary memory, large capacity magnetic disks
are used as built-in secondary memory.
• Magnetic tapes and floppy disks were used as portable storage devices, which have now been
replaced by optical disks and USB flash drives.

• Software Technology - Programming is done in high-leve lprogramming languages such as Java,

Python, and C#.

• Graphical User Interface (GUI)-based operating systems such as Windows, Unix, Linux, Ubuntu,
and Apple Mac are being used.

• These operating systems are more powerful and user friendly than the ones available in the
previous generations.

• Used for Scientific, commercial, interactive online, multimedia (graphics, audio, video), and
network applications.

• Examples- IBM notebooks, Pentium PCs, SUM workstations, IBM SP/2, Param super
computer.

• Highlights
• Faster, smaller, cheaper, powerful, reliable, and easier to use than the previous generation computers
• Speed of microprocessors and the size of memory are growing rapidly.
• High-end features available on mainframe computers in the fourth generation are now available on
the microprocessors.
• They consume less power than computers of prior generation

Figure 1.7 ULSI chip

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1.5 Classification of Computers

Computers can be broadly classified into four categories based on their speed, amount of data that

they can process, and price.

▪ These categories are as follows:

1. Super computers.
2. Main frame computers.
3. Mini computers.
4. Microcomputers.

1.5.1 Supercomputers
❖ Among the four categories, the supercomputer is the fastest, most powerful, and most expensive
computer.

❖ Super computers were first developed in the 1980s to process large amounts of data and to solve
complex scientific problems.

❖ Super computers use parallel processing technology.

❖ It can perform more than one trillion calculations in a second.

❖ A single super computer can support thousands of users at the same time.
Such computers are mainly used for :
o weather forecasting.
o nuclear energy research.
o aircraft design
❖ Some examples of super computers are CRAY-1, CRAY-2, Control Data CYBER 205.

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1.5.2 Main Frame Computers

▪ Mainframe computers are large-scale computers (but smaller than supercomputers).
▪ These are very expensive and need a very large clean room with air conditioning, thereby making
them very costly to deploy.
▪ As with super computers, main frames can also support multiple processors.
▪ For example, the IBM S/390 mainframe can support 50,000 users at the same time.
▪ Users can access mainframes by either using terminals or via PCs.
▪ The two types of terminals that can be used with mainframe systems are as follows:
1. Dumb Terminals.
2. Intelligent Terminals.

➢ Dumb Terminals
✓ Dumb terminals consist of only a monitor and a keyboard(or mouse).
✓ They do not have their own CPU and memory and use the mainframe system’s CPU
and storage devices.
➢ Intelligent Terminals

✓ In contrast to dumb terminals, intelligent terminals have their own processor and thus can
perform some processing operations.

✓ Usually, PCs are used as intelligent terminals to facilitate data access and other services from
the mainframe system.
✓ Mainframe computers are typically used as servers on the World Wide Web.
✓ They are also used in organizations such as banks, airline companies, and universities, where a
large number of users frequently access the data stored in their databases.
✓ IBM is the major manufacturer of mainframe computers.
✓ Some examples of mainframe computers include IBM S/390, Control Data CYBER 176, and
Amdahl 580.
1.5.3 Mini Computers
▪ As the name suggests, mini computers are smaller, cheaper, and slower than mainframes.
▪ They are called minicomputers because they were the smallest computer of their times.

▪ Mini computers are widely used in business, education, hospitals, government organizations, etc.
▪ Mini computers can also be used as servers in a networked environment, and hundreds of PCs
can be connected to it.
▪ The first minicomputer was introduced by Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) in the mid-
1960s.

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1.5.4 Micro Computers

▪ Microcomputers, commonly known as PCs, are very small and cheap.
▪ The first microcomputer was designed by IBM in 1981 and was named IBM-PC.
▪ Many computer hardware companies copied this design and termed their
microcomputers as PC-compatible, which refers to any PC that is based on the
original IBM PC design.
▪ Moreover, PCs and PC-compatible computers commonly use the Windows operating
system, while Apple computers use the Macintosh operating system (MacOS).
▪ PCs can be classified into the following categories:

❖ Desktop PCs
• A desktop PC is the most popular model of PCs.

• The system unit of the desktop PC can be placed flat on a desktop table.

• It is widely used in homes and offices.

❖ Laptops
• Laptops are small microcomputers that can easily fit inside a briefcase.
• They are very handy and can easily be carried from one place to another.
• They may alsobe placed on the user’s lap.
▪ Laptops operate on a battery.
▪ It do not always have to be plugged in like desktop computers.
▪ The memory and storage capacity of a laptop is almost equivalent to that of a desktop
computer.
▪ As with desktop computers, laptops also have hard disk drives, USB drives, etc.
▪ For input, laptops have a built-in keyboard and a trackball/touchpad, which is used as a
pointing device (as mouse is used for a desktop PC).

Figure 1.9:Laptop

❖ Workstations

▪ Workstations are single-user computers that have the same features as PCs, but their processing

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speed matches that of a minicomputer or mainframe computer

▪ Workstation computers have advanced processors, more RAM and storage capacity than PCs.

▪ Therefore, they are more expensive and powerful than a normal desktop computer.

❖ Network Computers

o Network computers have less processing power, memory, and storage than a desktop computer.

o These are specially designed to be used as terminals in a networked environment.

o For example, some network computers are specifically designed to access data stored on
a network (including the Internet and intranet).

o Some network computers do not have any storage space and merely rely on the
network’s server for data storage and processing tasks.

o Network computers that are specifically designed to access only the Internet or intranet are
often known as Internet PCs or Internet boxes.
o The most common example of a home-based network computer is Web TV, which enables the
user to connect a television to the Internet.
o The Web TV is equipped with a special set-top box that is used to connect to the
Internet.
o The set-top box also provides controls to enable the user to navigate the Internet, send
and receive e-mails, and to perform other tasks on the network while watching
television.
o The other reason for the popularity of network computers is that they are cheaper to purchase
and maintain than PCs.

❖ Handheld Computers
• The mid-1990s witnessed a range of small personal computing devices that are commonly
known as hand held computers, or mobile computers.

• These computers are called hand held computers because they can fit in one hand, while
users can use the other hand to operate them.

• Hand held computers are very small in size, and hence they have small-sized screens and
keyboards.

• These computers are preferred by business travellers and mobile employees whose jobs
require them to move from place to place.

Some examples of hand held computers are as follows: Smartphones, Tablet PCs

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o Smart Phones
▪ These days, cellular phones are web-enabled telephones.

▪ Such phones are also known as smartphones because, in addition to basic phone capabilities,
they also facilitate the users to access the Internet and send e-mails, edit Word documents,
generate an Excel sheet, create a presentation, and lots more.
▪ Smartphones run an advanced mobile operating system that enables it to run various
applications.
▪ The four major mobile operating systems are iOS, Android, Black Berry OS, and Windows
Mobile.
▪ Smartphones also have a CPU, more storage space, more memory, and a larger screen than a
regular cell phone.
o Tablet PC’s
o A tablet PC is a computing device that is smaller than a laptop, but bigger than a smartphone.
o Features such as user-friendly interface, portability, and touch screen have made them very
popular in the last few years.
o These days, a wide range of high-performance tablets are available in the market.
o While all of them look similar from outside, they may differ in features such as:
✓ operating system.
✓ speed of data connectivity.
✓ camera specifications.
✓ size of the screen.

Some operating systems that are used in tablets are

✓ Android Jelly bean (an open-source operating system built by Google)
✓ Windows 8
✓ iOS (developed by Apple).
▪ These days, tablets also offer an optional docking station with keyboards that transforms the
tablet into a full-featured netbook.

❖ Uses - The following are the uses of Tablet PCs:

✓ View presentations.
✓ Video conferencing.
✓ Reading e-books, e-newspaper.
✓ Watching movies.
✓ Playing games.

Figure 1.10 Tablet

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1.6 Applications of Computers

▪ Today, computers are widely used in fields such as engineering, health care, banking, education,
etc.

▪ Let us discuss how computers are being effectively utilized to perform important tasks.

❖ Word processing
▪ Word processing software enables users to read and write documents.

▪ Users can also add images, tables, and graphs for illustrating a concept.

▪ The software automatically corrects spelling mistakes and includes copy–paste features.
❖ Internet
o The Internet is a network of networks that connects computers all over the world.
o It gives the user access to an enormous amount of information, much more than
available in any library.
o Using e-mail, the user can communicate in seconds with a person who is located
thousands of miles away.
o Chat software enables users to chat with another person in real-time (irrespective of the
physical location of that person).
o Video conferencing tools are becoming popular for conducting meetings with people who are
unable to be present at a particular place.

❖ Digital video or audio composition

▪ Computers make audio or video composition and editing very simple.

▪ This has drastically reduced the cost of equipment to compose music or make a film.

▪ Graphics engineers use computers for developing short or full-length films and creating
3-D models and special effects in science fiction and action movies.

▪ Electronic banking

o Electronic banking, also known as cyber banking or online banking, supports various banking
activities conducted from home, a business, or on the road instead of a physical bank location.

❖ Bio informatics
✓ Bioinformatics is the application of computer technology to manage large amount of biological
information.

✓ Computers are used to collect, store, analyze, and integrate biological and genetic information
to facilitate gene-based drug discovery and development.

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❖ Desktop publishing
▪ Desktop publishing software enables us to create page layouts for entire books.
❖ E-Business or electronic business is the process of conducting business via the Internet.
▪ This may include buying and selling of goods and services using computers and the Internet.
▪ Use of email and video conferencing technology has revolutionized the way business is being
conducted these days.
▪ Video conferencing, which is an advanced form of teleconferencing, provides a complete
simulation of a normal meeting environment in which all concerned parties can see, hear, and
present material, just as if they were in the same room.
▪ These meetings not only speed up business process but also save the cost of travel and cost of the
time wasted during travel.
▪ The following are techniques in which e-commerce helps users to conduct business transactions.

❖ Health care
✓ Last few years have seen a massive growth of computers and smart phone users.

✓ Like in our daily lives, computers have also become a necessary device in the health care
industry.

✓ The following are areas in which computers are extensively used in the health care industry.

✓ Storing records - To begin with, computers are first and fore most used to store the
medical records of patients.

✓ Earlier, patient records were kept on paper, with separate records dealing with different medical
issues from separate health care organizations.

✓ Surgical procedures
▪ Computers are used for certain surgical procedures.
▪ They enable the surgeon to use computer to control and move surgical instruments in the
patient’s body for a variety of surgical procedures.
▪ In such surgeries, a small incision is made, and then a small surgical tool with an attached
camera is placed inside the patient’s body.
▪ This reduces the risk of complications from a larger surgical wound, and minimizes damage
done to the patient’s body.

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▪ In such a scenario, computers are not only used to drive the tools but also used to relay images
from inside the patient’s body out to the doctors.
▪ Computers also help to determine the cause of an affliction or illness.
▪ For example, computers can combine ultrasonography and imaging in fields like cardiology to
check the functionality of the heart.
▪ In case of a serious ailment , the causes can be detected in less time and treatment can be
started at the earliest there by saving a number of lives.

❖ Better diagnosis and treatment

▪ Computers help physicians make better diagnoses and recommend treatments.

▪ Moreover, computers can be used to compare expected results with actual results in order to
help physicians make better decisions.
▪ Doctors sitting in hospitals can monitor their patients sitting in their homes by using
computer-based systems.

❖ Geographic Information System and Remote Sensing

▪ A geographic information system (GIS) is a computer- based tool for mapping and analyzing
earth’s features.

▪ It integrates data base operations and statistical analysis to be used with maps.

▪ GIS manages location- based information and provides tools for display and analysis of statistics
such as population count, types of vegetation, and economic development opportunities.
▪ Remote sensing is the science of taking measurements of the earth using sensors on airplanes or
satellites.
▪ The key feature of remote sensing is that it acquires information about an object without making
physical contact with it.
▪ Remote sensing is a sub-field of geography, which can be applied in the following areas to collect
data of dangerous or in accessible areas for the following:
• Monitoring de forestation in areas like the Amazon Basin.
• Studying features of glaciers in Arctic and Antarctic regions.
• Analyzing the depth of coastal and ocean areas.
❖ Meteorology
• Meteorology is the study of the atmosphere.

• This branch of science observes variables of Earth’s atmosphere such as temperature, air
pressure, water vapor, and the gradients and interactions of each variable, and how they change
over time.

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• Meteorology has applications in many diverse fields such as the military, energy production,
transport, agriculture, and construction.

• Some of the applications include the following:

➢ Weather forecasting
✓ It includes application of science and technology to predict the state of the atmosphere
(temperature, precipitation, etc.) for a future time and a given location.

✓ Weather forecasting is done by collecting quantitative data about the current state of the
atmosphere and analyzing the atmospheric processes to project how the atmosphere will
evolve.

➢ Aviation meteorology
✓ Aviation meteorology studies the impact of weather on air traffic management.

✓ It helps cabin crews to understand the implications of weather on their flight plan as well
as their aircraft.

➢ Agricultural meteorology
✓ Agricultural meteorology deals with the study of effects of weather and climate on plant
distribution, crop yield, water-use efficiency, plant and animal development.

➢ Nuclear meteorology
✓ Nuclear meteorology studies the distribution of radio active aerosols and gases in the
atmosphere.

➢ Maritime meteorology
✓ Maritime meteorology is the study of air and wave forecasts for ships operating at
sea.
❖ Multimedia and Animation

• Using animation software, we can reproduce real- world phenomena such as fire, smoke, fluids,
movement of chemicals through the air and ground, and the respiratory system to name a few.
• Animation is an easy and effective way to show complex interactions or events.
• A dynamic multimedia presentation (created using tools like MS Power Point) can make the
message not only easily understood but also effective.

Legal System
• Computers are used by lawyers to shorten the time to conduct legal precedent and case research.

• Lawyers use computers to look through millions of individual cases and find whether similar or
parallel cases have been approved, denied, criticized, or overruled in the past.

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• This enables the lawyers to formulate strategies based on past case decisions.

• Moreover, computers are also used to keep track of appointments and prepare legal documents
and briefs in time for filling cases.

❖ Retail Business

• Computers are used in retail shops to enter orders, calculate costs, and print receipts.

• They are also used to keep an inventory of the products available and their complete
description.

❖ Sports
• In sports, computers are used to compile statistics, identify weak players and strong players by
analyzing statistics, sell tickets, create training programs and diets for athletes, and suggest
game plan strategies based on the competitor’s past performance.

• Computers are also used to generate most of the graphic art displays flashed on scoreboards.
• Television networks use computers in the control room to display action replays and insert
commercial breaks as per schedule.
• In addition, there are simulation software packages available that help a sports person to practice
his or her skills as well as identify flaws in the technique.

❖ Travel and Tourism

• Computers are used to prepare tickets, monitor the train’s or airplane’s route, and guide the plane
to a safe landing.

• They are also used to research about hotels in an area, reserve rooms, or to rent a car.

❖ Simulation
▪ Super computers that can process enormous amount of data are widely used in simulation tests.

▪ Simulation of automobile crashes or airplane emergency landings is done to identify potential

weaknesses in designs without risking human lives.
▪ Astronauts are trained using computer-simulated problems that could be encountered during launch, in
space, or upon return to earth.
❖ Astronomy
▪ Space crafts are usually monitored using computers that not only keep a continuous record of
the voyage and of the speed, direction, fuel, and temperature, but also suggest corrective action
if the vehicle makes a mistake.

▪ The remote stations on the earth compare all these quantities with the desired values, and in

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case these values need to be modified to enhance the performance of the spacecraft, signals are
immediately sent that set in motion the mechanics to rectify the situation.
❖ Industry and Engineering
▪ Computers are found in all kinds of industries, such as thermal power plants, oil refineries,
and chemical industries, for process control, computer-aided designing (CAD), and computer-aided
manufacturing (CAM).
▪ In CAD, computers and graphics-oriented software are integrated for automating the design and
drafting process.
▪ It helps an engineer to design a 3D machine part, analyze its characteristics, and then subject it to
simulated stresses.
▪ The CAM phase begins when the CAD phase is complete.
▪ In this phase, the metal or other materials are manufactured while complying with their
specifications.
❖ Robotics
▪ Robots are computer-controlled machines mainly used in the manufacturing process in extreme
conditions where humans cannot work.

▪ For example, in high temperature, high pressure conditions or in processes that demand very
high levels of accuracy.

▪ The main distinguishing feature between a robot and other automated machines is that a robot can be
programmed to carry out a complex task and then reprogrammed to carry out another complex
tasks.
❖ Decision Support Systems
▪ Computers help managers to analyze their organization’s data to understand the present
scenario of their business, view the trends in the market, and predict the future of their products.

▪ Managers also use decision support systems to analyze market research data, to size up the
competition, and to plan effective strategies for penetrating their markets.
❖ Expert Systems
▪ Expert systems are used to automate the decision-making process in a specific area, such as analyzing
the credit histories for loan approval and diagnosing a patient’s condition for prescribing an
appropriate treatment.
▪ To create an expert system, an extensive amount of human expertise in a specific area is
collected and stored in a database, also known as a knowledge base.
▪ Software called an interface engine analyses the data available in the knowledge base and selects
the most appropriate response.

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1.7 Basic Organization of a Computer

❖ A computer is an electronic device that performs five major operations:

• Accepting data or instructions (input).
• Storing data.
• Processing data.
• Displaying results (output).
• Controlling and coordinating all operations inside a computer.

❖ The following figure shows the interaction between the different units of a computer system.

▪ Input - This is the process of entering data and instructions (also known as programs) into the
computer system.
▪ The data and instructions can be entered by using different input devices such as keyboard, mouse,
scanner, and trackball.

▪ Note that computers understand binary language, which consists of only two symbols (0 and 1).

▪ It is the responsibility of the input devices to convert the input data into binary codes.
▪ Storage - is the process of saving data and permanently in the computer so that they can be
used for processing.

▪ A computer has two types of storage areas:

✓ Primary Storage
✓ Secondary Storage
❖ Primary storage- also known as the main memory. It is the storage area that is
directly accessible by the CPU at very high speeds.
▪ It is used to :
✓ store the data and parts of programs.
✓ the intermediate results of processing.
✓ the recently generated results of jobs that are currently being worked on by the computer.

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▪ Primary storage space is very expensive.

▪ It is limited in capacity.
▪ Another drawback of main memory is that it is volatile in nature- as soon as the computer is
switched off, the information stored gets erased.
▪ An example of primary storage is Random Access Memory (RAM).
❖ Secondary storage - Also known as auxiliary memory, this memory is just the opposite of
primary memory.
▪ It is cheaper, non-volatile, and used to permanently store data and programs of those jobs
that are not being currently executed by the CPU.
▪ Secondary memory supplements the limited storage capacity of the primary memory.
▪ An example is the magnetic disk used to store data, such as C and D drives, for future use.
❖ Output - is the process of giving the result of data processing to the outside world.
▪ The results are given through output devices such as monitor, and printer.
▪ The output device is used to convert the results available in binary codes into a human-readable
language before displaying it to the user.

❖ Control -The control unit (CU) is the central nervous system of the entire computer system.
▪ It manages and controls all the components of the computer system.
▪ Note that the CPU is a combination of the arithmetic logic unit (ALU) and the CU.
▪ The CPU is better known as the brain of the computer system because the entire processing of
data is done in the ALU
▪ CU activates and monitors the operations of other units (such as input, output, and storage) of
the computer system.

❖ Processing – The process of performing operations on the data as per the instructions specified by
the user (program) is called processing.

▪ Data and instructions are taken from the primary memory and transferred to the ALU,
which performs all sorts of calculations.

▪ The intermediate results of processing may be stored in the main memory, as they might
be required again.

▪ When the processing completes, the final result is then transferred to the main memory.

▪ Hence, the data may move from main memory to the ALU multiple times before the
processing is over.

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1.8 Inside the Computer

The following are some of the major parts of the computer:
▪ CPU The CPU is the brain of the computer.

▪ It performs all calculations and controls the devices connected to the computer system.

▪ The faster the CPU, the quicker programs can process the instructions.

▪ RAM A fast CPU is of no use if the computer does not have sufficient RAM.

▪ RAM is the computer’s memory which stores information used by applications that are
currently being executed by the CPU.

▪ More memory means more applications can be executed at the same time without degrading
the system’s performance.

▪ Hard disk drive (HDD is the secondary memory of the computer system whereinformation is
stored permanently.

▪ All types of data, documents, and programs are stored on the hard disk.

▪ The larger the hard disk, the more the amount of data that can be stored on the drive.

▪ Video card - is a board that plugs in to the motherboard of the computer and generates images
for display.

▪ Many video cards these days have their own RAM and processor to enhance the speed of the
graphics display.

▪ Many computers come with an in-built video chip.

▪ In such a computer, a separate video card is used only if the computer has to be used for
high-end multimedia work or to play video games.

▪ Sound card
• As with video cards, sound cards are expansion boards that are used to enable a computer to
manipulate sound.

• For example, sound cards allow the users to plug in speakers and a microphone.

• Some sound cards also provide the jacks for hooking your computer up to a common stereo.

▪ Modem
• A modem (modulator–demodulator) is a device that enables the computer to use a
telephone line to communicate and connect to the Internet.

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▪ Network card
A network card is used to connect the computer either to other computers or to the Internet (in
case you are using a fast Internet connection such as cable or DSL).

▪ Fans

There are one or more fans inside the computer to keep the air moving and the computer
cool.

▪ Cables
There are multiple wires inside the computer that are flat, ribbon-like cables.
They are used to provide power and communication to the various parts inside the
computer.

1.9 Mother Board

✓ The mother board, also known as the main board or the parent board is the primary component
of a computer.

✓ It is used to connect all the components of the computer.

✓ The mother board is a printed circuit that has connectors for expansion cards, memory modules,
the processor, etc.

1.9.1 Characteristics of a Motherboard

▪ A mother board can be classified depending on the following characteristics:

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✓ Form factor
✓ Chipset
✓ Type of processor socket used
✓ Input–Output connectors

▪ Form factor
❖ Form factor refers to the mother board’s geometry, dimensions, arrangement, and electrical
requirements.

❖ The industry has defined a few standards for the form factors, so that they can be used in
different brands of cases.

❖ Integrated components - Some of the mother board’s components are integrated into its printed
circuitry.

➢ These include the following:

▪ The chipset is a circuit that controls the majority of the computer’s resources such as the bus
interface with the processor, cache memory, RAM, and expansion cards.
▪ CMOS clock and battery
▪ BIOS
▪ System bus and expansion bus

➢ Chipset - The chipset is an electronic circuit that basically coordinates data transfers between
the different components of the computer (such as the processor and memory).

➢ In order to enhance the computer’s upgradeability, one must choose a mother board that has
the latest chipset integrated in it.

➢ Some chipsets may include a graphics or audio chip, which makes it unnecessary to install
a separate graphics card or sound card.

➢ However, in case you need very high quality of audio and visual capabilities, then you must
disable the graphics/audio chip in the BIOS setup and install high-quality expansion cards in the
appropriate slots.

➢ CMOS clock and battery

❖ The real-time clock (or RTC)is a circuit that is used to synchronize the computer’s signals.

❖ When the computer is switched off, the power supply stops providing electricity to the
motherboard.

❖ You must have observed that when we turn on the system, it always displays the correct time.

This is because an electronic circuit, called the complementary metal- oxide semiconductor
(CMOS) chip, saves some system information, such as the time, date, and other essential

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system settings.
❖ The CMOS chip is powered by a battery located on the mother board.
❖ Information on the hardware installed in the computer (such as the number of tracks or sectors on
each hard drive) is stored in the CMOS chip.
❖ Since the CMOS chip is quite slow, some systems prefer to copy the CMOS chip’s content into the
RAM, which is a comparatively faster storage.
❖ This process of copying data into RAM is better known as memory shadow.

• BIOS - The basic input/output system (BIOS) is an interface between the operating system and the
motherboard.

• The BIOS is stored in the read-only memory (ROM), which cannot be rewritten.

• The BIOS uses data storedin the CMOS chip to know about the system’s hardware configuration.

• To configure the BIOS, the user can use an interface known as BIOS setup, which can be
accessed when the computer is booting.

• To enter BIOS setup, the user must press the DEL key.

• F1 and F2 keys can also be used.

o Processor socket - The processor (also called the micro- processor) is the brain of the
computer.

✓ The processor is characterized by its speed or frequency, which is the rate at which it executes
instructions.

✓ For example, an 800-MHz processor can perform 800 million operations per second.

✓ The slot on the mother board into which the processor is inserted is called the processor socket
or slot.

✓ Irrespective of whether you use a slot or a socket, you must gently insert the processor, so
that none of its pins are bent (it has hundreds of them).

✓ Usually, a concept called “zero insertionforce (ZIF)” is used.

✓ The ZIF sockets allow the processor to be inserted very gently and easily.

❖ RAM connectors - RAM is the primary storage area that stores data while the computer is running.

✓ However, its contents are erased when the computer is turned off or restarted.

✓ While the hard disk can store data permanently, we still need RAM because it is extremely fast
when compared to mass storage devices such as hard drives.

❖ Expansion slots - Expansion slots are compartments into which expansion cards can be
inserted.

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❖ For example, the AGP slot (also known as Accelerated Graphic Port) is a fast port used for
graphics cards.

❖ I/O connectors - The mother board has a number of input– output sockets on its rear panel,
some of which include:

✓ A serial port to connect some old peripherals

✓ A parallel port to connect old printers
✓ USB ports to connect more recent peripherals such as mouse and pen drive.
✓ RJ45 connector (also known as LAN or Ethernet port) to connect the computer to a
network.
✓ It corresponds to a network card integrated into the mother board.
✓ Video Graphics Array (VGA) connector to connect a monitor.
✓ This connector interfaces with the built-in graphics card.
✓ Audio plugs that include the line in, line out, and microphone to connect sound speakers, hi-fi
system, or microphone.
✓ This connector interfaces with the built-in sound card.

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CHAPTER 2
INPUT AND OUTPUT DEVICES

❖ INPUT DEVICES
▪ An input device is used to feed data and instructions into the computer.
The following figure categorizes input devices into different groups:

Figure 2.1 – Categories of Input Devices

▪ Keyboard - The keyboard is the main input device for computers.

▪ With a keyboard , the user can type a document, use key stroke shortcuts, access menus, play
games and perform numerous other tasks.
▪ Most keyboards have between 80 and 110 keys which include:
● Typing keys
● Numeric keys
● Function keys

Computer keyboards look very similar to the keyboards of type writers, with some additional keys
as shown in the figure below:

Figure 2.2 - Keyboard

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❖ Typing Keys:
▪ These include the letters of the alphabet.
▪ The layout of a keyboard is known as QWERTY for its first six letters.
❖ Numeric Keys
▪ These include a set of 17 keys, arranged in the same configuration found on calculators
to speed up the data entry of numbers.
▪ When the Num Lock is set to on, the user can type numbers, dot, or input the symbols /,
*, - and +.
▪ When the Num Lock is set to off, the numeric keys can be used to move the cursor on
the screen.
❖ Function Keys
• These are used by applications and operating systems to input specific commands.
• They are often placed on the top of the keyboard in a single r o w .
• Function keys can be programmed so that their functionality varies from one program to
another.
❖ Control Keys
• These are used to handle control of the cursor and the screen.
• Four arrow keys are arranged in an inverted T-type fashion between the typing and the
numeric keys, and are used to move the cursor on the screen in small increments.
• In addition to the arrow keys, there are other cursor keys(or navigational keys) such as:
✓ Home and End –to move the cursor to the beginning and end of the current line,
respectively.
✓ Page Up and Page Down-to move to the previous and the next pages, respectively.
✓ Insert – to enter a character between two existing characters.
✓ Delete- to delete a character at the cursor position.
❖ Advantages:
▪ Easy to use and cheap.
❖ Disadvantages
▪ The keyboard cannot be used to draw figures.
▪ The process of moving the cursor to another position is very slow.
▪ Mouse and other pointing devices are more apt for this purpose.
❖ Pointing Devices.
▪ A pointing input device enables the users to easily control the movement of the
pointer to:
✓ Select items on a display screen.
✓ To select commands from command menu.
✓ To draw graphs.

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▪ Some examples of pointing devices include- Mouse, track ball, light pen, joystick, touch
pad.
❖ Mouse
▪ The mouse is the key input device to be used in a graphical user interface (GUI).
▪ The users can use mouse to handle the pointer easily on the screen to perform
various functions like opening a program or file.

Figure 2.4 - Mouse

▪ The mouse has two buttons and a scroll wheel.

▪ It can be held in the hand and easily moved, without lifting, along the hard flat surface
to move the cursor to the desired location- up, down, left and right.
▪ Once the mouse is placed at the appropriate position, the user may perform the following
operations:
o Point- Placing the mouse pointer over the word or the object on the screen by moving
the mouse on the desk is termed as Pointing.
o Click- Pressing either the left or the right button of the mouse is known as
“Clicking”.
- Clicking a mouse button initiates some action, for example: when you click the right
button by pointing the mouse on a word, a menu pops on the screen.
o Drag- Dragging means pointing to a desired location while pressing the left
button.
o Scroll- The scroll wheel, which is placed in between the left and right buttons of
the mouse is used to vertically scroll through long documents.
▪ The mouse is specially used to create graphics such as lines, curves, free hand shapes on
the screen.
▪ It is connected to a serial or a universal serial bus (USB) port on the system unit.
▪ Some of the popular mouse types are as follows:
1. Mechanical mouse- This type of mouse has a rubber or metal ball at its bottom and an
electronic circuit containing sensors. When a mouse is moved over a flat surface, the sensors detect
the direction of movement of the ball. The electronic circuit translates the movement into
signals and feeds it as input to the computer.
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2. Optical Mouse- is more advanced than the mechanical mouse. It contains ball inside. The
movement of the mouse is detected using Laser technology by using optical sensors.

3. Cordless Mouse-A cordless or wireless mouse is not connected to the computer. The movement
of the mouse is detected using radio waves or infra red light waves.
o Advantages
✓ Easy to use.
✓ It is Cheap.
✓ It can be used to quickly place the cursor any where on the screen.
✓ Helps to quickly and easily draw figures.
✓ Its Point and click capabilities makes it unnecessary to remember certain commands.
o Disadvantages
✓ Needs extra desk space to be placed and moved easily.
✓ The ball in the mechanical mouse must be cleaned to remove dust from it.

❖ Track Ball
• Trackball is a pointing device which is used to control the position of the cursor on the
screen.
• These are usually used in notebook and laptop computers where it is placed on the
keyboard.
• The trackball is nothing but an upside-down mouse that rotates in place within a socket.
• The user rolls the ball to position the cursor at an appropriate position on the screen and then
clicks one of the buttons to select objects or position the cursor for text entry.

Figure 2.5-Track Ball on Keyboard

• Advantages:

✓ Track ball provides better resolution.

✓ It Occupies less space.
✓ Easier to use as compared to mouse as its use involves less hands and arms movements.

• Disadvantage:
✓ The track ball chamber is often covered with dust, so it must be cleaned regularly.

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❖ Touch Pad
• A touch pad (or track pad) is a small, flat, rectangular stationary pointing device with a
sensitive surface of 1.5 or 2 inches square.
• The user has to slide his finger tips across the surface of the pad to point to a specific object
on the screen.
• The surface translates the motion and position of user’s fingers to a relative position on the
screen.
• There are also buttons around the edge of the pad that work like mouse buttons.
• Touch pad is widely used in laptops and is built-in on the keyboard.
• They can also be attached to a PC or be used with Personal Digital Assistant(PDAs) and iPods.
• Advantages:
✓ Occupies less space.
✓ Easier to use as compared to mouse as its use involves less hands and arms movements.
✓ It is built-in the keyboard, so no need to carry an extra device separately.

❖ Hand Held Devices

▪ A hand held device is a pocket-sized computing device with a display screen and touch input
and /or a miniature keyboard.
▪ Some common examples of hand-held devices includes:
1. Smart phones.
2. PDAs.
3. Hand held game consoles.
4. Portable Media Players(iPod) etc.

❖ Joystick
▪ Joystick is a cursor control device widely used in computer games and CAD/CAM
applications.
▪ It consists of a hand-held lever that pivots on one end and transmits its coordinates to a
computer.
▪ It has one or more push-buttons, called switches, whose position can also be read by
the computer.

▪ The lever of a joystick moves in all directions to control the movement of the pointer
on the computer screen.
▪ A joystick is similar to the mouse, but with the mouse, the cursor stops moving as
soon as you stop moving the mouse.

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▪ But in case of Joystick, the pointer continues moving in the direction to which the
joystick is pointing.
▪ To stop the pointer, the user must return the joy stick to its upright position.

Figure 2.8 – Joystick

❖ Stylus
❖ A stylus is a pen-shaped input device used to enter information or write on the touch
screen of a phone.
❖ Stylus is a small stick that can also be used to draw lines on a surface as input to a
computer, choose an option from a menu, move the cursor to another location on the
screen, take notes and create short messages.
❖ The stylus usually slides into a slot built into the smart phone for that purpose.

❖ Touch Screen
▪ A touch screen is a display screen which can identify the occurrence and position of a
touch inside the display region.
▪ The user can touch the screen either by his finger or by using a stylus.
▪ These displays can be connected to computers, laptops, PDAs, cell phones etc.
▪ Touch screen monitors are widely used in different applications including:
✓ Point-of-Sale cash registers.
✓ PDAS
✓ Automated Teller Machines.
✓ Car Navigation screens.
✓ Mobile Phones.
✓ Gaming consoles and any other type of appliance that requires the users to input
and receive information instantly.

Figure 2.9 – Touch Screen

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❖ Optical Devices
▪ Optical Devices, also known as data scanning devices use light as a source of input for
detecting or recognizing different objects such as characters, marks, codes and images.
▪ The optical device converts these objects into digital data and sends it to the computer for
further processing.
▪ Some optical devices includes:
1. Barcode Reader.
2. Image Scanner.
3. Optical Character Recognition(OCR)
4. Optical Mark Reader(OMR).
5. Magnetic Ink Character Recognition(MICR).
❖ Barcode Reader
▪ A barcode reader (or price scanner or point-of-sale scanner) is a hand-held input device which
is used to capture and read information stored in a barcode.
▪ A barcode reader consists of a scanner, a decoder, and a cable used to connect the reader with
a computer.
▪ The barcode reader merely captures and translates the barcode into numbers and/or letters.
▪ To make use of the information captured it must be connected to a computer for further
processing.
▪ For this purpose, the barcode reader is connected to a computer through a serial port, keyboard
port, or an interface device called a wedge.
▪ A bar code reader works by directing a beam of light across the barcode and measuring the
amount of light reflected back.
▪ The dark bars reflect less light when compared to the amount of light reflected by the white
spaces between those bars.
▪ The scanner converts this light energy into electrical energy.
▪ The decoder then converts these signals into data and sends it to the computer for further
processing.

▪ These days, barcode readers are widely used in the following areas:
✓ Super Markets and retail stores as POS devices.
✓ To take inventory in retail stores.
✓ To check out books from library.
✓ To track manufacturing and shipping movements.

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Figure 2.10 – Bar code Reader

❖ Advantages:
▪ Barcode readers are cheap.
▪ They are portable.
▪ Handy and easy to use.

❖ Disadvantages:
▪ Barcode readers must be handled with care- If they develop a scratch, the user may not
be able to read the code.
▪ They can interpret information using a limited series of thin and wide bars.
▪ To interpret other unique identifiers, the bar display area must be widened.
❖ Image Scanners
• It is a device that captures images, printed text, hand writing from different sources and
converts it into a digital image for computer editing and display.
● Scanners c o m e in hand-held, feed-in, and flatbed types.
● In the flated scanner, the object to be scanned is placed on a glass pane and sensor and
light moves along the pane, reflecting off the image placed on the glass.
● A hand image scanner has to be manually moved across an object or image to be scanned.
• The scanner produces light from green LEDs which highlight and scan the image onto a
computer for further processing.
● Film scanners are usually used in photography and slides.
• The slide or negative film is first inserted in strips of six or less frames into the film scanner,
and then moved across a lens and censor to capture the image.
• Drum scanners are mounted on an acrylic cylinder that rotates while passing the object in
front of precision, which in turn transfers the image information to the photo multiplier tubes.

• Most of the drum scanners use three matched PMT’s that are capable of detecting red, blue and
green light.
• Drum scanners are very expensive and are often used for high end applications of film.

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• Advantages:

✓ Any printed or hand written document can be scanned and stored in a computer for
further processing.
✓ The scanned and stored document will never deteriorate in quality with time.
✓ There is no fear of loss of documents-The users can scan important documents and store
them permanently in the computer.
• Disadvantages:
▪ Scanners are usually costlier than other input devices.
▪ The documents that are scanned and stored as images have a higher size as compared to
other equivalent text files.
▪ Text documents are scanned and stored as images- therefore occupy more space and are also un
editable because computers cannot interpret individual characters and numbers in the image.
❖ Optical Character Recognition
▪ OCR is the process of converting printed materials into text or word processing files that can
be easily edited and stored.
▪ The steps involved in OCR include:
● Scanning of the text character-by-character.
● Analyzing the scanned-in image to translate the character image into character codes (example:
ASCII).
▪ In OCR processing, the analysis of the scanned images is done to detect light and dark areas
so as to identify each alphabet or numeral.
▪ When a character is recognized, it is converted into an ASCII code.
▪ OCR has facilitated users to store text documents as text files.
▪ Hence, the text files occupy much less storage space and can be easily edited.
▪ OCR is widely used in following areas:
- In libraries to digitize and preserve documents.
- To process checks and credit card slips.
- To sort letters for speeding up mail delivery.

▪ Let us take a real world example to understand the power of OCR-The police
department has all its criminal records stored in a large file cabinets.
▪ Scanning the million of pages to find a particular record is not only tedious and error prone
but also an expensive undertaking.

▪ If OCR is used to convert the pages into computer- readable text, the police can
search through the entire history in a few seconds.
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▪ OCR technology can be easily understood from the figure given below:

Scans the documents and makes a bitmap of size 50-150KB per size
Figure 2.11 - OCR Technology
❖ Advantages:
✓ Printed documents can be converted into text files.
✓ Advanced OCR can recognize handwritten text and convert it into computer- readable text
files.
❖ Disadvantages:
✓ OCR cannot recognize all types of fonts.
✓ Documents that are poorly typed or have strike over cannot be recognized.
✓ Very old documents when passed through OCR may not convert into an exact copy of
the text file.
✓ This is because some characters may not have been recognized properly.
✓ In such cases, the user has to manually edit the file.

❖ Optical Mark Recognition

• OMR is the process of electronically extracting data from marked fields, such as check boxes
and fill-in fields, on printed forms.
• The optical mark reader is fed with an OMR sheet to detect the presence of a mark by
measuring reflected light levels.
• The OM reader interprets this pattern marks and spaces and stores the interpreted data in
computer for storage, analysis and reporting.
• The error rate for OMR technology is less than 1%.

• It is used for applications in which large numbers of hand-filled forms have to be quickly
processed with great accuracy, such as surveys , reply cards, questionnaires, ballots or sheets
for multiple choice questions.

Figure 2.12 – Optical Mark Reader

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• Advantages:

✓ Optical mark readers works with a very fast speed.

✓ They can read up to 9,000 forms per hour.
• Disadvantages:
✓ It is difficult to gather large amount of information using an OMR.
✓ Some data may be missing in the scanned documents.
✓ It is a sensitive device that rejects the OMR sheet if it is folded, torn or crushed.

❖ Magnetic Ink Character Reader

• MICR is used to verify the legitimacy or originality of paper documents, especially checks.
• MICR consists of magnetic ink printed characters which can be recognized by high speed
magnetic recognition devices .
• The printed characters provides important information (like check number, bank routing number,
checking account number and in some cases the amount of the check) for processing to the
receiving party.

Figure 2.14 – MICR Reader

• MICR characters are usually printed in E-13B and CMC-7 fonts.
• To print the magnetic characters on the check is a critical task and the line placement, character
placement, skew and quality and the positioning of the line in the MICR clear band area
must be done precisely.
• MICR is widely used to enhance security, speeding up the sorting of documents, minimize the
exposure to check fraud.
• Let us take a real world example to understand how MICR reduces risk to fraud.
- If a person gives a check produced using color photocopying machine, the magnetic ink line
will either not respond to the magnetic fields or will produce an incorrect code when
scanned using an MICR reader.

• The MICR device even rejects the checks issued by an account owner who has a history of writing
bad check.

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❖ Audio Visual Input Devices

▪ All computers are multi- media enabled that is- computers not only allow one to read or
write text, but also enables the user to record songs, view animated movies etc.
▪ Audio Devices
▪ Audio devices are used to either capture or create sound.
▪ They enable computers to accept music, speech or sound affects for recording and/or
editing.
▪ Microphone and CD player are examples of two widely used audio input devices.
▪ Microphone feeds audio input to the computer.
▪ The computer must have a sound card to convert analog signals generated through
microphone into digital data so that it can be stored in the computer.
▪ When the user wants to hear the pre-recorded audio input, the sound card converts
the digital data into analog signals and sends it to the speakers.
➢ Video Input devices

• Video input devices are used to capture video from the outside world into the
computer.
• Here, the term video means moving picture along with sound.
• We have video cards to convert analog video signals to digital data to store it in the
computer.
• Digital Camera and Web camera are popular examples of video input devices.
• Digital camera is hand held and easily portable device used to capture images or
videos.
• It digitizes the image or video and stores them on a memory card.

• The data can then be transferred to the computer using a cable which connects
computer to the digital camera.
• Web cameras also capture videos which can be transferred via internet in real time.
• Web cameras are widely used for video conferencing.
• They are very cheap – this is one reason why they are so widely used for security
and privacy purposes.

Figure 2.16- Video Input Devices (a) Web Camera (b) Digital Camera

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❖ Advantages of Audio Devices

▪ Audio devices can be used by people who have visual problems.
▪ It is best used in situations where users want to avoid input through keyboard or
mouse.
❖ Disadvantages:
▪ Audio input devices are not suitable in noisy places;.
▪ With audio input devices it is difficult to clearly distinguish between two similar
sounding words like “sea” and “see”.
❖ Advantages of Video Devices:
▪ Video input devices are very useful for applications like video conferencing.
▪ Video input devices can be used to record memorable moments in one’s life.
▪ Video input devices can be used to check security.
❖ OUTPUT DEVICES
▪ Any device that outputs / gives information from a computer is called an output
device.
▪ Output devices are electro mechanical devices which accept digital data from the
computer and convert them into human understandable language.
❖ SOFT COPY DEVICES
▪ Soft copy output devices are those output devices which produce an electronic version
of an output.

▪ For example, a file which is stored on hard disk, CD, pen drive, etc and is displayed
on the computer screen (monitor).
❖ Features of a soft copy output include:

▪ The output can be viewed only when the computer is on.

▪ The user can easily edit the soft copy output.
▪ Soft copy cannot be used by people who do not have a computer.
▪ Searching data in a soft copy is easy and fast.
❖ Monitor
▪ The monitor is a soft copy output devices used to display video and graphics
information generated by the computer through the video card.
▪ Monitors display information at a much higher quality
▪ The monitor is connected to either a VGA or the digital video interface (DVI) port on
the video card.
▪ Monitors come in three variants:
✓ Cathode Ray Tube(CRT).
✓ Liquid Crystal Display(LCD).
✓ Plasma Monitors.
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❖ CRT Monitors
▪ CRT monitors work by firing charged electrons at a phosphorus film.
▪ When electron hit the phosphor coated screen, it glows there by enabling the user to see the
output.
▪ In a cathode ray tube, the "cathode" is a heated filament which is placed in a vacuum
created inside a glass "tube."
▪ The "ray" is a stream of electrons which comes out from a heated cathode into the vacuum.
▪ The focusing anode focuses the stream of electrons to form a tight beam which is then
accelerated by an accelerating anode.
▪ This tight, high-speed beam of electrons flies through the vacuum in the tube and hits the
flat screen at the other end of the tube.
▪ This screen is coated with phosphor, which glows when struck by the beam, there by
displaying the picture which the user sees on the monitor.

Figure 2.19- Working of CRT Monitors

▪ Advantages :
o CRT Monitors provides images of good quality.
o CRT monitors are cheaper when compared to LCD and Plasma monitors.
o The images are clear even when you try to view it from an angle.
▪ Disadvantages :
o CRT monitors occupy a large space on the desk.
o They are bigger in size and weight and therefore difficult to move from one place to
another when compared with other types of monitors.
o Power consumption is higher than the other monitors.

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❖ LCD ( Liquid Crystal Display)

▪ LCD monitor is a thin, flat electronic visual display that uses the light modulating properties
of liquid crystals which do not emit light directly.
▪ LCD screens are used in a wide range of applications ranging from computer monitors,
television, instrument panels, aircraft cockpit displays, signage, to consumer devices like such
as video players, gaming devices, clocks, watches, calculators, and telephones.
▪ Liquid crystal display technology is based on blocking light.
▪ The LCD consists of two pieces of polarizing filters (or substrates) that contain a liquid crystal
material between them.
▪ A backlight creates light which is made to pass through the first substrate.
▪ Simultaneously, the electrical currents cause the liquid crystal molecules to align thus
allowing varying levels of light to pass through to the second substrate and create the
colors and images are seen on the screen.

Figure 2.20 – Working of LCD Monitor

❖ Advantages:
▪ LCD monitors are very compact and light weight.
▪ They consumes less power.
▪ They do not suffer from geometric distortions.
▪ There is little or no flicker of images ( depending on the backlight technology used).

❖ Disadvantages:
▪ They are more expensive than CRTs.
▪ Images are not very clear when tried to view from an angle.

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❖ Plasma Monitors
• Plasma monitors are thin and flat monitors widely used in TVs and computers.
• The plasma display contains two glass plates that have tiny cells filled with xenon and neon
gas.
• The display electrode is covered by a magnesium oxide protective layer and is arranged in
horizontal rows along the screen while the address electrodes are arranged in vertical
columns there by forming grid like structure.
• To ionize the gas in a particular cell, the electrodes that intersect at that cell are charged at
least thousands of times in a small fraction of a second.
• An electric current begins to flow through the gas in the cell.
• The current creates a rapid flow of charged particles there by stimulating the gas atoms to
release ultra violet photons.
• When these UV photons hit a phosphor atom in the cell, one of the phosphor's electrons
jumps to a higher energy level and the atom heats up.
• When the electron falls back to its normal level, it releases energy in the form of a visible
light photon.

▪ Advantages :
✓ The technology used in plasma monitors allows producing a very wide screen using
extremely thin materials.
✓ Very bright images are formed which looks good from almost every angle.
✓ These monitors are not heavy and thus are easily portable.

▪ Disadvantages :
✓ These monitors are very expensive.
✓ They have a high power consumption.
✓ Since the images are phosphor-based, at times, they may suffer from flicker.

❖ Projector
• A projector is a device which takes an image from a video source and projects it on to a
screen or other surface.
• These days, projectors are used for a wide range of applications varying from home theater
systems to organizations for projecting information and presentations on to screens large enough
for rooms filled with people to see.

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Figure 2.22 - Projector

• Projectors also allows users to change/ adjust some features of the image such as brightness,
sharpness, and color settings similar to the features available in a standard television.
• The projectors receives a video signal from some external devices such as a DVD player or
a computer and projects that signal on to a screen.
• To display the image on a big screen, the projector first display that image(represented in
the video signal) onto a small screen inside the projector itself, which is then projected on
to the final screen using a bright light and lens.
• The lens is shaped in such a way that it takes the small image and turn it into a
dramatically larger one.

• Projector can be broadly classified into two categories depending on the technology that
they use:
i. LCD Projector
ii. Digital Light Processing (DLP) Projector.
➢ LCD Projector – make use of their own light to display the image on the screen wall.
➢ These projectors are based on LCD technology. To use these projectors, the room must be
darkened, else the image formed will be blurred.
➢ Digital Light Processing (DLP) Projector-use a number of mirrors to reflect the light.
➢ When using the DLP projector, the room may or may not be darkened because it displays a
clear image in both situations.

❖ Speakers
▪ Today all business and home users demand sound capabilities from their computers.
▪ For this purpose, speakers were developed in different sizes and shapes and also with
different powers and sound quality.
▪ With good quality speakers, the voice will also be audible even to people sitting in
another or room or even to neighbors.

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▪ However, in case the user wants to enjoy loud music without disturbing the people
around him, he can use a headphone.
▪ Another device called headset was developed to allow the users to talk and listen at the
same time, using the same device.
▪ The normal computer speakers are small, plastic, and mediocre sound quality.
▪ Users can also use a lead to connect their computer’s sound output to an existing stereo
system to give much better results than the small, low cost computer speakers.

Figure 2.23- Audio Devices (a) Speakers (b) Head phones (c) Headset

❖ HARD COPY OUTPUT DEVICES

▪ Hard copy output devices produce a physical form of output.

▪ For example, the content of a file printed on a paper is a form of hard copy output.
▪ The features of hard copy output include:
✓ A computer is not needed to see the output.
✓ Editing and incorporating the edits in the hard copy is difficult.
✓ Hard copy output can be easily distributed to people who do not have a computer.
✓ Searching for data in a hard copy is a tiring and difficult job.
✓ Distribution of a hard copy is not only costly but slower as well.

❖ PRINTERS
▪ Printer is a device that outputs text and graphics information obtained from the computer and
prints it on to a paper.
▪ Printers are available in the market in a variety of size, speed, sophistication, and cost.
▪ The qualities of printer which are of interest to users include:
✓ Color: Colored print outs are needed for presentations or maps and other pages where
color is part of the information.
▪ They are more expensive.
✓ Memory: Most printers have a small amount of memory that can be expanded by the
user.

▪ Having more memory makes enhances the speed of printing.

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✓ Resolution: The resolution of a printer means the sharpness of text and images on
paper. It is usually expressed in dots per inch (dpi).
▪ Even the least inexpensive printer provides sufficient resolution for most purposes at
600 dpi.
✓ Speed: Speed means number of pages that are printed in one minute.
▪ While high speed printers are a little expensive, the inexpensive printers on the other
hand can print only about 3 to 6 sheets per minute.
▪ Printers can be broadly classified into two categories:
i. Impact Printer
ii. Non- Impact Printer

❖ Impact Printer- They create characters by striking an inked ribbon against the paper.
Example- dot-matrix printers, daisy wheel printers, and most types of line printer.

▪ Advantages:

✓ These printers enables the user to produce carbon copies.

✓ They are cheap.

▪ Disadvantages:

• Impact printers are slow.

• They offer poor print quality, especially in the case of graphics.
• They can be extremely noisy.
• They can print only using the standard font.

❖ Non Impact Printer: Non-impact printers are much quieter than impact printers as
their printing heads do not strike the paper.
▪ They offer better print quality, faster printing and the ability to create prints that
contain sophisticated graphics.
▪ Non-impact printers use either solid or liquid cartridge-based ink which is either
sprayed, dripped or electro statically drawn onto the page.
▪ The main types of non-impact printer are: inkjet, printer, laser printer and
thermal printer.

▪ Advantages:
✓ Non impact printers produces prints of good quality, and hence render
sophisticated graphics.
✓ They are noiseless.

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✓ They are fast.

✓ They can print text in different fonts.

▪ Disadvantages:
✓ These printers are expensive.
✓ The ink cartridges used by them are also costly.

❖ Dot Matrix Printer

✓ A dot matrix printer prints characters and images of all types as a pattern of dots.
✓ It has a print head (or hammer) that consists of pins representing the character or image.
✓ The print head runs back and forth, or in an up and down motion, on the page and prints
by striking an ink-soaked cloth ribbon against the paper, much like the print mechanism on
a typewriter.
✓ Several dot matrix printer manufacturers implemented color printing through a multi-color
ribbon.
✓ Color was obtained through a multi-pass composite printing process.
✓ In each pass, the print head struck a different section of the ribbon(one primary color).
✓ Because of poor color quality and increased operating system expense, color dot matrix
printers could never replace their monochrome counterparts.

✓ The black ink section would gradually contaminate the other three colors(RGB), there by
changing the consistency of print outs over the life of the ribbon.
✓ The color dot matrix was therefore suitable only for abstract illustrations and pie charts, but
not for photo-realistic reproduction.
✓ The speed of dot matrix printers varies in the range of 50-500 cps(characters per second).

▪ Advantages
✓ It can produce carbon copies.
✓ It offers lowest printing cost per page.
✓ It is widely used for bulk printing where quality of the print is not of much importance is
cheap.
✓ When the ink is about to finish, the print out gradually fades rather than suddenly stopping part
way through a job
✓ It can use continuous paper rather than individual sheets, making them useful for data logging.
▪ Disadvantages
✓ It creates a lot of noise when the pins strike the ribbon to the paper.
✓ It can only print lower-resolution graphics, with limited quality.
✓ It is very slow.
✓ It has poor print quality.

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Figure 2.25 – Dot Matrix Printer

❖ DAISY WHEEL PRINTER

▪ Daisy wheel printers use an impact printing technology to generate high-quality output
comparable to type writers but three times faster.
▪ The print head of a daisy wheel printer is a circular wheel, about 3 inches in diameter with
arms or spokes.
▪ The characters are embossed at the outer end of the arms.
▪ To print a character, the wheel is rotated in such a way that the character to be printed is
positioned just in front of the printer ribbon.

▪ The spoke containing the required character is then hit by a hammer there by striking the
ribbon to leave an impression on the paper placed behind the ribbon.
▪ Movement of all these parts is controlled by microprocessor in the printer.
▪ The key benefit of using a daisy wheel printer is that the print quality is high as the exact
shape of the character hits the ribbon to leave and impression on paper.

Figure 2.26 - Daisy wheel Printer

❖ LINE PRINTER

▪ Line printer i s a high speed impact printer in which one typed l i n e is printed at a time.
▪ The speed of a line printer usually varies from 600 to 1200 lines-per-minute or approximately
10 to 20 pages per minute.
▪ They are widely used in data centers and in industrial environments.
▪ Band printer is a commonly used variant of line printers.

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❖ Band Printer:
▪ A band printer (loop printer) is an impact printer .
▪ The set of characters are permanently embossed on the band and this set cannot be
changed unless the band is replaced.
▪ The band itself revolves around hammers that push the paper against the ribbon,
allowing the desired character to be produced on the paper.
▪ However, band printers cannot be used for any graphics printing as the characters are
predetermined and cannot be changed unless the band is changed.

Figure 2.27 - Band Printer

▪ The main advantage of using a band printer is its high speed.

▪ This type of printer can print 2000 lines per minute.
▪ It is perfect for high volume printing in businesses, schools, and other organizations.
▪ Band printers are normally attached to mainframes and used for industrial printing.
❖ INK JET PRINTERS
▪ In Inkjet printers, the print head has several tiny nozzles called jets.
▪ As paper moves past the print head, the nozzles spray ink onto it, forming characters
and images.
▪ The dots are extremely large usually between 50 and 60 microns in diameter and are
positioned precisely with resolution of up to 1440*720 dpi.
▪ An inkjet printer can produce from 100 to several hundred pages, before the ink
cartridges must be replaced .
▪ There is usually one black ink cartridge and one color cartridge containing ink in
primary pigments(cyan, magenta and yellow).
▪ While inkjet printers are cheaper than the laser printers, they are more expensive to

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▪ maintain.
▪ The special coated paper to produce high quality output is very expensive.
▪ Inkjet printers are not well suited for volume print jobs.

Figure 2.28- Inkjet Printers

❖ LASER PRINTER

▪ It is a non-impact printer that works at a very high speed and produces high quality text
and graphics.
▪ It uses the photocopier technology.
▪ When a document is sent to the printer , a laser beam "draws" the document on a drum
(which is coated with a photo-conductive material) using electrical charges.
▪ After the drum is charged, it is rolled in toner (a dry powder type of ink).
▪ The toner sticks to the charged image on the drum.
▪ The toner is transferred onto a piece of paper and fused to the paper with heat and pressure.
▪ After the document is printed, the electrical charge is removed from the drum and the excess
toner is collected.
▪ While color laser printers are also available in the market but users prefer only monochrome
printers because a color laser printer is up to 10 times more expensive than a monochrome

printer.. Figure 2.29-Laser

Printer

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❖ PLOTTER
▪ A plotter is used to print vector graphics with a high print quality.
▪ They are widely used to draw maps, in scientific applications and in applications like
CAD, CAM and CAE.
▪ A plotter is basically a printer that interprets commands from a computer to make line
drawings on paper with one or more automated pens.
▪ Since plotters are much more expensive than the printers, they are used only for
specialized applications.
▪ Hewlett- Packard is the leading vendor of plotters world wide.
▪ There are two different types of plotters:
i. Drum.
ii. Flatbed.

➢ Drum Plotter is used to draw graphics on a paper that is wrapped around a drum.
▪ It works by rotating the drum back and forth to produce vertical motion.
▪ The pen which is mounted on a carriage is moved across the width of the paper.
▪ Hence, the vertical movement of the paper and the horizontal movement of the pen
create the required design under the control of the computer.

Figure 2.30 (a) –Drum Plotter

➢ Flat bed Plotter :

▪ In a flat bed plotter, the paper is spread on the flat rectangular surface of the
plotter and the pen is moved over it.
▪ Flatbed plotters are less expensive and used in many smaller computing systems.
▪ In this type of plotter, the paper is not moved rather plotting is done by moving an
arm that moves a pen over paper.
▪ In case of a flatbed plotter, pens of different colors are mounted in the pen-holding
mechanism that moves on the surface.
▪ The microprocessor in the plotter selects the desired pen and controls its movement
under the control of the computer.

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