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Basic Structure of Computers

The document provides an overview of the basic structure of computers. It discusses that computers accept digital data as input and manipulate it based on a program to produce results. The main components of a computer are the input, memory, arithmetic logic unit, output, and control unit. The memory stores programs and data, while the control unit directs all activities inside the computer. Finally, it summarizes that a computer accepts information through input, stores it in memory, processes it using the arithmetic logic unit under program control, and outputs the results through the output unit.

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Lyn-Jo Chris Sarmiento
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157 views

Basic Structure of Computers

The document provides an overview of the basic structure of computers. It discusses that computers accept digital data as input and manipulate it based on a program to produce results. The main components of a computer are the input, memory, arithmetic logic unit, output, and control unit. The memory stores programs and data, while the control unit directs all activities inside the computer. Finally, it summarizes that a computer accepts information through input, stores it in memory, processes it using the arithmetic logic unit under program control, and outputs the results through the output unit.

Uploaded by

Lyn-Jo Chris Sarmiento
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Basic Structure of Computers

Brian B. Lapitan
Introduction
• COMPUTER
- is a device that accepts information (in the form of
digitalized data) and manipulates it for some result
based on a program or sequence of instructions on
how the data is to be processed.
- is a machine that performs task/function

• Functions of Computer
o Data Processing
o Data Storage
o Data Movement
o Control
Digital Computer
• Fast electronic calculating machine that
accepts digitized input information.
• The list of instruction is called a Computer
Program.
• The internal storage is called Computer
Memory.
Computer Types
• Personal Computer
– Found in homes, schools, and business offices
– The most common form of it is the Desktop Computer
• Portable Notebook Computers
• Compact version of the Personal Computers
• Workstations
– High-resolution graphics I/O capability
• Enterprise Systems and Servers
– Mainframe Computers
• Supercomputers
• Large-scale numerical calculations required in different
applications.
Uses of Computer
 Business
– ex. Inventory System, Cashiering System, etc.
 Homes
– ex. Appliances (e.g. Microwave, etc.)
 Automobiles/Vehicles
– ex. Global Positioning System, etc.
 Entertainment
– ex. Games, Music, Videos, etc.
 Education
– ex. Computer Aided Indtruction, etc.
 Scientific / Engineering
– ex. Seismograph, Autocad, etc.
 Military
– ex. Missiles, Radar, etc.
Computer Organization
 refers to the operational units and their
interconnection that realize the architecture
specification.

 organization attributes include those hardware


details transparent to the programmer:
- control signals,
- interfaces between the computer and peripherals, &
- the memory technology used.
Basic Computer Organization
Functional Units
• Input Unit
• Memory Unit
• Arithmetic and Logic Unit
• Output Unit
• Control Unit
Input Unit
• The most well-known device is the Keyboard.
Memory Unit
• Store programs and data.
• Two classes of storage:
– Primary
– Secondary
Primary Storage
• A fast memory that operates at electronic speeds
• The memory contains a large number of semiconductor storage
cells.
• Cells are read/written as individual cells but are processed in groups
of fixed size called words.
• Distinct address is associated in order to provide easy access to any
word in the memory.
• Addresses are numbers that identify successive locations.
• Memory in which any locations can be reached in a short and fixed
amount of time after specifying its address is called RAM(random-
access memory)
• The time required to access one word is called the Memory Access
Time
• The largest and slowest unit is referred to as the Main Memory.
Secondary Storage
• Large amounts of data and many programs
have to be stored, particularly for information
that is accessed infrequently.
• Includes magnetic disks and tapes, and optical
disks(CD-ROMs)
Arithmetic and Logic Unit
• Most computer operations are executed in the
ALU of the processor.
Output Unit
• The counterpart of the input unit.
• To send processed results to the outside
world.
Control Unit
• Effectively the nerve center that sends control
signals to other units and senses their states.
Functional Units
Summarization of Operation of a
Computer
• The computer accepts information in the form of
programs and data through an input unit and
stores it in the memory.
• Information stored in the memory is fetched,
under program control, into an arithmetic and
logic unit, where it is processed.
• Processed information leaves the computer
through an output unit.
• All activities inside the machine are directed by
the control unit.
Computer Operation
The Computer Level Hierarchy
 Computer system organization uses an approached
called the Principle of Abstraction.
- writing complex programs requires a “divide
and conquer” approach, where each program module
solves a smaller problem.
 Complex computer systems employ a similar
technique through a series of virtual machine layers.
 Each virtual machine layer is an abstraction of
the level below it.
 The machines at each level execute their own
particular instructions, calling upon machines at
lower levels to perform tasks as required.
 Computer circuits ultimately carry out the
work.
The Computer Level Hierarchy
The Computer Level Hierarchy
 Level 6: The User Level
– Program execution and user interface level.
– The level with which we are most familiar.

 Level 5: High-Level Language Level


– The level with which we interact when we write
programs in languages such as C, Pascal, Lisp,
and Java.

 Level 4: Assembly Language Level


– Acts upon assembly language
produced From Level 5, as well as
instructions Programmed directly at
this level.
The Computer Level Hierarchy
 Level 3: System Software Level
– Controls executing processes on the system.
– Protects system resources.
– Assembly language instructions often pass
through Level 3 without modification.

 Level 2: Machine Level


– Also known as the Instruction Set Architecture (ISA)
Level
– Consists of instructions that are particular
to the architecture of the machine.
– Programs written in machine language
need no compilers, interpreters,
or assemblers.
The Computer Level Hierarchy
 Level 1: Control Level
– A control unit decodes and executes instructions and
moves data through the system.
– Control units can be microprogrammed or hardwired.
– A microprogram is a program written in a low-level
language that is implemented by the hardware.
– Hardwired control units consist of hardware that
directly executes machine instructions.

 Level 0: Digital Logic Level


- This level is where we find digital circuits
(the chips).
– Digital circuits consist of gates and wires.
– These components implement the
mathematical logic of all other levels.
Von Neumann Architecture
 All stored-program computers have come to be
known as von Neumann systems using the von
Neumann architecture.

 All temporary computer designs are based on this


architecture.

John W. Mauchly and J. Presper Eckert


- The original inventor of the Stored-Program
Computers.
Von Neumann Architecture
Three Characteristics of a Store-Program Machine:

– Three hardware systems:


 A central processing unit (CPU)
 A main memory system
 An I/O system

– The capacity to carry out sequential instruction


processing.

– A single data path between the CPU and


main memory.
 This single path is known as the
von Neumann bottleneck.
Von Neumann Architecture

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