Chapter 1: Introduction to Computers

Basic Computer Skills Master Class

by Gebriye Embafresu
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• Email: [email protected]. Phone No: 0914789599,
YouTube: G-Tech Academy
Computer Science Department
 Topics

1.1 What is Computer?

1.2 Computer System

– Hardware components

– Software components

• 1.3 Input Devices

• 1.4 Output Devices

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 1.1 Why is Computer & it application?
Computer – Computer is an advanced electronic device
that takes raw data as an input from the user and
processes it under the control of a set of instructions
(called program), produces a result (output), and saves it
for future use.
Data is anything that can be recorded.
Data can be anything like marks obtained by you in various
courses, video, audio, image, etc.
Q: What kind data do you have in your computer?

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 Main types of computers:- desktops,
laptops, tablets.
Desktop:
•A desktop computer (or desktop PC) is a computer that is designed to stay in a

single location. It may be a tower (also known as a system unit) or an all-in-one

machine, such as an iMac.

•Unlike laptops and other portable devices, desktop computers cannot be powered

from an internal battery and therefore must remain connected to a wall outlet.

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 Main types of computers:- desktops,
laptops, tablets…
Laptops:
•Laptop computers, as the name implies, are small portable computers

which can run on batteries as well as mains power.

• They use special screens, rather than the traditional bulky VDUs (Visual

Display U nits), which allows for longer battery life as well as portability.

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 Main types of computers:- desktops,
laptops, tablets…
Tablets:
•A tablet, or tablet PC, is a portable computer that uses a touch screen as its

primary input device. Most tablets are slightly smaller and weigh less than the

average laptop. While some tablets include fold out keyboards, others, such as

the Apple iPad and Motorola Xoom, only offer touch screen input.

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 What is Computer System?

• It is the combination of Hardware, software

and data which are used to solve the
problem of human beings.

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 What is Hardware?

• The term hardware refers to the physical

components of your computer such as the system
unit, mouse, keyboard, monitor etc.

• List at least five hardware components of a

computer?

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 What is Software?
• Software is the collection of instructions which makes the computer
work. For instance, when you type in words via the keyboard, the
software is responsible for displaying the correct letters, in the correct
place on the screen.
• Software is held either on your computer’s hard disk, CD-ROM, DVD
or on a diskette (floppy disk) and is loaded (i.e. copied) from the disk
into the computers RAM (Random Access Memory), as and when
required. Software is also available online.

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 Types of software's
• There are two types of software:
- Systems or Operational Software (Operating System)
- Applications Software

- System Software: System software refers to the files and programs that
make up your computer's operating system. System files include libraries of
functions, system services, drivers for printers and other hardware, system
preferences, and other configuration files.

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 Types of software's
• The programs that are part of the system software include assemblers,
compilers, file management tools, system utilities, and debuggers.

• The system software is installed on your computer when you install your

operating system.

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 Applications Software
• An application program is the type of program which you use once the operating system has
been loaded.
• Examples include:
– MS Word-processing programs (for word processing)
– MS Excel (for doing accounts and working with numbers)
– Databases (for organizing large amounts of information)
– Media Player (like VLC, QQ player, Pot player)
– Graphics programs (for producing pictures, advertisements, manuals etc.).
– Video Editor (Adobe Premiere Pro used for editing a video)
– Photo editor (Adobe Photoshop used for editing of a photo)
– Microsoft PowerPoint
– Facebook, WhatsApp, Gmail
– Computer Games

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 Operating System
• The operating system is a special type of program which loads automatically when
you start your computer. The operating system allows you to use the advanced
features of a modern computer without having to learn all the details of how the
hardware works
• Microsoft introduced Windows and this is the operating system which is most widely used on PCs
today. There are a number of different types of Windows.

• Most people are today running Windows XP or Windows Vista, Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 and
Window 10. Other Types of OS: Linux, Apple

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 Main Hardware Component Categories

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 Central Processing Unit (CPU)
CPU – Hardware component
that runs programs
Includes
• Control Unit
– Retrieves and decodes
program instructions
– Coordinates computer
operations

• Arithmetic & Logic Unit

(ALU)
– Performs mathematical
operations

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 The CPU's Role in Running a Program
Cycle through:
• Fetch: get the next program instruction
from main memory
• Decode: interpret the instruction and
generate a signal
• Execute: route the signal to the
appropriate component to perform an
operation
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 Main Memory
• Holds both program instructions and data

• Volatile – erased when the program

terminates or computer is turned off

• Also called Random Access Memory

(RAM), because the CPU can access data
and instructions from any memory
location.

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 Main Memory Organization
• Bit
– Smallest piece of memory
– Stands for binary digit
– Hold an electrical charge
• A positive charge is “on”
• A negative charge is “off”

• Byte
– Is 8 consecutive bits
– Has an address in memory
– There are millions (or even billions) of bytes of
memory in a computer

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 Secondary Storage

• Holds data when the program is not

running or when the computer is turned
off
• Several forms of secondary storage
– disk drive: can be mounted inside the
computer or connected to an external port.
Data is stored magnetically
– optical: CD or DVD drive
– flash: USB flash drive
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 Input Devices

• Used to send information to the

computer from outside
• Many devices can provide input
– keyboard, mouse, touch screen,
microphone, scanner, digital camera, disk
drive, CD/DVD drive, USB flash drive

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 Output Devices

• Used to send information from the

computer to the outside
• Many devices can be used for output
– Computer screen, printer, speakers, disk
drive, CD/DVD recorder, USB flash drive

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 Mouse
• When using an operating system, such as Microsoft Windows, you use the mouse
to select drop down menus, to point and click on items, to select items and to drag
and drop items from one place to another.

• Trackpad
• A trackpad (also touchpad) is a pointing device consisting of specialized surface that can
translate the motion and position of a user's fingers to a relative position on screen.
Touchpads vary in size but are rarely made larger than 40 square centimeters (about 6
square inches).

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 Keyboards

• The keyboard allows you to type information into the computer. It

has evolved over the years. The keyboard is built into laptop

computers but is a separate item if used with a Desktop computer.

They can be connected via cables or may be wireless.

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 Start Up, Shut Down
• Start a computer and log on securely using a user name and
password.
– First check that all cables are plugged securely into the rear of the
machine.
– Then check that the monitor is turned on.
– Locate the power switch on the system unit (tower) and press it once to
turn on the computer.
– You may be asked to enter a logon ID and a password.
• Log off, shut down, and Restart a computer using an approp riate routine.
• Discuss the difference about Power on, logoff, restart, shut down and
sleep.

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 Practical Session
• How to sign out computer
• How to lock computer
• How to sleep computer
• How to restart computer
• How to shut Down computer
• How to Switch a user computer

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 Practical Session,…
• Discuss the d/c between the following
window short cuts
– ALT + F4
– CTRL + ALT + DEL

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 Practical Questions [10 Minutes]
• Write a command that shuts down your
computer after 30 minutes
– Answer: shutdown -s -t 1800

• Write a command that shuts down your

computer after 1 hour
– Answer: shutdown -s -t 3600

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 Application of Computer
Think about some of the different ways people use
Computers in School, at Home and Work?
In School: Students use Computers for tasks such as
 Writing papers
 Searching for articles
 Sending emails
 and participating in online classes

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 1Application of Computer…
At Work: People use Computers
 To analyze data
 Make presentations
 Make business transactions
 Communicate with customers and coworkers
 Control machines in manufacturing facilities and
do many other things.

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 Application of Computer…
At Home: People use Computers for tasks such as
 Paying bills
 Shopping online
 Social networking (Facebook, imo, telegram,
twitter, YouTube)
 and playing games
SO, the use Computers are almost limitless in our
everyday lives, because they are programmable.

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 Basic Computer Skills Master
Class

End of Chapter One !!!

Thank you, Have a nice day!!

Never Stop Learning!

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