Introduction to Computer & IT

8/3/2019 Introduction to Computer & IT

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Introduction to Computers

and Information Technology


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Computers in Your Life

Most skill-based jobs heavily depend on the creation,collection, and dissemination of information.

Computers are also prevalent in the home, as well asin our society in general.

Having experience with, and a basic level of comfort

with, computers is important for everyone.


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What Is a Computer and What Does ItDo?

Inputwhat is supplied to a computer to process

Processingthe conversion of input to output

Outputthe results of computer processing

Storagesaving data, results, or programs for futureuse


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Traditional and Multimedia Hardware

Acomputer systemconsists of the computer itselfand its peripheral equipment.

Multimedia computersystems contain specialhardware for use with sound and video.

TheCPUisat the heart of any computer system.

Volatile memorytemporarily stores programs andinput while they are being processed.


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Software

The programs or instructions used to tell thecomputer hardware what to do.

Application software performs specifictasks or applications.

Systems software allows a computer tooperate and run application software.


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Data, Information, and Programs

Data= raw, unorganized facts

Can be in the form oftext, graphics, audio, or video

Information= data that has been processed into auseful form

Programs= instructions that tell the computer how to

process data to produce the results you want


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Users and Computer Professionals

Users, or end users, are the people in thecomputing environment who need the outputthat computer systems produce.

Programmers are the people whose job it isto write programs to supply this information.


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Computer Systems to Fit Every Need

Microcomputers

Midrange computers

Mainframe computers

Supercomputers


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Mobile Devices

Very small computing devices

Based on a wireless phone or pager

Limited Internet access


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Personal Computers

Microprocessors allow for the creation ofcomputers small enough to fit on a desk orlap.

Desktop units

Portable units


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Personal Computers, contd.

PCs designed for just network use arereferred to as network computers or thinclients.

PCs or devices designed just for Internetaccess are called Internet appliances.


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Personal Computers, contd.

PC compatiblea personal computer basedon Intel microcomputer or compatible CPUs

Macintosha type of personal computermanufactured by Apple


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Midrange Computers

Medium-sized computers

Fall between microcomputers and mainframesin processing power


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Mainframes

Mainstay of almost all large organizations

Specialize in high-volume processing ofbusiness transactions


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Supercomputers

Used in organizations that have extraordinarydemands for processing power

Offer very fast speeds and extreme degreesof accuracy


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Computers and Society

The information age= the prominence ofinformation technology.

Benefits of a computer-oriented societyinclude the fact that day-to-day operations ofmany individuals are positively affected bycomputers.

Problems include health and privacy concerns.


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What is Information Technology? An Information Technology (IT) system processes, stores,

and/or transfers (communicates) information

Information can take many different forms such as text,numbers, pictures, sound, video, and multimedia

To transfer information, IT systems use computers,

networks, and other electronic devices


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What is Information Technology?

Because of the importance ofcommunicationsin IT, the term Informationand Communication Technology (ICT)is oftenpreferred to IT

Since IT involves many different and often highlyspecialized areas, it is often seen as a verydaunting subject

However, the basis of IT is simply to help us toimprove the way we deal with information in allareas of our lives


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IT is used in business, academia, industry, government,heathcare, etc.

It is also an important part of our everyday activities

Computers enable us to process information and perform

specific tasks much more quickly than we could doourselves

IT systems are very flexible and can be made to perform avariety of different tasks

IT networks (e.g., Internet) allow us to distribute andshare information quickly, and over a very long distance

What is IT used for?


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What is IT used for? Many developments in IT are designed to make our lives

easier

But people expectations of what they (and others) canachieve are often leading to unrealistic demands beingplaced on people and the technology around them

We live in an "Information Society

The effective use of information is regarded as the

defying element of the 20th21stcenturies, as importantas the industrial revolution before it


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Computer Networks and the Internet

Acomputer networkties userstogether to share hardware,

software, and data, as well as toelectronically communicate with

each other.


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The Internet

The Internet is the largest and most wellknown computer network in the world.

Individuals connect using an ISP.

E-mail and accessing the Web are two of the

most common Internet activities.


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Accessing Networks

Modem or other network adapter

Appropriate software program

ISP

User ID to log on

Web browser


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Network Servers

Network servers manage resources on anetwork.

Web servers are servers connected to theInternet to store Web pages.

Online = when a computer can send orreceive data from a computer network.


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Using the Internet and World Wide Web

The Internet is a worldwide collection ofnetworks connecting millions of computers allover the world.

The World Wide Web is the collection ofWeb pages accessed through the Internet.

Computers that host Web pages are calledWeb servers.


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What Is a Browser?

AWeb browser is a program used to view Webpages.

Common browsers Microsoft Internet

Explorer

Netscape Navigator

MSN Explorer Opera

America Online


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Accessing the Internet

You can be connected via a director always-onconnection, or a dial-upconnection.

Internet service providers (ISPs) are thegateway to the Internet.

Typically charge monthly fees

Most allow you to use the Web browser of yourchoice


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Internet Addresses

An Internet address tells where somethingon the Internet can be located.

IP addresses and domain names identifycomputers available through the Internet.

E-mail addresses identify a person on theInternet.


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Internet Addresses, contd.

URLs identify Web pages on the Internet.


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Surfing the Web

Use hyperlinks, the address bar or location bar, orthe Back and Forward toolbar buttons to surf theWeb.

Things that you may encounter on a Web page:

text and images

e-mail hyperlinks

form fields

frames

animation

multimedia links


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Using Bookmarks and the History List

Visited Web pages are recorded in thebrowsers history list.

To save Web page URLs on a morepermanent basis, bookmarksor favoritesareused.


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Searching the Web

Asearch site typically uses a search engineinconjunction with a huge directory of Web pages toretrieve information.

Keyword search: keywords are typed into a searchbox and then hyperlinks for matching Web pages aredisplayed.

Directory search: a series of increasingly specificcategories are selected until links for matching Webpages are displayed.


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E-Mail

One of the first applications to appear on theInternet and still the most popular.

An e-mail message can be sent to anyonewith an Internet e-mail address.

Browser-based e-mailremains on the e-mailproviders computer until it is requested.


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Sending E-Mail

E-mail can be sent over private networks, over theInternet, or over some combination of the two.

E-mail hyperlinks on Web pages can be used to startan e-mail message using your e-mail program.

Many e-mail programs also enable users to attach

files.


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Receiving E-Mail

E-mail can be received over private networks,over the Internet, or over some combinationof the two.

E-mail is often sent using a browsers built-ine-mail program, such as Microsoft Outlook,

Microsoft Outlook Express,or Netscape Mail.

Applications on the Internet


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Internet provides various types of services, which include:

1.Electronic mail (e-mail) Exchange of messages between two computers bytelecommunication is known as e-mail

E-mail was one of the first services that were used forcommunicating over the Internet

E-mail messages can contain text, graphics, or acombination of both

Web sites on the Internet that provide free e-mail services-Gmail, Hotmail and Yahoo

The user is asked to register at the site and an e-mailaccount is created for the user

Using the e-mail account you can access your e-mail fromanywhere in the world

A li ti th I t t


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2. Search Engines/Browsers

A search engine is a program that allows you to search fora particular set of words specified by you, on the Internet

A user interface is provided where a user can enter theword or the phrase that has to be searched

The search engine tries to locate the keyword in a largedata source and returns the result of the search

Google , Yahoo, MSN and Netscape, Firefox are commonlyused search enginesApplications



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Applications on the Internet3. File Transfer Services You can transfer files from one computer to another using

the Internet File transfer means uploading a file to a server or

downloading a file from a server File transfer services use the File Transfer Protocol (FTP),

which is an Internet protocol that helps to upload anddownload files

FTP is commonly used to download files to a personalcomputer from other servers on the Internet

Uploading refers to sending a file from a personal

computer to another computer on the network, anddownloading refers to receiving a file from anothercomputer on the network to a personal computer

Protocol is a set of rules used for communication between

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