What is computer?

A computer is an electronic device that accepts data and

instructions, processes the data according the instructions and
gives the desired output on a prescribed output device.
 How computer works?

Input stage – This stage comprises of entering some sort of

data into a processing. E.g. Typing data through keyboard.
Processing Stage – This stage comprises of performing
certain tasks on the data to produce the required output. E.g.
It process (works on) the data.
Output stage – This stage comprises of obtaining the results
on a prescribed output device. E.g. The data is displayed on
the monitor.
 Advantage of computer

Very fast, accurate and reliable.

Never does careless mistakes and never gets tired.
Efficiency not decreases with age.
Useful in all the fields.
It has a mass storage capacity, if we use the secondary
storage device.
 Application of computer

Computer is used in

Scientific research
Business administration
Industrial application
Meteorology
Space technology
Education
Hospitals
Court, etc…
Organization of a computer system.
Input devices: Keyboard, Mouse, etc.

Output devices: Monitor, printer, speaker, etc.

Central Processing Unit [C.P.U.] :Central processing unit controls

all the activities of the computer system. It is here that the actual
processing takes place.
The components of C.P.U. are :

Control Unit: - Control unit is the most important unit

within the C.P.U. It controls the overall activities of the
computer.
Primary Storage Unit (Main memory): - The Primary Storage
unit is also called as internal storage or main memory. Its
function is to store data, instructions and intermediate final
results temporarily. RAM and ROM make up primary
storage.

Random Access Memory (RAM): RAM stands for Random

Access memory. As the name suggests data or instructions
could be accessed quickly /randomly from the RAM. It is a
temporary/volatile memory i.e. whatever data or
 instructions are in RAM would be lost when the computer is
switched off .

Read only Memory (ROM): ROM stands for Read only Memory.
As the name suggests, data can only be read from this memory. It
is a permanent /Non-volatile memory i.e. the contents of ROM
would not be lost when the computer is switched off. The
contents of ROM could only be read, they could not be modified
or erased. Within the ROM the manufacturer stores a program
needed by the computer.

Representation of Data within the Computer System

A computer cannot directly understand human languages like
English, Tamil, Hindi etc.
It only understands a coded language. SO everything fed into the
computer gets converted into coded language. Only then does it
start processing
All the data is represented within the computer system as 0’s and
1’s. BITS.

Bits & Bytes

0 and 1 are called BITS (Binary digits).
8 BITS = 1BYTE A combination of any 8 bits is called a BYTE
Each Character (alphabet, number or Symbol) of the English
Language is represented by 8 Bits(Byte) within the computer.
Examples:
 Machine
Characters language
0100000
A 1
0010001
4 0
0011111
? 1

Units of Measurement of Storage

Byte :- 8 Bits make 1 Byte.
Kilobyte :- 1024 Bytes make 1 Kilobyte
Megabyte : - 1024 KiloBytes make 1 Megabyte
Gigabyte :- 1024 Megabytes make 1 Gigabyte