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CHARACTERISTICS OF IT SYSTEMS

GENERAL

A. Types of Computers, Hardware, and Software

Different computers in terms of power and size

Computer: Definition

A computer is a machine that can be programmed to manipulate


symbols. Its principal characteristics are:

It responds to a specific set of instructions in a well-defined


manner.
It can execute a prerecorded list of instructions (program)
It can quickly store and retrieve large amounts of data

Computer sizes and power

1. Supercomputers
Supercomputers are extremely fast computer that can perform
trillions of instructions per second, which calculated in
floating point operations per second (FLOPS).
Because of their superiority, supercomputers are not intended
for everyday computing tasks. They are intended for
exhaustive scientific applications that require complex and
real-time processing.

2. Mainframe computers

A powerful multi-user computer capable of supporting many


hundreds or thousands of users simultaneously
Mainframe computers are used on large organizations where
thousands of clients have to access data simultaneously.

3. Minicomputers

A multi-user computer capable of supporting up to hundreds of


users simultaneously

4. Workstation

A powerful, single-user computer usually connected to a local


area network and run multi-user operating system

5. Microcomputers

Personal computers; a small, single-user computer based on a


microprocessor

Examples are:

Tower model
Desktop model
Notebook computer
Laptop computer
Subnotebook computer
Hand-held computer
Palmtop
PDA

HARDWARE

Hardware: Definiton
Computer hardware refers to the physical components that make up
the computer system

Hardware components for general-purpose computers are:

1. System Unit

It is the heart of the computer, this is the component that


actually executes instructions organized in programs which
commands the computer what to do

Parts of the System Unit

a. Motherboard
o Main printed circuit board in the computer
o It is into which the CPU, memory (RAM and ROM),
cards (sound, graphics, network interface, etc.)
and peripheral devices are connected
o Connects all the computer parts together
b. Hard drive
o Device for digital data; used for storing computer
data and that contains one or more hard disks
c. Heat sink
o A cooling device used to prevent the computer
from overheating
d. Power supply
o It is the computers main source of power except
for computers that can run with its own battery
life like laptops.

e. Video card
o Generates output images to a display
f. Random Access Memory
o It is a form of computer data storage
o It is a temporary storage for it loses its data
when the computer shuts down
g. Ports
o An interface between a computer to another
computer or peripheral devices
h. Network card
o Allows data to be transferred between the
computer and network
i. Central Processing Unit (CPU)
o The part of the computer which processes or
deals with the data and processes in the system
o Referred to as the heart of a computer
j. BIOS
o Runs as part of the start-up sequence when the
computer has been switched on. It contains all
the code required to control the hardware
o It is stored separately from the hard disk on a
ROM chip. This means that if the computer
crashes, the BIOS data is protected
2. Secondary Storage Devices
Secondary storage devices are a more permanent means of
storage that do not require the central processing unit to be
running in order to save its information.

a. Floppy Disks
o Often referred to as diskettes, it has been and is
still widely used to store data of small size
o They consist of a flat Mylar plastic disk that
rotates within a hard plastic casing.
o Data is stored as electromagnetic charges on a
metal oxide film coating the Mylar plastic
o The most common 3.5 inch floppy disk can store
up to a capacity of 1.44 megabytes, something
like 400 typewritten pages
b. Hard Disks
o Designed to store very high volume of data,
particularly, gigabytes of data
o Most operating systems and all materials that is
saved in the computer stored in hard disks
c. Optical disks
o Also known as the CD drive, It makes use of
light energy to store information and are very
suitable to data with relatively high capacity
o Kinds of Optical Disks:
CD-ROM: stands for compact disk read-
only memory; allows you to only listen
(read) music without altering the contents
of the CD
CD-R: stands for CD-Recordable; it can be
written on only once
CD-RW: stands for CD-Rewritable; can be
used to save data several times
DVD: stands for Digital Versatile Disk or
Digital Video Disk; they offer high capacity
storage medium with good quality and are
commonly used for movie distribution
d. Other Secondary storage devices
o Magnetic tapes
Very similar to tapes used in radio
cassette player and video recorder and
can still be found in video camcorders
Provide a very effective means for back
up purposes of large amount of data
(5GB)
The main limitation is that data stored is
in a sequential mode
o Solid State Storage Devices
Commonly known as USB disk, Pen drives,
Flash drives, etc.
They have no moving parts and data is
stored and retrieved from them in a
similar manner as it would be from
computer memory
3. Input and Output Devices
a. INPUT DEVICES: Devices used to enter data into the
computer
i. Data entry devices: Source data-entry devices
are devices that create machine-readable data
and feed it directly into the computer without
keyboard or mouse. Examples are:
Scanner
Barcode reader
Radio Frequency Identification (RFI)
Mark recognition readers

ii. Online input

devices/Direct line entry


devices
Keyboard
Mouse
Joystick

iii. Automated Data Input Devices


Methods used for capturing data directly without
human intervention. It is used when very large
amounts of data need to be input quickly and
accurately.

Optical mark recognition


Optical character recognition
Magnetic ink recognition
Magnetic stripe readers
Bar codes
Sensors
Data logging

iv. Turnaround Document


Has some information printed into it by a
computer
Has more information added to it by a
human
Is fed back into a computer to transfer the
added information into the computer

b. OUTPUT
Output devices are hardware that are used to display
objects or output data which has been processed or
has been stored in the computer.

i. Digital projectors
It is a device which connects to a computer and
used to project the video output from the
computer onto the wall or projector screen.
ii. Monitors
Monitors are output devices used to display text
and graphics produced by computer programs
and to provide a visual interface for computer
users.
Types of monitors:
Cathode-ray tube (CRT) monitor
Liquid Crystal Display (LCD)
Organic light-emitting diode (OLED)
iii. Printers
A printer is a peripheral which makes a
persistent human-readable representation of
graphics or text on paper or similar physical
media
iv. Computer Speakers
Speakers are a way for computers to make
sounds by means of digital or analog audio.
v. Speech-generating devices (SGCs)
Also known as voice output communication aids,
are electronic augmentative and alternative
communication (AAC) systems used to
supplement or replace speech or writing for
individuals with severe speech impairments,
enabling them to verbally communicate their
needs.

SOFTWARE
Software: Definition
Software is a generic term for organized collections of computer data
and instructions, often broken into two major categories: system
software that provides the basic non-task-specific functions of the
computer, and application software which is used by users to
accomplish specific tasks.

1. System Software
It is responsible for controlling, integrating, and managing the
individual hardware components of a computer system so that
other software and the users of the system see it as a
functional unit without having to be concerned with the low-
level details such as transferring data from memory to disk, or
rendering text into display

Kinds of System Software:


a. Operating software
It is a program designed to run other programs on a
computer. A computers OS is its most important
program. It is considered as the backbone of a computer
managing both software and hardware device.
The Operating systems are responsible for each and
everything from the control and allocation of memory to
input from external devices and output to computer
display.
Examples of Operating software are Windows, Apple OS,
and Linux.

b. Language translator

It is system software which converts the high level


language to machine level language (binary language)
for the purpose of machine understanding

c. Utility software
It is a kind of system software designed to help, analyze,
configure, optimize and maintain the computer. A single
piece of utility software is usually called a utility or tool.
Examples of which are Antivirus software, Registry
cleaners, Disk cleaners, and Disk back-up utility.
2. Application Software

It is used to accomplish specific tasks other than just running


the computer system.

Examples are:

Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Internet Explorer (Web


browsers)
Microsoft Word (Word Processing)
Microsoft Excel (Spreadsheet software)
MySQL (DatabaseSoftware)
Microsoft Powerpoint (Presentation Software)
iTunes (Music or Sound Software)
VLC Media Player (Audio or Video Software)
Plants vs Zombies (Game Software)
Adobe Photoshop (Graphics software)
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)
ERP is short for enterprise resource
planning. Enterprise resource planning (ERP) is
business process management software that allows
an organization to use a system of integrated
applications to manage the business and automate
many back office functions related to technology,
services and human resources.

What is the difference between System software and


Application software?

SYSTEM SOFTWARE APPLICATION SOFTWARE


Supports the use in Concern problem solving and
computer operations the use of computer as a tool
Manages computer machine Manages operation data
resources such as register, such as insert, delete,
CPU, and input-output update and sorting
system
Written in Low level Written in High level
language. Eg. Assembly language such as Pascal, C+
language +, VB and Java
Used as long as computer is Used only when needed
turned on
Performs more than one job Performs only one or task at
ortask realted at a time a time
(multitasking)
Control many processes at a Process done by following
time step by step at a time

Software Terms:

1. Application generator- a code generator that produces programs to


solve one or more problems in a particular application area;
2. Assemble- to translate a computer program expressed in an
assembly language to its machine language equivalent.
3. Assertion- a logical expression specifying a program state that must
exist or a set of conditions that program variables must satisfy at a
particular point during program execution.
4. Backup- a system, component, file, procedure, or a person available
to replace or help restore primary item in an event of a failure or
external caused disaster.
5. Backward recovery- a type of recovery in which a system, program,
database, or other system resource is restored to a previous state in
which it can perform required functions.
6. Boot- to initialize a computer system by clearing memory and
reloading the operating system
7. Bug- error or fault
8. Byte- an element of a computer storage that can hold a group of
bits.
9. Character- a letter, digit, or other symbol that is used to represent
information.
10. Checkpoint- a point in a computer program at which the program
state, status, or results are checked or recorded.
11. Code- a character or bit pattern that is assigned a particular
meaning.
12. Cohesion- the manner and degree to which the tasks performed
by a software module are related to one another.
13. Component- one of the parts that make up a system.
14. Debug- to detect, locate, and correct faults in a computer
program.
15. Decompile- to translate a compiled computer program from its
machine language version into form that resembles, but may not be
identical to, the original high order language program.
16. Design- the process of defining the architecture, components,
interfaces, and other characteristics of a system or component.
17. Emulator- a device, computer program, or system that accepts
the same outputs as a given system.
18. Entry point- a point in a software module at which execution of
the module can begin.
19. Execute- to carry out an instruction, process, or computer
program.
20. Exit- a point in a software module at which execution of the module

can be terminated.

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