1 Input and Output Devices | @ |__Nor COM NE personal computer wauld be useless if you could not interact with it because l the machine could not receive instructions or deliver the results of its work. [nput Foc mere inesrraton on int devices accept data and instructions from the user or from another computer sys- andouts devices. et tem (such as a computer on the Internet}, Output devices rerum processed data to pewrreaibecomt the user of to another computer system. - ‘The most common input device is the keyboard, which accepts letters, numbers, and commands from the user. Another important type of input device is the mouse, which lets you select options from on-screen menus. You use a mouse by moving it across a flat surface and pressing its buttons. Figure 1B.10 shows a personal com- purer witha keyboard, mouse, and microphone. {A variety of other input devices work with personal computers, too: >> The srackball and touchpad are variations of the mouse and enable you to draw or point on the screen. >» The joystick is a swiveling lever mounted on a stationary base that is well suited for playing video games. A scanner can copy a printed page of rext or a graphic into the computer's memory, frceing you from creating the data from sceatch. >> A digital camera can record still images, which you can view and edit on the eomputer. FIGURE 48.10 » Tho keyboard, mous, and microphone ae common put dees. » A microphone enables you to input your voice or music as data, The function of an output device is to present processed data to the user. The most common ‘output devices are the monitor and the printer. ‘The computer sends ourput to the monitor (the display screen) when the user needs only to see the omput, It sends ouput to the printer when the user requests a paper copy—also called a hard copy—of a document. Just as computers can accept sound as input, they can use stereo speakers or head- phones as output devices to produce sound. Figure 1B.11 shows a PC with a monitor, pincee, and speakers. Microptone Keyboard Mouse ~ FIGURE 18.14 The marty, pre, and speakers a corner eat Boies. 30 Chapter.Some types of hardware can act as both input and output devices. A touch screen, for example, is a type of monitor that displays text or icons you can touch, When you touch the screen, special sensors detect the touch and the computer cal- culates the point on the sereen where you placed your finger. Depending on the lo- ‘ation of the touch, the computer determines what information to display or what action to take next. Communi devices are the most common types of devices that ean per- form both input and output. These devices connect one computer to another—a process known as networking. The most common kinds of communications de- Vices are modems, which enable computers to communicate through telephone lines or cable television systems, and network interface cards (NICs), which let users connect a group of computers to share data and devices. Storage Devices A.computer can function with only processing, memory, input, and output de- vices, To be really useful, however, a computer also needs a place to keep program files and related data when they are not in use. The purpose of storage is ro hold data permanently, even when the computer is tumed off, ‘You may think of storage as an electronic file cabinet and RAM as an elec: tronic worktable. When you need to work with a program o¢ a set of data, the computer locates it inthe file cabinet and puts a copy on the table. After you have finished working with the program or data, you put it back into the file cabinet. ‘The changes you make to data while working on it replace the original data in the file cabinet (unless you store it in a different place). ‘Novice computer users often confuse storage with memory. Although the func= tions of storage and memory are similay they work in different ways. There are three major distinctions between storage and meniory: 2 There is more room in storage than in memory, just as there is more room in a file cabinet than there is on a tabletop. >» Contents are retained in storage when the computer is turned off, whereas programs of the data in memory disappear when you shut down the computer. >» Storage devices operate much slower than memory chips, but storage is much cheaper than memory, ‘There are two main types of computer storage: magnetic and optical. Both ate covered in the following sections. Magnetic Storage ‘There are many types of computer storage, but the most common is the magnetic disk, A disk is a round, flar object that spins around its center, (Magnetic disks are alorost always housed inside a case of sonte kind, so you can’t see the disk itself unless you open the case.) Read/write heads, which work in much the same way as the heads of a tape recorder or VCR, are used ta read data from the disk or write data onto the disk. ‘The device that holds a disk is called a disk drive. Some disks are built into the drive and are not meant to be removed other kinds of drives enable you to remove and replace disks (see Figuee 1B.12). Most pessonal computers have at least one nonremovable hard disk (or hard drive). In addition, there is also a diskette drive, ‘which allows you fo use removable diskeites (or floppy disks), ‘The hard disk serves, as the computer's primary filing cabinet because it can store far more data than a diskette can contain, Diskettcs arc used to load data onto the hard disk, to trade data with other users, and to make backup copies of the data on the hard disk, For more fora hit erewehine.coend petarnerton Introducing Computer Systems nFIGURE 18.12 Standard POs hae a bul in ard isk and a dshatie dive. FIGURE 18.13 Softare makers comnony 53 preducts on CD because ofthe ds ‘igh storage capacity @ ONLINE Fer mer inkmnation 8 camputor sofware, vist htgrfeewmine corn? petemorton. 32 Chapter ‘The hard diskis ‘but into the computers case. ‘Diskettes can be Ingarted into and ‘ernavad from the diskette drive, Optical Storage In addition to magnetic storage, nearly every computer sold today includes at Icast one form of optical storage—deviecs that usc lascrs to read data from ot ‘write data to the reflective surface of an optical disc. ‘The CD-ROM drive is the most common type of optical storage device. Com- pact discs (CDs) are a type of optical storage, identical to audio CDs. Until re- cently, a standard CD could store about 74 minutes of audio or 650 MB of data. A newer breed of CDs can hold 80 minutes of audio or 700 MB of data (see Fig- ture 1B.13). The type used in computers is called Compact Dise Read-Only Mem- ory (CD-ROM), As the name implies, you cannot change the information on the disc, just as you cannot record over an audio CD. If you purchase a CD-Recordable (CD-R) drive, you have the option of creat- ing your own CDs, A CD-R drive can write data to and read data from a compact disc. To record data with a CD-R drive, you must use a special CD-R disc, which can be written on only once, or a CD-ReWritable (CD-RW) dise, whieh can be written to multiple times, like a floppy disk. ‘An increasingly popular data storage technology is the Digital Video Dise (DVD), which is revolutionizing home entertainment. Using sophisticated com- pression technologies, a single DVD (which is the same size as a standard compact, stisc) can store an entire full-length movie. DVDs can hold a minimum of 4.7 GB of data and as much as 17 GB. Future DVD technologies promise much higher stor- age capacities on a single disc. DWD drives also can locate dara on the disc much faster than standard CD-ROM drives, DVDs require a special player (sce Figure 1B.14). Many DVD players, how- ever, can play audio, data, and DVD discs, freeing the user from purchasing dif erent players for each type of disc. DVD drives are now standard equipment on ‘many new personal computers. Users not only can install programs and data from their standard CDs, but they also can watch movies on their personal computers bby using a DVD. Software Brings the Machine to Life jent that enables a computer to perform a specific task is software, ‘which consists of instructions. A set of instructions that drive a computer to per- form specific tasks is called a program. These instructions tell the machine's phys- ical components what to do; without the instructions, a computer could nor do anything at all. When a computer uses a particular program, itis said to be run- ning or executing that program. Although the array of available programs is vast and varied, most software falls into two major categories: system software and application software.System Software System software is any program that controls the computer's hard- ware or that can be used to maintain the computer in some way so that it runs more efficiently. There are three basic types of system software: >> Am operating system tells the computer how to use its own com- ponents. Examples of operating systems include Windows, the Macintosh Operating System, and Linux (see Figure 18.18). An operating system is essential for any computer, because i acts as an interpreter between the hardware, application programs, and the uses When a progeam wants the hardware to do something, it communicates through the operating system. Similarly, when ‘you want the hardware to do something (such as copying or printing a file), your request is handled by the operating system. >> Arnetwork operating system allows computers to communicate and share data across a network while controlling network op- erations and overseeing the network's security. program that makes the computer system easier to use or performs highly specialized functions (see Figure 1B.16). Urlities are used to manage disks, troubleshoot hard= ware problems, and perform other tasks that the operating sys- tem itself may not be able to do. Application Software Application software tells the computer how to accomplish specific tasks, such as word processing ar drawing, for the user. Thousands of applications are available for many purposes and for people of all ages. Some of the major categories of these applications include 2 Word processing software for creating text-based documents such as newsletters ar brochures (see Figure 1B.17). 2 Spreadsheets for creating numeric-based documents such as budgets or bal- ance sheets. ehla me FIGURE 18.14 (OVD players ae row stand on many Pan are fur in mary hora entetainment canter. FIGURE 18.15 ‘Windows ha ost papa fs PC operating systems, runing on about ‘80 percent of al personal comput. Introducing Computer Systems 3Tare are hunceeds of uty progres cvalble for personal oomputrs Thi na, called Parton, helps yas ‘manage you hard disk to get he rst from it ie FIGURE 18.47 ior processing software is designed fr ‘reaing cocurments tha const primary ltr, tut alo ats you add graphics ‘nd sounds o ou documants, Isis roves yout features that et you ‘reae brochures, newsietrs, Web pages, and more, 36 Chapter 1 » Database management software for building and manipulating large sets of data, such as the names, addresses, and phone numbers in a telephone directory. >» Presentation programs for creating and presenting electronic slide shows (see Yess tot 13s nom reey | Figure 1B.18). | > Graphics programs for designing illus- ‘rations oF manipulating photographs, movies, or animation. > Multimedia authoring applications for building digital movies that incorporate sound, video, animation, and interactive features. >» Entertainment and education software, many of which are interactive multime- dia events. » Web di tools and Web browsers, and other Internet applications such as newsreaders and e-mail programs. >» Games, some of which are for a single player and many of which can be played by several people over a network or the Internet, Computer Data You have already seen that, toa computer, data is any piece of information or fact that, taken by itself, may not make sense to a person. For example, you might think of the letters of the alphabet as data. Taken individually, they do not mean a lot. Bur when grouped into words and sentences, they make sense; that is, they become information (sce Figure 1B.19). Similarly, basic geometric shapes may not have much meaning by themselves, but when they are grouped into a blueprint or a they become useful information, eis tee