Class-XI

Computer Science

Computer System Overview

Notes

Mainly computer system consists of three parts, that are central processing unit
(CPU), Input Devices, and Output Devices. The Central Processing Unit (CPU)
is divided into two parts again: arithmetic logic unit (ALU) and the control unit
(CU). The set of instruction is in the form of raw data.

A large amount of data is stored in the computer memory with the help of
primary and secondary storage devices. The CPU is like the heart/brain of the
computer. The user does not get the desired output, without the necessary option
taken by the CPU. The Central processing unit (CPU) is responsible for the
processing of all the instructions which are given by the user to the computer
system.

The data is entered through input devices such as the keyboard, mouse, etc. This
set of instruction is processed by the CPU after getting the input by the user, and
then the computer system produces the output. The computer can show the
output with the help of output devices to the user, such as monitor, printer, etc.

 CPU (Central Processing Unit)

 Storage Unit
 ALU(Arithmetic Logic Unit)
 Control Unit
Central Processing Unit (CPU)

The computer system is nothing without the Central processing Unit so, it is
also known as the brain or heat of computer. The CPU is an electronic hardware
device which can perform different types of operations such as arithmetic and
logical operation.

The CPU contains two parts: the arithmetic logic unit and control unit. We have
discussed briefly the arithmetic unit, logical unit, and control unit which are
given below:

Control Unit
The control unit (CU) controls all the activities or operations which are
performed inside the computer system. It receives instructions or information
directly from the main memory of the computer.

When the control unit receives an instruction set or information, it converts the
instruction set to control signals then; these signals are sent to the central
processor for further processing. The control unit understands which operation
to execute, accurately, and in which order.

Arithmetic and Logical Unit

The arithmetic and logical unit is the combinational digital electronic circuit
that can perform arithmetic operations on integer binary numbers.It presents the
arithmetic and logical operation. The outputs of ALU will change
asynchronously in response to the input. The basic arithmetic and bitwise logic
functions are supported by ALU.

Storage Unit
The information or set of guidelines are stored in the storage unit of the
computer system. The storage unit provides the space to store the data or
instruction of processed data. The information or data is saved or hold in
computer memory or storage device. The data storage is the core function and
fundamental of the computer components.

Components of Computer System

The hardware and software exist on the computer. The information which is
stored through the device is known as computer software. The hardware
components of the computer system are related to electronic and mechanical
parts, and the software component is related to data and computer programs.
Many elements are connected to the main circuit board of the computer system
called a “motherboard.”

 Processor.
 Main Memory
 Secondary Memory
 Input Devices
 Output Devices
These are mainly five components of the computer system. The computer
hardware, computer software, and liveware exist in the element of the computer
system.

Processor
The processor is an electric circuitry within the computer system. The Central
processing unit is the central processor or main processor of the computer
system. The processor carries out the instructions of the computer program with
the help of basic arithmetic and logic, input/output operations.

Main Memory
The Random-Access Memory is the main memory of the computer system,
which is known as RAM. The main memory can store the operating system
software, application software, and other information. The Ram is one of the
fastest memory, and it allows the data to be readable and writeable.

Secondary memory
We can store the data and programs on a long-term basis in the secondary
memory. The hard disks and the optical disks are the common secondary
devices. It is slow and cheap memory as compare to primary memory. This
memory is not connected to the processor directly.

It has a large capacity to store the data. The hard disk has a capacity of 500
gigabytes. The data and programs on the hard disk are organized into files, and
the file is the collection of data on the disk. The secondary storage is direct
access by the CPU; that’s why it is different from the primary storage.

The hard disk is about 100 times the capacity of the main memory. The main
difference between primary and secondary storage is speed and capacity. There
are several large blocks of data which are copied from the hard disk into the
main memory.

Input Devices
The user provides the set of instruction or information to the computer system
with the help of input devices such as the keyboard, mouse, scanner, etc. The
data representation to the computer system is in the form of binary language
after that the processor processes the converted data. The input unit implements
the data which is instructed by the user to the system.

We can enter the data from the outside world into the primary storage as the
input through input devices. The input devices are the medium of
communication between the outside world and the computer system. There are
some important features of input devices which are given below:

1. The input devices receive or accept the data or instruction from the user,
who exist in the outside world.
2. These devices convert the data or instruction into the machine-readable
form for further processing.
3. The input device performs like the connection between the outside world
and our computer system.
4. The keyboard and mouse are common examples of input devices.
5. When the whole procedure is finished, we get the desired output from the
output devices such as monitor, printer, etc.

Output Devices
The output devices produce or generate the desired result according to our
input, such as a printer, monitor, etc. These devices convert the data into a
human-readable form from binary code.

The computer system is linked or connected to the outside world with the help
of output devices. The primary examples of output devices are a printer,
projector, etc. These devices have various features which are given below:

1. These devices receive or accept the data in the binary form.

2. The output devices convert the binary code into the human-readable
form.
3. These devices produce the converted result and show to the user.

Computer Software
The computer software is the collection of data or instruction that tells the
computer how to work. It is a set of programs that enables the computer to
perform a specific task. It has to be “loaded” into the computer’s storage such as
hard drive, memory, Ram, etc. Anything which stores electronically is known as
software.
There are two types of software that exist in the computer system:

1. System Software
2. Application Software
The term software is the opposite of hardware. The hardware describes the
physical part of the computer system, but the software refers to applications,
scripts, and programs that can run on the device.

1. System Software

System Software is the collection of programs which can provide a platform for
other software. There are different types of system software which includes an
operating system such as macOS, Ubuntu, and Microsoft Windows, etc.

Operating system
The operating system is system software that manages computer hardware,
software resources, and provides common services for the computer program. It
works as an interface between the user and computer hardware.

2. Application software

The Application software is designed to perform a group of coordinated

functions, tasks, or activities for the benefit of the user. There is various type of
application such as a word processor, a spreadsheet, an accounting application,
a web browser, an email client, a media player, a file viewer, etc. The
application software is a program or group of programs which is designed for
the end-users. Some application software is given below:
1. Word processing software
The word processing system is used to manipulate the task or jobs and apply the
basic designs to our pages. It is a computer program or device that provides
input, editing, formatting, and output of text with an additional feature.

This software enables our write text, store it electronically, display it on the
screen, modify it by entering commands and characters from the keyboard, and
print it.

2. Spreadsheet software
The spreadsheet software is defined as a type of computer program which helps
the user to perform numerical functions and analyze numbers through a
computerized version of accounting worksheet.

3. Desktop publishing software

The desktop publishing software is the creation of documents using page layout
software on a personal computer. There are several types of desktop publishing
software such as Adobe Indesign, Microsoft Publisher, etc. This software assists
in the creation of different forms of online content.

List of Computer Hardware Components

The computer hardware includes the physical parts or components of the
computer, such as to monitor, keyboard, mouse, motherboard, etc. We need
software for the instructions that can be stored and run by the hardware. The
software is always required to execute any command or instruction.
Computer Memory
The computer memory is the storage space in the computer and related to the
hardware integrated circuits. It can store the information for immediate use on
the computer. The memory is a crucial element of the computer system.
Memory and data storage can be measured in the megabyte, gigabyte, and
terabyte. The computer cannot perform even a simple task without memory.

Mainly two types of memory exist in the computer system, which is given
below:

1. Primary Memory / volatile memory.

2. Secondary Memory / non-volatile memory.

1. Primary memory/ Volatile memory

The volatile memory is the one which loses its content or data when the
computer or hardware device shuts down suddenly. The primary memory is
directly accessed by the central processing unit. Various types of memory exist
in computer memory, such as cache memory, ROM, etc.
There are two types of primary memory which are given below:
RAM (random access memory)

ROM (read-only memory)

RAM (Random Access Memory)

Random-access memory is a type of computer memory that can be accessed

randomly. It consists of one or more memory modules that are used for
temporary data storage. The RAM is generally located on the motherboard.

Random-access memory is the computing system, where the storage of data is

actively using. The RAM (Random access memory) contains multiplexing and
demultiplexing circuitry. The RAM is found in servers, PCs, tablets,
smartphones, etc.

It is also divided into two parts:

SRAM (static random access memory)

DRAM (Dynamic random access memory)

SRAM (Static Random Access Memory)

The Static Random Access Memory is a semiconductor type Random access

memory. It is faster and more expensive. The Static RAM is used for the CPU
cache. It holds the data or information as long as the electric power is supplied.

It stores the bit of data or information on four transistors using two cross-
coupled inverters. To access, transistors are used to manage the availability for
the memory cell during reading and write operation.

DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory)

The Dynamic Random Access Memory is used to store data or program code. It
is a common type of memory used in personal computers, workstations, and
servers.

The Dynamic RAM stores every bit of data into separate passive electronic
component inside an integrated circuit board. The DRAM has one capacitor and
one transistor per bit, but the Static Random Access Memory requires six
transistors. Millions of capacitors and transistors can fit on a single memory
chip in SRAM.
ROM (Read-only memory)

The data or information is pre-recorded in the Read-Only Memory. Once the

data has been written onto the ROM chip, it cannot be removed. We can access
that data at any time, and it is readable only. We are not able to write on ROM
like RAM memory. The ROM is a non-volatile memory. There are four basic
types of Read-only memory which are given below:
PROM (Programmable Read-Only Memory)

EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory)

EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory)

Flash memory.

PROM (Programmable Read-Only Memory)

The Programmable Read-Only Memory is the memory that can be modified

once and read many times by the user according to the requirement. It is a
memory chip, so once the data written onto the PROM, it remains there forever.
To write the data onto PROM chip, we need a unique device which is known
as PROM programmer or PROM burner.
EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory)

EPROM is a Programmable Read-Only Memory. This memory is erasable and

re-usable according to the requirement. It is a non-volatile type of memory. The
Dov Frohman develops the Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory in
1971 at Intel.

There is a transparent quartz crystal window at the top of this memory which
allows the UV light to erase the data. The data or information on the EPROM
memory can be deleted in a limited number of times.

EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory)

The EEPROM memory is integrated into microcontrollers for smart cards and
remote keyless systems and other electronic devices to store a small amount of
data or information. This memory has a limited life to erase and reprogramming
of data or information. It is organized as the arrays of floating-gate transistors.

Flash memory
Flash memory is an Electrically Erasable Programming Read-Only Memory. It
is non-volatile memory chips which are used to the storage and transfer the data
or information between the personal computer and digital devices. The flash
memory can be electronically programmed and erased.

2. Secondary memory/ Non-Volatile Memory

Secondary memory or non-volatile memory is the memory where programs and

data or information is stored in the long term basis. There are two common
storage devices: Hard disk and Optical disk. It is not connected directly to the
processor. Secondary memory has a large capacity to store the data. It is slow in
speed and cheap memory.

Hard disk
The hard disk is an electromechanical data storage device. It uses magnetic
storage to store and retrieve digital information. The hard disk drive contains
magnetic disk or platters rotating at high speed.

The Hard disk

It stores the data or information permanently. When the platters rotate the arm
with the read/write head extends across the platters then, arm writes new data on
the platters and read new information or data from them.

LANGUAGE PROCESSORS: Since a computer hardware is capable of

understanding only machine level instructions, So it is necessary to convert the
HLL into Machine Level Language. There are three Language processors:
A. Compiler: It is translator which coverts the HLL language into machine
language in one go. A Source program in High Level Language get converted
into Object Program in Machine Level Language.
B. Interpreter: It is a translator which converts the HLL language into machine
language line by line. It takes one statement of HLL and converts it into
machine code which is immediately executed. It eliminate the need of separate
compilation/run. However, It is slow in processing as compare to compiler.
C. Assembler: It translate the assembly language into machine code.

Mobile system organization

Mobile system are tiny computers in your hand. These days major components
of a mobile system are integrated on a single chip called System on a Chip
(Soc). The SoC chips consume less power compared to other alternatives.
The functional components of mobile system are:
1.Mobile Processors-This is the brain of a smartphone.

2.Display Subsystem- It is responsible for providing display facilities.

3.Camera subsystem-It is designed to deliver a tightly bound image processing.

4.Mobile System memory-It is designed for storage of data.

5.Storage-It is the external storage, which is also called expandable storage.

6.Power management System-It is responsible for providing power to a mobile

system.