Introduction To Computers 2022 Edition - Nodrm

Introduction
to
Computers
2022 Edition
By
Darrell Hajek,
Cesar Herrera
Copyright 2022
i
Preface:
In 2017 we learned that the prices of the texts used in our introductory computer literacy
course had increased significantly (to over $150.) We felt that this was, not only excessive,
but counterproductive, since very few students would be likely to buy the texts at that price.
We looked for alternative texts for the course but found none that we considered adequate
for both content and price, and so, we decided to write our own.
We have tried to include all of the material necessary for an introductory course for computer
literacy, but, in order to maintain a low price for our students, we have attempted to keep
the content to ONLY what would be desirable for such a course. We fully expect that many
will disagree with the choices we have made, both in what we have included and (probably
even more) in what we have failed to include. We are revisiting these decisions as we prepare
new editions regularly. Suggestions and recommendations are welcome. The 2022 edition has
several new topics and several topics from earlier editions have had information significantly
updated. These topics include: Updated information about supercomputers, quantum
computing, ransomware, solid state drives, VUI systems, cybersecurity, NFT's and
cryptocurrency.
We have created a set of supplementary PowerPoint files, as well as testbanks. We will be

happy to make both available to any teacher who has decided to adopt the book as assigned
text for a course.
You are welcome to contact us at either darrell.hajek@upr.edu or cesar.herrera@upr.edu .
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Contents
Contents
1 Introduction ............................................................................................................ 1
1.1 Evolution of the Computer: ...................................................................................... 1
1.1.1 Earliest Devices ............................................................................................................... 1
1.1.2 1600’s: Mechanical Calculators ..................................................................................... 2
1.1.3 1800’s: Babbage .............................................................................................................. 3
1.1.4 1940’s: Electromechanical and Electronic Computers ................................................. 3
1.1.5 1950’s: Commercial Computers..................................................................................... 4
1.1.6 1960’s and Beyond:......................................................................................................... 5
1.1.6.1 Artificial Intelligence ................................................................................................... 5
1.1.6.2 Virtual Reality ............................................................................................................. 6
1.1.6.2.1 Haptic Technology ....................................................................................................................... 6
1.1.6.3 Voice User Interface .................................................................................................... 7
1.1.7 Different classes of computers: ...................................................................................... 7
1.1.7.1 Mainframe computers .................................................................................................................... 7
1.1.7.2 Minicomputers................................................................................................................................. 8
1.1.7.3 Supercomputers .............................................................................................................................. 8
1.1.7.4 Personal Computers...................................................................................................................... 10
1.1.7.4.1 Classes of Personal Computers ................................................................................................ 10
1.1.7.5 PDA’s .............................................................................................................................................. 11
1.1.7.6 Smartphones .................................................................................................................................. 12
1.1.7.7 Tablet Computers ......................................................................................................................... 12
1.1.7.8 Embedded Computers .................................................................................................................. 13
1.1.7.9 Smart TV’s ..................................................................................................................................... 13
1.1.8 Communications and Networks ................................................................................... 13

1.1.8.1 Client-Server Networks ................................................................................................................ 14
1.1.8.2 Peer to Peer Networks .................................................................................................................. 14
1.1.8.3 Internet of Things ......................................................................................................................... 14
1.1.8.4 VideoTelephony............................................................................................................................. 15
1.1.8.5 Virtual Private Networks ............................................................................................................. 15
1.2 Computer Definition: .............................................................................................. 16
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Contents
1.2.1 Information Processing Cycle ...................................................................................... 16

1.2.2 Hardware and Software ............................................................................................... 17
1.2.3 Artificial Neural Network ............................................................................................ 17
1.2.4 Quantum Computers.................................................................................................... 17
1.3 Social Effects of Computers .................................................................................... 18
1.3.1 Effects in the workplace ............................................................................................... 18
1.3.2 Social Interactions ........................................................................................................ 19
1.3.3 Political Effects ............................................................................................................. 19
1.3.4 Effects in Education ..................................................................................................... 19
1.3.5 Hacking and Malware .................................................................................................. 20
1.3.6 Computer Forensics ..................................................................................................... 22
1.3.7 Facial Recognition Technology .................................................................................... 22
1.3.7.1 Accuracy of FRT ........................................................................................................................... 23
1.3.7.2 Use of FRT by Governments and Law Enforcement ............................................................... 23
1.3.7.3 Use of FRT by Private Sector ...................................................................................................... 23
1.4 Questions: ................................................................................................................. 24

1.4.1 Completion.................................................................................................................... 24
1.4.2 Multiple Choice ............................................................................................................ 25
1.4.3 True-False ..................................................................................................................... 28
2. Computer Components ...................................................................................... 31

2.1 Central Processing Unit (CPU) ............................................................................... 33
2.1.1 Overclocking ................................................................................................................. 33
2.2 Memory..................................................................................................................... 34
2.3 Secondary Storage: .................................................................................................. 35
2.4 Input Devices: ........................................................................................................... 36
2.4.1 Keyboard: ..................................................................................................................... 37
2.4.2 Mouse: .......................................................................................................................... 37
2.4.3 Scanner: ........................................................................................................................ 37
2.4.4 Touchscreen:................................................................................................................. 38
2.4.5 Digital Cameras: ........................................................................................................... 38
2.4.6 Microphones: ................................................................................................................ 39
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Contents
2.5 Output Devices ......................................................................................................... 39

2.5.1 Audio output devices: ................................................................................................... 39
2.5.1.1 Speakers ......................................................................................................................................... 39
2.5.1.2 Headphones: .................................................................................................................................. 40
2.5.2 Visual Display Devices .................................................................................................. 40
2.5.2.1 Screen (Monitor) ........................................................................................................................... 40
2.5.2.1.1 Flat panel technology .............................................................................................................................. 41
2.5.2.1.2 Organic Light-Emitting Diode (OLED) ................................................................................................ 41
2.5.2.2 Projectors ....................................................................................................................................... 41

2.5.2.3 Printers ........................................................................................................................................... 42
2.6 Communications Devices ........................................................................................ 42

2.6.1 NIC’s ............................................................................................................................. 42
2.6.2 Wireless ......................................................................................................................... 42
2.6.3 Bluetooth ....................................................................................................................... 43
2.6.4 Ethernet Ports............................................................................................................... 43
2.6.5 Modems ......................................................................................................................... 43
2.6.5.1 Digital Transmission on Telephone Lines ................................................................................... 44
2.7 Bus: ....................................................................................................................... 44

2.8 Questions: ................................................................................................................. 45
2.8.1 Completion.................................................................................................................... 45
2.8.2 Multiple Choice ............................................................................................................ 46
2.8.3 True-False ..................................................................................................................... 48
3 Software ................................................................................................................ 49
3.1 System Software....................................................................................................... 49
3.1.1 Operating Systems ........................................................................................................ 49
3.1.1.1 Single Tasking Systems ................................................................................................................ 49
3.1.1.2 Multi-Tasking Systems ................................................................................................................. 50
3.1.1.3 Multi User Systems / Time Sharing Systems ............................................................................. 50
3.1.1.3.1 Dartmouth Time Sharing System (DTSS) ............................................................................................ 51
3.1.1.3.2 UNIX ........................................................................................................................................................ 51
3.1.1.4 Personal Computer Operating Systems ..................................................................................... 51

3.1.1.4.1 Command Line Interface ....................................................................................................................... 52
3.1.1.4.2 Graphical User Interfaces (GUI’s) ........................................................................................................ 52
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Contents
3.1.1.4.2.1 Mac OS ................................................................................................................................................................. 53
3.1.1.4.2.2 Microsoft Windows .............................................................................................................................................. 53
3.1.1.4.2.3 Linux Systems ...................................................................................................................................................... 54
3.1.1.5 Smart Phones ................................................................................................................................. 55

3.1.1.5.1 Android .................................................................................................................................................... 55
3.1.1.5.2 iOS ............................................................................................................................................................ 56
3.1.1.6 Smart TV’s ..................................................................................................................................... 56

3.1.2 Utility Programs ........................................................................................................... 56
3.1.3 Device Drivers............................................................................................................... 57
3.2 Application Software ............................................................................................... 58
3.2.1 Productivity Software................................................................................................... 59
3.2.2 Classes of Software ....................................................................................................... 60
3.2.2.1 Commercial Software .................................................................................................................... 60
3.2.2.2 Shareware........................................................................................................................................ 61
3.2.2.3 Freeware .......................................................................................................................................... 61
3.2.2.4 Open Source Software ................................................................................................................... 61
3.2.2.5 SaaS .................................................................................................................................................. 61
3.3 Ethical Issues Related to Computer Software ........................................................ 62

3.3.1 Ethical Issues for Software Users................................................................................. 62
3.3.1.1 Piracy .............................................................................................................................................. 62
The Ethics of Piracy ................................................................................................................................................... 62
Piracy is Ethical ......................................................................................................................................................................... 63
Piracy is Unethical .................................................................................................................................................................... 63
3.3.1.2 Ethical and Unethical Uses of Computers and Computer Programs ..................................... 64
3.3.1.2.1 Unethical Behavior.................................................................................................................................. 64
3.3.1.2.1.1 Piracy .................................................................................................................................................................... 65
3.3.1.2.1.2 Cyberbullying....................................................................................................................................................... 65
3.3.1.2.1.3 Plagiarism ............................................................................................................................................................. 65
3.3.1.2.1.4 Unauthorized access............................................................................................................................................. 65
3.3.1.2.1.5 Spreading viruses ................................................................................................................................................. 66
3.3.1.2.1.6 Activity monitoring .............................................................................................................................................. 66
3.3.1.2.2 Insecurity ................................................................................................................................................. 66

3.3.1.2.2.1 Identity Theft ....................................................................................................................................................... 66
3.3.1.2.2.2 Cyberbullying....................................................................................................................................................... 67
3.3.1.2.2.3 Being Hacked ....................................................................................................................................................... 67
3.3.1.2.2.4 Infection by Viruses ............................................................................................................................................. 68
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3.3.1.2.2.5 Being Monitored by Employers .......................................................................................................................... 68
3.3.1.3 10 Commandments of Computer Ethics .................................................................................... 69

3.3.2 Ethical Issues for Software Producers ......................................................................... 69
3.3.2.1 Ethical dilemma No.1: Log files--what to save and how to handle them ............................... 70
3.3.2.2 Ethical dilemma No.2: Whether-and how-to transform users into products ........................ 70
3.3.2.3 Ethical dilemma No.3: How free does content really want to be? .......................................... 71
3.3.2.4 Ethical dilemma No.4: How much protection is enough.......................................................... 71
3.3.2.5 Ethical dilemma No.5: To bug-fix or not to bug-fix? ............................................................... 71
3.3.2.6 Ethical dilemma No. 6: How much to code -- or compromise -- to prevent misuse ............. 72
3.3.2.7 Ethical dilemma No.7: How far to defend customers against data requests ......................... 72
3.3.2.8 Ethical dilemma No.8: How to deal with the international nature of the Internet .............. 73
3.3.2.9 Ethical dilemma No.9: How much to give back to open source .............................................. 73
3.3.2.10 Ethical dilemma No.10: How much monitoring is really warranted ................................... 73
3.3.2.11 Ethical dilemma No. 1: How bulletproof should code really be............................................ 74
3.3.2.12 Ethical dilemma No.12: How much should future consequences influence present
decisions ........................................................................................................................................................ 74
3.4 Questions .................................................................................................................. 74

3.4.1 Completion.................................................................................................................... 74
3.4.2 Multiple Choice ............................................................................................................ 75
3.4.3 True-False ..................................................................................................................... 77
4 System Unit ........................................................................................................... 79

4.1 Motherboards .......................................................................................................... 79
4.1.1 CPU: Microprocessor ................................................................................................... 79
4.1.1.1 Processor Size ................................................................................................................................ 80
4.1.1.2 Processor Speed ............................................................................................................................. 80
4.1.1.3 Classes of Processors..................................................................................................................... 81
4.2 Memory .................................................................................................................... 81

4.2.1 RAM.............................................................................................................................. 81
4.2.1.1 Addresses........................................................................................................................................ 81
4.2.2 Quantum Computing.................................................................................................... 82

4.3 Instruction and Machine Cycles ............................................................................. 84
4.3.1 Programming Languages ............................................................................................. 85
4.3.1.1 Assembly Languages ................................................................................................. 85
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Contents
4.3.1.2 High Level Languages ............................................................................................... 86

4.3.1.3 Translation to Machine Code .................................................................................... 87
4.4 Cache......................................................................................................................... 87
4.5 ROM and other Types of Memory.......................................................................... 88
4.5.1 CMOS ........................................................................................................................... 88
4.6 Data Representation ................................................................................................ 89
4.6.1 Character Codes ........................................................................................................... 90
4.6.1.1 ASCII .............................................................................................................................................. 90
4.6.1.2 Unicode ........................................................................................................................................... 90
4.6.1.3 EBCDIC.......................................................................................................................................... 91
4.7 Adapter cards: .......................................................................................................... 91

4.7.1 Expansion bus: ............................................................................................................. 91
4.8 Bay: ........................................................................................................................... 91
4.9 Connectors and Ports............................................................................................... 92
4.9.1 USB Ports...................................................................................................................... 92
4.9.2 Additional Ports............................................................................................................ 92
4.10 Video Connectors ................................................................................................... 93
4.11 Questions ................................................................................................................ 94
4.11.1 Completion.................................................................................................................. 94
4.11.2 Multiple Choice .......................................................................................................... 95
4.11.3 True-False ................................................................................................................... 98
5. Input ..................................................................................................................... 99
5.1 Keyboards ................................................................................................................. 99
5.1.1 Keyboard Types.......................................................................................................... 100
5.1.1.1 Standard Computer Keyboard.................................................................................................. 100
5.1.1.2 Laptop Size Keyboards............................................................................................................... 101
5.1.1.3 Flexible Keyboards...................................................................................................................... 101
5.1.1.4 On-Screen Keyboards ................................................................................................................. 101
5.1.1.5 Projection Keyboards ................................................................................................................. 102
5.1.2 Keyboard Layouts ...................................................................................................... 103
5.1.2.1 QWERTY Keyboard .................................................................................................................. 103
5.1.2.2 Dvorak Simplified Keyboard ..................................................................................................... 103
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5.1.2.3 Layouts for languages other than English ............................................................................... 104
5.2 Scanners ................................................................................................................. 105

5.3 Pointing Devices ..................................................................................................... 106
5.3.1 Mouse .......................................................................................................................... 107
5.3.2 Trackball..................................................................................................................... 108
5.3.3 Joystick ....................................................................................................................... 108
5.3.4 Touchscreen ................................................................................................................ 109
5.3.5 Graphics Tablet .......................................................................................................... 109
5.3.6 Touchpad .................................................................................................................... 110
5.3.7 Gamepad ..................................................................................................................... 110
5.4 Speech Recognition ................................................................................................ 111
5.4.1 Commercial Voice Recognition Systems .................................................................... 112
5.5 Questions ................................................................................................................ 114
5.5.1 Completion.................................................................................................................. 114
5.4.2 Multiple Choice .......................................................................................................... 114
5.4.3 True-False ................................................................................................................... 118
6 Output ................................................................................................................. 119

6.1 Visual Output ......................................................................................................... 119
6.1.1 Visual Devices: Soft Copy .......................................................................................... 120
6.1.1.1 CRT Monitors.............................................................................................................................. 120
6.1.1.2 Flat Panel Monitors .................................................................................................................... 120
6.1.1.2.1 LCD ........................................................................................................................................................ 121
6.1.1.2.2 Gas Plasma ............................................................................................................................................ 121
6.1.1.3 Organic Light-Emitting Diode (OLED) ................................................................................... 123

6.1.1.4 Projectors ..................................................................................................................................... 124
6.1.1.5 Virtual Reality Headsets ............................................................................................................ 125
6.1.2 Hard Copy devices - Printers ..................................................................................... 125
6.1.2.1 Inkjet Printers ............................................................................................................................. 126
6.1.2.2 Laser Printers .............................................................................................................................. 127
6.1.2.3 Dot Matrix Printers .................................................................................................................... 127
6.1.2.4 Other Kinds of Printers.............................................................................................................. 128
6.1.2.4.1 Virtual Printers ..................................................................................................................................... 128
6.1.2.4.2 3D Printers ............................................................................................................................................. 128
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6.1.2.4.3 Solid ink printers................................................................................................................................... 128

6.1.2.4.4 Dye-sublimation printers...................................................................................................................... 128
6.1.2.4.6 Daisy Wheel Printers ............................................................................................................................ 129
6.1.2.4.7 Plotters ................................................................................................................................................... 129
6.1.3 Visual Output - Fonts ................................................................................................. 130

6.1.3.1 Font-Face ...................................................................................................................................... 130
6.1.3.2 Font-Style ..................................................................................................................................... 130
6.1.3.3 Font-Size ....................................................................................................................................... 130
6.2 Audio Output.......................................................................................................... 131

6.3 Questions ................................................................................................................ 132
6.3.1 Completion.................................................................................................................. 132
6.3.2 Multiple Choice .......................................................................................................... 133
6.3.3 True-False ................................................................................................................... 135
7 Storage ................................................................................................................ 137

7.1 Hard disk drives ..................................................................................................... 138
7.1.1 RAID ........................................................................................................................... 139
7.2 Solid-State Drives ................................................................................................... 140
7.3 Optical Storage Devices ......................................................................................... 140
7.4 Flash Memory ........................................................................................................ 141
7.5 Obsolete Media ....................................................................................................... 142
7.5.1 Floppy Disks ............................................................................................................... 142
7.5.2 Magnetic Tape ............................................................................................................ 142
7.5.3 Punched Paper Tape .................................................................................................. 142
7.5.4 Punched Cards ........................................................................................................... 143
7.5.5 Zip Drive ..................................................................................................................... 143
7.6 Cloud Storage ......................................................................................................... 144
7.6.1 Software as a Service (SaaS) ........................................................................................ 144
7.7 Data Compression .................................................................................................. 145
7.8 Data Security ............................................................................................................ 145
7.8.1 The Bell-LaPadula Model ............................................................................................ 146
7.8.2 The Biba Model ............................................................................................................ 146
7.8.3 The Chinese Wall Model .............................................................................................. 147
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7.9 Questions ................................................................................................................ 147

7.9.1 Completion.................................................................................................................. 147
7.9.2 Multiple Choice .......................................................................................................... 148
7.9.3 True-False ................................................................................................................... 150
8 Networks, Internet and the World Wide Web ................................................ 153

8.1 Internet ................................................................................................................... 153
8.1.1 What is the Internet? .................................................................................................. 153
8.1.2 Internet Architecture.................................................................................................. 153
8.1.3 Internet Services ......................................................................................................... 154
8.1.3.1 Internet Services: World Wide Web (WWW) ........................................................................ 155
8.1.3.1.1 Difference between Internet and WWW ............................................................................................ 155
8.1.3.1.2 WWW and Hypertext concept .............................................................................................................. 156
8.1.3.1.2.1 HTML, Multimedia and Smartphones ............................................................................................................. 156
8.1.3.1.3 Web Servers........................................................................................................................................... 157
8.1.3.2 Internet Services: E-Mail ........................................................................................................... 157

8.1.3.3 Internet Services: FTP................................................................................................................ 157
8.1.3.4 Internet Services: IM .................................................................................................................. 158
8.1.3.5 Internet Services: VoIP .............................................................................................................. 158
8.1.3.6 Internet Services: Chat Rooms.................................................................................................. 158
8.1.4 AOL............................................................................................................................. 158
8.2 E-Commerce .......................................................................................................... 159
8.2.1 Business-to-Consumer (B2C) ..................................................................................... 159
8.2.1.1 Online shopping........................................................................................................................... 159
8.2.2 Consumer-to-Consumer (C2C) .................................................................................. 159

8.2.3 Business–to-Business (B2B) ........................................................................................ 159
8.2.4. Electronic Payment.................................................................................................... 160
8.2.4.1 Mobil Payment ............................................................................................................................ 160
8.2.4.2 Digital currency ........................................................................................................................... 163
8.2.4.3 Cryptocurrencies......................................................................................................................... 164
8.2.4.3.1 NFT’s ......................................................................................................................................... 165
8.3 Wikis ....................................................................................................................... 165

8.4 Blogs ....................................................................................................................... 165
8.5 Podcasts and Webcasts .......................................................................................... 166
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8.6 Surfing the Web ..................................................................................................... 166

8.7 Using Search Engines............................................................................................. 166
8.7.1 Spiders – Web Crawlers ............................................................................................. 167
8.8 Social Networking .................................................................................................. 167
8.9 How the Web Works .............................................................................................. 168
8.9.1 HTML ......................................................................................................................... 168
8.9.2 Firewalls...................................................................................................................... 168
8.9.3 Routers ........................................................................................................................ 169
8.9.4 Servers ........................................................................................................................ 169
8.9.4.1 Dark Web ..................................................................................................................................... 169
8.9.5 TCP, UDP and IP ....................................................................................................... 170
8.9.6 Local Area Networks .................................................................................................. 170
8.9.6.1 Intranet ......................................................................................................................................... 171
8.9.6.2 Extranet ........................................................................................................................................ 171
8.9.6.3 Twisted Pair ................................................................................................................................. 171
8.9.6.4 WIFI .............................................................................................................................................. 171
8.9.6.4.1 WIFI Encryption................................................................................................................................... 171
8.9.7 Web Portals ................................................................................................................ 172

8.9.8 VPN’s (Virtual Private Networks) ..................................................................... 172
8.10 Social Issues .......................................................................................................... 173
8.10.1 Netiquette/Ethics ...................................................................................................... 173
8.10.1.1 Abbreviations and Acronyms .................................................................................................. 174
8.10.1.2 Emoticons ................................................................................................................................... 174
8.10.1.3 Hashtags ..................................................................................................................................... 175
8.10.2 Computer Security ................................................................................................... 175
8.10.2.1 Safe Surfing ................................................................................................................................ 176
8.10.2.2 Malware ...................................................................................................................................... 176
8.10.2.2.1 Computer Viruses ............................................................................................................................... 177
8.10.2.2.2 Worms .................................................................................................................................................. 177
8.10.2.2.3 Trojan Horses ...................................................................................................................................... 178
8.10.2.2.4 Ransomware ........................................................................................................................................ 178
8.10.2.2.5 Spyware ................................................................................................................................................ 178
8.10.2.2.6 Adware ................................................................................................................................................. 179
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8.10.2.2.7 Scareware............................................................................................................................................. 179
8.10.2.3 Cookies ....................................................................................................................................... 179

8.10.3 Biometric Authentication ......................................................................................... 180
8.10.4 Protection of Identity ................................................................................................ 180
8.10.4.1 Social Engineering .................................................................................................................... 181
8.10.4.1.1 Phishing................................................................................................................................................. 181
8.10.4.1.2 Spear Phishing ...................................................................................................................................... 181
8.10.5 Some Other Social Concerns .................................................................................... 182

8.10.5.1 Effects on Employment ............................................................................................................ 182
8.10.5.2 Effects on Education ................................................................................................................. 183
8.10.5.2.1 Distance Education ............................................................................................................................. 183
8.10.5.2.2 COVID-19 Pandemic .......................................................................................................................... 184
8.10.5.3 Net Neutrality ............................................................................................................................ 185
8.11 Questions ......................................................................................................... 186

8.11.1 Completion ................................................................................................................ 186
8.11.2 Multiple Choice......................................................................................................... 187
8.11.3 True-False ................................................................................................................. 191
9. Index ................................................................................................................... 193

A...................................................................................................................................... 193
B ...................................................................................................................................... 194
C...................................................................................................................................... 195
D...................................................................................................................................... 196
E ...................................................................................................................................... 197
F ...................................................................................................................................... 198
G ..................................................................................................................................... 198
H ..................................................................................................................................... 199
I ....................................................................................................................................... 200
J ...................................................................................................................................... 201
K ..................................................................................................................................... 201
L ...................................................................................................................................... 201
M ..................................................................................................................................... 202
N...................................................................................................................................... 203
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O ...................................................................................................................................... 203
P ...................................................................................................................................... 203
Q ...................................................................................................................................... 204
R ...................................................................................................................................... 205
S ....................................................................................................................................... 205
T ...................................................................................................................................... 206
U ...................................................................................................................................... 207
V ...................................................................................................................................... 207
W ..................................................................................................................................... 208
X ...................................................................................................................................... 208
Y ...................................................................................................................................... 208
Z ...................................................................................................................................... 208
10-Answer Key ........................................................................................................ 209
1.4 Questions: ............................................................................................................... 209
1.4.1 Completion.................................................................................................................. 209
1.4.2 Multiple Choice .......................................................................................................... 210
1.4.3 True-False ................................................................................................................... 211
2.8 Questions: ............................................................................................................... 212
2.8.1 Completion.................................................................................................................. 212
2.8.2 Multiple Choice .......................................................................................................... 213
2.8.3 True-False ................................................................................................................... 214
3.4 Questions ................................................................................................................ 215
3.4.1 Completion.................................................................................................................. 215
3.4.2 Multiple Choice .......................................................................................................... 215
3.4.3 True-False ................................................................................................................... 216
4.11 Questions .............................................................................................................. 217
4.11.1 Completion................................................................................................................ 217
4.11.2 Multiple Choice ........................................................................................................ 218
4.11.3 True-False ................................................................................................................. 219
5.5 Questions ................................................................................................................ 220
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5.5.1 Completion.................................................................................................................. 220

5.4.2 Multiple Choice .......................................................................................................... 220
5.4.3 True-False ................................................................................................................... 222
6.3 Questions ................................................................................................................ 223
6.3.1 Completion.................................................................................................................. 223
6.3.2 Multiple Choice .......................................................................................................... 224
6.3.3 True-False ................................................................................................................... 225
7.9 Questions ................................................................................................................ 225
7.9.1 Completion.................................................................................................................. 225
7.9.2 Multiple Choice .......................................................................................................... 226
7.9.3 True-False ................................................................................................................... 228
8.11 Questions ......................................................................................................... 228
8.11.1 Completion ................................................................................................................ 228
8.11.2 Multiple Choice......................................................................................................... 230
8.11.3 True-False ................................................................................................................. 232
11-Image References ............................................................................................... 233
xv
Introduction to Computers – Chapter 1
1 Introduction
Humans have always found it necessary to perform some kinds of calculations, and
over the centuries, people have used many devices to perform these calculations. The
complexity of these devices has been increasing as technology has improved. With the
progress of the technology, new uses are continuously being developed for the devices.
The oldest known calculating device is the abacusi, which was invented in Asia over
2,000 years ago.
Since the development of the abacus, calculating devices have been continuously
refined, culminating with our modern digital computers.
Today, computers play a very important role in solving a huge variety of problems. The
modern uses of computers include: (among many others)
allowing various kinds of calculations to be performed very quickly,
automating repetitive processes,
storing and manipulating large quantities of data,
allowing access to the Internet,
Supporting distance education.
This chapter provides a review of the developments that resulted in the construction of
the first computer. It also presents a brief description of the evolution of the computer
from its origins until this century.
1.1 Evolution of the Computer:
1.1.1 Earliest Devices
Humans have been using different kinds of devices to help them do calculations since well
before recorded history began.
Probably the first calculating aids people used
were their fingers.
(fingers, of course, would probably not be
considered to be devices in the sense we would
normally use the term.)
The earliest widely used mechanical calculating
device, the iiabacus, was used by the Sumerians
and Egyptians as early as 2000 BC. Its use was Abacus
widespread among the Romans, Indians, Chinese
and Japanese.
1
Several kinds of analog devices were constructed in ancient and medieval times for the
purpose of performing astronomical calculations. These include the Antikythera
mechanismiii and the astrolabeiv, both developed in ancient Greece (c. 150–100 BC),
Astrolabe
A computer-generated reconstruction
of the front and back of the Antikythera
Mechanism.
1.1.2 1600’s: Mechanical Calculators
Throughout the 17’th century there was a great deal of interest in designing and building
mechanical calculators. Particularly noteworthy were the calculators designed and built
by Blaise Pascalv and by Gottfried Leibnitzvi (who also described the binary number
system that is used in all modern computers.) It was in this period that the slide rulevii
first appeared (designed primarily by John Napier with improvements by Isaac Newton.)
2
1.1.3 1800’s: Babbage

The next steps in the development of what we now think
of as computers were taken by Charles Babbage during
the 19’th century. Babbage first designed what he called
his difference engine. The difference engine was
designed to calculate values of polynomial functions.
Babbage never succeeded in manufacturing a difference
engine, although others made a few machines based on
his designs. One of the reasons that he failed to make a
working difference engine is that he turned his attention Babbage Analytical Engine
to a more advanced design which he called the
analytical engineviii. The analytical engine was, in fact, a programmable computer. The
design for the analytical engine included many ideas that were later incorporated into
widely used computers beginning in the 1940’s. These concepts included the use of
punched cards to input data and programs (a method being used in the 19’th century to
control mechanical looms, most famously the Jacquard loom.) The analytical engine
incorporated an arithmetic logic unit and ability to control sequence of command
execution by means of conditional branching and loops. It also included integrated
memory. Babbage was never able to complete construction of any of his machines due,
in part to inadequate funding and also due to conflicts with his chief engineer. It was not
until the 1940s that the first general-purpose computers were actually built.
1.1.4 1940’s: Electromechanical and Electronic Computers

By the 1940’s it was becoming clear that electronic devices could perform computations
much faster than mechanical devices.
As is all too often the case in technological development, it was war that motivated (and
funded) much of the development of the computers of the 1940’s and 1950’s.
The world's first programmable,
electronic, digital computers were the
Colossus computers, developed for
British codebreakers during World War
II to help in the cryptanalysis. The
Colossus Mark 1 first became
operational in Feb. 1944 and an
improved (much faster) Colossus Mark
2ix first put into service in June 1944,
just in time for the Normandy landings.
Colossus Mark 2 Computer
3
In the United States, ENIAC, the first general

purpose, programmable computer was initially
designed to compute artillery firing tables for the
US army. ENIACx was not completed until shortly
after the war ended (1946) but it was immediately
put to use in the development of the hydrogen
bomb.
1.1.5 1950’s: Commercial Computers
ENIAC being programmed
The first commercial computers appeared in 1951.
In England, the LEO I (Lyons Electronic Office) was the first computer used for
commercial business applications. The first successful business application was
Bakery Valuations, run in September 1951.
UNIVACxi (essentially an updated version of ENIAC) was the first commercially
successful electronic computer produced in the United States. (Initial contract with
the US Census Bureau in March 1951.)
The first electronic computers were electromechanical, using electrical relays, but soon
the electromechanical relays were replaced by vacuum tubes.
In 1947, the transistor was developed, and, beginning in about 1955 it began to be used
in computers, resulting in smaller units that required less power and generated less heat.
In 1957 the integrated circuit was developed, which shortly began resulting in even
smaller units requiring even less power.
It was in the 1950’s that IBM entered the computer business (which they were soon to
completely dominate) starting with the xiiIBM 650, the first mass-produced computer,
with approximately 2000 installations. The first IBM 650 was installed in late 1954. It
was also the first computer to make a significant profit for the company producing it.
xiii
LEO I UNIVAC I IBM 650
4
1.1.6 1960’s and Beyond:

Starting around 1960, the world’s computing hardware began to convert from vacuum
tube to solid state devices (initially transistors and, later, integrated circuits.) By 1959
discrete transistors had become sufficiently reliable and economical that they made
vacuum tube computers uncompetitive. Computer main memory slowly moved away
from magnetic core memory devices to solid-state semiconductor memory This greatly
reduced the cost, size, and power consumption of computing devices.
Eventually the cost of integrated circuit devices became low enough that home
computers and personal computers were feasible.
With the introduction of the graphical user interface (GUI), the use of computers no
longer required specialized training and the development of the Internet (especially the
World Wide Web) allowed home and mobile computers (including smart phones) to be
used for entertainment, finance (especially online banking), e-commerce (online
shopping), personal research (Google search, Wikipedia), communications (e-mail,
Instant Messaging, Facebook, Twitter, Zoom) and education. Of course, with so many
uses for such a wide range of people, there was a great proliferation of computers and
computer applications were developed that could not possibly have been imagined by
the original pioneers in the field.
1.1.6.1 Artificial Intelligence
In computer science artificial intelligence (AI) research is defined as the study of
"intelligent agents"
An intelligent agent is any device that senses its “environment” and takes actions
that maximize its chance of successfully achieving its “goals”.
Colloquially, the term "artificial intelligence" is applied when a machine mimics
"cognitive" functions that humans associate with other human minds, functions such
as "learning" and "problem solving".
Modern machine capabilities generally classified as AI include successfully
understanding human speech, competing at the highest level in strategic game
systems (such as chess and Go), autonomously operating automobiles, and intelligent
routing in content delivery networks and military simulations.
The traditional problems (or goals) of AI research include reasoning, knowledge
representation, planning, learning, natural language processing, and the ability to
perceive, move and manipulate objects. General intelligence is among the field's
long-term goals.
Some people also consider AI could become a danger to humanity if it progresses
unabated. Others believe that AI, unlike previous technological revolutions, will
create a risk of mass unemployment.
5
1.1.6.2 Virtual Reality

Modern computing systems are being used more and more for implementation of
Virtual Reality (VR) systems. The term Virtual Reality (VR) refers to an experience
taking place within a simulated environment. Such an environment can be similar to
the real world, but might also be completely different from the real world.
Applications of virtual reality include entertainment (i.e. gaming) but it also enjoys
wide use for educational purposes (i.e. medical or military training.)
xiv
Currently, most virtual reality systems
use either virtual reality headsets or
multi-projected environments to generate
realistic images, sounds and other
sensations that simulate a user's physical
presence in a virtual environment.
A person using virtual reality equipment
is able to look around the artificial world,
move around in it, and interact with
virtual features or items. The effect is
commonly created by VR headsets Researcher with the European Space Agency in
consisting of a head-mounted display Darmstadt, Germany, equipped with a HTC Vive
VR headset and motion controllers
with a small screen in front of the eyes.
Virtual reality effects can also be created with specially designed rooms having
multiple large screens.
Virtual reality typically incorporates auditory and video feedback, but may also
allow other types of sensory and force feedback through haptic technology.
1.1.6.2.1 Haptic Technology
xv
Haptic technology (also known as
kinesthetic communication or 3D touch)
refers to technology that can create an
experience of touch by applying forces,
vibrations, or motions to the user. This
mechanical stimulation can be used to create
virtual objects in a computer simulation, to
control such virtual objects, and to enhance
the remote control of machines and devices
(telerobotics).
A 1980s era head-mounted display and
Haptic devices may also incorporate tactile wired gloves at the NASA Ames
sensors that measure forces exerted by the Research Center
user on the interface. Among the most common kinds of haptic devices are game
controllers, joysticks, and steering wheels.
6
1.1.6.3 Voice User Interface

A voice-user interface (VUI) makes spoken human interaction with computers
possible. A VUI uses speech recognition to understand spoken commands and
answer questions, and (typically) text to speech to play a reply.
The primary advantage of a VUI is that it allows for a hands-free, eyes-free way for
users to interact with a computer system while focusing their attention elsewhere.
Virtual assistants, such as Siri, Google Assistant, Cortana and Alexa, are notable
examples of VUIs.
1.1.7 Different classes of computers:
Starting around 1960, computer manufacturers began specializing – producing different
types of computers aimed at specific segments of the market:
1.1.7.1 Mainframe computers
xvi
Mainframe computers are computers used primarily by commercial and
governmental organizations for critical applications and bulk data processing such as
census, industry and consumer statistics, enterprise resource planning and transaction
processing.
The term “Mainframe” originally referred to the large cabinets that housed the central
processing unit and main memory of early computers.
Later, the term came to be used to distinguish high-end
commercial machines from less powerful units. Their
high stability and reliability enable these machines to
run uninterrupted for very long periods of time, with
mean time between failures (MTBF) measured in
decades. An IBM 704 Installation
IBM has traditionally dominated this portion of the
market. Their dominance grew out of their 700/7000 series and, later, the
development of the 360 series mainframes. Their z System (which they
codeveloped with Hitachi) continues to be a major manufacturer in the
mainframe market. Hitachi, Unisys, Hewlett-Packard and Fujitsu also have
mainframe businesses.
7
1.1.7.2 Minicomputers
Minicomputers are a class of smaller computers that
developed in the mid-1960s and cost much less than
the mainframe and mid-size computers from IBM.
When single-chip CPUs appeared, beginning with the
Intel 4004 in 1971, personal computers appeared on
the market, and the term "minicomputer" came to
mean a machine that lies in the middle range of the
computing spectrum, smaller than the mainframe
computers but larger than the small personal
computers (often referred to as microcomputers.)
Minicomputers usually took up one (or only a few) 19-
inch rack cabinets, while at that time, a mainframe
might fill an entire room. A PDP-8 on display at the
Smithsonian's National
The definition of minicomputer is vague, and,
Museum of American
consequently, there are a number of candidates for History in Washington, D.C
being the first minicomputer. An early and highly
successful minicomputer was Digital Equipment Corporation's (DEC) PDP-8xvii,
which was launched in 1964 and cost from US $16,000 upwards.
The term minicomputer is no longer widely used. The term midrange computer is
now preferred.
1.1.7.3 Supercomputers
Supercomputers are computers that have world-class computational capacity. In
2015, such machines could perform quadrillions of floating point operations per
second.
xviii
Supercomputers were introduced in the 1960s, made initially, and for decades
thereafter, primarily by Seymour Cray at Control Data Corporation (CDC), then at
Cray Research and at subsequent companies, all bearing his name or monogram.
The first computer to be
commonly referred to as a
supercomputer was the
CDC6600, released in 1964. It
was designed by Cray and was
the fastest in the world by a large
margin. It demonstrated that
there was a viable
supercomputing market when
one hundred computers were sold
at $8 million each.
8
Cray left CDC in 1972 and formed his own company, Cray Research Inc. In 1976,
Cray Research delivered the Cray-1xix which became one of the most successful
supercomputers in history.
In Nov 2018, the IBM Summit at Oak Ridge National
Laboratory became the fastest supercomputer in the
world. Before Nov 2018, the two fastest machines
were both in China. The Sunway TaihuLight at
China's National Supercomputing Center in Wuxi,
was fastest and second fastest was the Tianhe-2 at the
National Supercomputer Center in Guangzho.
The US government has also contracted another (to
be named Frontier) designed to be 50 times faster
Cray-1 preserved at the
than Summit. Frontier was scheduled for completion Deutsches Museum
in 20211.
In November 2021, the Fugaku, made
by Fujitsu, and located in the RIKEN
Center for Computational Science in
Kobe, Japan was recognized as the
fastest supercomputer in the world.
As of 2019, China had 227
supercomputers while the US had Fujitsu Fugaku Supercomputer
109.
Supercomputers are used in a wide range of computationally intensive tasks in
various fields, including quantum mechanics, weather forecasting, climate research,
oil and gas exploration, molecular modeling (computing the structures and properties
of chemical compounds, biological macromolecules, polymers, and crystals), and
physical simulations (such as simulations of the early moments of the universe,
airplane and spacecraft aerodynamics, the detonation of nuclear weapons, and
nuclear fusion). Throughout their history, supercomputers have been essential in the
field of cryptanalysis.
1
In a Dec. 23, 2021 article, the program director, said “Some early users will get access to Frontier
this summer” and projected “full user operations on Jan. 1, 2023.”
9
1.1.7.4 Personal Computers

Personal computers are general-purpose computers whose sizes, capabilities and
prices make them viable for individuals.
They are intended to be operated directly by
end-users with no intervening computer
operators.
Early personal computers (generally called
microcomputers) were often sold in a kit
form, in limited volumes, and were of
interest mostly to hobbyists and technicians.
The first successfully mass marketed
personal computer was the Commodore
PETxx, introduced in January 1977. Very
shortly thereafter, the Apple II came out in
June 1977, and the TRS-80, from Tandy Commodore PET
Corporation / Tandy Radio Shack, also came
on the market in the summer of 1977.
Mass-market ready-assembled computers allowed a wider range of people to use
computers and many of these began focusing more on software applications and
less on the computer hardware.
In 1981, IBM announced their IBM Personal
Computer (PC)xxi. Although not necessarily
the best machine by technological standards,
IBM's reputation (and marketing expertise)
soon brought the PC to a position of
dominance in the personal computer market,
to the point where “PC” (which up to that time
had generally been used as a synonym for
“Personal Computer”) quickly came to be
applied only to the IBM Personal Computer.
1.1.7.4.1 Classes of Personal Computers
The personal computer market soon split into two distinct types of computers:
desktop computers and laptop computers.
Desktop computers: For a long time, desktop computers were the most common
type of personal computer. Desktop computers are characterized as being
small enough to fit on top of (or beside or beneath) a desk. A typical desktop
computer requires an external power source, since they are normally used in
locations (homes, offices, …) where external power is readily available.
Internal batteries would have been an unnecessary expense.
10
Laptop Computers: Also called portable computers or notebook computers, as

well as various other names.
A laptop can be powered either from
a rechargeable battery, or by
household electricity via an AC
adapter.
“Laptop” is a diverse category of
devices and many more specific
terms, such as “rugged notebook” or
“convertible”, refer to specialist types
of laptops, which have been Laptop Computer
optimized for specific uses. Hardware specifications change significantly
between different types, makes and models of laptops.
Laptop computers soon developed to the point that they had essentially the
same capabilities as desktop computers. They were, however, a slightly more
expensive and more difficult to upgrade.
1.1.7.5 PDA’s
As technology evolved, it became possible to make computers small enough to hold
in one hand, and the portable computer merged with the pocket calculator to become
what was often referred to as a personal digital assistant, or PDA.
A PDA was a mobile device that functioned as a personal information manager.
PDAs were discontinued in early 2010s after the widespread adoption of
smartphones and tablets.
The term PDA first appeared in January 1992, referring to the Apple Newton.xxii
In 1994, IBM introduced the IBM Simonxxiii, which was the first PDA with full
mobile phone functionality. The IBM Simon can also be considered the first
smartphone.
In 1996, Nokia introduced the 9000 Communicator, a PDA with full mobile
phone functionality. The 9000 Communicator became the world's best-selling
PDA and spawned a new category of PDAs: the "PDA phone", now called
"smartphone". Another early entrant in this market was Palm xxiv, with a line of
PDA products which began in March 1996.
IBM Simon
and charging
Apple Newton and I-Phone
Palm TX base
11
1.1.7.6 Smartphonesxxv
Smartphones typically combine the
features of a cell phone with those of
other popular mobile devices, such
as personal digital assistant, media
player and GPS navigation unit. It is
the mobile phone functionality that
distinguishes the smart phone from
the PDA.
Most smartphones have a
touchscreen user interface, can run Smartphones
third-party apps, and have cameras
built in.
1.1.7.7 Tablet Computers

The smartphone proved to be too small for many uses and, starting around 2010, the
“tablet computer” emerged as a device intermediate in size between a smartphone
and a laptop.
A tablet computer is a mobile computer with a touchscreen display, circuitry and
battery in a single unit.
Tablets come equipped with cameras, microphones and accelerometers. The
touchscreen display uses finger or stylus gestures to substitute for the use of mouse
and keyboard in a standard personal computer. Tablets usually feature on-screen,
pop-up virtual keyboards for typing.
Tablets may include physical buttons for

basic features such as speaker volume and
power. They also typically have ports for
network communications and battery
charging.
Tablets are typically larger than smartphones
or personal digital assistants.
The first modern tablet, the iPadxxvi, was iPad
released in 2010.
12
1.1.7.8 Embedded Computers

The reduction in size, price and power consumption of computer components has
made it possible to install specialized computers in many devices as embedded
systems.
Embedded systems are generally designed to do specific tasks, rather than as general-
purpose computers for multiple tasks. Some embedded systems also have specific
constraints for reasons such as safety and usability. Others may have low
performance requirements, allowing the system hardware to be simplified to reduce
costs.
Embedded systems are installed in things that range from portable devices, such as
digital watches and MP3 players, to large stationary installations like traffic lights,
factory controllers, and large complex systems like hybrid vehicles.
1.1.7.9 Smart TV’s
Computing capability has also been built into many home TV sets and this results in
what is called the “Smart TV”. These sets have the advantage of a much larger
viewing screen than found on the typical desktop computer. (Of course a smart tv
lacks the portability of the laptop, smartphone or tablet.)
Smart TVs, much like smartphones and other smart home devices, offer internet
connectivity and they support a range of apps. This allows users to watch movies and
shows when they want to (streaming) rather than when they happen to be broadcast.
They also open a world of new entertainment options, from streaming video to
playing games, checking social media, and controlling a whole house full of
connected gadgets. Smart TV’s use apps to connect to websites like YouTube,
Netflix, Hulu or Vimeo. Web browsers, which are generally included, can access
social sites like Facebook and Twitter. Users can pair wireless keyboards,
smartphones or tablets for input, making the smart TV capable of Web browsing like
a PC.
1.1.8 Communications and Networks
With increased use of computers, it became important to move data from one computer
to another quickly and efficiently. This, then, motivated the development of computer
networks.
A computer network, (or simply a network,) is a collection of computers and other
hardware components (printers, modems, routers, …) interconnected by
communication channels that allow sharing of resources and information. The
individual entities (computers, printers, etc. ) connected to a network are referred to
as its nodes.
13
Computer networks come in many different sizes:

At one extreme is the home and small business local area network (LAN) which
allows a few computers to copy information from one to another, and to share access
to resources such as printers and modems for Internet access.
At the other extreme is the Internet which connects millions of users worldwide.
There are two general types of computer networks:
client-server networks
and peer to peer networks.
1.1.8.1 Client-Server Networks
A client-server network employs only two types of nodes: clients and servers.
A client is a computer used by a user to connect to a network and make requests
to servers.
A server is a computer that receives and responds to requests from client
machines. The server provides services to clients, usually by sending information
of some kind or receiving and processing information of some kind.
1.1.8.2 Peer to Peer Networks
Another type of network is known as peer-to-peer, because each node can
simultaneously act as both a client and a server (unlike specialized servers of the
client-server model) and because each has equivalent responsibilities and status.
Peer-to-peer architectures are often described using the acronym P2P.
1.1.8.3 Internet of Things
Many embedded systems interconnect and exchange data. This creates opportunities
for more direct integration of the physical world into computer-based systems. It
results in improved efficiency, economic benefits, and reduced human exertions. This
network of physical devices, vehicles, home appliances, and other items embedded
with electronics, software, sensors, actuators, with connectivity through the internet,
has come to be called the “Internet of Things” (IoT).
The Internet of Things has expanded Internet connectivity beyond standard devices,
such as desktops, laptops, smartphones and tablets, and includes any range of
traditionally dumb or non-internet-enabled physical devices and everyday objects.
Embedded with appropriate technology, these devices can communicate and interact
over the Internet, and they can be remotely monitored and controlled. The Internet of
Things also includes driverless vehicles, a branch of the Internet application that has
recently started to gain a great deal of attention.
14
1.1.8.4 VideoTelephony
The improvement in communication speed enabled the development of visual, as
well as audio communication.
VideoTelephony/Videoconferencing can enable individuals in distant locations to
participate in meetings on short notice, with time and money savings. Technology
such as VoIP can be used in conjunction with desktop videoconferencing to enable
low-cost face-to-face meetings without leaving homes or desks, especially for
businesses or schools with widespread offices or large or multiple campuses. The
technology is also used for telecommuting, in which employees work from home.
Because of widespread high speed internet access and relatively cheap webcams
(often built into tablets, portable computers and smartphones) videotelephony has
become much more common, and recent coronavirus problems have motivated
business (and schools) to make widespread use of it as means of communication for
videoconferencing/online classes.
Probably the first major provider of videotelephony services was Skype, but Zoom
has recently become a dominant player in that market.
1.1.8.5 Virtual Private Networks
As computers started becoming ubiquitous, many businesses began connecting their
computers and computing equipment in private local area networks.
The use of private computer networks provides numerous benefits 2, but it is
extremely expensive to implement a private network covering an area larger than a
single building. If a business were to utilize traveling salesmen, roaming
representatives, or branch offices, it would be impossible to construct a private
network connecting all of its users/nodes. Virtual private networks (VPN’s) were
developed in order for such businesses to enjoy the benefits of private networking
systems but without having to invest in the construction of extensive computer
communication systems.
These systems make use of public networks (usually the Internet) for
communications but give the appearance/impression to the users of working on a
private local network.
2
If they didn’t provide benefits, nobody would use them.
15
1.2 Computer Definition:

Although computers have their origins in mechanical calculating devices (primarily
numerical calculators) they have been adapted to the processing of other kinds of data
(text, sound, graphical, video, …)
Thus, computers are no longer simply calculating devices, but have been evolved into
data processing devices.
In order for the computer to process data, the data must be available in the computer to
be processed. Further, the computer must have the ability to access the data and then, it
must be able to do something with the data.
A computer is controlled by sequence of commands (coded instructions to perform
specific actions.)
Such a sequence of computer commands is called a program.
In order to function, a computer must have both a processor and memory:
Processor: (often called a Central Processing Unit or CPU) is a device which
actually does the data processing. For every possible action of the processor, there
is a numerical code (called a machine command) which can be stored in the
memory of the computer. The collection of all the codes for all possible actions
of a processor is called the machine language for that type of processor.
Memory: a place where the data (and machine commands controlling the actions of
the CPU) can be stored.
1.2.1 Information Processing Cycle
A computer works by continually repeating four actions:
Fetch:
The processor reads (fetches) a machine command from memory.
Decode:
The processor identifies the command action corresponding to the machine
command.
Execute:
The processor performs the action corresponding to the machine command.
Store:
If the action resulted in the computation of some value, then that value is stored
in an appropriate location.
The individual actions of a CPU tend to be very simple (add two numbers, copy a
number from one memory location to another, …) A computer derives its power not
from the ability to perform powerful/complex actions, but rather from sheer speed,
from being able to perform many simple actions in a very short period of time.
16
1.2.2 Hardware and Software

The terms hardware and software are frequently used with respect to computers
and computer systems.
Hardware refers to the physical (electric, electronic, and mechanical) components
of the system.
Software refers to the computer programs that control what the system does.
1.2.3 Artificial Neural Network
The Artificial Neural Network (ANN) is a relatively modern alternative
implementation of computing functions.
A neural network is a network or circuit of (possibly artificial) neurons, or nodes.
Thus, a neural network is either a biological neural network, made up of real
biological neurons, or an artificial neural network, for solving artificial intelligence
(AI) problems.
Unlike von Neumann model computations, artificial neural networks do not separate
memory and processing. They operate via the flow of signals through the net
connections, in much the same way that biological networks work.
These artificial networks can be used for predictive modeling, adaptive control and
applications where they can be “trained”. Self-learning, resulting from experience,
can occur within neural networks, and they can derive conclusions from a complex
and seemingly unrelated set of information. They can be quite useful for complex
problems for which no step by step algorithm can be identified.
1.2.4 Quantum Computers
Quantum computers are controllable quantum mechanical devices that exploit the
properties of quantum physics to perform computations. Quantum computers are not
yet in very wide use, but they appear to have potential for problems that digital
computers have not been able to solve (in a reasonable length of time.) The most
widely discussed of these problems is the factorization of very large numbers. The
ability to factor such numbers (reasonably quickly) would have serious implications
for security of communications.
Just as bits are the fundamental unit of information in classical computing, qubits
(quantum bits) are the fundamental unit of information in quantum computing. While
a bit, or binary digit, can have a value either 0 or 1, a qubit can have a value that is
either 0, 1 or a quantum superposition of 0 and 1.
Quantum computers process data represented in qubits by applying quantum gates.
The properties of superposition and entanglement permit certain types of (quantum)
operations to be performed much faster than are those of digital computers.
17
A fundamental difference between classical computers and quantum computers is

that programs in quantum computers are intrinsically probabilistic, whereas classical
computers are usually deterministic. After a measurement, one of the possible states
is obtained with a certain probability. This fact contrasts with classical computing,
where a bit can only be deterministically 0 or 1.
Data in qubits is also subject to decoherence, which makes storage and transmission
of quantum data problematic and limits the reliability of current quantum computers.
1.3 Social Effects of Computers
The wide availability of affordable computing and communications technology has
caused a number of major changes in the way that society operates. Among other things,
they have changed the way most of us work, the way we interact with each other and the
ways we teach our children.
1.3.1 Effects in the workplace
Computing technology has greatly improved efficiency in the workplace and
increased productivity. They have, however, placed greater responsibilities on the
workers. Now, workers are required to USE those computers, and this means they
have to know HOW to use them. Computer literacy has become an important
component of the skill set necessary for employability in the 21’st century.
Even jobs that do not require the use of computing technology are often advertised
online, and many require that applicants apply online.
With widespread availability of computer communication, many jobs that previously
required the worker be physically present in the place of work can now be done from
home. A work arrangement in which employees do not commute or travel (e.g. by
bus or car) to a central place of work, is called telecommuting. Many workers are also
expected to be available to respond to phone, email or text messaging at all hours,
and even during vacations.
Many U.S. firms are increasing their use of telecommuting to prevent the spread of
COVID-19. Firms are replacing face-to-face meetings with conference calls or
videoconferencing and canceling travel plans. Unfortunately, it is estimated that only
about a third of jobs can be done entirely from home. This isn’t the first time a crisis
has required a shift toward telecommuting. In the U.S. Interest in telework spiked
following the events of 9/11 and the anthrax attacks that soon followed, which forced
several key government offices to close, but the scale of the COVID-19 spike was
completely unprecedented.
There are pros and cons to increased use of telecommuting. On the plus side, workers
tend to prefer working from home, it reduces emissions and office costs, and it helps
people (especially women) balance work and family roles. It may even make us more
18
productive. On the downside: managing a telecommuting staff can be difficult,

professional isolation can have negative effects on well-being and career
development, and the long term effects on productivity of a scaled-up system are
uncertain.
Computing and communications technology have also made it possible for many jobs
to be done from other countries, often countries where wages are lower. This
phenomenon of transferring jobs to other countries is known as outsourcing.
1.3.2 Social Interactions
Computer networking, and the Internet in particular, has created greatly enhanced
communication capabilities.
One consequence of this enhanced communication capability is the phenomenon of
online shopping. The ability to compare, and purchase goods online results in a much
greater quantity and quality of goods available for anyone than ever before.
Another consequence is the expansion of social networking (the practice of
expanding one's business and/or social contacts by making connections through
individuals. These contacts are often made through social media sites such as
Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google+.)
Social networking can also be a form of entertainment. It is great for meeting people
with similar interests, and is definitely useful for keeping in touch with
friends/acquaintances. It can also be a very effective promotional tool for businesses,
entrepreneurs, writers, actors, musicians, or artists.
1.3.3 Political Effects
The rise of social networking has had an enormous effect on politics, especially in
the US, but also increasingly elsewhere.
Barack Obama made effective use of Facebook and YouTube, both for fundraising
and for promoting his positions and policies.
Donald Trump became famous (notorious?) for his use of Twitter to promote his
views, “rally his base” and spreading (what have been reported to be) lies and
misinformation.
1.3.4 Effects in Education
The effects of computing technology on education can hardly be overstated. Many
excellent educational software programs exist to help children learn. Educational
games, as well as a variety of other programs, can help improve a child's skill in a
number of different critical areas, including vocabulary, mathematics, logical
thinking, typing, history, and many more. Computers also change the way children
are educated at school. The Internet provides students with a wealth of extra resources
for knowledge and research, in addition to their textbooks. Children who use
computers and the Internet at an early age have a tendency to do better in class than
those who don't.
19
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced K-12 school districts and universities to close
and send students home. This reality has forced the education industry to increasingly
turn to online instruction. In many respects, the education industry's move to remote
instruction is similar to the increased adoption of telecommuting in the workplace.
As noted earlier, computer literacy is becoming an essential skill, both socially and
for employment. Unfortunately, many children (and adults) have less access to
computers and computing technology than do others. This digital divide in classes of
people, those who have access and those who don’t, has important consequences for
society.
1.3.5 Hacking and Malware
Unfortunately, the widespread use of computers and communications technology has
given new avenues of attack to those who wish to take advantage of us or to do us
harm. We must now protect our children (and ourselves) against cyberbullying, our
computers must be protected against malware and businesses (as well as individuals)
must go to great lengths to protect their systems against attacks by “hackers”. 3
'Malware' is a term used to refer to a variety of forms of hostile or intrusive software,
including computer viruses, worms, Trojan horses, ransomware, spyware, adware,
scareware, and other malicious programs. Malware is often disguised as normal
software, or comes embedded in non-malicious files.
Malware is often used to gain information such as personal identification numbers or
details, bank or credit card numbers, and passwords. If left unprotected, personal and
networked computers can be at considerable risk against these threats, and so our
computers are often defended by various types of protection elements, including
firewalls, anti-virus software, and various kinds of network hardware.
According to Check Point’s Cyber Attack Trends: 2020 Mid-Year Report, these were
the five most common types of malware in the first half of 2020:
1. Cryptomining Malware: Cryptocurrency mining software is designed to take
advantage of the fact that some cryptocurrencies pay miners for solving Proof
of Work computational puzzles. Cryptomining malware uses the infected
computer’s CPU resources to solve these problems, making money for the
malware operator.
2. Mobile Malware: While many people focus on computer malware, mobile
malware is a growing issue. Mobile malware is now the most common type of
malware behind cryptomining malware. This malware family covers a wide
range of functionality. The most common mobile malware variants are
droppers that deliver other types of mobile malware but also include adware
functionality.
3
The term hacker was once used to describe a computer expert who used his technical
knowledge to overcome a problem. It has, however, come to be used to describe someone who
uses technical knowledge to break into computer systems.
20
3. Botnet: A botnet is a collection of infected computers that an attacker controls

and uses to perform Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS), credential stuffing,
and other large-scale automated attacks. Botnet malware is malware that is
designed to infect a computer and implements a command and control
structure that allows the attacker to send commands to the malware and have
it achieve the attacker’s purposes. In 2019, over a quarter of organizations
worldwide were infected by botnet malware.
4. Infostealers: Infostealers or “spyware” are malware that is designed to spy on
a computer’s user. This type of malware can collect a range of different types
of information, including personal details, login credentials, financial data, or
other information.
5. Trojans: Trojan is a general term for malware designed to masquerade as
something else. For example, while the CamScanner Android app was a
popular app on the Google Play Store, this app was actually a trojan delivering
the Necro malware. The fifth most common type of malware in 2020 is the
banking trojan. This type of malware attempts to steal credentials for online
accounts that can grant access to online bank accounts and other sources of
income for its authors.
According to Check Point’s Cyber Attack Trends: 2021 Mid-Year Report:
• Ransomware Exploits and Supply Chain Attacks Lead the Cyber Trends
in the First Half of 2021
• Global cyber attacks increased by 29%, as hackers continue to exploit
the COVID-19 pandemic and shift to remote work. Ransomware attacks
surged 93% in the last 6 months, fueled by innovation in an attack
technique called Triple Extortion.
• The rise of ‘Triple Extortion’ ransomware attacks: In addition to stealing
sensitive data from organizations and threatening to release it publicly
unless a payment is made, attackers also target organizations’
customers and/or business partners and demand ransoms from them
too
• Supply chain attacks step up: The well-known SolarWinds supply chain
attack stands out in 2021 due to its scale and influence, but other
sophisticated supply chain attacks have occurred such as Codecov in
April, and most recently, Kaseya
• The race to become Emotet’s successor: Following the botnet’s
takedown in January, other malwares are quickly gaining popularity,
namely: Trickbot, Dridex, Qbot and IcedID
• Predictions for H2 2021: Ransomware will grow despite law
enforcement stepping up. Hackers are using penetration tools to give
the hackers the ability to customize attacks on the fly. This growing
trend is inflicting collateral damage the initial target victim, calling for a
collateral damage strategy.
21
1.3.6 Computer Forensics

Starting in the early 1980’s, the increased accessibility of personal computers began
to lead to their increased use in criminal activity. The discipline of computer forensics
emerged during this time as a method to recover and investigate digital evidence for
use in court. Since then computer forensics has become more and more important, as
computer crime and computer related crime have continued to increase. Computer
forensics is used to investigate a wide variety of crime, including child pornography,
fraud, espionage, cyberstalking, murder and rape. The discipline is also frequently
used in civil proceedings as a form of information gathering.
1.3.7 Facial Recognition Technology
Facial recognition technology (FRT) is a biometric technology that uses an
automated process to identify individual people based on facial features. FRT’s have
become more popular through increasingly sophisticated devices and popular fads,
but the use of face scanning and analysis features has some long-term social impacts.
FRT is used by law enforcement to identify suspects; at the border and in airports to
facilitate travel and protect the homeland; and by a variety of private-sector
businesses. It has the potential to increase people’s security and add convenience to
their daily lives, but also has potential for abuse by both government and the private
sector.
According to:
https://www.rpc.senate.gov/policy-papers/facial-recognition-potential-and-risk
(Nov 20, 2019)
• Facial recognition technology is used in a variety of industries including
retail, financial services, and aviation as well as by government agencies
like the FBI, TSA, and ICE.
• The accuracy of the technology has improved dramatically in recent
years, but constitutional, privacy, and other concerns remain.
• The United States does not have a comprehensive law governing the use
of facial recognition technology; some states and cities have begun
legislating and regulating it.
Some observers have questioned whether the technology is accurate enough to
be used in law enforcement decisions.
Facial recognition technology remains largely unregulated in the U.S. and
across the world.
22
1.3.7.1 Accuracy of FRT

The National Institute of Standards and Technology has measured the
performance of companies’ facial recognition algorithms since 1993 and has
found that the technology has improved over time. With high-quality images,
the top algorithms tested in 2018 had an error rate of just 0.2% of searches. That
is 20 times better than the best system the agency tested in 2013. Research does
suggest, however, that facial recognition may be disproportionately inaccurate
when used on certain groups, including people with darker skin, women, and
young people. Reasons for this may range from the way the light refracts off the
skin to possible racial and gender biases in the data sets used to train facial
recognition algorithms.
1.3.7.2 Use of FRT by Governments and Law Enforcement
Globally, police agencies are either adopting or testing various forms of FRT to
assist in law enforcement.
In the US, the FBI has used facial recognition technologies to identify
individuals involved in the 2021 Capitol riots.
In the UK, London’s Metropolitan Police are using FRT in real-time (or live)
CCTV cameras to identify people on police “wanted” lists.
Facial recognition technology offers police a quick, efficient and less subjective
way of identifying persons of interest – even if the individuals provide false or
misleading information. This, in turn, reduces the risk of mistaken identity and
unnecessary trips to the police station to confirm an individual’s identity. Taking
the human perspective out of the equation also helps to reduce the potential for
inaccuracies in memory and misidentification that can occur in more traditional
ways of identifying persons of interest.
The police use of FRT does, however, raise consent and privacy issues. There are
also some concerns that law enforcement may be more likely to use the
technology against people of color.
1.3.7.3 Use of FRT by Private Sector
Retailers, casinos, financial institutions, apartment buildings and other private-
sector businesses are using facial recognition to identify customers, prevent
fraud and theft, and authorize entry into rooms and buildings. Facial recognition
also is used to secure access to digital media; open or enable smartphones and
other hardware; and to record time and attendance in the workplace.
Most major U.S. airlines employ facial recognition technologies in their
boarding processes. The technology has been used to help provide banking
services in emerging markets, concert and ticketing services, and security at
large sporting events.
23
1.4 Questions:
1.4.1 Completion
1. Humans have always found it necessary to perform some kinds of calculations,
and over the centuries, people have used many _______ to perform these
calculations.
1. The oldest known calculating device is the _______ which was invented in Asia
over 2000 years ago.
1.1.1 Several kinds of analog computers were constructed in ancient and medieval
times to perform astronomical calculations. These include the Antikythera
mechanism and the __________, both developed in ancient Greece (c. 150–100
BC)
1.1.4 The world's first programmable, electronic, digital computers were the
________computers, developed for British codebreakers during World War II to
help in the cryptanalysis.
1.1.4 In the United States, _________, the first general purpose, programmable
computer was initially designed to compute artillery firing tables for the US
army.
1.1.7 Starting around _______, computer manufacturers began specializing –
producing different types of computers aimed at specific segments of the
market.
1.1.7.1 __________computers are computers used primarily by commercial and
governmental organizations for critical applications and bulk data processing
such as census, industry and consumer statistics, enterprise resource planning
and transaction processing.
1.1.7.1 The term “_________” originally referred to the large cabinets that housed
the central processing unit and main memory of early computers. Later, the term
was used to distinguish high-end commercial machines from less powerful units.
1.1.7.2 The term minicomputer is no longer widely used. The term _______
computer is now preferred.
1.1.7.3 The first computer to be commonly referred to as a supercomputer was the
__________, released in 1964.
1.1.7.3 Supercomputers were introduced in the 1960s, made initially, and for
decades primarily by Seymour _____ at Control Data Corporation (CDC), then
at subsequent companies, all bearing his name or monogram
24
1.1.7.5 A(n) ________is a mobile device that functions as a personal information

manager. They were discontinued in early 2010s after the widespread adoption
of smartphones and tablets.
1.1.7.7 A(n) _______computer is a mobile computer with a touchscreen display,
circuitry and battery in a single unit.
1.1.7.7 The first modern tablet, the ______, was released in 2010.
1.1.8 With increased use of computers it became important to move data from one
computer to another quickly and efficiently. This, then, motivated the
development of computer _________
1.1.8 There are many different sizes and types of networks. At one extreme is the
_______ which allows a few computers to copy information from one to
another, and to share access to resources such as printers and modems for
Internet access.
1.1.8.1 A(n) _______ is a computer used by a user to connect to a network and
make requests to servers.
1.1.8.1 A(n) ______ is a computer that receives and responds to requests from
client machines.
1.2 A computer is controlled by sequence of machine commands. Such a sequence
of computer commands is called a(n) _______
1.3.4 The term _______ was once used to describe a computer expert who used his
technical knowledge to overcome a problem. It has come, in the popular
culture, to be used to describe someone who uses his technical knowledge to
break into computer systems.
1.3.6 Starting in the early 1980’s, the increased accessibility of personal computers
began to lead to their increased use in criminal activity. The discipline of
computer _______ emerged during this time as a method to recover and
investigate digital evidence for use in court.
1.3.7 Facial recognition technology (FRT) is a(n) ______ technology that uses an
automated process to identify individual people based on facial features.
1.4.2 Multiple Choice
1. The oldest known calculating device is the abacus which was invented in
_______over 2000 years ago.
a) Asia
b) Rome
c) India
d) Greece
e) none of the above
25
1.1.1 The astrolabe, a kind of analog computer, was developed in ancient _____
a) India
b) China
c) Greece
d) Egypt
e) none of the above)
1.1.2 _________ described the binary number system that is used in all modern
computers
a) Pascal
b) Leibnitz
c) Newton
d) Lovelace
1.1.3 _________ designed the analytical engine, which was, in fact, a
programmable computer. The design for the analytical engine included many
ideas that were later incorporated into widely used computers beginning in the
1940’s
a) Pascal
b) Leibnitz
c) Newton
d) Lovelace
1.1.4 _________ was the world's first programmable, electronic, digital computer
a) Colossus Mark 1
b) ENIAC
c) LEO 1
d) UNIVAC
1.1.5 _________ was the first computer used for commercial business applications
a) Colossus Mark 1
b) ENIAC
c) LEO 1
d) UNIVAC
26
1.1.5 _________ was the first mass-produced computer, with approximately 2000
installations.
a) Colossus Mark 1
b) ENIAC
c) LEO 1
d) UNIVAC
1.1.5 It was in the ________’s that IBM entered the computer business
a) 1920
b) 1930
c) 1940
d) 1950
1.1.6 During the 1960’s
a) the world’s computing hardware began to convert from vacuum tube to solid
state devices
b) computer main memory moved away from magnetic core memory devices to
solid-state semiconductor memory
c) with the introduction of the graphical user interface (GUI), the use of
computers no longer required specialized training
d) all of the above
1.1.7.4 The first successfully mass marketed personal computer was the ______
a) Apple II
b) TRS-80
c) Commodore PET
d) IBM PC
1.1.7.5 The term PDA first appeared in January 1992, referring to the _______
a) Apple Newton
b) IBM Simon
c) Nokia Communicator
d) Palm TX
1.1.7.5 The ________ can be considered the first smartphone.
a) Apple Newton
b) IBM Simon
d) Palm TX
27
1.1.8.1 A ________ is a computer used by a user to connect to a network and make

requests
a) client
b) server
c) peer
d) all of the above
1.1.8.1 A ________ is a computer that receives and responds to requests from other
machines
a) client
b) server
c) peer
d) all of the above
1.1.8.2 On a ________ network, each host has equivalent responsibilities and status
a) democratic
b) host to host
c) peer to peer
d) all of the above
1.3.7 FRT is a technology that uses an automated process to _________
a) extract information from a database based on incomplete information
b) identify architectural features of buildings
c) identify people based on facial features
d) locate potential fractures in cured concrete
1.4.3 True-False
1.1.3. One of the reasons that Babbage failed to make a working difference engine
is that he turned his attention to a more advanced design which he called the
analytical engine.
1.1.4 By the 1940’s it was becoming clear that electronic devices could do
computation faster than mechanical devices.
1.1.7.3 As of 2018, the fastest supercomputer was the Cray 1
1.1.7.4 Laptop computers have developed to the point that they have essentially the
same capabilities as desktop computers.
28
1.1.7.8 The reduction in size, price and power consumption of computer

components have made it possible to install general purpose computers as
embedded systems in many devices.
1.2.1 A computer derives its power not from the ability to perform
powerful/complex actions, but rather from sheer speed.
1.3.5 The term hacker was once used to describe a computer expert who used his
1.3.5 As of 2011, the majority of active malware threats were worms or Trojans
rather than viruses.
1.3.6 Since the early 1980’s computer crime and computer related crime have
increased.
1.3.6 The discipline of computer forensics is frequently used in civil proceedings.
1.3.7.2 Police use of FRT can raise consent and privacy issues.
29
2. Computer Components
Almost all modern computers have pretty much the same design. They
all have the same basic components. These basic components are:
Processorxxvii: The component which actually performs the
actions/executes the commands that the computer carries out.
Processor
Memory: The component where data, information and programs
(codes for commands to be executed) are stored.
Computer memory (Also often referred to as Primary storage,
Random Access Memory or RAMxxviii) is typically volatile
(Volatile means that when the computer is turned off, the
contents of memory are erased.) RAM
Secondary Storage: Components that store information / data from
one session to another. (Nonvolatile storage.) Some of the most common types of
secondary storage media are:
Solid State Drives: A solid-state drive (SSD) is a solid-state storage device that
uses integrated circuit assemblies to store data.
Hard Disk Drivesxxix
A hard disk drive (HDD), hard disk, hard drive or fixed disk is a data
storage device used for storing and retrieving digital information using one or
more rigid ("hard") rapidly rotating disks (platters) coated with magnetic
material.
Optical Storage:
Optical storage is data storage on an optically readable medium xxx(CD or
DVD). Data is recorded by making marks in a pattern that can be read back with
the aid of light, usually a beam of laser light precisely focused on a spinning
disc. Optical storage differs from other data storage techniques that make use of
other technologies such as magnetism or semiconductors.
Flash drives
A xxxiUSB flash drive, also known under a variety of other names, is a data
storage device that includes flash memory and has an integrated Universal Serial
Bus (USB) interface.
USB flash drives are typically removable and rewritable, and physically
much smaller than an optical disc.
SanDisk Cruzer
Micro
Hard Disk
a brand of USB
Drive (Open) Optical disk
flash drives
Secondary Storage Devices
31
Input devices:
Input devices are components/devices
which allow us to put information/data
into the computer memory.
The most common input devices are:
xxxii
keyboard Keyboard
xxxiii
mouse Mouse
Output devices:
Output devices are components/devices
which allow the computer to communicate
information/data from computer memory to
users and/or other computing devices.
The most common output devices are: Monitor
Printer
xxxiv
monitors
xxxv
printers
Communications Devices:
Communications devices are devices which facilitate communication with other
devices. These include: Network Interface Controller (NIC), Wireless
communications devices, Bluetooth interface controllers, Ethernet ports, modems
Bus:
The component which facilitates movement of data from one place to another within
the computer.
In most systems, these components will be either mounted on or

connected to the computer’s xxxvimotherboard.
A motherboard (also called a system board) is a circuit board.

Electronic components are attached to the motherboard, or, in
some cases, built into it. motherboard
32
2.1 Central Processing Unit (CPU)

The CPU interprets and carries out the basic
instructions that result in the computer doing what we
want it to do.
A xxxviiCentral Processing Unit (CPU) has two

subdivisions: The Control Unit and the Arithmetic
Logic Unit (ALU) CPU
The xxxviiiControl Unit directs and coordinates the

operations of the computer. It identifies the
memory location containing the code for the
operation to be carried out, then identifies the
operation, then locates any data to be used in the
operation, then initiates the action to carry out the
Diagram of a CPU
operation.
The ALU performs arithmetic operations

(addition, subtraction, multiplication, division,
comparison) on the data supplied by the control
unit.
The processor relies on a crystal circuit called the A desktop PC clock generator
xxxix
Clock Generator. The clock generates electronic
pulses (called ticks or clock cycles) at regular
intervals. These clock ticks control the timing of the computer operations.
2.1.1 Overclocking
In an effort to get better performance, some users change the system clocks on their
computers to run at higher speeds. This is called “overclocking”.
Overclocking will result in a system that runs faster but it can also cause data errors.
(The CPU might read the content of a cell before it has stabilized.) The most common
problem that overclocking will cause, however, is overheating. If a CPU runs at a
higher speed than it is designed for, it will use more energy than the designer
anticipated and produce more heat, possibly more heat than can be dispersed.
33
2.2 Memory
The term "memory", (or primary memory, or primary storage) refers to addressable
semiconductor memory, i.e. integrated circuits consisting of silicon-based transistors,
resistors capacitors, etc.
Most such semiconductor memory consists of binary memory cells (flip-flops which can
be in one of two states), each state representing one bit of information (0 or 1).
Since the information stored in an individual memory cell is extremely limited, the cells
in computer memory are arranged in groups of 8 cells (each group of 8 cells is referred
to as a byte.)
Each byte is assigned a number as its address. The address is used to identify the
individual byte and to allow the computer to identify a byte in order to reference its
contents or to change its contents.
The contents of the memory cells (the collection of 0’s and/or 1’s represented by the
states of the memory cells) are used to represent information.
Of course, the content of a single cell can only represent one of two items, the 0 state
representing one of them and the 1 state representing the other.
In order to deal situations involving more than two values, it is necessary to use
groups of cells. As mentioned above, the most common group consists of 8 cells, and
is called a byte.
The time it takes for the processor to reference a memory cell is pretty much
independent of where it is located in memory. That is the reason primary memory is
called random access memory.
This makes primary memory different from other direct-access data storage media
(such as hard disks, CD’s, DVD’s.) For those types of media the time required to
read and write data items varies significantly depending on where they are located
on the recording medium.
The time difference is due to mechanical considerations, such as media
rotation speeds and arm movement delays.
There are two distinct types of technology used for primary memory: Random Access
Memory (RAM) and Read Only Memory (ROM)
The computer can read information from, but cannot write to, locations in ROM.
Access to information in ROM tends to be much slower than to RAM. Most home or
office computers include secondary storage device(s) and have only a minimal
34
hardware initialization core and bootloader4 in ROM (known as the BIOS in IBM-
compatible computers.) This is the minimum configuration necessary to allow the
computer to load the rest of the operating system from disk into RAM where it can
be accessed more efficiently. This arrangement also results in an operating system
that is relatively easy to upgrade.
ROM is implemented using nonvolatile types of memory (The contents do not
change when the computer is powered down and then later restarted.)
Data items can be read from both RAM and ROM but can only be written to locations
in RAM.
RAM is normally associated with volatile types of memory. (When the computer
is turned off the contents of volatile memory are erased.)
As stated earlier, access to locations in RAM is generally much faster than to
locations in ROM. This is one of the reasons that, in most systems, only minimal
initialization software will be in ROM.
There are, in fact several different types of RAM, some of which are much faster than
others (and more expensive and use more power and generate more heat.)
In order to achieve greater execution speed but hold costs down, computer
manufacturers use relatively cheap memory for most of their RAM but include a
small amount of (more expensive) high speed circuitry. This faster (and more
expensive) storage is called cache memory.
A system will attempt use cache memory for information that is likely to be
accessed frequently, and/or in the immediate future.
2.3 Secondary Storage:

Secondary storage (also known as external memory or auxiliary storage) differs from
primary storage in that it is not directly accessible by the CPU. The computer usually
uses its input/output channels to access secondary storage and transfers the desired data
using intermediate areas in primary storage (These areas are called buffers). Secondary
storage does not lose the data when the device is powered down (it is non-volatile.) It is
also typically two orders of magnitude less expensive than primary storage but access to
secondary storage is much slower than primary storage access.
4
When the computer is powered on, it typically does not have an operating system or its loader in
RAM. The computer first executes a relatively small program stored ROM, along with some
needed data, to initialize RAM, and to access a secondary storage device from which the
operating system programs and data can be loaded into RAM.
35
Modern computer systems typically have two orders of magnitude more secondary
storage than primary storage.
In modern computers, xlhard disk drives are normally
used as secondary storage although solid state drives
(SSD’s) are becoming more common. The time
taken to access a given byte of information stored on
a hard disk is typically a few thousandths of a
second, (a few milliseconds.) Access times for solid
state drives is three to four times faster than for hard Diagram labeling the major
disk drives, but would still be measured in components of a computer
milliseconds. HDD
By contrast, the time taken to access a given byte of

information stored in random-access memory is
measured in billionths of a second (nanoseconds.)
Rotating optical storage devices (such as CD and DVD drives), have even longer access
times.
With disk drives, once the disk read/write head reaches the proper placement and the
data of interest rotates under it, subsequent data on the same track are relatively fast to
access.
To reduce the seek time (the time required for the read/write head to reach proper
location) and rotational latency (time required for desired data to rotate under the
head) data are transferred to and from disks in large contiguous blocks.
2.4 Input Devices:
Clearly, users will need some way to enter information into their computers.
To facilitate this, the computers must have some kinds of input devices connected to
them.
Traditional input devices include:
keyboard,
mouse,
scanner.
More recently, touch screens, cameras and microphones built into smartphones/tablets
and other portable computing devices have also become widely used.
36
2.4.1 Keyboard:
A xlikeyboard is a typewriter-style device, which uses
buttons or keys, to act as mechanical levers or electronic
switches.
Many (most) early computers used xliipunched cards for Keyboard
their primary input, but by the late 1980’s, interaction via
keyboard had become the most common input method.
2.4.2 Mouse:
A xliiimouse is a pointing device that detects motion on a Punched card for a
surface. This motion is typically translated into the motion FORTRAN program
of a pointer/cursor on a display. This supports interaction
with a graphical user interface (GUI).
The cursor is a symbol on the screen (usually a blinking
vertical bar) that indicates where the next interaction by
the user (entry of a character from keyboard, clicking a
mouse button) will have its effect.
A mouse will normally have two or more buttons that the
Mouse
user can press (click) to interact with the GUI.
The movements of the mouse on the surface are used to control the position of the
pointer on the screen. The pointer identifies the place where actions of the user
take place. Hand movements are replicated by the pointer. Clicking or hovering
(stopping movement while the cursor is within the bounds of an area) can
select/identify an element (such as a file, program, or action) from a display of
names, or (in graphical interfaces) small images (called "icons".)
For example, a text file might be represented by an icon consisting of a picture
of a paper notebook. Clicking while the cursor hovers over this kind of icon
might cause a text editing program to open a window in which the contents of
that text file are displayed.
2.4.3 Scanner:
An xlivimage scanner — (usually just called a scanner) is a
device that optically scans pictures, print documents,
handwriting, or objects, and creates digital images of them.
Variations of the flatbed scanner (where the document is
placed on a glass window for scanning) are commonly
found in offices.
Flatbed Scanner
37
2.4.4 Touchscreen:
A xlvtouchscreen is a visual display that is sensitive to where a user presses on it and
transmits this information to the computer.
Users can give input by touching the screen with
their fingers and/or with a special stylus/pen.
Some touchscreens require users to wear specially
coated gloves, and others use a special stylus/pen.
A user can use the touchscreen to react to what is
Capacitive touchscreen of a
displayed and to control how it is displayed.
mobile phone
A touchscreen enables the user to interact directly
with what is displayed, rather than using an intermediate device, such as a mouse,
touchpad, etc.
Touchscreens are common in devices such as game consoles, tablet computers, and
smartphones.
The popularity of smartphones, tablets, and many types of
information appliances is driving an ever-increasing
demand for, and acceptance of, touchscreens on portable
and functional electronics.
Touchscreens are also found in the medical field and in
heavy industry, as well as for automated teller machines
(ATMs), and xlvikiosks. (Kiosks are used in places like
museums where keyboard and mouse systems do not An Internet kiosk in
allow a suitably intuitive, rapid, or accurate interaction Hemer, Germany
by the user with the display's content.)
2.4.5 Digital Cameras:
Digital cameras store images in a digital format. These images can be stored on
portable media (such as a flash drive) and this media can be used to transfer them to
a computer’s memory or storage.
Many computers (especially laptops, tablets and smartphones) come with digital
cameras built in. With these, the graphic images (digital photos) are automatically
placed in the computer storage where they can be accessed for processing by graphic
editing software and/or sent to other devices/users using the computer’s
communications software.
38
2.4.6 Microphones:
The widespread use of voice controlled/responsive systems (Apple SIRI, Microsoft
Cortana, Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa) has been made possible by radically
improved natural language processing software and by the common inclusion of
sound detection devices (aka microphones) in the computing devices (rather a
necessary component of a smartphone.)
2.5 Output Devices
When a computer has finished carrying out its information processing, the user will
probably want to learn something about what the results were (why else would he/she
be using the computer?)
For the computer to communicate the processing results, it needs some kind of output
device.
An output device is a piece of computer equipment used to communicate the results
of data processing that an information processing system (such as a computer) has
carried out.
An output device converts the electronically generated information into a form that a
human can see, read, hear, feel, ... somehow get a sense of what the results of the
processing were.
The most common kinds of output devices can be divided into two classes: those that
produce output that users can see and those that produce output that users can hear.
2.5.1 Audio output devices:
Audio output devices can, in turn, be divided into two classes: those designed to
broadcast sound more or less publicly, so that most people within a reasonable area
can hear it, and those designed to produce output for only one person.
2.5.1.1 Speakers
Computer xlviispeakers are output devices used by the
computer to produce sounds.
Computer Speakers can be built into the
motherboard or can be attached as external Computer speakers
(peripheral) units.
39
2.5.1.2 Headphones:
xlviii
Headphones are low volume speakers that are placed on a band around the
user’s head, holding them close to, or even in the ears. The speakers produce low
volume sounds so that only the user can hear them. They may be used to prevent
other people from hearing the sound either for privacy or to prevent disturbance,
as in listening in a public library. They can also provide a level of sound fidelity
greater than loudspeakers of similar cost. Part of their ability to do so comes from
the lack of any need to perform room correction treatments with headphones.
xlix
Headphones are also
useful for video games,
as they allow players to
judge the position of an
off-screen sound
source (such as the
footsteps of an In-ear headphones
Headphones
opponent or their gun
fire).
2.5.2 Visual Display Devices
There are two general classes of visual display devices: those that produce output in
a form referred to as soft copy (devices on which the output is temporary) and those
that produce hard copy output (output in physical form.).
2.5.2.1 Screen (Monitor)
The term monitor [also referred to as a video display terminal (VDT) and/or
video display unit (VDU)] refers to a display screen for video images, (and the
case that holds it.)
Monitors are examples of soft copy devices, since their displays are regularly
changed/modified and/or replaced.
The early computer monitors were constructed like the early TVs, as CRT’s
(Cathode Ray Tubes) with a fluorescent screen illuminated by streams of
electrons.
Modern monitors are created using flat panel display technology.
40
2.5.2.1.1 lFlat panel technology

Flat panel technology encompasses a growing
number of electronic visual display technologies.
They are far lighter and thinner than traditional CRT
television sets and video displays. They are usually
less than 10 centimeters (3.9 in.) thick.
Most of the modern flat-panel displays use LCD
(liquid crystal display) technologies. Some, Flat Panel Display
however, use plasma display technology
Most LCD screens are back-lit to make them easier to read in bright
environments. They are thin and light and provide good linearity and
resolution.
Liquid crystal displays are lightweight, compact, portable and cheap and they
are more reliable, and easier on the eyes than are CRTs.
Plasma display technology tends to be used for very large displays.
2.5.2.1.2 Organic Light-Emitting Diode (OLED)
An organic light-emitting
diode (OLED) is a light-
emitting diode (LED)
embedded on flexible plastic.
OLED’s are used to create
displays on flexible materials
for use for applications like
wearable devices and on
curved surfaces and on
surfaces that change shape.
Arizona State University and HP's flexible display demonstrated

2.5.2.2 Projectors in 2008 at the university's Flexible Display Center
A liprojector (or image projector) is a device that

projects an image (or moving images) onto a surface,
such as a white wall or projection screen.
Earlier projectors created their images by shining a light
through a lens, but many newer types of projectors can Projector
project the image directly using lasers.
The very newest types of projectors are handheld projectors.
Most current handheld models do not produce very bright images, and their
projections can be hard to see if there is ambient light.
41
2.5.2.3 Printers
A liiprinter is an output device that prints graphics or text
on paper or similar physical media.
Printers produce hard copy output, as opposed to the
previously described output devices which were all
soft copy devices.
The two most common kinds of printer are laser printers Printer
and inkjet printers.
Monochrome (black and white) laser printers are commonly found in offices,
where they are used to produce text documents. Color laser printers are more
expensive than monochrome, but their prices are going down, and they are
becoming more common.
Inkjet printers are cheaper than laser printers and can produce relatively
high quality color output. They are commonly found in homes and small
businesses.
2.6 Communications Devices
There are several kinds of communications devices used in computers. Some duplicate
the functionalities of others and some provide relatively specialized services.
2.6.1 NIC’s
Many computers come with communications devices preinstalled. The most common
of these devices is the Network Interface Controller (NIC)
A network interface controller is a computer hardware component that connects
a computer to a computer network. (Typically using the Ethernet protocol.)
Early network interface controllers were commonly implemented on expansion
cards that plugged into a computer bus, but most modern computers have a
network interface built into the motherboard.
2.6.2 Wireless
Most modern computers come with hardware capable of wireless communication,
either with a router or with other computers.
Wireless hardware for a desktop computer eliminates the need to run network
cable from the router to the computer.
Wireless hardware can also give a laptop or desktop computer the capability to
communicate wirelessly with other computers, without the need for a router.
42
2.6.3 Bluetooth
liii
Bluetooth is a wireless technology now included on many
smartphones, laptops and desktop computers. It allows the
computer to communicate wirelessly with other devices
that have the hardware necessary to send and/or receive
Bluetooth signals.
A typical Bluetooth
One popular way of utilizing Bluetooth technology on a mobile phone headset.
computer is with a mouse capable of Bluetooth
communication. This eliminates the need for a wire.
Wireless control of and communication between a mobile phone and a handsfree
headset was one of the earliest Bluetooth applications to become popular.
2.6.4 Ethernet Ports
The livEthernet Port is another popular communication device that comes built into
many personal computers. It allows the computer to
communicate with another computer, a router or other
networking device using Ethernet cable.
In an effort to offer models that are as light and
simple as possible many laptop manufacturers,
have chosen to stop including an Ethernet port and
have users to rely on the laptop's wireless interface
for external communication.
2.6.5 Modems
A lvmodem (modulator-demodulator) is a network hardware device that encodes
(modulates) digital information for transmission using carrier wave signals to be
transmitted and then decoded (demodulated) by another modem on the receiving unit.
(Often the carrier waves are audio signals carried by telephone lines but modems can
use any analog signals.) Currently the most common form of modem is the cable
modem which allows access to high speed Internet service through the cable
television network.
43
2.6.5.1 Digital Transmission on Telephone Lines

The earliest modems made use of telephone connections. They simply transmitted
and detected sounds using combinations of frequencies. It was originally thought
that it was not possible to operate conventional phone lines beyond about 9600
bit/sec, but in the late 1980’s techniques were developed for extending the
bandwidth available on these lines. One common such technique is asymmetric
digital subscriber loop (ADSL, or more commonly just DSL) which uses different
wave lengths (and different bandwidths) for the uploading and downloading of
data.
A DSL connection can be deployed using existing wiring. Such deployment, even
including equipment, is much cheaper than installing a new, high-bandwidth
fiber-optic cable over the same route and distance. The commercial success of
DSL and similar technologies largely reflects the advances made in electronics
over the decades that have increased performance and reduced costs even while
digging trenches in the ground for new cables (copper or fiber optic) remains
expensive. Telephone companies were pressured into moving to ADSL largely
due to competition from cable companies. Demand for high bandwidth
applications, such as video and file sharing, also contributed to popularize ADSL
technology.
2.7 Bus:
A bus is a physical arrangement that facilitates the transmission of data from one
place in the computer to another.
Computers incorporate various kinds of buses for transmitting different kinds of
information.
Some of these buses are:
data bus; address bus; universal serial bus (USB)
Early computer buses were parallel electrical wires with multiple connections, but the
term is now used generally for any arrangement that provides the function of
transmitting data.
44
2.8 Questions:
2.8.1 Completion
2. The component which actually performs the actions/executes the commands that
the computer carries out is called the processor or ______
2.1 The _________ interprets and carries out the basic instructions that result in the
computer doing what we want it to do.
2.2 The term "memory", (primary memory, primary storage) is ___________
semiconductor memory, i.e. integrated circuits consisting of silicon-based
transistors.
2.2 Data items can be read from both RAM and ROM, but can be written only to
locations in _______
2.2 Most home or office computers include magnetic disk drives and have only a
minimal hardware initialization core and bootloader in ROM (known as the
______in IBM-compatible computers).
2.2 In order to achieve greater execution speed but hold costs down, computer
manufacturers use relatively cheap memory for most of their RAM but include a
small amount of (more expensive) high speed circuitry. This is called
________memory.
2.4 Traditional _______devices include the keyboard, mouse and scanner.
2.4.2 A text file might be represented by a picture of a paper notebook, and clicking
while the cursor hovers over this _______might cause a text editing program to
open the file in a window.
2.4.4 A(n) _________is a visual display which is sensitive to where a user is
pressing on it and transmits this information to the computer.
2.5.2.1.1 Very large displays generally use _______display technology.
2.5.2.1.2 OLED’s are used to produce _____ displays.
2.5.2.2 The two most common printer mechanisms are black and white ________
printers, used primarily for common text documents, and color inkjet printers.
2.5.2.3 The newest types of projectors are ________projectors.
2.6.3 Wireless control of and communication between a mobile phone and a

handsfree headset was one of the earliest applications of _______ to become
popular.
45

2. Computer memory (Primary storage, Random access memory or RAM) is
typically ________ (when the computer is turned off, the contents of memory
are erased.)
a) short term
b) volatile
c) temporary
d) all of the above
2. Almost all modern computers have pretty much the same design. They all have
the same basic components. One of these basic components would be ____:
a) Processor
b) Primary storage
c) Secondary storage
d) all of the above
2. In most systems, the basic components will be mounted on or connected to the

computer’s ________
a) motherboard
b) CPU
c) bay
d) bus
2.1 The central processing unit has two subdivisions, the control unit and the
_______
a) CPU
b) ALU
c) VDU
d) OSU
2.2 ROM is implemented using ________types of memory.

a) expensive
b) inexpensive
c) volatile
d) nonvolatile
46
2.2 RAM is implemented using ________types of memory.

a) expensive
b) inexpensive
c) volatile
d) nonvolatile
2.3 On modern computers _____ are normally used for secondary storage.
a) hard disk drives
b) optical drives
c) flash drives
d) all of the above
2.3 The time taken to access a given byte of information stored on a hard disk is
typically a few thousandths of a second, (a few_________.)
a) microseconds
b) milliseconds
c) nanoseconds
d) macroseconds
2.3 The time taken to access a given byte of information stored in random-access
memory is measured in billionths of a second (_________.)
a) microseconds
b) milliseconds
c) nanoseconds
d) macroseconds
2.4.3 Variations of the _______scanner (where the document is placed on a glass

window for scanning) are commonly found in offices.
a) flatbed
b) business
c) digital
d) all of the above
2.5.2.1.1 Most of the modern flat-panel displays use _______ technologies.

a) CRT
b) LCD
c) VDT
d) DVD
47
2.5.2.1.1 Liquid crystal displays are __________

a) cheaper and more reliable than CRT’s
b) cheaper but less reliable than CRT’s
c) More reliable but more expensive than CRT’s
d) more expensive and less reliable than CRT’s
e) none of the above)
2.6.4 An Ethernet port is an example of a(n) _______ device
a) input
b) output
c) communications
d) storage
2.7 A USB is a type of:
a) bus
b) motherboard
c) data storage device
d) input device
2.8.3 True-False
the same basic components.
2.2 The time it takes for a program to execute depends very much on where it is
located in computer memory, since it takes the processor much longer to
reference some cells than others.
2.2 Access to locations in RAM is generally much faster than to locations in ROM.
2.3 Secondary storage does not lose the data when the device is powered down (it is
non-volatile.) It is also typically two orders of magnitude more expensive than
primary storage.
2.3 Rotating optical storage devices (such as CD and DVD drives), have much
shorter access times than do rotating magnetic storage devices, such as hard
disks.
2.4.4 Very few tablet computers incorporate touchscreens, since their larger screens
would make them too expensive.
2.4.5 Most laptops and tablets come with digital cameras built in.
2.5.2. Headphones cannot provide good quality sound. For good fidelity, speakers
are needed.
2.6.1 Early network interface controllers were commonly built into computer
motherboards, but most on most modern computers, they are implemented on
expansion cards that plugged into a computer bus.
48
3 Software
Of course a computer is of little use unless it has programs to execute, programs that will
make it do things a user might want it to do.
Computer programs (collectively known as Computer Software) can generally be divided
into two classifications: System Software and Application Software
System software is software which provides an interface and services both for users and
for other software.
Application software is software designed to provide specific services for users.
3.1 System Software
System software is often divided into two classifications: Operating Systems (often
referred to as simply OS’s) and Utility Programs
3.1.1 Operating Systems
The operating system allows the components of a computer to work together.
(Some examples of operating systems are:
UNIX, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Android, iOS, and Linux)
An operating system would include programs that interface:
• users with hardware.
• users with software.
• software with hardware.
• software with other software.
An operating system will have programs that perform tasks like:
• transferring data between primary memory and secondary storage
• rendering output onto a display device.
3.1.1.1 Single Tasking Systems
The earliest operating systems required users to type their programs (and their
commands for the operating system) on punched cards. The cards would be placed
(in proper order) into a card reader. The cards would be read, and the program
would be executed.
These early operating systems were inherently single tasking systems, executing
one program at a time. They would have to finish one program before beginning
another.
49
3.1.1.2 Multi-Tasking Systems

In the early days of computing, CPU time was expensive, and peripherals were
very slow. When the computer ran a program that needed access to a peripheral,
the central processing unit (CPU) would have to stop executing program
instructions while the peripheral access was going on. This resulted in the
(expensive) CPU spending much of its time simply sitting idle.
The first computer using a multitasking system was the British Leo III produced
by J. Lyons and Co. (First completed in 1961.) During batch processing several
different programs would be loaded in the computer memory, and the first one
would begin to run. When a running program came to an instruction that required
a response from a peripheral, the context of this program would be stored, and
another of the programs in memory would begin to run. This process of running
until required to wait, and then passing control to another program, rather than
stopping and waiting, would continue until all programs finished running.
3.1.1.3 Multi User Systems / Time Sharing Systems
With computers loading several programs into memory at
once, (Multitasking systems) it seemed natural to allow
several users to interact with the system concurrently.
(Systems that do this are called Multi-User systems.)
In these systems, rather than submitting a program or group
of programs as a sequence of punched cards, a user would
interact with the system by means of a “terminal”. (In the
early days, terminals were often lviASR 33 teletype
machines.)
In order to better support multi user systems the concept of
“time slicing” was developed. The CPU would execute
commands from one process for a short period of time (a
time slice), then it would execute commands from another
process for a period (slice) of time, … (The idea being that
each user should have the impression that the computer was
continually working only for him/her, although, in fact several users would be
sharing access to the computer’s processing time.)
50
3.1.1.3.1 Dartmouth Time Sharing System (DTSS)

The first successful multiuser time sharing system was implemented at
Dartmouth College. It began operations on May 1, 1964 and remained
in operation until the end of 1999. Its design and implementation began
in 1963, by a student team under the direction of John Kemeny and
Thomas Kurtz and had the aim of providing easy access to computing
facilities for all members of the college. Kemeny felt that 10 seconds
was the maximum time that a user should have to wait for a system
response5. The system provided interactive time-sharing for up to nearly
300 simultaneous users in the 1970s (a very large number at that time.)
3.1.1.3.2 UNIX
Probably the most widely used multi-user operating system in current use is
UNIX, which was developed by Thompson and Ritchie at AT&T’s Bell Labs
in 1969.
Although UNIX was originally only intended just for use inside the Bell
system, its use soon spread widely, first to academic institutions and shortly
thereafter to vendors (such as IBM, SUN Microsystems and Microsoft) often
distributed under proprietary names, such as XENIX (Microsoft) AIX (IBM)
and SOLARIS (SUN)
UNIX spread so widely in part because it was designed to be easily portable
to a wide range of different computing systems. It was developed as a
collection of individual modules (utilities) and written in a high level
language (C) which made it easy to modify and keep up to date.
3.1.1.4 Personal Computer Operating Systems
A personal computer is a multi-purpose electronic computer whose size,
capabilities, and price make it feasible for individual use. Personal computers are
intended to be operated directly by an end-user who is not necessarily a computer
expert or technician.
The types of computer time-sharing operating systems that were typically used
with larger, more expensive minicomputer and mainframe systems, were not
appropriate for the earliest personal computers.
Personal computers DO, however, require some kind of operating system to allow
their users to execute programs, store files, and, in general, USE their computers.
The earliest personal computers generally featured operating systems with rather
primitive command line interfaces.
5
10 seconds might seem quite a long wait time today, but users of the single user systems
common at that time would typically have to wait overnight, and a waiting time of several days
was not uncommon.
51
3.1.1.4.1 Command Line Interface

The command line system was more or less inherited from the earlier multi
user systems.
In a system with a command line interface, the user would use the keyboard to
enter a computer command. The computer would interpret the command and
execute it. Then the computer would wait for the user to enter another
command.
Some of the personal computer operating systems with command line
interfaces were: AppleDOS, CP/M and MS-DOS.
3.1.1.4.2 Graphical User Interfaces (GUI’s)
In the early 1980’s alternative means for users to communicate with and
control their personal computers began to emerge utilizing improved
computer processing capabilities and much better display devices.
The graphical user interface (GUI), is a type of user interface that allows
users to interact with electronic devices through graphical icons and visual
indicators, instead of text-based user interfaces. GUIs were introduced in
reaction to the perceived steep learning curve of command-line interfaces.
Alan Kay used a GUI as the main interface for the Xerox Alto computer,
released in 1973. Most modern general-purpose GUIs are derived from this
system, although it never reached commercial production.
The first commercially available computer with a GUI was the 1979 PERQ
workstation, manufactured by Three Rivers Computer Corporation.
In 1981, Xerox eventually commercialized the
Alto in the form of a new and enhanced system –
the Xerox 8010 Information System – more
commonly known as the Xerox Star.
These early systems spurred many other GUI
efforts, including the Apple Lisa in 1983, the
Apple Macintosh 128K in 1984, and, in 1985, the The Xerox Star 8010
Atari ST with Digital Research's GEM, and workstation introduced the
first commercial GUI.
Commodore Amiga. The Apple Macintosh was
probably the most influential of these early GUI’s.
52
3.1.1.4.2.1 Mac OS
The lvii"classic" Mac OS is the original Macintosh
operating system that was introduced in 1984
along with the first Macintosh computer and it
remained in primary use on Mac’s through 2001.
It was originally named "System Software", or The original Macintosh
simply "System"; System Software and
Finder, released in 1984
Apple rebranded it as "Mac OS" in 1996.
Mac OS is characterized by its monolithic system. It was noted as being
easy to use, but was criticized for its limited memory management, lack of
memory protection and access controls, and for its propensity for conflicts
among extensions.
3.1.1.4.2.2 Microsoft Windows

In response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces (GUIs), on
November 20, 1985, Microsoft introduced an operating environment
named Windows 1.0. Windows 1.0 was a graphical operating system shell
for MS-DOS and was intended to compete with Apple’s operating system,
but, in fact, it achieved little success.
Windows 2.0 was released in December 1987 and turned out to be more
popular than its predecessor. Apple Computer filed a suit against Microsoft
alleging infringement on Apple's copyrights. In 1993, the case was
eventually settled (in court) in Microsoft's favor.
lviii
Windows 3.0, released in 1990, was the first
Microsoft Windows version to achieve broad
commercial success.
Microsoft Windows eventually came to dominate
the world's personal computer (PC) market with
over 90% market share.
On PCs, Windows is still the most popular operating system, but, in 2014,
Microsoft admitted to losing the majority of the overall operating system
market to Android. This was because of the massive growth in sales of
Android smartphones. In 2014, the number of Windows devices sold was
less than 25% that of Android devices sold. (Of course the two operating
systems run on very different kinds of platforms.)
53
3.1.1.4.2.3 Linux Systems

Linux is an open source computer operating system derived from UNIX It
was first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds.
Linux was originally developed for Intel x86 based personal computers but
has since been ported to many other platforms and is used on more different
platforms than any other operating system.
Because of the dominance of Android (a version of Linux) on smartphones,

Linux has the largest installed base of all general-purpose operating
systems.
Linux is also the leading operating system on servers and other “big
iron” systems such as mainframe computers and is used on 99.6% of the
TOP500 supercomputers.
as of November 2018, the estimated market share of Linux on

desktop computers was around 2.1%. In comparison, Microsoft
Windows had a market share of around 87%, and macOS covered
around 9.7%. The Chromebook, which runs on Chrome OS (another
Linux derivative), dominates the US K–12 education market and
represents nearly 20% of the sub-$300 notebook sales in the US.
A desktop Linux distribution will normally include a windowing system,

and an accompanying desktop environment (usually lixGNOME and KDE.)
54
3.1.1.5 Smart Phones

A smartphone is a mobile phone with a built in computer and, of course, an
operating system.) A smartphone operating system will normally combine
features of a personal computer operating system with other features useful for
mobile and/or handheld use.
Smartphones are generally pocket-sized and typically have the features of a
mobile phone (they can make and receive voice calls and they can send and
receive text messages.) They also have the features of other mobile
devices/utilities:
Features such as event calendars; media players; video games; GPS
navigation; digital cameras; and video cameras.
Smartphones can access the Internet and can run a variety of third-party
software components.
These software components are called "apps" and can be obtained from
places like Google Play Store or Apple App Store.
A smartphone typically has a color display with a graphical user interface that
covers more than 75% of the front surface. The display is almost always a
touchscreen, and sometimes also has a touch-enabled keyboard. The user can
press onscreen icons to activate "app" features, or he/she can use the virtual
keyboard to type words and numbers.
The vast majority of modern smartphones use one of two operating systems:
Android or iOS.
3.1.1.5.1 Android
lx
Android is a mobile operating system developed by Android
Inc. (starting in 2003) The company was purchased by Google
in 2005. Android is based on Linux and is designed primarily
for touchscreen mobile devices such as smartphones and
tablets.
Android works with a user interface that is principally based
on direct manipulation. It uses touch gestures that loosely
correspond to real-world actions, such as swiping, tapping and
pinching. These are used to manipulate on-screen objects
(icons.) An Android system typically also includes a virtual
keyboard for text input.
In addition to touchscreen devices, Google has further expanded the system to
include Android TV for televisions, Android Auto for cars, and Android Wear
for wrist watches. Each of these has its own specialized user interface.
Variants of Android are also used on notebooks, game consoles, digital
cameras, and other electronics.
In September 2015, Android had 1.4 billion monthly active users, and it has
the largest installed base of any operating system.
55
3.1.1.5.2 iOS
lxi
iOS is a mobile operating system created and developed by
Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating
system that presently powers many of the company's mobile
devices, including the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch. It is the
second most popular mobile operating system globally. Only
Android is more popular. iPad tablets have also been the
second most popular, by sales (second to Android) since 2013.
The iOS user interface is based on direct manipulation, using
multi-touch gestures. It implements interface control elements
including sliders, switches, and buttons. Interaction with the
system includes gestures such as swipe, tap, pinch, and reverse pinch, all of
which have specific definitions within the context of the iOS operating system
and its multi-touch interface. Internal accelerometers are used by some
applications to sense movement of the device.
3.1.1.6 Smart TV’s

Smart TV’s include computing systems, and so they need operating systems to
make them functional. As in a personal computer, a TV OS will have a graphical
user interface (GUI) to support user interaction.
TV operating systems allow a user to browse not just channels on satellite or cable
TV but also on demand video services. The systems also access pictures, music
or video content on connected storage devices.
Currently, there is no one standard operating system or interface for smart TVs.
Some of the more widely used smart TV operating systems are:
Roku TV, Android TV, FireTV, WebOS, Tizen, Smartcast and
MyHomeScreen.
3.1.2 Utility Programs
Utility programs help system administrators analyze, configure, optimize and
maintain the computer. These include programs for things like virus protection,
access control, file system administration, display control, system restore and backup,
and system security.
The term system software can also be used when referencing software development
tools.
(Tools such as compilers, linkers and debuggers.)
56
3.1.3 Device Drivers

As computers became more and more common, manufacturers began producing
devices and equipment to work with the computers.
(printers, modems, scanners, projectors, disk drives, …)
The different companies did not all produce equipment that worked in exactly the
same way. Of course the computer manufacturers (and software designers) could
hardly be expected to have been able to anticipate the details of how every one of the
different kinds of equipment was going to operate, so the equipment manufacturers
began designing “drivers” to go with their equipment.
A device driver is a computer program that operates or controls a particular kind
of device that might be attached to a computer. Such a driver provides an interface
for the device. Drivers enable operating systems, and other computer programs,
to access device functions without needing to know precise details of the
hardware.
When a new device is installed on a computer, its drivers must also be installed. For
early personal computer users, the process of installing drivers was often difficult and
frustrating. As microprocessors made mass-market computers affordable, personal
computers became more common and an automated system for driver installation and
configuration became more and more important.
Early systems for software configuration of devices included:
the MSX standard, NuBus, Amiga Autoconfig, and IBM Microchannel.
Initially all expansion cards for the IBM PC required configuration by physical
selection on the board with jumper straps or DIP switches, but increasingly ISA bus
devices were designed to support software configuration. By 1995, Microsoft
Windows included a comprehensive method of enumerating hardware at boot time
and allocating resources. The system was called the "Plug and Play" standard.
Now, there are several completely automated computer interfaces, none of which
require any device configuration by the computer user. The only task of the user is to
load software. The devices are self-configuring.
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3.2 Application Software

An application is a program, (or group of programs), that is designed to be used by
regular users (end users) as opposed to systems administrators. Application software
(also called end-user programs) includes programs such as database programs, word
processors, Web browsers and spreadsheets.
The collective noun “application software” refers to all applications collectively. The
name “application software” distinguishes this type of software from system software
which is mainly involved with running the computer.
Some applications will come bundled with a computer, but many are published
separately. Applications may be coded as proprietary, open-source or university projects.
Applications built for mobile platforms are called mobile apps.
There are many different types of application software:
• An application suite (or software suite) consists of a collection of several applications
bundled together. They usually have related functions, features, and similar user
interfaces. They are often able to interact with each other (they might, for example,
be able to open each other's files.)
o Business applications (see 3.2.1 Productivity Software, below) often come in
suites.
Some examples are: Microsoft Office, LibreOffice and iWork.
Such suites typically include: a word processor, a spreadsheet program, a DBMS
program, and a display management program.
Suites also exist for other purposes, e.g. graphics or music.
• Enterprise software addresses the needs of an entire organization's processes and data
flows, across several departments, often in large distributed environments.
o Examples include enterprise resource planning systems, customer relationship
management (CRM) systems and supply chain management software.
o Departmental Software is a sub-type of enterprise software with a focus on
smaller organizations or groups within a large organization. (Examples include
travel expense management and IT Helpdesk.)
• Enterprise infrastructure software provides common capabilities needed to support
enterprise software systems. (Examples include databases, email servers, and systems
for managing networks and security.)
• Information worker software lets users create and manage information, often for
individual projects within a department, in contrast to enterprise management.
o Examples include time management, resource management, analytical,
collaborative and documentation tools.
o Word processors, spreadsheets, email and blog clients, personal information
system, and individual media editors may aid in multiple information worker
tasks.
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• Content access software is used primarily to access content without editing but may
include software that allows for content editing. Such software addresses the needs
of individuals and groups to consume digital entertainment and published digital
content.
o Examples include media players, web browsers, and help browsers.
• Educational software is related to content access software, but has the content or
features adapted for use in by educators or students.
o For example, it may deliver evaluations (tests) and/or track progress through
material. Educational software is also available for support of collaborative
activities.
• Simulation software simulates physical or abstract systems for research, training or
entertainment purposes.
• Media development software generates print and electronic media for others to
consume, most often in a commercial or educational setting. This includes graphic-
art software, desktop publishing software, multimedia development software, HTML
editors, digital-animation editors, digital audio and video composition, and many
others.
• Product engineering software is used in developing hardware and software products.
This includes computer-aided design (CAD), computer-aided engineering (CAE),
computer language editing and compiling tools, integrated development
environments, and application programmer interfaces.
• Entertainment Software can refer to video games, screen savers, programs to display
motion pictures or play recorded music, and other forms of entertainment which can
be experienced through use of a computing device.
3.2.1 Productivity Software
Productivity software is a term that has come to be used to describe a type of software
that helps users produce things. In particular, it tends to refer to software that helps
in the production of business-related things such as documents, databases, graphs,
worksheets and presentations.
Common examples of office productivity software include word processors, database
management systems (DBMS), graphics software, and spreadsheet applications. The
term is sometimes also used for any type of application that is used to help people do
their jobs and is used for programs supporting collaboration and communication.
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3.2.2 Classes of Software

The way software is marketed/distributed can be categorized in several different
ways. Among the classifications are: commercial software, shareware, freeware,
public domain software and software as a service (SaaS).
(These classes are not entirely mutually exclusive, and there is some dispute
as to the exact definitions of some of the terms.)
Most software is covered by copyright which provides legal basis for owners to
establish their rights.
3.2.2.1 Commercial Software
The term Commercial Software refers to software that you buy. Proprietary
software vendors can (and usually do) prohibit users from sharing the software
with others. If another party is to use the software they should obtain a license for
their use of the program.
A software vendor spells out the specific terms of use in an end-user license
agreement (EULA). The user may agree to this contract in writing, interactively
on screen, or just by opening the box containing the software. License agreements
are usually not negotiable, but vendors will sometimes grant rights to the user in
the license agreement. Vendors typically limit the number of computers on which
software can be used and prohibit the user from installing the software on extra
computers, except in the case where the user purchases of the right to do so (buys
what is called a site license.)
There are two distinct types of individual (single user) licenses: Perpetual licenses
and subscription licenses.
3.2.2.1.1 Perpetual Licenses
Perpetual licenses allow the customer to install and use the software
indefinitely. Technical support is included for a limited term. Typically, if
the owner sells a computer with the software installed, the purchaser will
become the owner of the software and be bound by the restrictions on the
previous owner (i.e. cannot copy the software onto multiple computers
and/or distribute copies to other users.)
3.2.2.1.2 Subscription Licenses
Subscription licenses allow the user to use the software for a specified time
period. Subscription licenses are becoming increasingly popular (e.g.
Microsoft Office 365.) These licenses usually include technical support and
will have access to all upgrades and patches released during the term of the
subscription. At the end of the term a user will have three options:
1) renew the subscription
2) purchase a perpetual license (often at a discounted cost)
3) remove the software from the computer.
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3.2.2.2 Shareware
During the 1980’s several independent software authors, lacking financial means
to mount large scale advertising campaigns, developed a new system for
marketing their products. They distributed free copies of their programs,
recommended that people who received the programs copy them and give the
copies to friends, family, colleagues and/or anybody who might have an interest.
It was suggested (but usually not required) that, after using the programs for a
period of time, the user, if he/she wanted to continue using them, might send some
kind of payment to the program authors.
Software distributed/marketed in this way (recommending users share the
software and requesting subsequent payment) came to be known as shareware.
3.2.2.3 Freeware
Freeware is software that is available for use at no monetary cost. In other words,
while freeware may be used without payment it is most often proprietary software,
and usually modification, re-distribution or reverse-engineering (without the
author's permission) is prohibited. Two historic examples of freeware include
Skype and Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Freeware, although itself free of charge, may be intended to benefit its producer.
The source code of freeware is typically not available to users.
3.2.2.4 Open Source Software
Open-source software (OSS) is a type of computer software whose source code
is released under a license in which the copyright holder grants users the rights to
study, change, and redistribute the software.
Open-source software is often developed in a collaborative public manner.
3.2.2.5 SaaS
Software as a Service (or SaaS) is a way of delivering access to centrally hosted
applications over the Internet—as a service. SaaS applications are sometimes
called web-based software, on-demand software, or hosted software. Whatever
the name, SaaS application programs run on a SaaS provider’s servers. Instead of
installing and maintaining software, a user simply accesses it via the Internet,
freeing him/herself from complex software and hardware management. The
provider manages access to the application, including security, availability, and
performance. SaaS business applications are usually accessed by users using a
web browser. Unlike traditional software, which is conventionally sold as a
perpetual license with an up-front cost (often with an optional ongoing support
fee), SaaS providers generally price applications om a subscription basis, most
commonly charging a monthly or annual fee.
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SaaS has become a common delivery model for many business applications.
Centralized hosting of business applications dates back to the 1960s. Starting in
that decade, IBM and other mainframe providers conducted a service bureau
business, often referred to as time-sharing or utility computing. Such services
included offering computing power and database storage from their worldwide
data centers. These services were marketed primarily to banks and other large
organizations.
As businesses and individuals began to acquire their own computers, this type of
service became less widely used until the expansion of the Internet during the
1990s brought about a new class of centralized computing, called Application
Service Providers (ASP’s). These provided businesses with the service of hosting
and managing specialized business applications, and had the goal of reducing
costs through central administration and through the solution provider's
specialization in a particular business application.
SaaS essentially extends the idea of the ASP model but:
• While most initial ASP's focused on managing and hosting third-party
software, as of 2012 SaaS vendors had begun to develop and manage their
own software.
• Whereas many initial ASPs offered more traditional client-server
applications, which would require installation of software on users' personal
computers, SaaS solutions of today rely predominantly on the Web and their
use normally only requires a web browser.
3.3 Ethical Issues Related to Computer Software
Ethical issues related to computer software can be divided into two categories:
• issues related to users of computers and their software
• and issues for software developers (and distributers)
3.3.1 Ethical Issues for Software Users

3.3.1.1 Piracy
The following is copied from
http://cs.stanford.edu/people/eroberts/cs201/projects/software-piracy/ethical.html
The Ethics of Piracy

The software pirates and those trying to protect software copyrights approach
the ethics of piracy from two different viewpoints. There are two contrasting
ethical views on the issue of piracy, and both have their valid points. Some
believe that piracy is ethical and others believe that it is unethical.
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Piracy is Ethical
Some think that there is nothing wrong with software piracy. They believe in
the freedom of information and expression (ie. "information wants to be free").
According to them, it is acceptable and ethical to copy the software because
they have a right to the information contained in the software. They also hold
the idea of that reproduction and distribution of software a part of fair use
within copyright law.
Some pirates have cited their first amendment rights as an excuse for piracy.
They claim that since posting information in electronic form is protected by the
first amendment, the distribution of illegal software is an exercise of the rights
of self-expression and should not be infringed upon.
Some think that software piracy doesn't hurt anyone, that it is a victimless
crime. They believe that, with the rising prices of software, software
manufacturers are really not hurt by pirates making illegal copies of their
programs. They think since they are not going to pay for the software anyway,
it is OK to get it free.
Another common excuse runs along the lines of "the software is really not
worth the money they're charging anyway." The argument continues that since
the software is buggy, it's really not a crime to distribute faulty products.
Finally, some claim that they're simply "testing" the software. "If I really like it,
I'll pay for it," runs the common excuse, "but this program just sits on my hard
drive and I almost never use it."
Piracy is Unethical
This view holds that piracy is really not a victimless crime. Due to software
piracy, the industry has seen some 12 billion dollars and over 100,000 jobs lost.
The attraction of piracy is due to its anonymity and the ease with which illegal
copies of software can be made and distributed. However, every person who
makes illegal copies is contributing to the monetary losses caused by piracy.
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Information really does not "want to be free." People who write the software
have rights to profit from it, just as people who write books have the sole right
to sell them. Copying software is depriving the rightful owners of software of
hard-earned wages.
Software piracy cannot be protected by the first amendment, because the first
amendment does not cover illegal activities. Just as yelling "Fire!" in a crowded
theater is not protected by the first amendment, neither is the distribution of
illegal software.
The claim that pirates have a right to make illegal copies of software because
the software is buggy, or too expensive, or not frequently used by the pirate, is
also flawed. Someone might think a Rolls-Royce is too expensive and not worth
the money, but this doesn't give him the right to steal it. Or, the fact that you
almost never watch television doesn't give you the right to steal a TV.
Pirating software costs everyone. Since not as many copies of software are
sold, the software manufacturers have to raise prices. This means that the
legitimate users are incurring higher costs due to piracy.
In short, piracy is not as "victimless" a crime as it may seem. Software
developers, distributors, and, ultimately, end users, are all hurt by piracy.
3.3.1.2 Ethical and Unethical Uses of Computers and Computer
Programs
The widespread use of computers has introduced a new level of insecurity into all
of our lives and provided most of us with new opportunities to engage in new
behaviors, many of which are (or at least have the potential of being) unethical.
3.3.1.2.1 Unethical Behavior

The computers in our lives give us the opportunity to engage in new activities,
many of which are at best questionable, and some of which are clearly
unethical. Among these unethical activities are software piracy, cyberbullying,
plagiarism, unauthorized access to private information spreading of viruses,
and monitoring the computer activities of others.
Given the widespread use of computers (and especially smartphones) by
children, the situation has evolved to where parents now have responsibilities
(for which they are for the most part woefully unprepared) to prevent their
children from engaging in, or falling victim to, unethical behaviors.
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3.3.1.2.1.1 Piracy
The issue of software piracy is dealt with at great length in another section,
but there is no question that accepting unauthorized copies of software,
and/or allowing friends and associates to make copies of software you have
purchased, would be illegal, in addition to being, at the very best,
questionable, ethically speaking.
3.3.1.2.1.2 Cyberbullying
Although bullying has always been a part of life, the emergence of social
networking has given enormously greater powers to would be bullies. (A
number of widely publicized incidents in which the victims were driven to
suicide can attest to this.)
Clearly the parents of possible victims have a responsibility to protect their
children from these online predators, but the parents of potential bullies
also have a moral/ethical responsibility to monitor their children, and to
prevent them from engaging in such behavior.
3.3.1.2.1.3 Plagiarism
Documents with all kinds of information are widely available on the
Internet (as well as images and videos) and software to copy from the online
documents and paste what was copied into documents of our own is also
generally available. It is easy to forget our ethical (and legal) duty to
attribute the source of what we are using.
There is also a booming cottage industry of people who will write papers
and do homework assignments for high school and college students.
Needless to say, submitting someone else’s work as one’s own is frowned
on by teachers everywhere, and must be considered an ethical violation.
3.3.1.2.1.4 Unauthorized access

Computer ethics also involve avoiding unauthorized access to computer
systems and preserving the confidentiality and privacy of data in
computers. In addition, it gives us all the responsibility of respecting system
policies, such as not sharing passwords and not trying to access
unauthorized sites.
This becomes somewhat controversial in the case of a parent accessing the
memory and browser history of their child’s computer or smartphone. How
old does the child have to be before it becomes improper for the parent to
do this?
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3.3.1.2.1.5 Spreading viruses

Since we know that harmful viruses exist, if we share software and/or data
with others, we have an ethical responsibility to make sure that what we
share is virus free.
3.3.1.2.1.6 Activity monitoring
In the area of the ethics of activity monitoring, there are many questions,
but few clear answers.
Some employers make it a practice to monitor employees’ activities while
at work, even to the point of recording all of their email accesses. Many
people argue that this is an invasion of privacy. Others argue that the
employer is paying for the employees’ time, and, usually, for the computers
they are using and for the Internet access, as well. One might argue, then,
that this would give the employer the right to ensure that the employees are
using the computers (and Internet access) for work related activities.
Whichever argument you believe, it would seem clear that secret
monitoring of anybody’s activities would be ethically wrong.
Or would it be? Don’t police do that regularly when investigating
suspected lawbreakers? Is it ethically permissible for police to do it?
Under what circumstances? Should they be required to obtain a warrant?
Parents have not only a right, but a responsibility to monitor the
activities of their children, or at least the activities of young children. At
some point the parents no longer have such rights or responsibilities, but
it is not entirely clear at what age this change takes place.
3.3.1.2.2 Insecurity
The simple fact of having and using a computer puts us at risk of a number of
possible dangers, any or all of which can and should worry us.
3.3.1.2.2.1 Identity Theft
One of the things we must be aware of is the possibility of identity theft.
Identity theft is the deliberate use of someone else's identity. The person
whose identity has been assumed may suffer adverse consequences if they
are held responsible for the perpetrator's actions. Identity theft occurs
when someone uses another's identifying information,
(like their name, ID number, credit card number)
without their permission, and is often done to commit fraud or other
crimes.
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Most victims of identity theft do not realize that they are victims until their
lives have been negatively impacted. Many people do not find out that their
identities have been stolen until they are contacted by financial institutions
or discover suspicious activities on their bank accounts. According to an
article by Herb Weisbaum, everyone in the US should assume that their
personal information has been compromised at some point. It is therefore
of great importance to watch out for warning signs that your identity has
been compromised.
3.3.1.2.2.2 Cyberbullying
A common definition of cyberbullying is "an aggressive, intentional act or
behavior that is carried out by a group or an individual, using electronic
forms of contact, repeatedly and over time against a victim who cannot
easily defend him or herself."
There are many variations of this definition. One such is from the National
Crime Prevention Council and is more specific: "the process of using the
Internet, cell phones or other devices to send or post text or images intended
to hurt or embarrass another person."
Components such as the repetition of the behavior and the power
imbalance between the bully and victim, and their applicability to
electronic harassment, are debated.
Cyberbullying is often similar to traditional bullying, although there are
some distinctions. Victims of cyberbullying may not know the identity of
their bully, or why the bully is targeting them. The harassment can have
wider-reaching effects on the victim than traditional bullying, as the content
used to harass the victim can be spread and shared easily among many
people, and often remains accessible for a long time after the initial
incident. The victim is also sometimes exposed to the harassment whenever
they use technology, as opposed to traditional harassment where the bully
often must be in physical proximity to the target.
3.3.1.2.2.3 Being Hacked
Many people get hacked and do not even have a clue about it, till it is too
late. If you do not want to have your computer hacked, you really have to
be on alert and remain vigilant for strange behavior in e-mail messages,
credit card statements and unusual computer behavior.
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3.3.1.2.2.4 Infection by Viruses

Computer viruses currently cause billions of dollars' worth of economic
damage each year. The damage is due to system failure, waste of computer
resources, data corruption, increased maintenance costs, etc. In response,
an industry of antivirus software has cropped up, providing virus protection
to users of various operating systems.
No currently existing antivirus software is able to detect all computer
viruses (especially new ones), but computer security researchers are
actively searching for new ways to enable antivirus solutions to more
effectively detect emerging viruses, before they have already become
widely distributed.
3.3.1.2.2.5 Being Monitored by Employers
The following is copied from:
https://www.privacyrights.org/consumer-guides/workplace-privacy-and-employee-monitoring#
Technology allows employers to monitor many aspects of their

employees' workplace activities. While employees may feel that such
monitoring is a violation of their privacy rights, many types of monitoring
are allowed under the law. A majority of employers monitor their
employees. They are motivated by concern over litigation and the
increasing role that electronic evidence plays in lawsuits and government
agency investigations.
Employers use technology to provide insight into employee behavior
based on the trail of "digital footprints" created each day in the workplace.
This technology can piece together all of these electronic records to
provide behavior patterns that employers may utilize to evaluate
employee performance and conduct. For example, it might look for word
patterns, changes in language or style, and communication patterns
between individuals. This makes it possible for employers to monitor
many aspects of their employees' jobs, especially on telephones,
computer terminals, through email and voice mail, and when employees
are online.
Almost everything you do on your office computer can be
monitored. Such monitoring is virtually unregulated. Therefore, unless
company policy specifically states otherwise (and even this is not
assured), your employer may listen, watch and read most of your
workplace communications. Courts often have found that when
employees are using an employer's equipment, their expectation of
privacy is limited.
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It's important to be aware that your employer's promises regarding

workplace privacy issues may not always legally binding. Policies can be
communicated in various ways: through employee handbooks, via
memos, and in union contracts. For example, if an employer explicitly
states that employees will be notified when telephone monitoring takes
place, the employer generally must honor that policy. There are usually
exceptions for investigations of wrong-doing. If you are not already aware
of your employer's workplace privacy policies, it is a good idea to become
informed.
3.3.1.3 10 Commandments of Computer Ethics
Written by the Computer Ethics Institute
1. Thou shalt not use a computer to harm other people.
2. Thou shalt not interfere with other people's computer work.
3. Thou shalt not snoop around in other people's computer files.
4. Thou shalt not use a computer to steal.
5. Thou shalt not use a computer to bear false witness.
6. Thou shalt not copy or use proprietary software for which you
have not paid.
7. Thou shalt not use other people's computer resources without
authorization or proper compensation.
8. Thou shalt not appropriate other people's intellectual output.
9. Thou shalt think about the social consequences of the program
you are writing or the system you are designing.
10. Thou shalt always use a computer in ways that ensure
consideration and respect for your fellow humans.
3.3.2 Ethical Issues for Software Producers

There is software designed specifically to monitor computer activity (keyboard
logging software is one common type.). Families and business people often use
keyloggers to monitor network usage, frequently without their users' direct
knowledge. Many of these programs seem to be marketed to individuals looking for
evidence that a spouse might be cheating. Surely suspicion of infidelity should not
be sufficient grounds for making such violation of privacy acceptable behavior. One
must ask, then, how ethical is the behavior of the marketers of such software?
Software developers (and software vendors) are required to make decisions with
moral and ethical consequences on a daily basis.
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The following is a thoughtful analysis, copied from:

http://www.infoworld.com/article/2607452/application-development/12-ethical-dilemmas-gnawing-at-developers-today.html
What follows are a few of the ethical quandaries confronting developers every day -
- whether they know it or not. There are no easy answers, in some measure because
the very nature of the work is so abstract. To make matters worse, business has
become so inextricably linked with computer technology that it is difficult to balance
the needs and motivations of all invested parties in trying to prevent today's business-
case feature from becoming tomorrow's Orwellian nightmare.
The trick is to think past the current zeitgeist and anticipate every future utilization
of what you build. Pretty simple, huh? Consider this less of a guidebook for making
your decisions and more of a starting point for the kind of ethical contemplation we
should be doing as a daily part of our jobs.
3.3.2.1 Ethical dilemma No.1: Log files--what to save and how to handle them
Programmers are like pack rats. They keep records of everything, often because it's
the only way to debug a system. But log files also track everything users do, and in
the wrong hands, they can expose facts users want kept secret.
Many businesses are built on actively protecting log files. Some remote-backup
services even promise to keep additional copies in disparate geographic locations.
Not every business aspires to such diligence. Snapchat, for example, built its brand
on doing a very bad job of backing up data, but its users are attracted by the freedom
of the forgetful system.
The mere existence of log files begs several ethical questions. Are they adequately
protected? Who has access? When we say we destroy the files, are they truly
destroyed?
The crux is ascertaining what information is worth keeping, given the risks of doing
so, ethical or otherwise. Here, the future complicates the equation. In the 1960s,
smoking was widely embraced. No one would have thought twice about keeping
track of people's smoking habits. Today, however, the knowledge of someone's
smoking activity can be used to raise health insurance rates or even deny coverage.
Future business deals; future government regulations; an unforeseen, desperate
need for new revenue streams -- it may be impossible to predict what seemingly
innocent log file will become problematic in the future, but it is essential to consider
the ethics of how you handle the logs along the way.
3.3.2.2 Ethical dilemma No.2: Whether-and how-to transform users into
products
It's a well-worn adage of the startup era: If you're not paying for a service, you're
not a customer; you're the product.
On the Internet, "free" services abound. In fact, the question of where the money
will come from is often put off, being off putting. We just build the amazingness,
keep an eye on the adoption metrics, and figure someone else will take care of the
dirty work of keeping the server lights on. Worst case, there are always ads.
Developers need to be upfront about who will support their work and where the
money will come from. Any changes should be communicated to users in a clear,
timely fashion to avoid shock and blowback. Transforming people into products is
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an ethical shift not to be taken lightly. Shady ad deals, shady ad networks -- we

need to be careful how we handle the implicit trust of early adopters.
3.3.2.3 Ethical dilemma No.3: How free does content really want to be?
A number of businesses depend on serving up content without paying those who
create it. Some turn around and sell ads or even charge for access. These businesses
often couldn't survive and couldn't price their material as attractively if they had to
shoulder their fair share of the development costs. They develop elaborate
rationalizations about "sharing" or "fair use" to cover up an ethically shaky
decision.
Developers must ask themselves how their code will support everyone in the food
chain, from creators to consumers. Do the people creating the content want their
work to be distributed this way? Are they happy to work for exposure or attention
alone? Are they given a fair share of the revenue?
Not considering these questions amounts to turning a blind eye to piracy. After all,
not all information just "wants to be free."
3.3.2.4 Ethical dilemma No.4: How much protection is enough
Some say that everything should be double-encrypted6 with two different
algorithms and locked in a hard disk that is kept in a safe. Alas, the overhead slows
the system to a crawl and makes development 10 times more onerous. To make
matters worse, if one bit gets flipped or one part of the algorithm is wrong, the data
is all lost because the encryption can't be undone.
Others don't want to lift a finger to protect the data. The next team can add special
encryption later if it's necessary, the developers might say. Or they might argue that
there's nothing sensitive about it. Teams that ignore these responsibilities are
usually able to generate plenty of other code and create piles of wonderful features
that people crave. Who cares if they're secure?
There's no simple answer to how much protection to apply. There are only guesses.
More is always better -- until the data is lost or the product doesn't ship.
3.3.2.5 Ethical dilemma No.5: To bug-fix or not to bug-fix?
It's hard enough to negotiate the ethical shoals when they involve active decisions,
but it's even harder when the problem can be pushed aside and labeled a bug that
6
Encryption is the process of encoding a message or information in such a way that only
authorized parties can access it and those who are not authorized cannot. Encryption does not
itself prevent interference, but denies the intelligible content to a would-be interceptor. Computer
Security Institute reported that in 2007, 71% of companies surveyed utilized encryption for some
of their data in transit, and 53% utilized encryption for some of their data in storage. Most
modern encryption systems are public key systems. In public-key encryption schemes, the
encryption key is published for anyone to use and encrypt messages, but only the receiving party
has access to the decryption key that enables messages to be read. Public-key encryption was first
described in a classified document in 1973.Before then all encryption schemes were symmetric-
key (also called private-key). A publicly available public key encryption application called Pretty
Good Privacy (PGP) was written in 1991 by Phil Zimmermann, and distributed free of charge
with source code;
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will be fixed eventually. How hard should we work to fix the problems that
somehow slipped into running code? Do we drop everything? How do we decide
whether a bug is serious enough to be fixed?
Isaac Asimov confronted this issue long ago when he wrote his laws of robotics and
inserted one that forbid a robot from doing nothing if a human would be harmed
through the robot's inaction. Of course his robots had positronic brains that could
see all the facets of a problem instantly and solve them. The questions for
developers are so complicated that many bugs go ignored and unfixed because no
one wants to even think about them.
Can a company prioritize the list fairly? Are some customers more important than
others? Can a programmer play favorites by choosing one bug over another? This
is even more difficult to contemplate when you realize that it's hard to anticipate
how much harm will come from any given bug.
3.3.2.6 Ethical dilemma No. 6: How much to code -- or compromise -- to
prevent misuse
The original Apple Web camera came with a clever mechanical extra, a physical
shutter that blocked the lens when it was off. The shutter and the switch were linked
together; there was no way to use the camera without opening the shutter yourself.
Some of the newer webcams come with an LED that's supposed to be illuminated
when the camera is activated. It usually works, but anyone who has programmed a
computer knows there may be a place in the code where the camera and the LED
can be decoupled. If that can be found, the camera can be turned into a spying
device.
The challenge for the engineer is anticipating misuse and designing to prevent it.
The Apple shutter is one of the obvious and effective examples of how it can be
done elegantly. When I was working on a book about cheating on the SAT, I met
one hacker who was adding networking software to his calculator. After some
deliberation, he decided to only support wired protocols because he was afraid kids
would sneak a calculator with Wi-Fi into an exam. By supporting only wired
protocols, he ensured that anyone in a test would need to run a wire to their
neighbor's machine. He hated skipping the wireless protocols, but he felt the risk of
abuse was too high.
3.3.2.7 Ethical dilemma No.7: How far to defend customers against data
requests
If you collect data, it's a safe bet that your organization will someday be caught
between serving your customers and serving the government. Requests to deliver
data to legal entities are becoming increasingly common, leaving more and more
software and services organizations to contemplate to what extent they will betray
their customers' privacy before the law. You can scrutinize these requests and even
hire your own lawyers to contest whether they are truly lawful, but the reality is that
the courts will be debating legalities long after your funding runs out.
There are no easy solutions. Some companies are choosing to leave the business
rather than lie to their customers. Others are trying to be more open about requests,
which the government often tries to forbid.
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3.3.2.8 Ethical dilemma No.8: How to deal with the international nature of
the Internet
The Internet runs everywhere, avoiding many of the traditional barriers at the
borders. This can be a recipe for legal headaches when customers A and B are in
different countries. That's only the beginning, because servers C and D are often in
entirely different countries as well.
This leads to obvious ethical issues. Europe, for instance, has strict laws about
retaining personal information and views privacy breaches as ethical failures. Other
countries insist on companies keeping copious records on dealings. Whose laws
should a company follow when customers are in different countries? When data is
in different counties? When data is transferred across international lines?
Keeping up with every legal contingency can be Herculean, leaving many
organizations surely tempted to bury their heads in the sand.
3.3.2.9 Ethical dilemma No.9: How much to give back to open source
Everyone knows that open source is free. You don't pay anything and that's what
makes it so wonderful and complex. But not everyone contemplates the ethical
issues that come with using that free code. All of the open source packages come
with licenses and you need to follow them.
Some of the licenses don't require much sacrifice. Licenses like the Apache License
or the MIT License require acknowledgement and that's about it. But other licenses,
such as the GNU General Public License, ask you to share all your enhancements.
Parsing open sources licenses can present ethical challenges. One manager from a
big public company told me, "We don't distribute MySQL, so we don't owe anyone
anything." He was keying on the clause, written decades ago, that tied the license's
obligations to the act of redistributing software. The company used MySQL for its
Web apps, so he felt it could take without giving back.
There are no simple ways to measure the ethical obligations, and many
programmers have wasted many keystrokes arguing about what they mean. Still,
the entire endeavor will grind to a halt if people stop giving. The good news is that
it's often in everyone's best interest to contribute because everyone wants the
software to remain compatible with their use of it.
3.3.2.10 Ethical dilemma No.10: How much monitoring is really warranted
Maybe your boss wants to make sure the customers aren't ripping off the company.
Maybe you want to make sure you get paid for your work. Maybe some spooky guy
from the government says you must install a backdoor to catch bad guys. In every
case, the argument is filled with assurances that the backdoor will only be used, like
Superman's powers, to support truth and justice. It won't be used against political
enemies or the less fortunate. It won't be sold to despotic regimes.
But what if the bad guys discover the hidden door and figure out how to use it
themselves? What if your backdoor is used to support untruths and injustices? Your
code can't make ethical decisions on its own. That's your job.
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3.3.2.11 Ethical dilemma No. 1: How bulletproof should code really be

Sure, the minimal calculation, simple data structure, and brute-force approach works
well in demo when the problems are small. The users try out the code and say, "Gosh
this works quickly." Several months later, when enough data has been loaded into the
system, the cheap algorithm's weaknesses appear and the code slows to a crawl.
Developers must often decide exactly how hard to work on the final product. Do you
whip off a quick and cheap solution or spend weeks adding bulletproof code that
deals with extreme cases? True, clients and users should assume some of the
responsibility during the requirements and sign-off phases, but developers are often
better equipped to anticipate potential contextual hiccups of running code.
3.3.2.12 Ethical dilemma No.12: How much should future consequences
influence present decisions
Many projects don't make waves. The information goes in and never escapes. Some,
however, take on a life of their own, escaping into the wild where they may do untold
harm. Security, penetration testing, espionage -- these are obvious candidates for
considering the collateral damage of your code.
Take Stuxnet, a virus widely considered a tool for attacking the centrifuges used to
purify uranium in Iran. Perhaps it succeeded, but now it lives on, floating along in
Windows systems throughout the world.
For most developers, the collateral damage is less obvious. We code for today -- a
hard enough proposition -- but we should also consider the future.
Some programmers, for example, love to write complex code that integrates with the
operating system and installs new or more complicated drivers. Is that going to work
in the future? Will it play well with other new drivers? Will it work with the next
generation of the OS? Or will your software leave people with a computer that runs
slower and fails more frequently even when your software isn't running?
It may seem simple, but choosing whether to stick with the APIs or follow the
standards is an ethical decision. Yes, technology is evolving quickly, and a slavish
devotion to outdated mandates can be a hindrance to progress. But we need to
consider our part in writing code that lasts a bit longer and not take the decision to
swim outside our lane lightly. We can always ask for changes to the standards or the
APIs if we need them.
3.4 Questions
3.4.1 Completion
3. _______ software is software which provides an interface and services both for
users and for other software
3. _________software is software designed to provide specific services for users.
3.1.1.4.2.2 On PCs, _______is the most popular operating system.
3.1.1.4.2.3 ________ has been ported to more platforms than any other operating
system.
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3.1.1.4.2.3 ________ has the largest installed base of all general-purpose operating
systems.
3.1.1.5.2 In the iOS operating system, internal _________ are used by some
applications to respond to shaking the device or rotating it.
3.1.2 The term system software can also be used for software development tools
(like________, linkers and debuggers.)
3.2 __________ software (also called end-user programs) includes such things as
database programs, word processors, Web browsers and spreadsheets.
3.2 The collective noun application software refers to all applications collectively.
This distinguishes it from ________ software, which is mainly involved with
running the computer.
3.2 An application _______ consists of multiple applications bundled together.
They usually have related functions, features and similar user interfaces. They
are often able to interact with each other, e.g. open each other's files.
3.2 ________ Software can refer to video games, screen savers, programs to display
motion pictures or play recorded music.
3.3.1.1 Some pirates have cited their _____ amendment rights as an excuse for
piracy.
3. Computer programs (collectively known as Computer Software) can generally
be divided into two classifications:
a) System Software and User Software
b) System Software and Application Software
c) Network Software and User Software
d) Network Software and Application Software
3. _________ software is software which provides an interface and services to users
and other software
a) System
b) User
c) Network
d) Application
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3. _________ software is software designed to provide specific services for users

a) System
b) User
c) Network
d) Application
3.1.1.2 The first computer using a multitasking system was the_____
a) IBM 360
b) Colossus Mark I
c) LEO III
d) ENIAC
3.1.1.3.1 The first successful multiuser time sharing system was
a) DTSS
b) UNIX
c) Multics
d) ENIAC
3.1.1.3.2 Probably the most widely used multi-user operating system is
a) DTSS
b) UNIX
c) Multics
d) ENIAC
3.1.1.4.1 ______ is a personal computer operating system with a command line
interface.
a) AppleDOS
b) CP/M
c) MS-DOS
d) all of the above
3.1.1.4.2 ______ is a type of user interface that allows users to interact with
electronic devices through graphical icons and visual indicators, instead of text-
based user interfaces
a) CLI
b) GVI
c) GUI
d) all of the above
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3.1.1.5.1 Android works with a user interface that is mainly based on direct
manipulation, using touch gestures that loosely correspond to real-world actions,
such as_________, to manipulate on-screen objects
a) swiping
b) tapping
c) pinching
d) all of the above
3.2 Business applications often come in_______, e.g. Microsoft Office, LibreOffice
and iWork, which bundle together a word processor, a spreadsheet, etc
a) combos
b) suites
c) factions
d) all of the above
3.4.3 True-False
3.1.1.2 In the early days of computing, CPU time was expensive, and peripherals
were very slow.
3.1.1.4 The earliest personal computers generally featured operating systems with
rather primitive command line interfaces.
3.1.1.4 Personal computers are intended to be operated directly by an end-user who
is not necessarily a computer expert or technician.
3.1.1.4.2 The first commercially available computer with a GUI was the Apple
Macintosh.
3.1.1.5 The vast majority of modern smartphones use one of three operating
systems: Android, Linux, or iOS.
3.2 A Web Browser is considered to be a systems program.
3.3.1.1 There are two contrasting ethical views on the issue of piracy, and both have
their valid points.
3.3.1.2.1.6 Some employers make it a practice to monitor employees’ activities
while at work.
3.3.1.2.2.1 The majority of identity theft victims do not realize that they are victims
until it has negatively impacted their lives.
3.3.1.2.2.2 Traditional bullying is much more serious than cyberbullying.
3.3.1.2.2.4 Computer viruses currently cause hundreds of thousands of dollars
worth of economic damage each year.
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4 lxiiSystem Unit
In a desktop computer, most of the electronic components are housed
in an enclosure a called the lxiiisystem unit. These units are usually
rectangular, most are made of steel, aluminum and/or plastic.
lxiv
4.1 Motherboards
System Unit
A motherboard (also known as the mainboard or system board)
is the main printed circuit board (PCB) found in general purpose
microcomputers and other expandable systems.
It holds the electronic components of a system, such as the central
processing unit (CPU) and memory modules. The motherboard
allows communication between the components and provides
connectors for peripherals. Motherboard
The term Motherboard specifically refers to a PCB with expansion capability and
will typically have components attached to it. These peripherals might include
interface cards, sound cards, video cards, network cards, hard drives, and/or other
forms of persistent storage and a variety of other custom components.
lxv
4.1.1 CPU: Microprocessor
A central processing unit (CPU) is electronic circuitry
within a computer that carries out the instructions of a
computer program by performing the basic arithmetic,
logical, control and input/output (I/O) operations specified by
the instructions.
Principal components of a CPU include the arithmetic Microprocessor
logic unit (ALU) and the control unit. The ALU performs
arithmetic and logic operations, processor registers that supply operands to the
ALU and store the results of ALU operations. The control unit orchestrates the
fetching (from memory) and execution of instructions by directing the
coordinated operations of the ALU, registers and other components.
Most modern CPUs are contained on a single integrated circuit (IC) chip. (i.e. most
modern CPU’s are microprocessors.)
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4.1.1.1 Processor Size

Modern microprocessors are often described as being 8 bit, 16 bit, 32 bit or 64 bit
processors7. This description is somewhat ambiguous, since it can refer to (and
has been used to refer to):
the number of lines in the data bus (how many bits can be transferred
simultaneously)
the number of bits in one of the processor’s registers (how many bits can
be processed simultaneously)
the number of bits in the address bus (which is related to the maximum
amount of primary storage the computer can support)
At the moment, most personal computers have 64 bit processors (in all of the
above senses of the term.)
Some microprocessors are described as being “dual core” or “quad core” (and
other higher number core.) These processors have essentially two or four (or
more) processing units built into a single CPU chip, allowing the computer to
process data faster by doing several things at the same time.
4.1.1.2 Processor Speed
There are several common measures of how fast processors operate:
Hertz (or megahertz or gigahertz.) This describes the clock speed of the
processor.
This gives a rough (but often inaccurate) description of how fast the
processor processes data. It is not a very accurate measure of how fast a
processor operates because different operations require different numbers
of clock pulses, so different programs (using a different mix of instructions)
will yield different results.
MIPS (Million Instructions Per Second) which actually describes how fast the
processor executes instructions.
This measure is more accurate, but can also be misleading, again, because
some instructions take longer than others, so, again, the result depends on
which instructions are being executed.
FLOPs (FLOating point Operations Per second, usually seen as gigaflops)
Most commonly used describing high performance computing, but sometimes
in gaming systems as well.
7
The first commercially available microprocessor (Intel 4004, released in 1971) was a 4 bit
processor.
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4.1.1.3 Classes of Processors

There are two classes of processors – RISC and CISC.
Reduced Instruction Set Computing (RISC) is a CPU design strategy based on
the insight that a simplified instruction set can provide higher performance.
The simplified instruction set allows the CPU to be optimized to execute these
instructions more efficiently.
Complex Instruction Set Computing (CISC) is a CPU design strategy based on
the idea that with a larger, more complex instruction set, programs can be
written using fewer instructions, and thus run faster.
4.2 Memory
The term Memory (aka primary storage and/or main memory) refers to the computer
hardware used to store information for immediate use in a computer.
The term "memory", (in the above sense), is often associated with addressable
semiconductor memory.
Most semiconductor memory consists of memory cells or bistable flip-flops, each
storing one bit (0 or 1). The memory cells are grouped into words of fixed word length,
for example 8, 16, 32, 64 or 128 bits. Each word is assigned a number as its address. A
word, and it contents, can be accessed by means of that address. In many systems, bytes
(8 bit collections) are used as addressable units, with the term word being reserved for
other sizes.
4.2.1 RAM
Random access memory (RAMlxvi) is the most common form
of computer memory.
RAM is considered "random access" because you can
access any word in memory directly without accessing the
previous words first. Some authors refer to this as “direct RAM
access” since any word can be referenced “directly”8.
4.2.1.1 Addresses
Each word (or byte) in computer memory has a unique address, a number which
is used in identifying the word/byte whose content is to be read or modified. The
address has a binary representation of N, bits, making it possible to store 2N words
in the memory (where N is determined by the CPU and the address bus of the
motherboard. Values of 32 and 64 are common in more recent microcomputers).
8
(Nobody EVER refers to direct access memory as DAM. Everybody calls it RAM)
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4.2.2 Quantum Computing

There is currently a great deal of interest in what is called “quantum computing”.
Quantum computing functions somewhat differently than described elsewhere in this
section. Whereas common digital computing requires that the data be encoded into
binary digits (bits), each of which is always in one of two definite states (0 or 1),
quantum computation uses quantum bits or qubits, which can be in superpositions of
states. Large-scale quantum computers would (at least theoretically) be able to solve
certain types of problems much more quickly than could classical computers. They
might, for example, be able to break many of the cryptographic systems in use today.
The quantum computer gains much of its processing power through the ability for
bits to be in multiple states at one time. They can perform tasks using a combination
of 1’s, 0’s and both a 1 and 0 simultaneously.
Quantum computing is currently more theoretical and experimental than actually
doing applied computation, but as of Nov. 2020 a number of companies are
investing heavily in it9.
1. Atom Computing is a quantum computing hardware company specializing in
“neutral atom quantum computers”. They are currently prototyping their first
offerings and have announced that they will provide cloud access "to large
numbers of very coherent qubits by optically trapping and addressing individual
atoms"
The company also builds and creates hardware control systems for use in the
academic community.
2. Xanadu is a Canadian quantum technology company founded in 2016. They
provide user access to near-term quantum devices through their Xanadu Quantum
Cloud (XQC) service. The company also leads the development of PennyLane,
an open-source software library for quantum machine learning and application
development.
3. IBM was the first company to put a quantum computer on the cloud (in 2016.) The
company has since built up an active community of more than 260,000 registered
users, who run more than one billion every day on real hardware and simulators.
In 2017, IBM was the first company to offer universal quantum computing
systems via the IBM Q Network. The network now includes more than 125
organizations, including Fortune 500s, startups, research labs, and education
institutions. Partners include Daimler AG, JPMorgan Chase, and ExxonMobil.
All use IBM's most advanced quantum computers to simulate new materials for
batteries, model portfolios and financial risk, and simulate chemistry for new
energy technologies. IBM scientists plan to deliver a quantum computer with a
1,121-qubit processor by 2023 that will be online and capable of delivering a
“Quantum Advantage” (the point where certain information processing tasks can
be performed more efficiently or cost effectively on a quantum computer, versus
a classical one.)
9
Information quoted from https://www.zdnet.com/article/eight-leading-quantum-computing-
companies-in-2020/
82
4. ColdQuanta commercializes quantum atomics. The company's Quantum Core

technology is based on ultra-cold atoms cooled to a temperature of nearly absolute
zero; lasers manipulate and control the atoms with extreme precision. The
company manufactures components, instruments, and turnkey systems that
address a broad spectrum of applications: quantum computing, timekeeping,
navigation, radiofrequency sensors, and quantum communications. It also
develops interface software. ColdQuanta's global customers include major
commercial and defense companies; all branches of the US Department of
Defense; national labs operated by the Department of Energy; NASA; NIST; and
major universities, the company said. In April 2020, ColdQuanta was selected by
the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to develop a scalable,
cold-atom-based quantum computing hardware and software platform that can
demonstrate quantum advantage on real-world problems.
5. Zapata Computing empowers enterprise teams to accelerate quantum solutions
and capabilities. It introduced Orquestra, an end-to-end, workflow-based toolset
for quantum computing. In addition to previously available backends that include
a full range of simulators and classical resources, Orquestra now integrates with
Qiskit and IBM Quantum's open quantum systems, Honeywell's System Model
HØ, and Amazon Braket, the company said. The Orquestra workflow platform
provides access to Honeywell's HØ, and was designed to enable teams to
compose, run, and analyze complex, quantum-enabled workflows and
challenging computational solutions at scale, Zapata said. Orquestra is purpose-
built for quantum machine learning, optimization, and simulation problems across
industries.
6. D-Wave was founded in 1999, and claims to be the first company to sell a
commercial quantum computer, in 2011, and the first to give developers real-
time cloud access to quantum processors with Leap, its quantum cloud service.
D-Wave's approach to quantum computing, known as quantum annealing, is best
suited to optimization tasks in fields such as AI, logistics, cybersecurity,
financial modeling, fault detection, materials sciences, and more. More than 250
early quantum applications have been built to-date using D-Wave's technology,
the company said. The company has seen a lot of momentum in 2020.
In February, D-Wave announced the launch of Leap 2, which introduced new
tools and features designed to make it easier for developers to build bigger
applications.
In July, the company expanded access to Leap to India and Australia.
In March, D-Wave opened free access to Leap for researchers working on
responses to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In September, the company launched Advantage, a quantum system designed
for businesses. Advantage has more than 5,000 qubits, 15-way qubit
connectivity, and an expanded hybrid solver service to run problems with up
to one million variables, D-Wave said. Advantage is accessible through
Leap.
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7. Strangeworks was a startup based in Austin, Texas and claims to be lowering

the barrier to entry into quantum computing by providing tools for development
on all quantum hardware and software platforms. Strangeworks launched in
March 2018, and one year later, deployed a beta version of its software platform
to users from more than 140 different organizations. Strangeworks plans to open
its initial offering of the platform early in 2021, with the enterprise edition
coming in late 2021. The Strangeworks Quantum Computing platform provides
tools to access and program quantum computing devices. The Strangeworks IDE
is platform-agnostic, and integrates all hardware, software frameworks, and
supporting languages, the company said. To facilitate this goal, Strangeworks
manages assembly, integrations, and product updates.
4.3 Instruction and Machine Cycles
An instruction cycle (sometimes called a fetch–decode–execute cycle) is the basic
process of computer function. It is the process by which a computer retrieves a program
instruction from its memory, determines what actions the instruction dictates, and carries
out those actions. This cycle is repeated continuously by a computer's central processing
unit (CPU), from boot-up to power down.
Different CPU’s can have different cycles based on different instruction sets, but they
will all be generally similar to the following:
Fetch the instruction: The instruction code is retrieved from the memory address
that is currently stored in a program counter (PC) and copied into an instruction
register (IR). At the end of the fetch operation, the PC is updated so that it will contain
the address of the instruction that will be read at the next cycle.
Decode the instruction: The instruction whose code is in the IR (instruction register)
is identified.
Obtain necessary data: In case the instruction requires data stored in memory, the
address of that data is computed, and the data is copied from memory into
register(s) in the CPU.
Execute the instruction (Based on the type of instruction the Program Counter
may be updated to a different address from which the next instruction will be
fetched.)
Store any resulting values
The cycle repeats until the computer shuts down.
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4.3.1 Programming Languages

A computer program is a sequence of instructions that, when a processor executes
them, will cause the system to do something that the user/programmer wants it to
do.
The processor will execute the program by repeatedly performing the instruction
cycle, as described above. This means that the instructions must be stored as codes
in computer memory, and this, in turn means that they must be represented in a
binary format.
The collection of binary codes for the instructions that a processor can perform is
called the machine language for the processor and a program in the form of a
sequence of binary instruction codes is called a machine language program.
Humans would deal with machine language programs as (long) lists of binary
numbers and binary numbers are difficult for humans to deal with. In order to
facilitate the construction of computer programs, programming languages were
developed using text representations of the actions for the computer to carry out. Of
course, computers only process instructions in the form of electronic
representations of binary codes for these actions, so these text representations have
to be converted/translated into the binary representations of the corresponding
processor instructions.
4.3.1.1 Assembly Languages
The first “languages” developed to control computers consisted simply of
assigning a text code to each of the instructions that processor was capable of
executing. These text codes would typically be designed to be indicative of the
action performed (ADD, SUB, MOV, …)
The text codes are translated/converted to the associated the binary codes by
programs called assemblers. Such a collection of text codes is called an
assembly language and programs written using the codes are called assembly
language programs.
Assembly languages are designed for specific processors and are characterized
by the property that each assembly language code corresponds to one instruction
of the processor.
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4.3.1.2 High Level Languages

Assembly language programs tend to be long, complex and difficult to debug
and maintain. In addition, since an assembly language is designed for a specific
processor, the programs have very limited portability, that is, they are difficult to
transfer from one computer to another.
High level programming languages were developed to address these issues and
make the programming of computers more efficient.
In a high level language (as opposed to an assembly language) a single
command in the language will commonly require more than one processor
instruction to carry out.
Thousands of (high level) programming languages have been designed. A few of
the more widely used are/were:
FORTRAN: One of the very first high level languages (Developed by IBM
in the mid 1950’s). FORTRAN was designed to facilitate numeric
computation and scientific work and prioritized fast, efficient execution.
COBOL: Developed shortly after FORTRAN (initial version was released in
1960.) COBOL was designed primarily for financial and business
applications. COBOL programs are still in wide use, but, due to its
declining popularity and the retirement of experienced COBOL
programmers, programs are being migrated to new platforms, rewritten in
modern languages or replaced with software packages. Most
programming in COBOL is now to maintain existing applications.
LISP: Developed in 1959 at MIT. LISP and its derivatives have been
extremely influential in artificial intelligence.
BASIC: Developed in 1964 at Dartmouth. Because of its simplicity it could
be implemented using very limited computer resources, and for this
reason it gained wide use on personal computers.
PASCAL: Released in 1970, Pascal soon gained widespread use in academia
It came to be widely used as a teaching language in university-level
programming courses in the 1980s. It was displaced by the C
programming language during the late 1980s and early 1990s
C: Developed at Bell Labs by Dennis Ritchie between 1972 and 1973. C was
applied to re-implementing the kernel of the Unix operating system.
During the 1980s, C gradually gained popularity and became one of the
most widely used programming languages. Many later languages have
borrowed directly or indirectly from C, including especially C++ and C#.
Java: Originally developed by James Gosling at Sun Microsystems, Java was
released in May 1995. When web browsers began incorporating the
ability to run Java applets within web pages, Java quickly became
extremely popular.
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4.3.1.3 Translation to Machine Code

Instructions in text form must be translated into machine language before a
computer can execute them. This translation is done by programs called
assemblers, compilers and interpreters.
As mentioned above, an assembler is a program that translates assembly
language program to machine language.
A compiler is a program that translates a high level language program into a
machine language program.
An interpreter is a program that translates the instructions of a high level
language program into machine language instructions, and executes the resulting
machine language code, one (high level language) instruction at a time.
Programs executed by interpreters tend to run more slowly than compiled
programs, since with interpreters, an instruction must be translated every time it
is executed, while with a compiler, the translation must be performed only once.
On the other hand, interpreted programs tend to be easier to debug, since when
an error occurs, it is easier to identify the source code responsible.
4.4 Cache
Cache memory is random access memory (RAM) that a computer microprocessor can
access more quickly than it can access regular RAM. This memory can be integrated
directly with the CPU chip or placed on a separate chip that has a separate bus
interconnect with the CPU. Cache memory is fast but expensive. Traditionally, it is
categorized in "levels" that describe its closeness and accessibility to the microprocessor:
Level 1 (L1) cache is extremely fast but relatively small and is usually embedded in
the processor chip (CPU).
Level 2 (L2) cache is often bigger than L1; it may be located on the CPU or on a
separate chip or coprocessor but with a high-speed alternative bus connecting the
cache to the CPU, so as not to be slowed by traffic on the main system bus.
Level 3 (L3) cache is typically specialized memory that works to improve the
performance of L1 and L2. It can be significantly slower than L1 or L2, but is usually
at last twice the speed of regular RAM. In the case of multicore processors, each core
may have its own dedicated L1 and L2 cache but share a common L3 cache. When
an instruction is referenced in the L3 cache, it is typically copied to a higher tier
cache.
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4.5 ROM and other Types of Memory

There are two distinct types of memory: Random Access Memory (RAM) and Read Only
Memory (ROM)
Data items can be read from both RAM and ROM but can only be written to locations
in RAM.
ROM is implemented using nonvolatile types of memory.
(The contents do not change when the computer is powered down and then
later restarted.)
RAM, on the other hand, is normally associated with volatile types of
memory.
(When the computer is turned off the contents of volatile memory are
erased.)
Most home or office computers include secondary storage devices (magnetic disk
drives or SSD’s) and will have only a minimal program in ROM (this minimal
program is known as the BIOS in IBM-compatible computers.) When the computer
is started, this program will load the operating system from the disk into RAM.
The operating system runs from RAM rather than ROM because instructions in
the operating system are executed very frequently and ROM access is normally
slower than RAM access.
This arrangement also allows an operating system to be upgraded relatively easily,
since modifications can be made to the program stored on disk.
There are, in fact several different types of RAM, some of which are much faster than
others (but are also more expensive and use more power and generate more heat.)
These faster kinds of RAM are typically used for cache memory.
4.5.1 CMOS
lxvii
CMOS (complementary metal-oxide-
semiconductor) is a type of integrated circuit that
requires very little power, It can store data and
execute simple instructions (keeping track of time
passing, system time and date, etc) without draining
a battery providing the power it needs to operate.
CMOS has been used on motherboards to store the
BIOS instructions. It is falling out of fashion on CMOS Battery
modern computers and being replaced by the
technology used for SSD drives.
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4.6 Data Representation

The primary function of a computer is information processing. (This INCLUDES
numerical computation, but also involves much more.)
In order for a computer to be able to process information, that information must be
represented in a form that the computer can deal with.
For many reasons, computer designers have come to use binary (two state) equipment
to store representations of data.
Among the reasons are the following:
Binary devices are relatively cheap to manufacture.
Distinguishing between two states is less error prone than distinguishing between
more than two states.
The use of binary equipment requires that information be represented in binary form,
as sequences of 0’s and 1’s. Unfortunately, although binary representations are
convenient for digital equipment, they are problematic for humans. It is difficult for
humans to distinguish between two sequences of binary digits (even recognizing
whether they have the same number of digits can be problematic) and this can lead
to errors when humans are dealing with information in binary format. To ameliorate
this problem it has become common to represent data using a system of 16 digits (a
hexadecimal system.)
The 16 digits are identified as 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, A. B, C, D, E, and F 10.
These digits represent the four digit binary sequences:
0 - 0000
1 - 0001
2 - 0010
3 - 0011
4 - 0100
5 - 0101
6 - 0110
7 - 0111
8 - 1000
9 - 1001
A - 1010
B - 1011
C - 1100
D - 1101
E - 1110
F - 1111
Thus the binary sequence 1011000100000101 could be represented as B105 and the
sequence 1001000010101001 would be represented as 90A9.
10
It is also common to use the lowercase letters: a, b, c, d, e and f instead of the uppercase letters
A-F
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4.6.1 Character Codes

We have come to expect our computers to process text data, and representations of
text characters (letters, digits, punctuation symbols, etc.) must be stored in computer
memory if the computer is to process them.
4.6.1.1 ASCII
One of the earliest (and still one of the most commonly used) systems for
representation of text characters is the American Standard Code for Information
Interchange (ASCII).
ASCII is a character encoding standard and has been used to represent text in
computers, telecommunications equipment, and many other devices.
Originally based on the English alphabet, ASCII encodes 128 specified
characters into seven-bit integers. The characters encoded are digits 0 to 9
(represented by the codes 48-57), lowercase letters a to z (represented by the
codes 97-122), uppercase letters A to Z (represented by codes 65-92), basic
punctuation symbols, the space symbol and several control codes that
originated with Teletype machines.
Since the ASCII codes use 7 bits, each character can be (and almost always is)
represented as content of an 8 bit byte.
The extra bit is sometimes used to extend the ASCII system to represent
more symbols/characters, but this has not been done in a uniformly
accepted way. The extra bit is more often used for error checking.
4.6.1.2 Unicode
Many languages use symbols/characters that are not included in the ASCII coding
system.
The Unicode system was developed in an effort to allow speakers of such
languages to use computers.
Unicode is a computing industry standard for the consistent encoding,
representation, and handling of text expressed in most of the world's writing
systems.
The Unicode standard defines Unicode Transformation Formats: UTF-8,
UTF-16, and UTF-32, and several other encodings.
The most commonly used encodings are UTF-8 and UTF-16.
UTF-8 is the dominant encoding on the World Wide Web. It is used in over
95% of websites as of 2020, and up to 100% for some languages, and on most
Unix-like operating systems. UTF-8 uses one byte (8 bits) for the first 128
characters, and up to 4 bytes for the rest. The first 128 Unicode codes are the
same as those for the ASCII characters, which means that any ASCII text is
also a UTF-8 text.
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4.6.1.3 EBCDIC
IBM had difficulty adjusting their many card punch machines to accommodate
ASCII coding, and so developed their own coding system which they called
extended binary coded decimal interchange code (EBCDIC) which was more
compatible with their existing hardware. EBCDIC is an eight-bit character
encoding, and was created to extend the existing Binary-Coded Decimal (BCD)
Interchange Code (BCDIC).
EBCDIC was announced with the release of the IBM System 360. When the
system 360 became wildly successful, so did EBCDIC. Now all IBM mainframe
and midrange peripherals and operating systems use EBCDIC as their inherent
encoding.
4.7 Adapter cards:
An adapter card (expansion card, expansion board, or accessory card) is a printed
circuit board that can be inserted into an electrical connector, or expansion slot on a
computer motherboard to add functionality to a computer system via the expansion bus.
4.7.1 Expansion bus:
An expansion bus is a computer bus which moves information between the internal
hardware components of a computer system (including the CPU and RAM) and
peripheral devices. It is a collection of wires and protocols that supports the
expansion of the capabilities of a computer.
4.8 Bay:
The system unit of a desktop computer will normally have open spaces built in where
equipment such as disk drives can be installed.
These open spaces are called bays, or often drive bays.
A drive bay is a standard-sized area where hardware can be added to a computer.
Over the years since its introduction, the IBM PC and its compatibles have had
many form factors of drive bays. The form factors that have seen common use are
the 5.25", 3.5", 2.5" and 1.8" drive bays. These names do not refer to the width of
the bay itself, but rather to the sizes of the disks used by the drives that would be
mounted in these bays.
Drive bays are commonly used for the installation of disk drives, but they can also
be used for front-end USB ports, I/O bays, card readers, fans, fan controllers, RAID
controllers, tool storage, and many other things.
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4.9 Connectors and Ports

lxviii
In computer hardware, a port serves as an interface between the computer and other
devices.
In computer terms, a port usually refers to the female
part of connection.
Computer ports have many applications. They can
be used to connect computers to monitors, Example of unit with Several Ports
webcams, speakers, and other peripheral devices.

Physically, a computer port is a specialized outlet on a piece of equipment that a plug
or cable can connect to.
The several conductors where the port and cable contacts connect, provide a method
to transfer electronic signals between devices.
4.9.1 USB Ports

A USB port is a standard connection interface for personal computers and consumer
electronics devices.
USB stands for Universal Serial Bus, an industry standard for short-distance
digital data communications.
USB ports allow USB devices to be connected to each other and to transfer digital
data over USB cables.
They can also supply electric power across the cable to devices that need it.
4.9.2 Additional Ports

Electronically, hardware ports can almost always be divided into two groups, based
on the way they transfer signals:
Serial ports and parallel ports
Serial ports send and receive one bit at a time via a single pair of wires.
Parallel ports use several sets of wires to transmit multiple bits simultaneously.
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4.10 Video Connectors

Modern multimedia applications (especially video applications) place greater
computational requirements on computing systems than can be met by the normal CPU’s
(at least without serious degradation of performance in other areas.) As a consequence,
most personal computers incorporate specialized video processing units Often the units
are mounted on adapter cards. These “video cards” include specialized processors
(GPU’s) to deal with the specialized computations involved in controlling the images
being displayed, and dedicated memory cells specifically for tracking the color and
intensity to be displayed at each pixel on the computer output device.
Video output has become so data intensive that it requires its own specialized types of
transmission cables and connector design.
Digital Video connectors are used to deliver the highest quality video signal.
The technology transmits large amounts of digital data from the source to the display,
resulting in a high-quality image.
DVI (Digital Visual Interface) was developed by the industry body DDWG (the Data
Display Working Group) to send digital information from a computer to a digital
display, such as a flat-panel LCD monitor.
HDMI took a step forward by integrating audio and video into a more compact
interface.
DisplayPort is an interface technology that is designed to connect high-graphics
capable PCs and displays as well as home
theater equipment and displays.
DisplayPort is like HDMI in that the
DisplayPort signal carries both digital
audio and video.
HDMI DisplayPort
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4.11 Questions
4.11.1 Completion
4. In a desktop computer, most of the electronic components are housed in an
enclosure a called the ______unit.
4.1 A(n) ________ is the main printed circuit board (PCB) found in general
purpose microcomputers and other expandable systems.
4.1.1 Most modern CPUs are _________ meaning they are contained on a single
integrated circuit (IC) chip.
4.2 Each word in computer memory has a unique_______, a number which is used
in identifying the cell to read or modify its contents.
4..4 ______memory, is random access memory (RAM) that a computer
microprocessor can access more quickly than it can access regular RAM.
4.5.1 _______is the term usually used to describe the small amount of memory on a
computer motherboard that stores the BIOS settings. Some of these BIOS
settings include the system time and date as well as hardware settings.
4.6.1.16 One of the earliest (and still one of the most commonly used) systems for
storing representations of characters in computer memory is______
4.6.1.2 ________is a computing industry standard for the consistent encoding,
representation, and handling of text expressed in most of the world's writing
systems.
4.7.1 An expansion bus is a computer bus which moves information between the
internal hardware of a computer system (including the CPU and RAM) and
peripheral devices. It is a collection of wires and _______ that allows for the
expansion of a computer.
4.8 A system unit will normally have open spaces built in where equipment such as
disk drives can be installed. These open spaces are called _______
4.9 In computer hardware, a(n) _______ serves as an interface between the
computer and other computers or peripheral devices.
4.9.1 A USB port is a standard cable connection interface for personal computers
and consumer electronics devices. USB stands for Universal Serial_______, an
industry standard for short-distance digital data communications.
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4 In a desktop computer, most of the electronic components are housed in an
enclosure a called the ________.
a) motherboard
b) cache
c) system unit
d) all of the above
4.1 A _________ is the main printed circuit board found in general purpose
microcomputers and other expandable systems.
a) motherboard
b) mainboard
c) system board
d) any of the above
4.1 The term Motherboard specifically refers to a(n) _________with expansion
capability
a) PCB
b) CPU
c) ALU
d) RAM
4.1.1 A(n) _________ is the electronic circuitry within a computer that carries out
the instructions of a computer program by performing the basic arithmetic,
logical, control and input/output (I/O) operations specified by the instructions.
a) PCB
b) CPU
c) ALU
d) RAM
4.1.1.2 One might describe the speed of a microprocessor as a number of ______
a) Hertz
b) MIPS
c) FLOPS
d) any of the above
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4.1.1.3 ________ is a CPU design strategy based on the idea that with a larger,
more complex instruction set, programs can be written using fewer instructions,
and thus run faster.
a) FLOPS
b) ROM
c) RISC
d) CISC
4.1.1.3 ________is a CPU design strategy based on the insight that a simplified
instruction set can provide higher performance. The simplified instruction set
allows the CPU to be optimized to execute these instructions more efficiently
a) FLOPS
b) ROM
c) RISC
d) CISC
4.2.1.1 Each cell in computer memory has a unique _______, a number which is
used in identifying the cell to read or modify its contents
a) ID
b) address
c) locater
d) site
4.3 An instruction cycle (sometimes called a fetch–decode–execute cycle) is the
basic operational process of a computer. It is the process by which a computer
retrieves a program instruction from its memory, determines what actions the
instruction dictates, and carries out those actions. This cycle is repeated
continuously by a computer's _________, from boot-up to when the computer is
shut down.
a) ALU
b) Ports
c) motherboard
d) CPU
4.4 Cache memory is _______
a) fast but expensive
b) fast and cheap
c) slow and expensive
d) slow and cheap
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4.5 The computer____________, locations in ROM

a) cannot read information from, and cannot write to
b) cannot read information from, but can write to
c) can read information from, but cannot write to
d) can read information from, and can write to
4.5.1 ________ is the term usually used to describe the small amount of memory
on a computer motherboard that stores the BIOS settings. Some of these BIOS
settings include the system time and date as well as hardware settings.
a) Cache
b) CMOS
c) ASCII
d) HDMI
4.6 The primary function of a computer is ________ processing.
a) information
b) numerical
c) binary
d) ASCII
4.7 An ________ is a printed circuit board that can be inserted into an electrical
connector, or expansion slot on a computer motherboard to add functionality to
a computer system via the expansion bus.
a) adapter card
b) expansion card
c) accessory card
d) any of the above
4.8 Drive bays are most commonly used to store _____, ,
a) disk drives
b) front-end USB ports
c) I/O bays
d) all of the above
4.10 ________ is a type of Digital Video connector
a) DVI
b) HDMI
c) DisplayPort
d) all of the above
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4.11.3 True-False
4.2.1 RAM is considered "random access" because it is hard to predict how long it
will take for the processor to access any given cell.
4.5 ROM access is slower than RAM access.
4.5 ROM is implemented using nonvolatile types of memory.
4.6 Computer designers have come to use analog equipment to store representations
of data.
4.6.1.1 ASCII codes use 8 bits.
4.8 Four form factors are in common use today, the 5.25", 3.5", 2.5" or 1.8" drive
bays. These names refer to the width of the disks used by the drives mounted in
these bays.
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5. Input
In computing, an input device is a peripheral (a piece of computer hardware equipment)
used to produce/provide data and control signals for transfer into a computer.
Examples of input devices include keyboard, mouse, touchscreen, touchpad, scanner,
digital camera and joystick.
5.1 Keyboards
In computing, a lxixcomputer keyboard is a typewriter-style device
which uses an arrangement of buttons or keys that act as electronic
switches.
A keyboard typically has characters engraved or printed on the keys
and each press of a key typically corresponds to a single written
symbol.
Keyboard
While most keyboard keys produce letters, numbers or signs
(characters), other keys or simultaneous key presses can produce actions or cause the
computer to execute commands.
Despite the development of alternative input devices, such as the mouse, touchscreen,
pen devices, character recognition and voice recognition, the keyboard remains the most
commonly used device for direct (human) input of alphanumeric data into computers.
In normal usage, the keyboard is used for entry of text and numbers into word processors,
text editors and/or other programs.
Earlier keyboards had keypress interpretation built in (pressing a key would send the
ASCII code for the corresponding character) but in a modern computer the
interpretation of key presses is generally left to the software.
A computer keyboard distinguishes each physical key from every other and reports
all key presses to the controlling software.
Keyboards are also used for computer gaming, either with regular keyboards or by using
keyboards with special gaming features.
A keyboard can also be used to give commands to the operating system of a computer,
A well known example would be the Control-Alt-Delete combination, which, in
Microsoft Windows, will bring up a task window or shut down the machine.
Before the development of GUI’s (graphical user interfaces) users communicated with
their computers’ operating systems by typing commands with their keyboards. The
commands would be interpreted and executed by a command line interface.
A command-line interface is a type of user interface operated entirely by typing
commands on a keyboard (or possibly another device that does the job of a keyboard.)
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5.1.1 Keyboard Types

Computer keyboards differ in size and key spacing, as well as in their form and
display.
5.1.1.1 Standard Computer Keyboard
Standard alphanumeric keyboards have keys that are about three-quarters of an
inch square and can be depressed 0.15 to 0.2 inches.
Desktop computer keyboards, such as the 101-key US traditional keyboard or the
lxx
104-key Windows keyboard, include alphabetic characters, punctuation
symbols, numbers and a variety of function keys.
Computer keyboards are similar to keyboards on typewriters but also have
several keys that will not be found on a typewriter keyboard. Among these
keys are:
System Keys, Application Keys, Function Keys, Numeric Keypad Keys,
Cursor Control Keys
104 key computer keyboard
There is no official standard computer keyboard, but many manufacturers imitate

the keyboards of IBM PCs.
There are actually three different PC keyboards:
the original PC keyboard with 84 keys,
the AT keyboard which also has 84 keys
and the enhanced keyboard with 101 keys.
The three keyboards differ somewhat in the placement of function keys, the
control keys, the return/enter key, and the shift key.
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5.1.1.2 Laptop Size Keyboards

Keyboards on laptops and notebook computers usually have a shorter travel
distance for the keystroke, shorter distance between keys, and a reduced set of
keys. They may not have a numerical keypad, and the function keys may be placed
in locations that differ from their placement on a standard, full-sized keyboard.
5.1.1.3 Flexible Keyboards
Flexible keyboards combine some
characteristics of normal type and
laptop type keyboards:
They use the full arrangement
of keys like the normal
keyboard.
The keys are close together like on a laptop keyboard.
Additionally, the flexibility of the keyboard allows the user to fold/roll it for more
convenient storage and transfer.
However, for typing, a flexible keyboard must be resting on a hard surface.
The vast majority of flexible keyboards in the market are made from silicone;
this material makes them water and dust proof, a very convenient feature,
especially in hospitals where keyboards are subjected to frequent washing.
For connection with the computer many of these keyboards use a USB cable
but many connect wirelessly, often using Bluetooth.
5.1.1.4 On-Screen Keyboards
Software keyboards (on-screen keyboards) generally take the form of computer
programs that display an image of a keyboard on the screen. A touchscreen or
another input device, such as a mouse, can be used to enter text by operating the
virtual keys.
101
Virtual keyboards, or “on-screen” keyboards also provide flexibility. A new

keyboard can be displayed anytime that the user wants to switch to a different
language. You can type directly in a local language script in an easy and
consistent manner, no matter where you are or what kind of computer you’re
using. Some common uses of virtual keyboards include:
• Allowing a person to type in their own language on foreign keyboards -
such as when traveling abroad or living in another country,
• Enabling a more accessible typing experience by allowing typing by on-
screen clicks,
• Providing a fast, simple way to switch between different character sets
and/or alphabets.
Software keyboards have also become very popular in touchscreen enabled cell
phones, since hardware keyboards cost more and occupy more physical space.
5.1.1.5 Projection Keyboards
A projection keyboard projects an
image of a keyboard (usually with a
laser) onto a flat surface. The device
then uses a camera or infrared sensor
to "watch" where the user's fingers
move and will count a key as being
pressed when it "sees" the user's finger
touch the projected image.
A projection keyboard can
simulate a full-size keyboard from
a very small projector.
Because the "keys" are simply
projected images, they cannot be
felt when pressed.
Users of projected keyboards often experience discomfort in their
fingertips because of the lack of "give" when typing.
A flat, non-reflective surface is also required for the keyboard to be displayed.
Most projection keyboards are made for use with PDAs and smartphones
because the small sizes of these devices make physical keyboards impossible.
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5.1.2 Keyboard Layouts

There are a number of different arrangements of alphabetic, numeric, and punctuation
symbols on keys.
The main reason that there are different keyboard layouts is that different people
want easier access to different symbols, some because they are entering text in
different languages and some need a specialized layout for mathematics,
accounting, computer programming, or other purposes.
The United States keyboard layout is used as default in the currently most popular
PC operating systems:
Windows, Mac OS X and Linux.
5.1.2.1 QWERTY Keyboard
The common QWERTY-based layout was designed early in the era of
mechanical typewriters, and its ergonomics were compromised to allow for the
mechanical limitations of the typewriter.
As the letter-keys were attached to levers that needed to move freely, inventor
Christopher Sholes developed the QWERTY layout to reduce the likelihood
of jamming.
With computer keyboards, lever jams are no longer an issue, but QWERTY
layouts were adopted for electronic keyboards because they were commonly
used and many of the people using them were already familiar with them and
trained in their use.
There are alternative layouts (The best known is the Dvorak Simplified
Keyboard) but none of them are widely used.
5.1.2.2 Dvorak Simplified Keyboard
The lxxiDvorak Simplified Keyboard is a
keyboard layout patented in 1936 by Dr.
August Dvorak and his brother-in-law, Dr.
William Dealey.
Dvorak proponents claim the layout Dvorak Layout
requires less finger motion and that its use
results in fewer errors than the standard QWERTY layout. Its proponents also
claim that the reduction in finger distance traveled permits faster rates of typing
while also reducing repetitive strain injuries.
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5.1.2.3 Layouts for languages other than English

QWERTZ is a layout that is widely used in Germany and much of Central Europe.
The main difference between QWERTZ and QWERTY is that Y and Z are
swapped, and most special characters such as brackets are replaced by diacritical
characters.
Another situation takes place with other "national" layouts. Keyboards designed
for typing in Spanish have some characters shifted, to release the space for
characters Ñ and ñ.
Similarly, layouts for Portuguese, French and other European languages may have
a special key for the characters Ç and ç.
The AZERTY layout is used in France, Belgium and some neighboring countries.
It differs from the QWERTY layout in that the A and Q are swapped, the Z and
W are swapped, and the M is moved from the right of N to the right of L (where
colon/semicolon is on a US keyboard). The digits 0 to 9 are on the same keys, but
to be typed the shift key must be pressed. The unshifted positions are used for
accented characters.
Keyboards in many parts of Asia may have special keys to switch between the
Latin character set and a completely different typing system. Japanese layout
keyboards can be switched between various Japanese input methods and the Latin
alphabet by signaling the operating system's input interpreter of the change, and
some operating systems (namely the Windows family) interpret the character "\"
as "¥" for display purposes without changing the bytecode. This has led some
keyboard makers to mark "\" as "¥" or to mark the key with both symbols.
In the Arab world, keyboards can often be switched between Arabic and Latin
characters.
In bilingual regions of Canada and in the French-speaking province of Québec,
keyboards can often be switched between an English and a French-language
keyboard; while both keyboards share the same QWERTY alphabetic layout, the
French-language keyboard enables the user to type accented vowels such as "é"
or "à" with a single keystroke.
Using the same keyboard for more than one language leads to a conflict: the image
on the key does not necessarily correspond to the character produced on the
screen. In such cases, each new language may require an additional label on the
keys, because the standard keyboard layouts do not share even similar characters
of different languages.
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5.2 Scanners
An image scanner - (usually abbreviated to just scanner) - is a device that optically scans
images and converts them to digital representations of the images. There are various
kinds of scanners. Among them are:
lxxii
flatbed scanners where the document is placed on a glass window for scanning.
lxxiii
Hand-held scanners, where the scanning device is moved by hand
lxxiv
3D scanners that are often used for industrial design, reverse engineering, test
and measurement, gaming, and other applications.
Color scanners that typically read RGB (red-green-blue color) data.
This data is processed with some proprietary algorithm to correct for
different exposure conditions and sent to the computer via the device's
input/output interface (usually USB).
Color depth (the number of bits that a scanner uses to represent colors in
its images) varies depending on the scanner but is usually at least 24 bits.
High quality models have 36-48 bits of color depth.
lxxv
Document scanners are scanners designed specifically to process collections
of loose leaf papers, usually just for text. These scanners generally have
document feeders, usually larger than those sometimes found on copiers
or all-purpose scanners. The main function of document scanners is to
capture the images of scanned documents or text and save these
images digitally to picture or PDF formats. Scanning technology
has advanced and most document scanners can distinguish
variations in color. Those with built-in optical character recognition
(OCR) software are able to convert images into editable text.
Optical character recognition (OCR) is the conversion of images of
typed, handwritten or printed text into machine-encoded text, whether
from a scanned document, a photo of a document, a scene-photo (for
example the text on signs and billboards in a landscape photo) or from
subtitle text superimposed on an image (for example from a television
broadcast). It is widely used as a form of information entry from
printed paper data records, whether passport documents, invoices,
bank statements, computerized receipts, business cards, mail, printouts
of static-data, or any suitable documentation. It is a common method
of digitizing printed texts so that they can be electronically edited,
searched, stored more compactly, displayed on-line, and used in
machine processes.
105
Document scanners typically run at high speed, perhaps 20 to 150 pages

per minute. They are usually done in grayscale, although many document
scanners do support color.
Many document scanners can scan both sides of double-sided originals
(duplex operation). Sophisticated document scanners have firmware or
software that cleans up scans of text as they are produced, eliminating
accidental marks and sharpening type. (This would be unacceptable for
photographic work, where marks cannot reliably be distinguished from
desired fine detail.) The files created are compressed as they are made.
The resolution used is usually from 150 to 300 dpi. The hardware may be
capable of higher resolution, but this produces images good enough for
text to be read and provides adequate clarity to support optical character
recognition. Higher resolution would result in slower scan times and place
greater demands on storage space.
A parameter commonly used for describing the capabilities of scanners is resolution,
measured in pixels per inch (ppi)
As of 2009, a high-end flatbed scanner could scan up to 5400 ppi and drum scanners
had an optical resolution of between 3,000 and 24,000 ppi.
As of 2020 there were several scanners on the market advertising 6400 dpi
with 48 bit color depth.
5.3 Pointing Devices

A pointing device is an input device that allows a user to communicate with a computer
by controlling the position of a cursor on the computer display.
Although the most common pointing device is the mouse, many other devices have been
developed as well. The term "mouse", however, is often used as a generic term for a
device that moves the cursor.
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5.3.1 Mouse
A computer mouselxxvi is a pointing device. It is a small
object you can roll along a hard, flat surface. This motion
is translated into the movement of the cursor and allows
a smooth control of the graphical user interface.
Invented by Douglas Engelbart of Stanford Research
Center in 1963, and pioneered by Xerox in the 1970s,
the mouse is one of the great breakthroughs in Mouse
computer interaction.
Physically, a mouse is an object that will be held in the user's hand, and normally has
one or more buttons. Mice often also have other elements (such as "wheels") that
enable a wider range of input and additional control over the GUI.
The mouse is important for graphical user interfaces because you can simply point to
options and objects (move the cursor over them) and click on them (by pressing and
then releasing a mouse button.)
Applications that make use of these capabilities are often called point-and-click
programs.
The mouse is particularly useful for graphics programs that allow you to draw
pictures by using the mouse like a pen, pencil, or paintbrush.
There are three basic types of mice.
1. Mechanical mouse: Has a rubber or metal ball on its underside that can
roll in all directions. Mechanical sensors within the mouse detect the
direction the ball is rolling and move the screen pointer accordingly.
2. Opto-mechanical mouse: Same as a mechanical mouse but uses optical

sensors to detect motion of the ball.
3. Optical mouse: Uses a laser to detect the mouse's movement. Optical
mice have no mechanical moving parts. They respond more quickly and
precisely than mechanical and opto-mechanical mice, but they also tend to
be more expensive.
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5.3.2 Trackball
A lxxviitrackball is a pointing device consisting of a ball held
by a socket containing sensors to detect a rotation of the ball.
(Like an upside-down mechanical mouse.)
The user rolls the ball with the thumb, fingers, or the palm
of the hand to move a pointer. Trackball
In some ways, a trackball will be better than a mouse:
At times, a mouse can reach an edge of its working area while the operator still
wishes to move the screen pointer farther. With a trackball, the operator just
continues rolling, whereas a mouse would have to be lifted and re-positioned.
Because trackballs for personal computers are stationary, they may require less
space for operation than a mouse and may be easier to use in confined or cluttered
areas. They are often preferred in laboratory settings for this reason.
Many people with a mobility impairment use trackballs as an assistive technology
input device. Access to an alternative pointing device has become even more
important for these people with the dominance of GUI type operating systems.
Trackball users often state that they are not limited to using the device on a flat
desk surface. Trackballs can be used while browsing a laptop while the user is in
bed or sitting in an armchair.
Trackballs are also useful for computing on boats (or other unstable platforms)
where an unexpected movement (like a rolling deck) could produce unintended
input.
5.3.3 Joystick
A joystick is a lever that moves in all directions and
controls the movement of the pointer/cursor. A joystick
works very much like a mouse, except that with a mouse
the cursor stops moving as soon as you stop moving the
mouse, but with a joystick, the pointer continues moving
in the direction the joystick is pointing. To stop the pointer,
you must return the joystick to its upright position.
Most joysticks include two buttons called triggers.
Joysticks are used mostly for computer games (the idea Joystick
is to emulate an aircraft flight control system), but they
are also used occasionally for CAD/CAM systems and other applications.
Joysticks are also used for controlling machines such as cranes, trucks, underwater
unmanned vehicles, wheelchairs, surveillance cameras, and zero turning radius
lawn mowers.
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5.3.4 Touchscreen
A touch screen is a computer display screen that is also an input device. The screens
are sensitive to pressure.
A user interacts with the computer by touching pictures, icons or words on the
screen.
Smartphones use touchscreens almost universally, and they are becoming more
common on laptops as well.
There are three types of touch screen technology:
Resistive: A resistive touch screen panel is coated with a thin metallic electrically
conductive and resistive layer that causes a change in the electrical current
which is registered as a touch event and sent to the controller for processing.
Resistive touch screen panels are generally more affordable but offer only
75% clarity and the layer can be damaged by sharp objects. Resistive touch
screen panels are not affected by outside elements such as dust or water.
Surface wave: Surface wave technology uses ultrasonic waves that pass over the
touch screen panel. When the panel is touched, a portion of the wave is
absorbed. This change in the ultrasonic waves registers the position of the
touch event and sends this information to the controller for processing.
Surface wave touch screen panels are the most advanced of the three types,
but they can be damaged by outside elements.
Capacitive: A capacitive touch screen panel is coated with a material that stores
electrical charges. When the panel is touched, a small amount of charge is
drawn to the point of contact. Circuits located at each corner of the panel
measure the charge and send the information to the controller for processing.
Capacitive touch screen panels must be touched with a finger unlike resistive
and surface wave panels that can use fingers and stylus. Capacitive touch
screens are not affected by outside elements and have high clarity.
5.3.5 Graphics Tablet

A lxxviiigraphic tablet (also known as a digitizer,
drawing tablet, digital drawing tablet, pen tablet,
or digital art board) is a computer input device that
enables a user to hand-draw images, animations, and
graphics, with a special pen-like stylus. A graphic
tablet supports image creation and editing in a way
similar to that a person uses to draw images with a
pencil and paper. graphics tablet
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These tablets may also be used to capture data or handwritten signatures.

They can also be used to trace images from pieces of paper taped or otherwise
secured to the tablet surface.
Capturing data in this way, by tracing or entering the corners of linear polylines
or shapes, is called digitizing.
A graphics tablet consists of a flat surface where the user may "draw" or trace an
image using the attached stylus, a pen-like drawing apparatus. The image is displayed
on the computer monitor, though some graphic tablets also incorporate an LCD
screen for a more realistic or natural experience and usability.
Some graphics tablets are intended as a replacement for the computer mouse as
the primary pointing and navigation device for desktop computers.
5.3.6 Touchpad
A touchpad or trackpad is a pointing device featuring a
specialized surface that can sense the position (and
movement) of the user’s fingers and translate their motion
and position to a relative position for display on the
screen.
Touchpads are a common feature of laptop computers
and are also used as a substitute for a mouse in
situations where desk space is scarce. Touchpad
5.3.7 Gamepad
A gamepad is a type of input device that is held in two hands, and allows the
fingers (especially thumbs) to be used to control input. They are typically the main
input device for video game consoles but can also be used with personal computers.
Gamepads generally feature a set of buttons handled with the right thumb and a
direction controller handled with the left. The direction controller has traditionally
been a four-way digital cross (also named a joypad, or alternatively a D-pad.) Many
modern controllers also feature one or more analog sticks.
Examples of Gamepads
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5.4 Speech Recognition

From the very first computers, workers have dreamed of being able to control
computers by spoken commands. Until quite recently, this was little more than a
dream.
Recently, however, speech recognition has developed to where it can be used effectively,
and its applications have become quite widespread, especially in business call centers.
Computers and mobile devices now commonly come with speech recognition software
installed.
Speech recognition technology still has a few issues to work through and is being
continuously developed. The pros of speech recognition software are that it is easy to
use and readily available. People can talk faster than they can type, so verbal text entry
is more efficient than by keyboard (or at least faster.)
On the downside, speech recognition has problems in capturing words due to variations
of pronunciation, difficulty in interpreting accents and problems sorting through
background noise. These factors can lead to errors in interpretation. Current systems
perform at (or above) the level of normal humans, but for many applications this is
simply not good enough.
From the technology perspective, speech recognition has a long history with several
waves of major innovations. Most recently, the field has benefited from advances in deep
learning and big data. The advances are evidenced by the worldwide industry adoption
and deployment of a variety of speech recognition systems. These speech industry
players include Google, Microsoft, IBM, Baidu, Apple, Amazon, Nuance, SoundHound
and iFLYTEK.
Much of the progress in the field is owed to the rapidly increasing capabilities of
computers. At the end of an influential DARPA program in 1976, the best computer
available to researchers was the PDP-10 with 4 MB ram. These computers could take up
to 100 minutes to decode just 30 seconds of speech. A few decades later, researchers had
access to tens of thousands of times as much computing power. As the technology
advanced and computers got faster, researchers began tackling harder problems such as
larger vocabularies, speaker independence, noisy environments and conversational
speech.
The 1990s saw the first introduction of commercially successful speech recognition
technologies. Two of the earliest products were Dragon Dictate, a consumer product
released in 1990 and originally priced at $9,000, and a recognizer from Kurzweil
Applied Intelligence released in 1987. AT&T deployed the Voice Recognition Call
Processing service in 1992 to route telephone calls without the use of a human operator.
The technology was developed by Bell Labs. At that point, the vocabulary of the typical
commercial speech recognition system was larger than the average human vocabulary.
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In the United States, the National Security Agency has made use of a type of speech
recognition for keyword spotting since at least 2006. This technology allows analysts to
search through large volumes of recorded conversations and isolate mentions of
keywords.
Neural networks have been used in many aspects of speech recognition such as phoneme
classification, isolated word recognition, audiovisual speech recognition, audiovisual
speaker recognition and speaker adaptation.
Speech recognition is now widely used in:
Automobiles: Simple voice commands may be used to initiate phone calls, select
radio stations or play music from a compatible smartphone, MP3 player or music-
loaded flash drive.
Medical documentation: Speech recognition can be implemented as front-end or
back-end of the medical documentation process. Front-end speech recognition is
where the provider dictates into a speech-recognition engine, the recognized
words are displayed as they are spoken, and the dictator is responsible for editing
and signing off on the document. With a back-end (or deferred) speech
recognition the provider dictates into a digital dictation system, the voice is routed
through a speech-recognition machine and the recognized draft document is
routed along with the original voice file to an editor, who edits the draft and the
report is finalized. Deferred speech recognition is widely used in the industry.
Telephony: Speech recognition is now commonplace In the field of telephony, and is
becoming more widespread in the fields of computer gaming and simulation.
Education: Speech recognition can be useful for learning a second language. It can
teach proper pronunciation, as well as help in developing fluency and speaking
skills.
5.4.1 Commercial Voice Recognition Systems

Several voice recognition systems that have come into wide use.
Among these are Amazon Alexa, Microsoft Cortana, Apple Siri, and Nuance Dragon.
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5.4.1.1 Amazon Alexa

Alexa is an artificial intelligence (AI) service unveiled to the world in late 2014.
Alexa is powered by Amazon's cloud computing infrastructure. It adapts to the
user’s voice over time, which tends to offset issues with accents and/or dialects.
Alexa can do quite a bit “out of the box” but, its capabilities can be expanded by
enabling “Alexa Skills”.
(Alexa Skills can be thought of as Alexa's version of apps.)
Some of these skills were created by Amazon and affiliated partners, but the vast
majority have been created by third parties. Independent developers and large
companies alike have published skills for Alexa to help you do things like order
a pizza from Dominos, call up an Uber, or play games.
5.4.1.2 Microsoft Cortana
Cortana is a virtual assistant developed by Microsoft. It uses the Bing search
engine to perform tasks like setting reminders and answering questions for the
user.
Microsoft announced the availability of Cortana for Windows 10 desktops and
mobile devices in January 2015. They also announced that Cortana would also be
available on other mobile platforms. An Android version and an iOS version were
released in December 2015.
5.4.1.3 Apple Siri
Apple’s Siri came out in 2011 and was the first voice assistant created by a
mainstream tech company. It has been integrated on all iPhones, iPads, the
AppleWatch, the HomePod, Mac computers, and Apple TV.
5.4.1.4 Nuance Dragon
In 1997 Dragon Systems released a product named NaturallySpeaking 1.0 as
their first continuous dictation product. This software has three primary areas of
functionality:
voice recognition in dictation with speech transcribed as written text,
recognition of spoken commands,
text-to-speech: speaking text content of a document.
Later, the rights to the Dragon product line were acquired by ScanSoft, and then,
in 2005, ScanSoft acquired Nuance Communications, and rebranded itself as
Nuance.
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5.5 Questions
5.5.1 Completion
5. Examples of ______ devices include keyboards, mouse, scanners, digital cameras
and joysticks.
5. In computing, an input device is a(n) ________ (piece of computer hardware
equipment) used to provide data and control signals into a computer.
5.1 In computing, a computer keyboard is a(n) _________-style device which
uses an arrangement of buttons or keys to act as electronic switches.
5.1 In normal usage, the keyboard is used as a(n) ______entry interface.
5.1.1.3 The vast majority of flexible keyboards in the market are made from
_________
5.1.1.5 ________keyboards display an image of keys, usually with a laser, onto a
flat surface. The device then uses a camera or infrared sensor to "watch" where
the user's fingers move and will count a key as being pressed when it "sees" the
user's finger touch the projected image.
5.1.2.1 The common _______-based layout was designed early in the era of
mechanical typewriters, so its ergonomics were compromised to allow for the
mechanical limitations of the typewriter.
5.1.2.2 Proponents of the _______ keyboard claim the layout requires less finger
motion and reduces errors compared to the standard layout.
5.2 An image _______ is a device that optically scans images and converts them to
digital representations of the images.
5.3.5 Capturing data with a graphics tablet, by tracing or entering the corners of
linear poly-lines or shapes, is called ______

5. A ______ is an example of an input device
a) keyboard
b) mouse
c) scanner
d) all of the above
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5.1 A command-line interface is a type of user interface operated entirely through

_______
a) keyboard
b) voice command
c) touchscreen
d) any of the above
5.1.1.1 There are three different PC keyboards: The three differ somewhat in the
placement of:
a) the function keys
b) the control keys
c) the return key
d) all of the above
5.1.1.4 Software keyboards have become very popular in touchscreen enabled cell
phones, due to_______.
a) their popularity among users who use them for games
b) the additional cost and space requirements of other types of hardware
keyboards
c) the ease with which they can be reprogrammed for different languages
d) all of the above
5.1.1.4 _______ keyboards have become very popular for cell phones, due to the
additional cost and space requirements of other types of hardware keyboards
a) Projection
b) Flexible
c) Software
d) all of the above
5.1.2 The United States keyboard layout is used as default in
a) Windows
b) Mac OS X
c) Linux
d) all of the above
5.1.2.3 The _______ keyboard layout is widely used in Germany and much of
Central Europe
a) QWERTZ
b) DVORAK
c) AZERTY
d) QWERTY
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5.1.2.3 The ________ keyboard layout is used in France, Belgium and some
neighboring countries
a) QWERTZ
b) DVORAK
c) AZERTY
d) QWERTY
5.2 An image scanner—usually abbreviated to just scanner—is a device that
optically scans images and converts them to digital representations of the
images. There are various kinds of scanners. Among them are:
________scanners where the document is placed on a glass window for
scanning
a) flatbed
b) window
c) document
d) industrial
________ scanners that are often used for industrial design, reverse engineering,
test and measurement, gaming and other applications
a) flatbed
b) window
c) document
d) industrial
5.3 A ______device is an input interface that allows a user to input spatial data to a
computer by controlling the position of a cursor on the computer display
a) cursor
b) spatial
c) pointing
d) all of the above
5.3.1The most common pointing device is the _______
a) touchscreen
b) mouse
c) touchpad
d) trackball
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5.3.1 The optical mouse _______

a) is cheaper than a mechanical mouse and responds more slowly
b) is cheaper than a mechanical mouse and responds more quickly
c) is more expensive than a mechanical mouse and responds more slowly
d) is more expensive than a mechanical mouse and responds more quickly
5.3.2 A _______ is a pointing device consisting of a ball held by a socket
containing sensors to detect a rotation of the ball about two axes
a) touchscreen
b) mouse
c) touchpad
d) trackball
5.3.4 A _______ touch screen panel is coated with a thin metallic electrically
which is registered as a touch event
a) resistive
b) surface wave
c) capacitive
d) all of the above
5.3.4 A ________ touch screen panel is coated with a material that stores electrical
charges. When the panel is touched, a small amount of charge is drawn to the
point of contact. Circuits located at each corner of the panel measure the charge
and send the information to the controller for processing
a) resistive
b) surface wave
c) capacitive
d) all of the above
5.3.6 ________ are a common feature of laptop computers, and are also used as a
substitute for a mouse where desk space is scarce
a) Touchscreens
b) Touchpads
c) Joysticks
d) all of the above
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5.4.3 True-False
5.1 A keyboard typically has characters engraved or printed on the keys and each
press of a key typically corresponds to a single written symbol.
5.1 Despite the development of alternative input devices, such as the mouse,
touchscreen, pen devices, character recognition and voice recognition, the
keyboard remains the most commonly used device for direct (human) input of
alphanumeric data into computers.
5.1.1.1 The IEEE has established a standard computer keyboard design that all
manufacturers conform to.
5.1.1.2 Keyboards on laptops and notebook computers usually have a shorter travel
distance for the keystroke, shorter over travel distance, but always have the same
set of keys.
5.2 There are a number of different arrangements of alphabetic, numeric, and
punctuation symbols on keys of computer keyboards.
5.2 Document scanners produce very high resolution images.
5..3.3 Most joysticks include buttons called triggers.
5.3.4 Resistive touch screen panels are not affected by outside elements such as
dust or water.
5.3.4 Capacitive touch screens are not affected by outside elements and have high
clarity
5.3.6 Touchpads are a quite expensive and are found only on high end laptop
computers.
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6 Output
After a computer has processed some data (by executing a program) it will probably be
desirable for the computer to produce some kind of tangible effect in the outside world. (It
should produce some kind of output.)
Users normally want to have some indication of what the computer is doing or has
done. (There is typically some reason for running the program, after all.)
Computers have come to be able to produce a number of different kinds of output. Some
of the general classes of computer output are text, graphics, tactile, audio, and video.
Text consists of characters that are used to create words, sentences, and paragraphs.
Graphics are digital representations of nontext visual information such as drawings,

charts, photographs, and animation.
Tactile output such as raised line drawings may be useful for some individuals who
are blind.
Audio is music, speech, or any other sound.
Video consists of images displayed sequentially at speeds fast enough to create the
appearance of full motion.
The great majority of the output produced by computers can be divided into two classes:
output that users can see (visual output) and output that users can hear (audio output.)
6.1 Visual Output

The kinds of computer output that people can see can be subdivided again, into two
different classes. We describe these classes as being hard copy and soft copy.
Output resulting in reasonably permanent visual effects (often ink) on a physical
medium (usually paper) is described as hard copy.
The term soft copy is used to describe output resulting in temporary visual effects,
effects that can disappear as soon as the computer moves on to some other task.
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6.1.1 Visual Devices: Soft Copy

The most common computer output device is the computer monitor.
The term monitor [ also referred to as a video display terminal (VDT) and/or
video display unit (VDU) ] refers to a display screen for video images (and the
case that holds it.)
Monitors create a visual display for you to view (from processed data.)
Monitors come in a variety of screen sizes and visual resolutions.
Most monitors are rectangular in shape. Their size is usually described as a
number of inches (as measured diagonally – corner to corner.)
“Resolution” is a term used to describe the capacity of a screen to display a
sharp clear image. The resolution can be described in terms of “pixel density”
(dots per inch or dpi) or, more often, in term of the total screen area - the
number of distinct pixels in each dimension that can be displayed.
(A resolution of 1024 × 768 would designate a screen display with width
of 1024 pixels and height 768 pixels.)
There are two common types of modern computer monitors, cathode ray tube
(CRT) and flat panel screen. More recently a newer type, organic light-emitting
diode (OLED) has started becoming quite popular as well.
6.1.1.1 CRT Monitors
The earliest computer monitors were constructed like the
early TVs, as a CRT’s (Cathode Ray Tubes) with
fluorescent screens.
CRT monitors use phosphorescent dots to create the
pixels that make up their displayed images.
6.1.1.2 Flat Panel Monitors CRT Monitor
Today, almost all monitors use flat panel display technology.

The termlxxixFlat Panel Technology refers to a growing
number of electronic visual display technologies.
Monitors using these technologies are thinner and weigh
much less than traditional CRT video displays. Flat
panel display units are usually less than 10 centimeters
(3.9 in.) thick. Flat Panel Display
Most flat panel monitors create their displays using

liquid crystals (LCD’s) but they can also use gas plasma.
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6.1.1.2.1 LCD
Most modern flat-panel displays use LCD (liquid crystal display)
technologies.
Light is passed through liquid crystals to create the pixels.
LCD screens are usually back-lit to make them easier to read in bright
environments. They are thin and light and provide good linearity and
resolution.
A thin layer of liquid crystal (a liquid having crystalline properties) is
sandwiched between two electrically conducting plates. The front plate has
transparent electrodes deposited on it, and the back plate is illuminated.
By applying electrical signals across the plates, different regions of the
liquid crystal can be activated, to control their polarization properties.
These segments can either transmit or block light. An image is produced
by passing light through selected segments of the liquid crystal to the
viewer. LCD’s are used in various kinds of electronic devices, including
watches, cellphones, and calculators, as well as notebook computers.
Liquid crystal displays are lightweight, compact, portable, and cheap. They are
also more reliable, and easier on the eyes than CRTs.
6.1.1.2.2 Gas Plasma
Very large displays often use plasma display technology.
A lxxxplasma display consists of two glass
plates separated by a thin gap filled with a
gas such as neon. Each of these plates has
several parallel electrodes running across
it. The electrodes on the two plates are at
right angles to each other. A voltage
applied between the two electrodes one on
each plate causes a small segment of gas at
the two electrodes to glow. The glow of gas
segments can then be maintained by a Plasma Display Technology
lower voltage continuously applied to all
electrodes.
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Advantages of Gas Plasma

• Capable of producing deeper blacks, which allows superior contrast ratios.
• Supports wider viewing angles than those of LCD
• images do not suffer from degradation at less than straight ahead angles as
occurs with LCD’s
• Less visible motion blur, thanks in large part to very high refresh rates and a
faster response time. This contributes to superior performance when displaying
content with significant amounts of rapid motion.
• Superior uniformity. LCD panel backlights nearly always produce uneven
brightness levels, (although this is not always noticeable.)
• Less expensive per square inch than LCD (for the buyer) particularly when
equivalent performance is considered.
Disadvantages of Gas Plasma
• Earlier generation displays were more susceptible to screen burn-in and image
retention.
• Due to the bistable nature of the color and intensity generating method, some
people will notice that plasma displays have a shimmering or flickering effect
with a number of hues, intensities and dither patterns.
• Earlier generation displays (circa 2006 and prior) had phosphors that lost
luminosity over time, resulting in gradual decline of absolute image brightness.
(Newer models have advertised lifespans exceeding 100 000 hours, far longer
than older CRT’s)
• Uses more electrical power, on average, than an LCD TV using a LED
backlight. Older CCFL backlights for LCD panels used quite a bit more power,
and older plasma TVs used quite a bit more power than recent models.
• Does not work as well at high altitudes above 6,500 feet (2,000 meters) due to
pressure differential between the gasses inside the screen and the air pressure at
altitude. It may cause a buzzing noise. Manufacturers rate their screens to
indicate the altitude parameters.
• Plasma displays are generally heavier than LCD and may require more
careful handling such as being kept upright.
Plasma displays have lost nearly all market share, mostly due to competition
from low-cost LCD and more expensive but higher-contrast OLED flat-panel
displays. Manufacturing for the United States retail market ended in 2014.
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6.1.1.3 Organic Light-Emitting Diode (OLED)

An organic light-emitting diode (OLED) is a light-emitting diode (LED) formed
as a film of organic compound located between two electrodes.
OLED displays can be manufactured on flexible plastic leading to the possible
production of flexible organic light-emitting diodes for new applications, such as
roll-up displays and fabrics or clothing with embedded OLEDS.
OLED
OLEDs are sometimes used to create digital displays in devices such as

television screens, computer monitors, and portable systems such as mobile
phones, handheld game consoles and PDAs.
Because the substrate used can be flexible, they are also shatter resistant,
unlike glass displays used in LCD devices.
Flexible OLED’s are also often used in wearable devices, because they are light
weight and require little power (in addition to being flexible and capable of
displaying a wide range of colors.)
Wearable technology, wearables, fashionable technology, wearable
devices, tech togs, or fashion electronics are clothing and accessories
incorporating computer and advanced electronic technologies.
These designs often incorporate practical functions and features but may also
have a purely critical or aesthetic agenda.
Wearables make technology pervasive by interweaving it into daily life.
Throughout the history and development of wearable computing, pioneers
have attempted to enhance or extend the functionality of clothing, or to create
wearables as accessories able to provide users with the
capacity to record their activities
(typically, by way of small wearable or portable
personal technologies.)
Tracking information like movement, steps and heart
rate are all part of quantifying self-movement.
One early piece of widely-adopted wearable technology was Calculator Watch
the lxxxicalculator watch, introduced in the 1980s.
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OLED’s can be printed onto any suitable substrate by an inkjet printer or even by
screen printing, making them theoretically (at least in theory) cheaper to produce
than LCD or plasma displays (although the materials are more expensive than for
LCD’s.) OLED’s also have a much faster response time than LCD’s.
The biggest technical problem for OLEDs is that they have a much more limited
lifetime than do LCD’S or gas plasma displays. They are also much more subject
to water damage.
6.1.1.4 Projectors
lxxxii
A projector or image projector is an optical device
that projects an image (or moving images) onto a surface
(often a projection screen.)
The computer sends the image data to its video card,
which then sends the video image to the projector. Acer Projector
Projectors are typically used for presentations or for viewing videos.

Most projectors create an image by shining a light through a small transparent
lens, but some newer types of projectors can project the image directly, by using
lasers.
The most common type of projector used today is called a video projector.
Video projectors are digital replacements for earlier types of projectors such
as slide projectors.
These earlier types of projectors were mostly replaced with digital video
projectors throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, but old analog projectors are
still used at some places.
The newest types of projectors are handheld
projectors that use lasers or LEDs to project images.
Their projections are often hard to see if there is
much ambient light, although the technology has
recently improved significantly in this respect. Epson AAXA P700 Pocket Projector
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6.1.1.5 Virtual Reality Headsets

lxxxiii
A virtual reality headset is a
head-mounted device that provides
virtual reality for the wearer.
Virtual reality (VR) headsets are
widely used with video games, but
they are also used in other
applications, including simulators
and trainers. They include a
stereoscopic head-mounted display
(with separate images for each Oculus Rift CV-1
eye), stereo sound, and head
motion tracking sensors (which may include gyroscopes, accelerometers,
structured light systems, etc.). Some VR headsets also have eye tracking sensors
and gaming controllers.
6.1.2 Hard Copy devices - Printers
Printers produce a hard copy version of processed data such as documents and
photographs. The computer sends the image data to the printer, which then physically
recreates the image, usually on paper. There are three common types of computer
printers: ink jet, laser and dot matrix.
Inkjet printers spray tiny dots of ink on a surface to create an image.
Laser printers use toner drums that roll through magnetized pigment and then
transfer the pigment to a surface.
Dot matrix printers use a print head to embed images on a surface, using an ink
ribbon. They were common in the 1980s and 1990s but have become much less
common since then.
Dot Matrix Printer Laser Printer

Inkjet Printer
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6.1.2.1 Inkjet Printers

Inkjet printers have a number of advantages over other consumer-oriented
printers. They are quieter in operation than impact printers, such as dot matrix or
daisywheel printers. They can also print finer, smoother details because they are
capable of higher resolution. Consumer inkjet printers with photographic-quality
printing are widely available.
Inkjet printers are the type of printer most commonly found in homes and small
offices, since they tend to be lower priced than laser printers (especially color
laser printers) and quieter than impact printers.
Storage of inkjet documents can problematical, depending on the quality of the
inks and paper used.
If low-quality paper is used, it can yellow and degrade due to residual acid in
the untreated pulp:
in the worst case, old prints can literally crumble into small particles
when handled.
Of course, this is a property of the paper, not the printer, and would be
true for any kind of printer using this kind of paper.
Documents printed by a high-quality inkjet on acid-free paper can last as
long as typewritten or handwritten documents on the same paper.
The ink used in many low-cost consumer inkjets is water-soluble, so care
must be taken with inkjet-printed documents to avoid contact with moisture,
which can cause severe "blurring" or "running".
In extreme cases, even sweaty fingertips can cause low-quality inks to
smear.
Similarly, water-based highlighter markers can blur inkjet-printed
documents and can also discolor the highlighter's tip.
Many inkjet printers now use water resistant pigment based inks.
Resin or silicone protected photopaper is widely available at low cost,
resulting in complete water and mechanical rub resistance for dye and
pigment inks.
The photopaper itself must be designed for pigment or for dye inks, as
pigment particles are too large to be able to penetrate through the
protection layer of dye-only photopaper.
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6.1.2.2 Laser Printers
Laser printing is an electrostatic digital
printing process. It produces high-quality text
and graphics (but only moderate-quality
photographs.) Laser printing operates by
passing a laser beam back and forth over a
charged cylinder (called a "drum") to create an
electrostatic representation of the desired
image.
The drum then attracts electrically charged Diagram of a laser printer
powdered ink (called toner) and transfers this image onto paper. The paper is then
heated, fusing the ink onto the paper.
Laser printing differs from other printing technologies in that each page is always
rendered in a single continuous process without any pausing in the middle. Other
technologies can pause between characters and/or lines. A laser printer needs
enough memory to hold the bitmap image of an entire page.
Memory requirements increase with the square of the number of dots per inch.
During the 1980s, memory chips were still very expensive, which is why, at
that time, entry-level laser printers came with four-digit retail prices. Later,
memory prices plunged, and 1200 dpi laser printers have been widely available
in the consumer market since 2008.
Laser printers that print on plastic sheets, are also available.
6.1.2.3 Dot Matrix Printers
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Dot matrix printing or impact matrix
printing is a kind of computer printing that
uses a print head that pushes wires against
an ink-soaked cloth ribbon to make dots on
the paper. Letters are drawn out of a dot
Dot Matrix
matrix, and varied fonts, as well as arbitrary
graphics can be produced.
Each dot is produced by a tiny metal rod, also called a "wire" or "pin", which is
extruded from the print head by the power of a tiny electromagnet or solenoid.
In the 1970s and 1980s, dot matrix impact printers were generally considered the
best combination of expense and versatility, and until the 1990s they were by far
the most common form of printer used with personal and home computers. They
are not, however, very quiet.
Dot matrix printers are still preferred where fan fold paper is desired and/or where
there is a requirement for multiple copies (since non-impact printers do not
support carbon copies.)
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6.1.2.4 Other Kinds of Printers

6.1.2.4.1 Virtual Printers
A virtual printer is a piece of computer software that creates a user interface
that functions like a printer driver, but which is not connected with a physical
printer. Instead, a virtual printer can be used to create a file that is an image of
the data that would be printed. These files can be used for archival purposes or
as input to another program (in format of a PDF file, for example) or to
transmit to another system or user.
6.1.2.4.2 3D Printers
A 3D printer is a device for making a three-dimensional object from a 3D
model or other electronic data source. 3D printers place layers of material
(including plastics, metals, food, cement, wood, and other materials) one over
another under computer control. They work in much the same way that an
inkjet printer deposits layers of ink on paper.
6.1.2.4.3 Solid ink printers
Solid ink printers (also known as phase-change printers) are a type of thermal
transfer printer. They use solid sticks of colored ink, similar in consistency to
candle wax. These sticks are melted and fed into a print-head. The printhead
sprays the ink on a rotating, oil coated drum. The paper then passes over the
print drum and the image is transferred to the page.
Solid ink printers are most commonly used as color printers in offices. They
are excellent at printing on transparencies and other non-porous media. Solid
ink printers can produce excellent results and have acquisition and operating
costs similar to those of laser printers.
Drawbacks of the technology include high energy consumption and long
warm-up times. Some users complain that the resulting prints are difficult to
write on because the wax tends to repel ink.
This type of printer is only available from one manufacturer, Xerox, and is
manufactured as part of their Xerox Phaser office printer line.
6.1.2.4.4 Dye-sublimation printers
A dye-sublimation printer (or dye-sub printer) is a printer that employs a
printing process using heat to transfer dye to a medium such as plastic, paper
or canvas. The process is usually to lay one color at a time using a ribbon that
has color panels.
Dye-sub printers are intended primarily for high-quality color applications,
(like color photography) and are less well-suited for text output. Dye-
sublimation printers are now increasingly being used as dedicated consumer
photo printers.
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6.1.2.4.5 Thermal printers

Thermal printers work by selectively heating
regions of special heat-sensitive paper.
Thermal printers are widely used in cash
registers, ATMs, gasoline dispensers and
some older inexpensive fax machines.
Colors can be achieved with special papers
and different temperatures and heating rates
for different colors. Thermal printer
Output from these printers tends to fade over time.
6.1.2.4.6 Daisy Wheel Printers
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Daisy wheel printers operate in much the same
fashion as many older typewriters. A hammer strikes
a wheel with petals, the "daisy wheel", each petal
containing a letter form at its tip. The letter form
strikes a ribbon of ink, depositing the ink on the page
and thus printing a character. By rotating the daisy
wheel, different characters are selected for printing.
These printers were also referred to as letter-quality
printers because they could produce text which was
as clear and crisp as a typewriter. The fastest letter- Daisy Wheel
quality printers printed at 30 characters per second.
By 1980 daisy wheel printers had become the dominant technology for high-
quality print. Dot-matrix impact, thermal, or line printers were used where
higher speed was required and poorer print quality was acceptable. Both
technologies were rapidly superseded for most purposes when dot-based
printers - (especially laser printers and ink jet printers) - developed to where
they were able to produce output of comparable quality. Such printers have the
advantage of being able to print any characters or graphics, rather than being
restricted to a limited character set.
6.1.2.4.7 Plotters
Pen-based plotters were an alternate printing technology once common in
engineering and architectural firms.
Pen-based plotters rely on contact with the paper (but not on impact, per se)
and special purpose pens that are mechanically run over the paper to create
text and images. Since a pen outputs continuous lines, they are able to produce
technical drawings of higher resolution than is achievable with dot-matrix
technology.
Some plotters used roll-fed paper, and therefore had minimal restriction on the
size of the output in one dimension. These plotters were capable of producing
very large drawings.
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6.1.3 Visual Output - Fonts

A great deal of computer generated information is displayed as text, whether on a
monitor (referred to as soft copy, because it very quickly disappears, leaving no
permanent record) or on paper, printed by a printer (referred to as hard copy because
there is a physical record of what was printed.)
Text can be printed in various sizes and styles/fonts
Technically, the term “font” refers to a combination of three things: font-face,
font-style and font-size, but the word is frequently used to refer to just the font-
face.
6.1.3.1 Font-Face
The font-face (typeface) is the general appearance of the characters, ie. What they
look like, how they are shaped.
There are two general classifications of font-faces: serif and san-serif. A serif is
a small line attached to the end of a stroke in a letter or symbol A typeface with
serifs is called a serif typeface (or serifed typeface or just a serif font). A typeface
without serifs is called san-serif or sans-serif. There is considerable debate as to
which type of font face is easier to read. There are studies to support both sides of
the issue.
One of the most common serif fonts is named Times-New-Roman
0123456789abcdxyzABCDXYZ
A commonly used san-serif font is named Ariel
0123456789abcdxyzABCDXYZ
6.1.3.2 Font-Style
The term “font-style” refers to whether a font is printed/displayed using any of a
few properties (each of which can be used in combination with any, or all, of the
others):
Bold
Italicized
Underlined
6.1.3.3 Font-Size
The font size (or text size) is the overall size (usually the height) of a font shown
on a screen or printed on a page.
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Font sizes are typically measured in points (pt).

This describes the vertical measurement of the lettering.
There are approximately 72 points in one inch. (Points were, more or less,
inherited from physical typography and referred to the smallest unit that could
be printed. The standard for computer use was defined by Adobe when
developing Adobe Postscript.)
Although points are the traditional measurement of fonts, with computer
monitors and other kinds of screen displays font sizes can also be measured in
pixels (px) and in pica (pc).
The font size may also be measured in em space, which is the width of the
character m in the current font. (The em measurement is convenient for
defining sizes of individual characters relative to characters around them.)
6.2 Audio Output
Computers produce audio data that requires output devices to deliver the sound. Devices
such as speakers and headphones.
A computer speaker is a hardware device that connects to a computer to generate
sound. The signal used to produce the sound that comes from a computer speaker is often
created by a computer's sound card..
Headphones are small listening devices that are designed to be worn on or around the
head over a user's ears. They convert electrical signals to corresponding sounds played
into the users’ ears.
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Headphones are designed to allow a single user to listen to an audio source
privately, in contrast to a speaker, which emits sound into the open air, for anyone
nearby to hear.
Circumaural and supra-aural headphones use a band over the top of the head to hold
the speakers in place.
An alternative type of headphones, known as earbuds or earphones, consist of
individual units that plug into the user's ear canals.
In the context of telecommunication, the term headset refers to a combination of a
headphone and a microphone.
Earbuds
Headset with Computer Speakers
microphone Headphones
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6.3 Questions
6.3.1 Completion
6. After a computer executed a program, has processed some data, it will probably
be desirable for the computer to produce some kind of tangible effect in the
outside world; for it to produce some kind of _______
6.1.1 A(n) _________ creates a visual display for you to view from processed data.
6.1.1.2.2 A(n) _______display consists of two glass plates separated by a thin gap
filled with a gas such as neon.
6.1.1.3 A(n) ______ is a light-emitting diode (LED) in which the emissive
electroluminescent layer is a film of organic compound that emits light in
response to an electric current.
6.1.1.3 Flexible OLED’s are often used in ________ devices.
6.1.1.4 Most projectors create an image by shining a light through a small
transparent lens, but some newer types of projectors can project the image
directly, by using _______
6.1.2.2 _______printing differs from other printing technologies in that each page is
always rendered in a single continuous process without any pausing in the
middle, while other technologies like inkjet can pause every few lines.
6.1.2.4.1 A(n) ______ printer is a piece of computer software whose user interface
and API resembles that of a printer driver, but which is not connected with a
physical computer printer. It can be used to create a file which is an image of the
data which would be printed, for archival purposes or as input to another
program.
6.1.2.4.5 _______printers are widely used in cash registers, ATMs, gasoline
dispensers and some older inexpensive fax machines.
6.1.2.4.7 Pen-based ______were an alternate printing technology once common in
engineering and architectural firms.
6.1.3.1 A(n) ______is a small line attached to the end of a stroke in a letter or
symbol.
6.1.3.3 There are approximately ___________ points in one inch.
6.2 _________are designed to allow a single user to listen to an audio source
privately, in contrast to a speaker, which emits sound into the open air, for
anyone nearby to hear.
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6.2 An alternative type of headphones, known as ______or earphones, consist of

individual units that plug into the user's ear canal.
6.2 In the context of telecommunication, a ______is a combination of a headphone
and a microphone.
6.1.1 A VDU is:
a) a monitor
b) a printer
c) a wearable
d) a speaker
6.1.1 A VDT is:
a) a monitor
b) a printer
c) a wearable
d) a speaker
6.1.1.3 Flexible OLED’s, which are often used in wearable devices,
a) are relatively heavy and are somewhat power hungry
b) are light weight but are somewhat power hungry
c) are relatively heavy but require little power
d) are light weight and require little power
e none of the above
6.1.1.4 The newest type of projectors is ______ projector
a) wearable
b) laser
c) handheld
d) color
6.1.2 _______ printers spray tiny dots of ink on a surface to create an image
a) inkspray
b) inkjet
c) inkdot
d) spraydot
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6.1.2.2 ________ printing differs from other printing technologies in that each page
is always rendered in a single continuous process without any pausing in the
middle, while other technologies can pause every few lines
a) Dot matrix
b) Inkjet
c) Laser
d) Thermal
6.1.2.3 ________ printing is a type of computer printing which uses a print head
that prints by impact, striking an ink-soaked cloth ribbon against the paper
a) Dot matrix
b) Inkjet
c) Laser
d) Thermal
6.1.2.3 In the 1970s and 1980s, __________ printers were generally considered the
best combination of expense and versatility, and until the 1990s they were by far
the most common form of printer used with personal and home computers
a) Dot matrix
b) Inkjet
c) Laser
d) Thermal
6.1.2.4.3 ________ printers are most commonly used as color office printers, and
are excellent at printing on transparencies and other non-porous media
a) Dot matrix
b) Inkjet
c) Laser
d) Thermal
6.1.3.3 The font size (or text size) is the overall size (generally height) of a font
shown on a screen or printed on a page. A font is typically measured in:
a) pt
b) px
c) pc
d) em
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6.1.2.4.4 _________ printers are now increasingly used as dedicated consumer

photo printers
a) Dot matrix
b) Inkjet
c) Laser
d) Thermal
6.1.2.4.5 _________ printers are widely used in cash registers, ATMs, gasoline
dispensers and some older inexpensive fax machines
a) Dot matrix
b) Inkjet
c) Laser
d) Thermal
6.1.2.4.6 These printers were also referred to as letter-quality printers because they
could produce text which was as clear and crisp as a typewriter.
a) dye-sub
b) daisy-wheel
c) dot-matrix
d) thermal
6.3.3 True-False
6.1.1.2.2 Very large displays generally use plasma display technology.
6.1.1.2.2 CRT screens are usually back-lit to make them easier to read in bright
environments.
6.1.1.2.2 Liquid crystal displays are lightweight, compact, portable and cheap and
they are also more reliable than CRTs.
6.1.1.4 The newest handheld projectors produce images that are easy to see, even
when there is ambient light.
6.1.2.1 Consumer inkjet printers with photographic-quality printing are widely
available.
6.1.2.1 Inkjet printers tend to be lower priced than color laser printers.
6.1.3.1 There is considerable debate as to which type of font, serif or sans-serif, is
easier to read. There are studies to support both sides of the issue.
6.1.3.1 Times-New-Roman is an example of a font style.
6.1.3.1 The text in this question is displayed using a serif font.
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7 Storage
Computer data storage, often called storage or memory, is technology consisting of
computer components and recording media used to retain/store digital data. It is a core
function and fundamental component of computers.
In practice, almost all computers use a
storage hierarchy, which puts fast but
expensive (and small) storage options
closer to the CPU and slower but larger
and cheaper options farther away.
Generally, the fast but volatile
technologies (which lose data when
power is turned off) are referred to as
"memory" (sometimes primary
storage), while persistent, but slower,
technologies are referred to as
"storage"; or “secondary storage”.
Secondary storage (also known as external memory or auxiliary storage) also differs
from primary storage in that it is not directly accessible by the CPU.
The computer system usually uses its input/output channels to access secondary
storage and transfers the desired data into and out of intermediate areas (buffers) in
primary storage (memory/RAM).
Secondary storage does not lose the data when the device is powered down—it is
non-volatile.
Secondary storage is typically also two orders of magnitude less expensive than
primary storage (memory/RAM).
Modern computer systems typically have two orders of magnitude more secondary
storage than primary storage.
In modern computers, hard disk drives are by far the most common form of secondary
storage, although solid-state drives (SSD’s) are fast gaining in popularity. Some other
examples of secondary storage technologies are optical disk drives, flash memory
(e.g. USB flash drives or keys), floppy disks, magnetic tape, paper tape, punched
cards, standalone RAM disks, and Iomega Zip drives.
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7.1 Hard disk drives

A hard disk drive (HDD), hard disk, hard drive or fixed disk is a data storage
lxxxviii
device used for storing and retrieving digital information using one or more rigid
("hard") rapidly rotating disks (called platters) coated with ferromagnetic material.
The platters are paired with magnetic heads arranged on a movable actuator arm. These
heads can read and write data from/to the platter surfaces.
The surfaces of each of the platters are divided into circular “tracks” and each track is
subdivided into a number of “sectors”. The actuator arm can move relatively quickly to
the track where given data is (or is to be) stored, and then the disk will rotate to where
the appropriate sector passes by the read/write head.
Hard Disk Drive

With cover removed
This technology supports “random-access” of the data.

(random-access means that individual blocks of data can be stored or retrieved in any
order rather than sequentially.)
The time taken to access a given byte of information stored on a hard disk is typically a
few milliseconds (a few thousandths of a second.)
By contrast, the time taken to access a given byte of information stored in RAM
(random-access memory – primary storage) is measured in nanoseconds (billionths of a
second.) This illustrates the significant difference in access-time between solid-state
memory and rotating magnetic storage devices: access to data on hard disks is typically
about a million times slower than access to data in RAM.
With disk drives, once the disk read/write head reaches the proper placement and the
data of interest rotates under it, subsequent data on the same track is much faster to
access.
The time it takes to move the head to the proper track is called “seek time”.
The time it takes for the desired data to rotate under the head is called “rotational
latency”.
To reduce the seek time and rotational latency, systems are designed to transfer data
to and from disks in large contiguous blocks.
Sequential access (or block access) on disks is orders of magnitude faster than
random access, and many sophisticated paradigms have been developed to design
efficient algorithms based upon sequential and block access.
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The two most common form factors for modern HDDs are 3.5-inch, for desktop
computers, and 2.5-inch, primarily for laptops. HDDs are connected to systems by
standard interface cables such as PATA (Parallel ATA), SATA (Serial ATA), USB
or SAS (Serial attached SCSI) cables.
Introduced by IBM in 1956, HDDs had become the dominant secondary storage
device for general-purpose computers by the early 1960s. Continuously improved,
HDDs have maintained this position into the modern era, although SSD’s are now
beginning to challenge their dominance.
As the 1980s began, HDDs were a rare and very expensive additional feature on
personal computers, but by the late 1980s their cost had been reduced to the point
where they had become standard on all but the cheapest computers.
Most HDDs in the early 1980s were sold to end users as external, add-on
subsystems. These subsystems were not sold under the drive manufacturer's name
but under the subsystem manufacturer's name
such as Corvus Systems and Tallgrass Technologies,
or under the name of the computer system
such as the Apple ProFile.
In 1983, the IBM PC/XT came out with an internal 10 MB HDD included, and soon
thereafter personal computers with internal HDDs started becoming much more
common.
7.1.1 RAID
Random Array of Inexpensive Disks
When relatively inexpensive (albeit smaller and, in many cases less reliable) hard
disks started to be marketed, it was recognized that by using several smaller hard
disks instead of just one large disk, one could create a system having a large
capacity, without the (often extreme) expense of a high capacity drive.
Such a system could have several advantages:
Price: It was usually possible to buy large storage capacity for less money as
a combination of smaller cheaper drives than a single high capacity drive
would cost. The smaller drives were manufactured in large quantities, resulting
in economies of scale. The smaller drives were also more readily available.
Reliability: With several different drives, it would be possible to put duplicate
data on more than one drive. Then, if one drive were to fail, its data would not
be lost.
Access Speed: With data in a large file stored on different drives, the system
can read different portions of the file from the different drives simultaneously.
This could result in faster upload times than would be possible with a single
drive.
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In a RAID system, data can be distributed across the drives in several different
ways and these different storage systems are referred to as RAID levels. The
different RAID levels vary according to redundancy and performance.
The different schemes, or data distribution layouts, are named by the word
RAID followed by a number,
for example RAID 0 or RAID 1.
Each scheme, or RAID level, provides a different balance among the key
goals: reliability, availability, performance, and capacity.
RAID levels greater than RAID 0 provide protection against unrecoverable
sector read errors, as well as against failures of whole physical drives.
7.2 Solid-State Drives
A solid-state drive (SSD) is a solid-state storage device that uses integrated circuit
assemblies to store data persistently. Such a device would function as secondary storage
in the hierarchy of computer storage. They are also sometimes called solid-state devices
or even solid-state disks (even though SSDs lack the physical spinning disks and
movable read–write heads used by HDDs and floppy disks.)
Compared with electromechanical drives, SSDs are typically more resistant to physical
shock, run silently, and have quicker access times.
Unlike a hard drive, an SSD has no moving parts, which gives it its advantages, such as
faster access time, noiseless operation, higher reliability, and lower power consumption.
As the costs have come down, SSDs have become suitable replacements for a standard
hard drive in both desktop and laptop computers. SSDs are also a solution for
applications that don't require a lot of storage. Since SSDs were first released, major
improvements were made, prices have decreased, and storage capacities have increased.
SSD’s with capacities over 4 TB are currently available for home computers.
7.3 Optical Storage Devices
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Optical storage is the storage of data on an optically readable medium. Data is
recorded by making marks in a pattern that can be read back using light, usually a beam
of laser light, precisely focused on a spinning optical disc.
Rotating optical storage devices, such as CD and DVD
drives, have even longer access times than do hard disk
drives.
The three most common optical media are CD, DVD and
Blu-ray. CDs store about 300,000 pages of text or roughly
700 MB. DVDs are commonly used for movies and hold
CD/DVD Disk Drive
around 4.7 GB of memory. Blu-ray has five times the
storage of DVD and is used for high-definition (HD) movies. On a single-layer disc,
Blu-ray can hold 25GB of data, and a dual-layer disc can hold 9 hours of an HD
movie or about 50GB of data.
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7.3.1 Media used for Backups of Secondary Storage

Optical discs can be used to backup relatively small volumes of data, but for
backing up of entire hard drives, the relatively slow access times of optical drives
makes them no longer practical. (Since, even as of 2015, HDD’s had come to have
capacities of many hundreds of gigabytes or even multiple terabytes.)
Large backups are often now made on external HDD’s. They have much faster
access times and the price of these devices has dropped to a level making them
viable alternatives. Magnetic tape drives are also used for this purpose.
7.4 Flash Memory
xc
Flash memory (e.g. USB flash drives or keys) A USB
flash drive, also variously known as a USB drive, USB
stick, thumb drive, pen drive, jump drive, flash-disk,
"memory stick," or USB memory, is a data storage
device that includes solid state (flash) memory with an
integrated USB interface. USB flash drives are typically
removable and rewritable, and physically much smaller Flash Drive
than an optical disc. Most weigh less than 30 grams
(1.1 oz).
Since they first appeared on the market in late 2000, storage capacities have increased
and prices have dropped.
As of March 2016, flash drives with anywhere from 8 to 256 GB were frequently sold,
and less frequently 512 GB and 1 TB units. Storage capacities as large as 2 TB are now
available.
USB flash drives are often used for the same purposes for which floppy disks or CDs
were once used, i.e., for storage, data back-up and transfer of computer files.
They are smaller, faster, have thousands of times more capacity, and are more durable
and reliable because they have no moving parts.
Additionally, they are immune to electromagnetic interference (unlike floppy disks)
and are unharmed by surface scratches (unlike CDs).
Until about 2005, most desktop and laptop computers were supplied with floppy disk
drives in addition to USB ports, but floppy disk drives have become obsolete after
widespread adoption of USB ports, large part due to the larger USB drive capacities
compared to that of floppy disks.
141
7.5 Obsolete Media

There are a number of types of storage media that were common at one time but are no
longer widely used.
7.5.1 Floppy Disks
xci
A floppy disk, also called a floppy, a diskette or
just disk, is a type of storage composed of a disk of
thin and flexible magnetic storage medium, sealed
in a rectangular plastic enclosure lined with fabric
that removes dust particles. Floppy disks are read
and written by a floppy disk drive (FDD).
Floppy disks were initially available as 8-inch
(200 mm) disks and later evolved down to 5¼-inch (133 mm) and even later to
3½-inch (90 mm) sizes. They were a very widely used form of data storage and
exchange from the mid-1970s into the early 2000s.
7.5.2 Magnetic Tape
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Magnetic tape is a medium for magnetic recording, made
of a long narrow strip of plastic film with a thin, ferromagnetic
coating. It was a key technology in early computer
development, allowing large amounts of data to be created,
stored for long periods, and later accessed (relatively) rapidly.
Tape has a low cost per bit, and, for this reason, it remains a
viable alternative to disk storage in some situations. Cost is an
important factor when dealing with large amounts of data.
Magnetic Tape
Though the areal density of tape is lower than for disks, the
available surface area on a tape is far greater. The highest capacity tape media are
generally on the same order as the largest available disk drives (about 5 TB in 2011).
Tape has historically offered enough advantage in cost to make it a viable
alternative to disk storage, particularly for backup, where media removability is
desirable.
7.5.3 Punched Paper Tape
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Punched tape or perforated paper tape is a form of data
storage, consisting of a long strip of paper in which holes are
punched to store data. Now effectively obsolete, it was widely
used during much of the twentieth century for teleprinter
communication, and, somewhat later, for input to computers of
the 1950s and 1960s. Even later paper tape saw extensive use Paper Tape
as a storage medium for minicomputers.
When the first minicomputers were being released, most manufacturers turned to the
existing mass-produced ASCII teleprinters (primarily the Teletype Model 33) as a
low-cost solution for keyboard input and printer output.
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The commonly specified Model 33 ASR included a paper tape punch/reader,

(where ASR stands for "Automatic Send/Receive") as opposed to the
punchless/readerless KSR – (Keyboard Send/Receive) and RO – (Receive Only)
models.
As a side effect, punched tape became a popular medium for low cost
minicomputer data and program storage, and it was common to find a selection of
tapes containing useful programs in minicomputer installations. Faster optical
readers for paper tape were also common.
7.5.4 Punched Cards
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Punched cards were widely used through much
of the 20th century in what became known as the data
processing industry, where specialized and
increasingly complex machines, organized into data
processing systems, used punched cards for data Punched Card
input, output, and storage.
Herman Hollerith invented the recording of data on a medium that could then be read
by a machine. (Prior uses of machine readable media had been for control, but not
for data.) After some initial trials with paper tape, he settled on punched cards. He
developed punched card data processing technology for the 1890 US census, and
formed a company that was later to become (a major part of) what would later become
known as IBM.
Punched card technology developed into a
powerful tool for business data-processing.
By 1950 punched cards had become
ubiquitous in industry and government.
Most early digital computers used punched
cards as the primary medium for input of both
computer programs and data These punched
cards were often prepared using specialized
keypunch machines.
7.5.5 Zip Drive
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The Zip drive is a removable floppy disk storage system
that was introduced by Iomega in late 1994. At the time of its
release it was a medium-to-high-capacity device.
Originally, Zip disks launched with capacities of 100 MB, but
later versions increased this to 250 MB and, even later, to Zip Drive
750 MB.
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This format became the most popular of the “superfloppy” products which filled
a niche in the portable storage market in the late 1990s.
However, the zip drive was never popular enough to replace the 3.5-inch floppy
disk. Later versions of the disc matched the capacity available on rewritable CDs
but were later far surpassed by rewritable DVDs.
Zip drives fell out of favor for mass portable storage during the early 2000s.
7.6 Cloud Storage

Some organizations have begun renting storage to subscribers.
Referred to as “cloud storage” or “storage in the cloud”.
Cloud storage is a model of data storage in which the digital data is stored in external
sites not owned by or (otherwise) related to the owner of the data. The physical storage
usually spans multiple servers (and often multiple locations) and the physical
environment is typically owned and managed by a hosting company.
These cloud storage providers are responsible for keeping the data available and
accessible, and keeping the physical environment protected and running.
People and organizations buy or lease storage capacity from the providers to store
user, organization, and/or application data.
Cloud storage services may be accessed through a cloud computer service, a web service
application programming interface (API) or by applications that utilize the API.
7.6.1 Software as a Service (SaaS)

Very often the cloud storage providers also provide access to application software.
“Hosted software” differs from typical software in its installation and accessibility.
Unlike most software, which is housed on the user's machine, hosted software related
data processing and computing is performed on the remote host server. End users can
access this data through a compatible Web browser.
Generally, hosted software is provided as a service to end users, who are billed
monthly on pay-per-use or per-license fee billing method. Because all programs are
installed at a provider’s location, they are managed, upgraded and patched by the
provider, ensuring that users always have access to updated, bug-free versions of the
software they use.
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7.7 Data Compression

In the early days of computing, storage was expensive (and limited) so a number of
techniques were developed (and several programs were marketed) for compression of
files (and collections of files.)
The idea was (and still is) to create files having an accurate representation of all of the
information from the originals, but requiring much less storage space. The most widely
used programs produce (and interpret) compressed files with file extensions zip and
rar.
The price of storage has come down, and capacities have increased radically over time,
but data compression has continued to be important. The speed at which data can be
transferred is critical in many areas, and, obviously, if a compressed format allows the
information can be represented using fewer bits, then it can be transmitted in less time
(i.e. faster.)
There are two classes of data compression techniques: lossless and lossy.
With lossless compression. Data is reduced in size in such a way that it will be
returned file to its exact original form when decompressed. The lossless format is
necessary for files that cannot function or would be noticeably compromised
without all the original data.
With lossy compression, file sizes can be reduced even further but with some
compromise in detail. This format is suitable for file types in which lost details are
imperceptible data such as audio, video, and most kinds of graphics.
7.8 Data Security
In situations where multiple entities have access to the same data storage device it is
generally the case that there would be some restrictions on the access some of the
entities might have to some of the data on the device. In Unix systems, the kinds of
access are identified as read, write and execute. (Windows systems support these types
of access controls and a couple of others as well.)
A user with read access to a file can access, read and make copies of the contents of
the file but cannot make changes to it.
A user with write access to a file can also make changes to its contents.
If a file is an executable program, then a user with execute access can also run the
program.
In many computer systems, access privileges are assigned by the file creators and/or
system administrators, usually on an ad hoc basis. On large complex systems, however,
there must be a standardized policy for assigning them. These policies will be designed
according to an access control model. There are three widely followed access control
models: the Bell-LaPadula model, the Biba model and the Chinese Wall model. Each
emphasizes a different type of security and would be appropriate in a different type of
setting.
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7.8.1 The Bell-LaPadula Model

The primary goal of the Bell-LaPadula security model is to prevent users from
gaining access to unauthorized information. Access levels are arranged
hierarchically and both users and data files are assigned access levels.
Typical access values tend to be motivated by military security:
top secret, secret, confidential, unclassified.
A user can read any data at or below his/her access level but is prohibited from
reading data from higher levels. Data produced by a user is assigned his/her access
level (or higher) and users cannot modify files with access levels below their own.
This policy is summarized as read down - write up and is designed to prevent low
level users from accessing high level data and prevent users from transferring
higher security data to where it might be accessed by users with lower security
privileges.
7.8.2 The Biba Model
While Bell - LaPadula is concerned with inappropriate disclosure of information,
Biba's model instead aims at ensuring the integrity of data.
Biba, like Bell-LaPadula, is hierarchical, with information at higher level being
considered more “trustworthy” and access is implemented on a read up – write
down basis. Users can access information at or above their own level and can
modify data at or below their level. Higher level users cannot access unreliable
information (and potentially contaminate the high level files with unreliable data)
and users with access to less reliable information cannot move that information into
higher levels.
A situation where the Biba model might be appropriate would be a large
software development company. Such a company might classify their software
collections as having development levels:
production, beta, alpha
Production level software has been rigorously tested and can generally be
considered reliable: All of the company’s programmers can read the production
level code (and incorporate parts of it into their own projects.) Thus programmers
can read up but only the most senior (and most trusted) programmers would be
allowed to make changes in production level code. Beta level software has passed
some degrees of testing, but is still not completely trusted. Sections of code from
beta level software can be used in alpha level projects and other beta level projects
but, as they are not completely trusted, should not be incorporated into production
level software. Alpha level software has not been tested (at least not enough to be
elevated to beta status) and is even less trusted. Again, alpha level developers can
read production and beta level software and incorporate the ideas into their projects
but are not allowed to insert their untested ideas into the more trusted software.
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7.8.3 The Chinese Wall Model

The Chinese Wall security model divides data into mutually exclusive collections
and permits a user to access data in only one of them. This model is appropriate for
situations like that of a large legal firm representing numerous clients. Lawyers
representing one client would be unable to access records relating to clients with
potentially competing interests.
7.9 Questions
7.9.1 Completion
7.0 Computer data storage, often called storage or memory, is a technology
consisting of computer components and recording media used to retain
_______data.
7.0 In practice, almost all computers use a storage______, which puts fast but
expensive (and small) storage options close to the CPU and slower but larger
and cheaper options farther away.
7.0 ________storage does not lose the data when the device is powered down—it is
non-volatile.
7.1 A hard disk drive is a data storage device used for storing and retrieving
digital information using one or more rigid ("hard") rapidly rotating disks
(platters) coated with ________ material.
7.2 With _____ storage, data is recorded by making marks in a pattern that can be
read back with the aid of light, usually a beam of laser light.
7.2 The three most common optical media are CD, DVD and______
7.3 A flash drive is a data storage device that includes flash memory with an
integrated _______ interface.
7.4.1 ________disks, initially as 8-inch (200 mm) media and later in 5¼-inch
(133 mm) and 3½-inch (90 mm) sizes, were a very widely used form of data
storage and exchange from the mid-1970s into the late 2000s.
7.4.3 Paper tape was widely used during much of the twentieth century for
___________communication.
7.4.5 The Zip drive is a medium-to-high-capacity (at the time of its release)
removable floppy disk storage system that was introduced by _______ in late
1994.
7.4.5 The ______drive is a medium-to-high-capacity (at the time of its release)
removable floppy disk storage system that was introduced by Iomega in late 1994.
7.5 Some organizations have begun offering to rent storage to subscribers. This is
referred to as “_______storage”.
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7.0 Modern computer systems typically have________
a) two orders of magnitude more secondary storage than primary storage but
data are kept for a longer time in primary storage
b) two orders of magnitude more secondary storage than primary storage and
data are kept for a longer time in secondary storage
c) two orders of magnitude more primary storage than secondary storage and
d) two orders of magnitude more primary storage than secondary storage but
7.1 The time taken to access a given byte of information stored on a hard disk is
typically a few thousandths of a second, or ________
a) nanoseconds
b) microseconds
c) milliseconds
d) picoseconds
7.1 The most common form factor for modern HDDs in desktop computers is
_______ inches
a) 8
b) 5.25
c) 3.5
d) 2.5
7.1 The most common form factor for modern HDDs in laptop computers is
_______ inches
a) 8
b) 5.25
c) 3.5
d) 2.5
e)
7.1.1 A RAID system can provide the advantage of:
a) lower price
b) greater reliability
c) faster upload speed
d) all of the above
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7.2 CD’s hold about ______ of data

a) 700 MB
b) 4.7 GB
c) 25 GB
d) 50 GB
7.2 DVD’s hold about ______ of data
a) 700 MB
b) 4.7 GB
c) 25 GB
d) 50 GB
7.2 Backups of large hard drives are now______
a) often made on external hard drives. Magnetic tapes are also used.
b) often made on magnetic tape. External hard drives are used occasionally, but
are too expensive for most installations
c) usually made on magnetic tape or DVD’s
d) almost always made on DVD’s
7.3 USB flash drives are often used for.
a) storage
b) data back-up
c) transfer of computer files
d) all of the above
7.3 USB flash drives are ______ than floppy disks
a) more durable and more reliable
b) less durable but more reliable
c) more durable but less reliable
d) less durable and less reliable
7.4 A floppy disk is a type of disk storage composed of a disk of thin and flexible
_______ storage medium, sealed in a rectangular plastic enclosure
a) optical
b) magnetic
c) semiconductor
d) any of the above
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7.4.2 Magnetic tape remains a viable alternative to disk in some situations due to
a) lower cost per bit
b) faster data access
c) greater storage density
d) all of the above
7.4.2 _________ have/has historically offered enough advantage in cost over disk
storage to make it a viable product, particularly for backup, where media
removability is necessary
a) Punched cards
b) Punched paper tape
c) Magnetic tape
d) all of the above
7.4.3 It was common to find a selection of _______ containing useful programs in
most minicomputer installations
a) Punched cards
c) Magnetic tape
d) all of the above
7.4.5 The _______ format became the most popular of the superfloppy products
which filled a niche in the late 1990s portable storage market
a) CD
b) cloud
c) ZIP
d) RAID
7.9.3 True-False
7. In practice, almost all computers use a storage hierarchy, which puts fast but
expensive (and small) storage options close to the CPU and larger and more
expensive options farther away.
7. Generally, the fast but volatile technologies (which lose data when off power) are
referred to as "memory", while slower persistent technologies are referred to as
"storage".
7.1 Hard disks are typically about a million times faster than memory.
7.1 Most HDDs in the early 1980s were sold to PC end users as an external, add-on
subsystem.
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7.1.1. In a RAID system, data can be distributed across the drives in one of several
ways, referred to as RAID levels.
7.3 USB flash drives are immune to electromagnetic interference (unlike floppy
disks) and are unharmed by surface scratches (unlike CDs).
7.4.4 By 1950 punched cards had been replaced by magnetic tape throughout
almost all industry and government.
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8 Networks, Internet and the World Wide Web

One of the major reasons for the widespread popularity of personal computers has been the
Internet and, in particular, the World Wide Web. These have allowed the computer to be
used extensively as a communications device, as well as a computation device. People have
come to rely on these computation/communication devices for a wide range of services.
8.1 Internet
8.1.1 What is the Internet?
The Internet is a worldwide collection of networks (thus its name which is derived
from the combination inter-networking). These networks are connected by
communication media.
The Internet links millions of businesses, government agencies, educational
institutions, as well as individuals.
The Internet was originally developed by the US federal government as a project of
DARPA. (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency)
The original Internet project had two primary goals:
to help people working on government projects to communicate more easily
and efficiently.
to create a robust communications system that would continue functioning
even in even of national disaster (such as nuclear war.)
The Internet first came into being in 1964 as an interconnection between four
servers: one at University of California Santa Barbara, one at University of
California Los Angeles, one at Stanford University and one at the University of
Utah.
By 2020, approximately 4.5 billion people, or more than half of the world’s
population, were estimated to have access to the Internet 11.
8.1.2 Internet Architecture
The architecture of the Internet is based on the specification of the TCP/IP protocol,
and was designed to connect any two networks, even those which may be very
different in internal hardware, software, and technical design.
Once two networks are interconnected, communication with TCP/IP is enabled
end-to-end. Any node on the Internet has the ability to communicate with any
other node, no matter where they are.
11
https://www.britannica.com/technology/Internet
153
The openness of design has enabled the Internet architecture to grow to a global
scale.
In practice, an individual will often access the Internet from his home, using a
modem to connect to a local Internet service provider (ISP).
The ISP connects to a regional network which, in turn, connects to a national
network.
In an office, a computer (often a desktop computer) might be connected to a
local area network and the company would have a corporate intranet, which,
in turn, might connect to any of several national Internet service providers.
In general, small local Internet service providers connect to medium-sized
regional networks which connect to larger national networks, which then
connect to very large high bandwidth12 networks which make up what is called
the Internet backbone.
Most ISP’s have several redundant network cross-connections to other
providers in order to ensure continuous availability.
The companies running the Internet backbone operate very high bandwidth
networks relied on by governments, corporations, large organizations, and
other Internet service providers. Their physical infrastructures often include
global connections through underwater cables and satellite links. These
connections enable communication between different countries and
continents.
8.1.3 Internet Services
One of the reasons that the Internet has had such a profound effect is that it provides
a number of valuable “services” for its users.
Among these services are e-mail, file transfer protocol (FTP), instant messaging
(IM), voice over internet protocol (VoIP), Chat Rooms, and (probably most widely
known) the World Wide Web (WWW)
12
The term bandwidth is often used to describe the amount of data transferred to or
from the website or server within a prescribed period of time. It is usually described
as a number of bits per second. This usage is technically incorrect, but very
common.
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8.1.3.1 Internet Services: World Wide Web (WWW)

The World Wide Web is a system of “web pages” (digital “documents” and other
web resources) which are identified by “URL’s” and are interlinked by “hypertext
links”.
The web pages can be accessed via the Internet using a program called a “Web
Browser” (usually just called a browser)
The World Wide Web was designed and built by English scientist Tim
Berners-Lee in 1989. He wrote the first web browser in 1990 while employed
at CERN.
(CERN stands for "Conseil Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire"; a
European research organization based in Geneva, Switzerland CERN was
established in 1954, and operates the largest particle physics laboratory in
the world.)
The public use of the Internet, and most notably the World Wide Web, began
to explode in the early 1990’s. This was sparked primarily by the 1993 release
of “Mosaic”, the first widely available browser with graphic capabilities.
Mosaic was developed by a team (headed by Marc Andreeson) at the
University of Illinois.
Later Andreeson and his team formed a company which produced and
marketed the browser Netscape Navigator (1994).
In 1995, Microsoft released its browser, named Internet Explorer. Explorer
(mostly by virtue of being free) quickly became the most widely used
browser in the world (attaining a 95% usage share in 2002.)
Explorer’s13 usage share began to decline with the launch of Mozilla
Firefox (2004) and Google Chrome (2008), as well as with the growing
popularity of operating systems (such as OS X, Linux, iOS and
Android) that do not support the Microsoft products.
8.1.3.1.1 Difference between Internet and WWW
WWW is so widely and commonly used that many people fail to understand
that there is more to the Internet than just the “Web”, and that WWW is, in
fact, only one of many services provided by the Internet.
13
Microsoft has replaced Internet Explorer with another browser, Microsoft Edge, and, as of 2020,
has discontinued support for Explorer.
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8.1.3.1.2 WWW and Hypertext concept

Hypertext is the underlying concept defining the structure of the World Wide
Web.
Hypertext is text displayed on a computer display device (or on another
kind of electronic device) which contains references (hyperlinks) to other
Web elements (which can be either on the same Web page or on different
Web pages.) The links allow the users to access the referenced Web
elements.
The hypertext pages, then, are interconnected by these hyperlinks which
are typically activated by a mouse click, a keypress sequence or by a touch
on the screen.
In addition to text, hypertext is also used to implement links to tables,
images, videos, sounds (music) and other content forms.
This hyperlink structure enables easy-to-use and flexible connections and
it supports the sharing of information over the Internet.
WWW pages are often written in the Hypertext Markup Language
(HTML.)
8.1.3.1.2.1 HTML, Multimedia and Smartphones
The first browsers could only display text, but the release of graphic
browsers (beginning with Mosaic) opened the door for multimedia Web
sites and interactive Web pages.
HTML programs control the way browsers display text and images on
computer screens. They also control the display of videos and sound
(multimedia) and provide means for users to interact with the pages
(entering text, checking boxes, selecting sections text or other objects…)
The introduction of smartphones brought about a significant change in the
way many Web pages had to be designed. Cell phones have MUCH smaller
displays than does a typical computer (4 to 5 inches for a phone compared
to 14 to 15 inches for a relatively small laptop computer.) As a
consequence, cell phone displays are much smaller than displays on
computers. An image that would take up only a small part of the computer
screen will either use almost all of the smart phone display, or will be
displayed in a size so small that many details will not be visible. The
amount of text that can be shown on a phone at any time will also be greatly
reduced, unless the text is displayed in a size so small as to be illegible.
Webpages designed to be displayed on (relatively large) computer screens
do not display well on small cellphone screens. Special browsers
(microbrowsers) have been created to display webpages on smartphone
screens and many websites provide alternative versions of their pages
designed for small screens.
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8.1.3.1.3 Web Servers

The function of a web server is to store web pages and deliver them to clients
on demand.
The communication between client and server takes place using the
Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP).
The Web Pages delivered are (usually) HTML documents. HTML
documents may include images, style sheets and scripts in addition to text
content.
Many web servers also support server-side scripting using Active Server
Pages (ASP), PHP, or other scripting languages. Usually, this function is
used to generate HTML documents dynamically ("on-the-fly”) and is
frequently used to access data in a database.
8.1.3.2 Internet Services: E-Mail
Electronic mail, (most commonly called email or e-mail), is a system for
exchanging digital messages from a sender to one or more recipients.
Email was the first service implemented on the Internet.
Today's email systems are based on a store-and-forward model.
Email servers accept, forward, deliver, and store messages. The senders and
receivers are not required to be online simultaneously. They connect by means
of a mail server. The senders’ messages are stored on the mail server until the
receivers log on to download them.
Electronic mail predates the inception of the Internet and was in fact a
crucial motivation for its creation.
The history of modern, global Internet email services reaches back to the
early ARPANET.
Standards for encoding email messages were proposed as early as 1973.
It costs very little to send an email message, and many people have taken
advantage of this to send numerous unsolicited messages, often advertising
products or promoting get rich quick schemes. Such unsolicited email is often
referred to as “spam”.
8.1.3.3 Internet Services: FTP
Although e-mail is convenient for direct communications between users, a very
different system is needed for transferring larger data files (such as computer
programs, graphic images, audio files, …)
The File Transfer Protocol (FTP) is a standard network protocol designed for
use in the transfer of computer files from one host to another host over a TCP-
based network (such as the Internet.)
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8.1.3.4 Internet Services: IM

Instant messaging (IM) is a type of online chat which offers real-time text
transmission over the Internet.
Short messages are typically transmitted between two parties. When one user
chooses to complete a thought he/she selects "send" and the message is
transmitted to the other user.
8.1.3.5 Internet Services: VoIP
Voice over IP (VoIP) is a methodology for the delivery of voice communications
(and other kinds of multimedia sessions) over the Internet.
using Internet Protocol (IP)
Other terms commonly associated with VoIP are IP telephony, Internet
telephony, broadband telephony, and broadband phone service.
There are a number of VoIP services available. Probably the most widely
recognized is Skype.
8.1.3.6 Internet Services: Chat Rooms
The term chat room, (or chatroom) is primarily used to describe real time
conferencing that usually permits intercommunications among groups of users.
The primary use of a chat room is to share information via text with a group of
other users.
Generally speaking, it is the ability to converse with multiple people in the
same conversation that distinguishes chat rooms from instant messaging. IM
is most often used for one-to-one communication.
New technology has enabled most chat programs to support file sharing and
webcam output.
The users in a particular chat room are often connected by a common interest and
chat rooms exist for a wide range of subjects.
8.1.4 AOL
AOL (America OnLine) was one of the early pioneers of the Internet in the mid-
1990s, and, for a time, was the most recognized brand on the web in the United States.
It would be difficult to underestimate the influence of AOL for the development of
the Internet. (At one point over 50% of the CD’s purchased in the world had an AOL
logo.)
AOL originally provided a dial-up service to millions of Americans, as well as
providing a web portal, e-mail, instant messaging and later (following its purchase of
Netscape) a web browser. In 2001, at the height of its popularity, it purchased the
media conglomerate Time Warner in the largest merger in U.S. history. AOL rapidly
declined thereafter, partly due to the decline of dial-up and rise of broadband.
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8.2 E-Commerce
The term E-commerce (also written as e-Commerce, eCommerce or similar variations)
refers to trading in products or services using computer networks, such as the Internet.
When done properly, ecommerce is often faster, cheaper, and more convenient than
the traditional methods of buying and selling goods and services.
E-commerce is usually divided into three classifications: Business-to-Consumer (B2C),
Consumer-to-Consumer (C2C) and Business-to-Business (B2B).
8.2.1 Business-to-Consumer (B2C)
B2C refers to transactions in which a consumer (user) purchases goods or services
from a business.
Amazon.com is currently the largest company specializing in online B2C business.
8.2.1.1 Online shopping
Online shopping (sometimes known as e-tail from "electronic retail" or e-
shopping) is a form of electronic commerce which allows consumers to buy goods
or services from a seller over the Internet using a web browser. (Some related
terms are: e-web-store, e-shop, e-store, Internet shop, web-shop, web-store, online
store, online storefront and virtual store.)
An online shop evokes the physical analogy of buying products or services at a
bricks-and-mortar retailer or shopping center.
Even to the point of providing an electronic “shopping cart” to allow users to
select several items to purchase before paying for their entire selection.
8.2.2 Consumer-to-Consumer (C2C)
C2C refers to transactions in which one individual (a consumer) purchases goods and
or services from another individual (not a company.)
eBay Inc. is a multinational corporation and e-commerce company, providing
consumer to consumer (as well as business to consumer) sales services via Internet.
8.2.3 Business–to-Business (B2B)
Business to Business or B2B refers to electronic commerce between businesses rather
than between a business and consumers. B2B businesses often deal with hundreds or
even thousands of other businesses, either as customers or suppliers. Carrying out
these transactions electronically provides vast competitive advantages over
traditional methods.
The number of B2B e-commerce transactions is much greater than the number of
B2C and C2C transactions.
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8.2.4. Electronic Payment

The development of widespread e-commerce is supported by the parallel
development of electronic means for transferring value on computer networks
(especially on the Internet.) Larger businesses (and banks in particular) have long
been making most of their payments by electronic wire transfer, but the virtually
universal availability of electronic communication has brought this capability down
to the level of the individual consumer. This includes, (but is not restricted to), the
use of credit and/or debit cards for making payments. In fact, in the US, generally
only the smallest transactions are paid in cash, and the society seems to be evolving
towards a cashless economy. The advent of “social distancing”, due to the pandemic,
has greatly amplified this trend.
As of 2014, most Americans carried less than $50 in cash in their wallets and half
carry less than $20. In 2016, Mastercard found that, in the UK, the average person
carried less than £5. By 2020, more than two-thirds of proximity mobile payments
will be for items costing between $20 and $100, meaning consumers are becoming
more comfortable making significant purchases with their mobile devices -- not
just the occasional $5 coffee.14
8.2.4.1 Mobil Payment
Mobile payments refer to payments made using a mobile device. Due to our
ever-increasing smartphone dependence, several convenient ways have been
developed to allow consumers to use their mobile phones to effect payments.
8.2.4.1.1 Near-field communication (NFC) payments
Use of near-field communication (NFC) payments is growing rapidly.
Digital wallets using NFC for
contactless card machines
include Apple Pay, Samsung
Pay and Google Pay.
xcvi
NFC phones communicate
with NFC-enabled card
machines using radio
frequency identification. The
mobile phones don’t have to
touch the point of sale to
transfer information, but they
do have to be within a few Mobil Payment with NFC Technology
inches of the terminal.
NFC involves a direct, almost instantaneous transfer of encrypted data to
point-of-sale devices. This contrasts with chip and PIN technology that takes
longer to process.
14
www.forbes.com/sites/forbesfinancecouncil/2017/10/24/
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8.2.4.1.2 Sound waves-based payments

Sound wave-based (or sound signal-based) mobile payments represent a
newer, cutting-edge solution that works for most mobile phones. Transactions
are processed – without the need for internet – through unique sound waves
containing encrypted data about the payment. Sound waves are sent from a
terminal to the mobile phone to convey payment details. The customer’s phone
then converts that data into analog signals that finalize the transaction.
Instead of using built-in technology like NFC, a mobile wallet, banking app or
card terminal just needs a simple software installation. There’s no need for any
extra hardware. Phones deal with sound naturally. (That is what telephones do,
after all.) This makes sound based processing a natural (and affordable)
solution, and is especially appropriate for use in areas and countries where
people can’t afford the latest smartphones but rely on more basic technology
to process payments.
8.2.4.1.3 Magnetic secure transmission (MST) payments
A third way to pay with a mobile phone at a card terminal is through magnetic
secure transmission (MST).
With MST a phone emits a magnetic signal imitating the magnetic strip on the
payer’s credit card. The card terminal picks up the signal and processes as if a
physical card was swiped through the machine. Some card machines may
require a software update to accept MST, but most new terminals accept it
already.
Magnetic secure transmission is as secure as NFC, in part because they both
use a secure tokenization system, and it is safer than using a physical card.
Samsung Pay uses both MST and NFC payments for contactless mobile phone
payments.
8.2.4.1.4 Mobile wallets
A mobile wallet (also called digital wallet) stores payment information on a
mobile device, usually in an app.
Mobile wallets can utilize different technologies in the payment process, most
frequently NFC, but other modalities, like QR codes, have been used by some
services.
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8.2.4.1.5 Quick response (QR) code payments

QR (abbreviation of “quick response”) codes have many uses and are often
found in advertising, on product labels and in what seem to be quite random
places. Not everyone knows they can be used to pay for things too. It works
through certain banking apps where your cards are already associated, and
other apps by stores and providers where your card details can be connected.
As an example of in-store payments through a QR code, Walmart customers
can use the Walmart Pay app with their payment method connected to simply
pay in store by scanning a QR code at checkout.
In all cases, you have to aim the camera carefully to match the indicators on
your phone screen before the app can scan the code. Some people report
feeling this is a hassle, especially since you first have to open the relevant app
before you can start scanning.
Apps for QR codes take
a few steps to open, then
require a basic amount
of precision to scanxcvii.
Some feel that these are
a barrier.
Some e-commerce
businesses use QR codes
at their website checkout
as an alternative to
manually entering card Scanning QR Code
details.
For card-not-present transactions, this is more secure because your phone
securely confirms that you are indeed the owner of the card – and because
you’re not typing your unencrypted card details on a device screen.
8.2.4.1.6 Internet payments
Many people simply pay on the internet in their phone browser or within apps
(provided, of course, that there is WiFi or a 3G/4G/5G network signal.) There
are several ways to pay this way. One can, for example, manually enter card
details on a website to pay for an order (just like on a computer), one can
automatically charge a bank card attached to a mobile app, one can use PayPal,
or one can just follow a link to a digital invoice sent by e-mail.
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8.2.4.1.7 SMS payments

SMS payments – also called premium SMS – simply means paying for
products or services via a text message. Once you’ve submitted a text message
with the relevant information to the right payee phone number, the payment
amount is added to your mobile phone bill. In effect, then, you’re paying
through your phone network provider, perhaps through direct debit or pay-as-
you-go – the way you usually pay for your phone use.
Just a few years ago, SMS payments were one of the most popular methods of
using mobile phones to pay for goods or services (even for person-to-person
payments) or donate to charity, and for good reason due to its simplicity – all
the user needs is a phone with text capability and prepaid SIM card or phone
contract. With the increase in more advanced smartphones, however, other
modes of mobile payments have seen faster growth.
8.2.4.1.8 Direct carrier billing
Direct carrier billing (DCB) – also called direct operator billing – is a way to
pay through your mobile carrier instead of using bank or card details. A way
to do this is to enter your phone number on a payment page or in an app. Then,
after you go through a few authentication steps to confirm you’re the owner of
that number (for instance, by confirming a text message) the payment will be
deducted from your phone bill or prepaid SIM card as with SMS payments.
Digital services like Google Play and the App Store offer the option to pay by
DCB. It is also used for TV voting, charity donations and subscriptions for
digital content.
8.2.4.2 Digital currency
With the widespread acceptance of payment by electronic transfer has come the
development of purely digital currencies.
Digital currency (digital money, electronic money or electronic currency) is a
type of currency available only in digital form, not in physical form. It can be used
for payments, just as physical currencies, but allows for instantaneous transactions
and borderless transfer-of-ownership. Digital currencies include virtual currencies
and cryptocurrencies as well as some central bank issued "digital base monies".
Like traditional money, these currencies may be used to buy physical goods and
services but they can also be restricted to certain communities such as for use
inside an online game or social network.
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8.2.4.3 Cryptocurrencies
Cryptocurrencies are a kind of (alternative) digital currency. Cryptocurrencies use
decentralized control as opposed to centralized electronic money and central
banking systems. The decentralized control of each cryptocurrency works through
distributed ledger technology, (typically a blockchain15) that serves as a public
financial transaction database.
Bitcoin, first released as open-source software in 2009, is generally considered

the first decentralized cryptocurrency.
Since the release of Bitcoin, over 4,000 altcoins (alternative variants of Bitcoin,
or other cryptocurrencies) have been created. These cryptocurrencies are used
primarily outside existing banking and governmental institutions and are
exchanged over the Internet. As the popularity of and demand for online
currencies has increased, so have concerns that such an unregulated person-to-
person global economy may become a threat to society. Concerns abound that
altcoins may (have) become tools for criminal activities.
Cryptocurrency networks display a lack of regulation that has been criticized as
enabling criminals who seek to evade taxes and launder money.
Transactions that occur through the use and exchange of these altcoins are
independent from formal banking systems, and therefore can make tax evasion
simpler for individuals. Since charting taxable income is based upon what a
recipient reports to the revenue service, it becomes extremely difficult to account
for transactions made using existing cryptocurrencies.
Systems of anonymity that most cryptocurrencies offer can also serve as a
simpler means to launder money. Rather than laundering money through an
intricate net of financial actors and offshore bank accounts, laundering money
through altcoins can be achieved through anonymous transactions.
15
A blockchain is a continuously growing list of records, called blocks, which are linked and secured
using cryptography. Each block typically contains a pointer as a link to a previous block, a
timestamp and transaction data. By design, blockchains are inherently resistant to modification
of the data.
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8.2.4.3.1 NFT’s
The blockchain technology used by cryptocurrencies is also used to
implement “non fungible tokens” (NFT’s.)
As with cryptocurrency, these tokens are stored on a shared ledger
implemented as a blockchain and provide records of who owns something.
The records cannot be forged because the ledger is maintained by thousands
of computers around the world.
The digital tokens are used as certificates of ownership for assets (usually
virtual assets.) NFTs are "one-of-a-kind" assets in the digital world that can
be bought and sold like any other piece of property, but which have no
tangible form of their own. They have come into prominence for their use as
proof of ownership of “original copies” of works of digital art and have
traded for millions of dollars.
NFTs can also contain smart contracts that may give the artist, for example,
a cut of any future sale of the token.
8.3 Wikis
A wiki is a website which allows collaborative modification of its content and structure.
The encyclopedia project Wikipedia is by far the most popular wiki-based website, and
is, in fact, one of the most widely viewed sites of any kind of the world.
Wikis are generally designed with the philosophy of making it easy to correct mistakes,
rather than avoiding mistakes in the first place.
Critics of publicly editable wiki systems argue that these systems could be easily
tampered with, while proponents argue that the community of users will (usually)
catch malicious content and correct it quickly.
8.4 Blogs
A blog (a truncation of the expression web log) is a discussion or informational site
published on the World Wide Web and consisting of entries ("posts") typically displayed
in reverse chronological order (the most recent post appears first.) The term
“blogosphere” is commonly used to refer to the collection of all blogs together as a
connected community.
Until 2009, blogs were usually the work of single individuals, and often covered single
subjects.
More recently "multi-author blogs" (MAB’s) have developed These typically have posts
written by large numbers of authors but are professionally edited.
The emergence and growth of blogs in the late 1990s coincided with the advent of web
publishing tools that facilitated the posting of content by non-technical users. Before
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this, creating and posting on a blog required some sophistication on the use of the
Internet, and most blogs tended to emphasize technical and computer oriented themes.
A majority of blogs are interactive, allowing visitors to leave comments and even
message each other on the blogs. In this sense, blogging can be seen as a form of social
networking.
Many bloggers report some sort of income from their blogs. This is most often in the
form of ad revenue, but paid speaking engagements are also common.
8.5 Podcasts and Webcasts
A podcast is a form of digital media that consists of a series of audio or digital radio
episodes, subscribed to and downloaded through web syndication or streamed online to
a computer or mobile device. The term podcast is made by combining words "pod" and
"broadcast.
A webcast is a media presentation distributed over the Internet using streaming media
technology to distribute a single content source to many simultaneous listeners/viewers.
A webcast may either be distributed live or on demand. Essentially, webcasting is
“broadcasting” over the Internet.
Webcasting differs from podcasting in that webcasting refers to live streaming while
podcasting simply refers to media files being made available on the Internet.
8.6 Surfing the Web
Viewing a web page on the World Wide Web normally begins either by typing the URL
of the page into a web browser, or by following a hyperlink to that page or resource. The
web browser then initiates a series of background communication messages to fetch and
display the requested page.
In the 1990s, using a browser to view web pages—and to move from one web page to
another through hyperlinks—came to be known as 'web surfing'.
8.7 Using Search Engines
Since there are millions (billions?) of Web pages, nobody could possibly remember the
URL’s of all of them. For this reason, (and probably other reasons as well) programs
known as search engines were developed to help users find documents that they might
be interested in.
Search engines are programs that search for documents using specified keywords. They
return lists of the documents where these keywords were found.
The term search engine really refers to a general class of programs, but the term is
often used to specifically describe systems like Google, Bing and Yahoo! Search.
Systems that enable users to search for documents on the World Wide Web.
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8.7.1 Spiders – Web Crawlers

Search engines are constantly updating their databases to keep their lists of
documents current. They do this by using programs called spiders, spiderbots or,
often, web crawlers. Web search engines get their information the spiders that crawl
from site to site returning the information that the search engine can use to locate the
sites that might be requested by users (information such as the titles, page content,
JavaScript, Cascading Style Sheets, headings, and/or information in an HTML meta
tag.)
Web pages can include a robots.txt file containing directives for search spiders.
These directives tell spiders how the owners/creators of the site would like the
search engines to deal with the site information. The content of a robots.txt file is
purely advisory. Malicious web robots are unlikely to honor robots.txt; some may
even use the robots.txt as a guide to find disallowed links and go straight to them.
No web crawler may actually crawl the entire reachable web. The web is just too big.
It would take way too long. A 2009 study showed even large-scale search engines
index no more than 40-70% of the indexable Web.
8.8 Social Networking
A social networking service (also called social networking site or SNS) is a platform
for building social networks or social relationships among people, for connecting people
who share similar interests, activities, backgrounds or real-life connections.
Social network sites are internet based services that allow an individual to create a
public profile, create a list of users with whom to share connections, and to view and
cross the connections within the system.
Most social network services are web-based and provide means for users to interact
over the Internet.
Social network sites are varied and they incorporate new information and
communication tools such as mobile connectivity, photo/video/sharing and
blogging.
Online community services are sometimes considered a social network service,
(though generally in a somewhat broader sense.) The term social network service
usually refers to an individual-centered service whereas online community
services are group-centered.
Social networking sites allow users to share ideas, pictures, posts, activities, events, and
interests with people in their network.
The main types of social networking services are those that contain category places (such
as former school year or classmates), means to connect with friends (usually with self-
description pages), and a recommendation system linked to trust.
Popular connection methods now combine many of these, with American-based
services such as Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, Instagram, Reddit, Pinterest, Vine,
Tumblr, and Twitter widely used worldwide.
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There are many other Social networking sites outside of the US: Nexopia in Canada;
Badoo, Bebo, Vkontakte (Russia), Delphi, Draugiem.lv (Latvia), iWiW (Hungary),
Nasza-Klasa (Poland), Soup (Austria), Glocals in Switzerland, Skyrock, The Sphere,
StudiVZ (Germany), Tagged, Tuenti (mostly in Spain), Myspace, Xanga and XING
in parts of Europe; Hi5 in South America and Central America; Mxit in
Africa;Cyworld, Mixi, Renren, Friendster, Sina Weibo and Wretch in Asia and the
Pacific Islands.
There have been attempts to standardize these services to avoid the need to
duplicate entries of friends and interests (the FOAF standard and the Open Source
Initiative.)
A 2013 survey found that 73% of U.S adults use social networking sites.
8.9 How the Web Works
The functioning of the World Wide Web requires the support of many different
structures, both physical and conceptual/intellectual.
8.9.1 HTML
HyperText Markup Language, commonly referred to as HTML, is the standard
language used to create web pages. Web browsers can read HTML files and interpret
them as code describing visible (and/or audible) web pages.
HTML is used to describe the structure of a website.
HTML elements form the building blocks of all websites.
HTML allows images and objects to be embedded and can be used to create
interactive forms.
It provides a means to create structured documents by denoting structural code
for text, describing such things as headings, paragraphs, lists, links, quotes,
and other items.
8.9.2 Firewalls
In the late 1980’s, people working in computer science became aware of the need for
network security to protect the computers and data on their networks.
Worms and viruses were beginning to proliferate, and hackers were starting to
attempt to gain access to the networks, some with purely malicious intent to
damage the systems, and others hoping to gain access to the information stored in
the system.
One of the security techniques that has been developed to protect networks is the
firewall.
There are two kinds of firewalls: network firewalls and host-based firewalls.
A network firewall is a network security system that monitors and controls the
incoming and outgoing network traffic based on predetermined security rules.
A network firewall typically establishes a barrier between one network and
other outside networks.
Host-based firewalls provide software on a host that controls network traffic
in and out of that single machine.
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8.9.3 Routers
Computers (on networks) must send and receive
information to and from computers, often computers
on other networks. It is the function of devices called
routers to determine where to send and whether to
accept/receive such information.
A router is a networking device that forwards data Typical home router
packets between computer networks. Routers perform
the "traffic directing" operations on the Internet.
Information to be transmitted to other computers is divided into data packets.
Each data packet is typically forwarded from one router to another through the
networks that constitute the internetwork until it reaches its destination node.
A router is connected to two or more data lines from different networks (as
opposed to a network switch, which connects the data lines of one single network).
When a data packet comes in on one of the lines, the router reads the address
information in the packet to determine its ultimate destination. Then, using
information in its routing table or routing policy, it directs the packet to the next
network on its journey.
8.9.4 Servers
Recall from chapter 2, that:
A server is a computer that receives and responds to requests from client
machines. The server provides services to clients, usually by sending information
of some kind or receiving and processing information of some kind.
In context of the World Wide Web, a server is typically a computer (connected to the
Internet, of course) on which a number of Web pages are stored, and which will send
a copy of a page when it receives a request.
8.9.4.1 Dark Web
Most of the Web pages on the Internet are accessible by means of links in other
pages and/or can be found using search engines. There are, however a large
number of Web sites that are hidden from such searches. These “Darknet”
websites are accessible only through specific encryption protected networks.
Two examples of such networks are Tor ("The Onion Routing" project) and
I2P ("Invisible Internet Project".)
Tor browser and Tor-accessible sites are widely used among the darknet users
and can be identified by the domain ".onion".
While Tor focuses on providing anonymous access to the Internet, I2P specializes
on allowing anonymous hosting of websites.
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Identities and locations of darknet users stay anonymous and cannot be tracked
due to the layered encryption system. The darknet encryption technology routes
users' data through a large number of intermediate servers. This protects the users'
identity and guarantees anonymity. The transmitted information can be decrypted
only by a subsequent node in the scheme, which leads to the exit node. The
complicated system makes it almost impossible to reproduce the node path and
decrypt the information layer by layer. Because of the high level of encryption,
websites are not able to track geolocation and IP of their users, and users are not
able to get this information about the hosts. Thus, communication between
darknet users can talk, blog, and share files confidentially.
The darknet is often used for illegal activity such as illegal trade, and media
exchange for pedophiles and terrorists.
8.9.5 TCP, UDP and IP
The Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) is a core protocol of the Internet.
It originated in the initial network implementation in which it worked together with
the Internet Protocol (IP)
The combination is commonly referred to as TCP/IP.
TCP provides reliable, ordered, and error-checked delivery of a stream of packets
between applications running on hosts communicating over an IP network and is
the protocol used by major Internet applications/services such as the World Wide
Web, email, remote administration and file transfer.
The User Datagram Protocol (UDP) is another widely used protocol of the
internet.
UDP also provides delivery of a stream of packets between applications running
on hosts communication over an IP network. The UDP packets, however, are
not error checked. UDP is used for applications such as Internet telephony in
which the time of arrival is important, and the loss or miscommunication of
occasional packet can be tolerated.
8.9.6 Local Area Networks
As personal computers have become cheaper and easier to use, it is increasingly
common for a family to have several computers in their home. These computers, then,
are often connected to each other to facilitate intercommunication.
Such a group of interconnected computing devices forms what we call a local
area network (LAN.)
Connecting the devices in a LAN allows the users to transfer information from one
computer to another easily. It also allows them to share access to resources, such as
printers and internet access devices.
In addition to computers and printers, LAN’s often include such devices as
routers, modems and gateways.
Devices in a LAN will typically communicate by means of either a physical
medium (typically twisted pair cable) or radio waves (WIFI).
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8.9.6.1 Intranet
The TCI/IP protocols can also be used for private local networks. Such networks
are called intranets. Intranets can be connected to the Internet or can be completely
isolated.
An intranet's websites and software applications look and act just like those on
any other kind of network.
8.9.6.2 Extranet
If an intranet is connected to the Internet, its websites and software are typically
protected by a firewall and are inaccessible from outside. When a company allows
external access to part of its intranet (for example, some parts might be accessible
to customers or suppliers outside the company) it is called an extranet.
xcviii
8.9.6.3 Twisted Pair
Twisted pair cabling is a type of wiring in which two
conductors of a single circuit are twisted together for the
purposes of canceling out electromagnetic interference
(EMI).
It was invented by Alexander Graham Bell.
Twisted Pair Cable
8.9.6.4 WIFI
Wi-Fi (or WiFi) is a local area wireless computer networking technology that
allows electronic devices to connect to the network, mainly using the 2.4 gigahertz
(12 cm) UHF and 5 gigahertz (6 cm) SHF ISM radio bands.
Many devices can use Wi-Fi, e.g. personal computers, video-game consoles,
smartphones, digital cameras, tablet computers and digital audio players. These
can use wireless technology to connect to other network resources such as
printers, modems, routers, access points and/or gateways.
8.9.6.4.1 WIFI Encryption
Wireless networks are generally not as secure as wired networks. Wired
networks, at their most basic level, send data between two devices that are
connected by a network cable. Wireless networks, on the other hand, broadcast
data in every direction to every device (within range) that happens to be
listening.
Several wireless security protocols have been developed to protect the home
wireless networks. These wireless security protocols include WEP, WPA, and
WPA2.
In addition to preventing uninvited guests from connecting to your wireless
network, wireless security protocols encrypt your private data as it is being
transmitted over the airwaves.
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8.9.7 Web Portals

Many Websites/Web Servers are configured as Web Portals.
A web portal is a specially designed website that brings information from diverse
sources, like emails, online forums and (most frequently) search engines, together in
a uniform way. Apart from this common search engine feature, web portals may offer
other services such as e-mail, news, stock quotes, information from databases and
even entertainment content. Portals provide a way for enterprises and organizations
to provide a consistent "look and feel 16" with access control and procedures for
multiple applications and databases, which otherwise would have been different web
entities at various URLs.
Examples of early public web portals were AOL and Yahoo.
8.9.8 VPN’s (Virtual Private Networks)
For many businesses (and other situations as well) it is not convenient to connect
devices with physical cables or with a (local) wireless system. In such situations it is
possible to create a virtual private network (VPN) by using other, more public,
networks (usually the Internet) as communication medium. A VPN, then, is created
by establishing a connection over existing network(s).
VPN technology was developed to allow remote users and branch offices to access
corporate applications and resources. A VPN extends a private network using a public
network for communication but enables users to send and receive data across shared
or public networks as if their computing devices were directly connected to the
private network. Applications running on a computing device (a laptop, desktop,
smartphone) on a VPN can benefit from the functionality, security, and management
of the private network.
VPN users use the same kinds of authentication methods, including passwords or
certificates, as are used on any other networks. In addition, however,
communication on a VPN is inherently public, and network security generally
requires that all network communication be encrypted. Of course the encryption-
decryption process necessarily interferes with the “network” communication speed.
16
In software design, look and feel is a term used with respect to a GUI and comprises
aspects of its design, including elements such as colors, shapes, layout, and typefaces
(the "look"), as well as the behavior of dynamic elements such as buttons, boxes, and
menus (the "feel"). The term can also refer to aspects of a non-graphical user interface
(such as a command-line interface), as well – mostly to parts to its functional properties.
The term is used in reference to both software and websites. “Look and feel” also
applies to other products. In documentation, for example, it refers to the graphical layout
(document size, color, font, etc.) and the writing style. In the context of equipment, it
refers to consistency in controls and displays across a product line.
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8.10 Social Issues

Since the Internet is used in so many ways and by so many people, it has come to have
important social effects.
Norms for Internet communications have had to be developed.
Information and communications systems have become targets for attempted theft
and/or damage and this requires users to take special means to protect their systems.
8.10.1 Netiquette/Ethics17
The term “netiquette” is used to refer to online etiquette over networks, such as online
communities, forums, and even online learning environments.
Following the rules of netiquette improves the readability of your messages, lays the
groundwork for making trustworthy connections and helps other people to better
understand you.
Here are a few guidelines to help you follow proper netiquette:
• Stay on topic. While discussion is encouraged, rambling conversations aren’t
conducive to a quality experience.
• Use appropriate subject lines in your replies. As a conversation evolves, it’s
helpful to change the subject line of a threaded message to reflect the changing topic.
For example, if the subject line reads "Participation requirements" and the
conversation evolves into a discussion on attendance, changing the subject line to
“Attendance” in your reply would help others interested in the topic to join the
conversation.
• Avoid ''I agree'' and ''Me, too!'' messages. Spending time reading messages
without substance can be frustrating for all parties.
• Avoid posting messages using all caps. (IT'S LIKE SHOUTING!) It’s OK to use all
caps occasionally on a word or two to emphasize a point, but you should only
capitalize the individual words you want to highlight, not the entire sentence or
paragraph.
• Avoid writing errors, even when "talking" with one another. Even though
messages posted in the Main newsgroup are conversational and often informal; one
should avoid posting messages with grammatical, spelling and typographical
errors. Post intelligible messages despite the informality of the environment.
• Carefully choose the format for your messages. Long paragraphs are difficult for
other people to follow on-screen. In general, try to limit each paragraph to five to
seven lines and avoid using font styles, colors and sizes that are difficult to read.
Please also avoid using stationery because it takes longer to download.
17
This section was copied from the University of Phoenix Web Site
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• Be friendly. Remember that even though you can’t see the person you’re connecting
with online, you’re still connecting with someone. Before posting a comment, ask
yourself “Would I say this to a person face to face?” If the answer is “no,” don’t post
it.
• Avoid responding when emotions are running high. If you’re angry about
something someone has posted, don’t reply to their message until you’ve had a chance
to calm down. Remember, your posted messages can be seen by everyone, even
potential employers.
• Before posting anyone’s picture on any social networking site, get the person’s
permission. Give your friends, family members and co-workers the opportunity to
control their digital selves.
8.10.1.1 Abbreviations and Acronyms

Abbreviations and acronyms are commonly used in online communications to
quickly express words and phrases that we use in everyday conversation.
Abbreviations and acronyms that are frequently used online include:
• BTW: By the way
• FYI: For your information
• IMO: In my opinion
• IMHO: In my humble opinion
• IMNSHO: In my not-so-humble opinion
• OIC: Oh, I see
• OTOH: On the other hand
• ROTFL: Rolling on the floor, laughing
• LOL: Laughing out loud
• TIA: Thanks, in advance
• <g>: Grin
8.10.1.2 Emoticons
Writers often use “emoticons” to convey their feelings in electronic
communications like text messages, e-mails and message boards. Emoticons
blend text and punctuation together to visually portray facial expressions.
(Tilt your head slightly to the left to read the following emoticons
• :-) Smiling
• ;-) Winking and smiling
• :-D Laughing
• :-( Frown
• :-o Oh!
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8.10.1.3 Hashtags
A hashtag is a type of tag used on social networks allowing users to apply
dynamic, user-generated tagging that makes it possible for others to find messages
with specific themes or content Hashtags allow easy, informal markup.
Users create and use hashtags by placing the number sign or pound sign # (also
known as the hash character) in front of a string of alphanumeric characters,
usually a word or unspaced phrase, in or at the end of a message. The hashtag may
contain letters, digits, and underscores Searching for a hashtag will yield each
message that has been tagged with it.
The use of hashtags originated on Twitter but quickly spread to other social media,
and later into the popular culture.
8.10.2 Computer Security
Computer security (also known as cybersecurity or IT security) is the protection
of information systems from theft or damage to the hardware, the software, and to
the information on them, as well as from disruption or misdirection of the services
that the systems provide.
Computer security includes controlling physical access to the hardware, as well
as protecting against harm that may come through network access and
unauthorized injection of data and code.
It also involves protection against harm through malpractice by operators,
whether intentional, accidental, or having been tricked into deviating from
secure procedures.
The field of computer security is of growing importance due to the increasing reliance
of computer systems in most societies.
Computer systems now include a very large range of portable devices,
including not only laptop computers, but also as a wide variety of "smart" devices,
smart devices such as smartphones, smart televisions and many tiny devices
participating in the Internet of Things.
These are frequently easy targets for thieves.
Networks include not only the Internet and private data networks, but also
Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and other wireless networks which are, in many cases, very
public and easy to hack.
Computer security covers all the processes and mechanisms by which digital
equipment, information and services are protected from unintended or unauthorized
access, change or destruction and the process of applying security measures to ensure
confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data.
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8.10.2.1 Safe Surfing

The advancement and proliferation of technology has altered our lives in many
ways.
Several Internet related technologies have dramatically enhanced our ability to
communicate and conduct business.
However, these technologies also have their drawbacks.
Perhaps most alarming is that these technologies have exposed us to a whole
new realm of criminal activity.
The anonymity of the Internet, as well as the ability to search out victims
quickly and effectively, has created incredible challenges for parents,
educators and law enforcement who find themselves on the front lines
attempting to deter predators.
8.10.2.2 Malware
Malware, (short for malicious software) is any software used to disrupt computer
operations, gather sensitive information, or gain access to private computer
systems.
Malware is defined by its malicious intent, acting against the requirements of the
computer user.
Malware does not include software that causes unintentional harm (due to
some deficiency.)
The term badware is sometimes used for, and applied to, both true (malicious)
malware and unintentionally harmful software.
Malware may be stealthy, intended to steal information or spy on computer users
for an extended period without their knowledge, or it may be designed to cause
harm, often as sabotage, or to extort payment.
'Malware' is an umbrella term used to refer to a variety of forms of hostile or
intrusive software, including computer viruses, worms, Trojan horses,
ransomware, spyware, adware, scareware, and other malicious programs. It can
take the form of executable code, scripts, active content, and other software It is
often disguised as, or embedded in, non-malicious files.
As of 2011 the majority of active malware threats were worms or Trojans rather
than viruses.
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8.10.2.2.1 Computer Viruses
A computer virus is a type of malicious software program ("malware") that,

when executed, replicates by reproducing itself (copying its own source code)
or infecting other computer programs by modifying them. Infected computer
programs can also include data files, or the "boot" sector of the hard drive.
When this replication succeeds, the affected areas are then said to be "infected"
with a computer virus. The term "virus" is also commonly, but erroneously,
used to refer to other types of malware. The defining characteristic of viruses
is that they are self-replicating and install themselves without user consent.
8.10.2.2.2 Worms
A computer worm is a standalone malware computer program that replicates

itself in order to spread to other computers. Often, a worm will use a computer
network to spread itself, relying on security failures on the target computers.
Worms almost always cause at least some harm to the network, even if only
by consuming bandwidth, whereas viruses almost always corrupt or modify
files on a targeted computer. Any code designed to do more than spread the
worm is typically referred to as the "payload". Typical malicious payloads
might delete files on a host system (e.g., the ExploreZip worm), encrypt files
in a ransomware attack, or send out data such as confidential documents or
passwords.
Probably the most common payload for worms is to install a backdoor18. This
allows the computer to be remotely controlled by the worm author as a
"zombie". Networks of such machines are often referred to as botnets and are
very commonly used for a range of malicious purposes, including sending
spam or performing DDoS19 attacks.
18
A backdoor is a method, often secret, of bypassing normal authentication. Backdoors are often
used for securing remote access to a computer.
19
Denial of service is typically accomplished by flooding the targeted machine or resource with
superfluous requests in an attempt to overload systems and prevent some or all legitimate
requests from being fulfilled. In a distributed denial-of-service attack (DDoS attack), the
incoming traffic flooding the victim originates from many different sources. This makes it
impossible to stop the attack simply by blocking a single source.
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8.10.2.2.3 Trojan Horses

In computing, a Trojan horse (or just Trojan) is any malicious computer
program that is used to hack into a computer by misleading users of its true
intent. The term is derived from the Ancient Greek story of the wooden horse
that was used to help Greek troops invade the city of Troy by stealth. Although
their payload can be anything, many modern forms act as a backdoor,
contacting a controller which can then have unauthorized access to the affected
computer. This infection allows an attacker to access users' personal
information such as banking information, passwords, or personal identity (IP
address) and/or download and install other malware, such as viruses or worms.
Unlike computer viruses and worms, Trojans generally do not attempt to inject
themselves into other files or otherwise propagate themselves. Due to the
popularity of botnets among hackers and the availability of advertising
services that permit authors to violate their users' privacy, Trojan horses are
becoming more common. According to a survey conducted by BitDefender
from January to June 2009, "Trojan-type malware is on the rise, accounting
for 83-percent of the global malware detected in the world." Trojans have a
relationship with worms, as they spread with the help given by worms and
travel across the internet with them. BitDefender has stated that approximately
15% of computers are members of a botnet, usually recruited by a Trojan
infection.
8.10.2.2.4 Ransomware
Ransomware is computer malware that installs covertly on a victim's device
(e.g., computer, smartphone, wearable device) and that either holds the
victim's data hostage, or threatens to publish the victim's data, until a ransom
is paid.
8.10.2.2.5 Spyware
Spyware is software that aims to gather information about a person or
organization without their knowledge. The spyware may send such
information to another entity without the consumer's consent,
Spyware is mostly used for the purposes of tracking and storing Internet users'
movements on the Web and serving up pop-up ads to Internet users. When it
is used for malicious purposes, however, its presence is typically hidden from
the user and can be difficult to detect. Some spyware, such as keyloggers, may
be installed by the owner of a shared, corporate, or public computer
intentionally in order to monitor users.
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8.10.2.2.6 Adware
Adware, or advertising-supported software, is any software package that
automatically renders advertisements in order to generate revenue for its
author. It often includes functions designed to analyze which Internet sites the
user visits and to present advertising pertinent to the types of goods or services
featured there.
The term is sometimes used to refer to software that displays unwanted
advertisements and this would fall into the classification of malware.
In legitimate software, the advertising functions are integrated into or bundled
with the program. Adware is usually seen by the developer as a way to recover
development costs, and in some cases, it may allow the software to be provided
to the user free of charge or at a reduced price. Some software is offered in
both an advertising-supported mode and a paid, advertisement-free mode. The
advertisement free mode is usually available by an online purchase of a license
or registration code for the software that unlocks the mode, or the purchase
and download of a separate version of the software.
8.10.2.2.7 Scareware
Internet security writers use the term "scareware" to describe software
products that produce frivolous and alarming warnings or threat notices.
Usually these are for fictitious or useless commercial firewall and registry
cleaner software. The software is often packaged with a look and feel that
mimics legitimate security software in order to deceive consumers.
8.10.2.3 Cookies
Cookies are small files which are stored on a user's computer. They are designed
to hold a modest amount of data specific to a particular client and website and can
be accessed either by the web server or the client computer. A cookie allows
information to be carried from one visit to the website (or related site) to the next
without having to burden the server with massive amounts of data storage. Storing
the data on the server without using cookies would also be problematic because it
would be difficult to retrieve a particular user's information without requiring a
login on each visit to the website.
Although many people worry about “Cookies” as a security problem, they do not,
in themselves, present a major threat to privacy, since they can only be used to
store information that the user has volunteered or that the web server already has.
Some commercial websites do include embedded advertising material which is
served from a third-party site, and it is possible for such adverts to store a cookie
for that third-party site. Such a cookie could contain information fed to it from the
containing site - such information might include the name of the site, particular
products being viewed, pages visited, etc. When the user later visits another site
containing a similar embedded advert from the same third-party site, the
advertiser will be able to read the cookie and use it to determine some information
about the user's browsing history. This enables publishers to serve adverts targeted
at a user's interests, so in theory having a greater chance of being relevant to the
user. Many people see such 'tracking cookies' as an invasion of privacy since they
allow an advertiser to build up profiles of users without their consent or
knowledge.
179
8.10.3 Biometric Authentication

20Maintaining and managing access while protecting both the user's identity and the
computer's data and systems has become increasingly difficult. Central to all security
is the concept of authentication - verifying that the users are who they claim to be.
We can authenticate an identity in three ways:
by something the user knows (such as a password or personal identification
number),
something the user has (a security token or smart card)
or something the user is (a physical characteristic, such as a fingerprint, called a
biometric).
Biometric authentication has been widely regarded as the most foolproof - or at least
the hardest to forge or spoof. Since the early 1980s, systems of identification and
authentication based on physical characteristics have been available to enterprise IT.
The early biometric systems were slow, intrusive and expensive.
Forty years later, computers are much faster and cheaper. This, plus the availability
of newer, less expensive hardware, has increased interest in biometrics.
Because of its convenience and ease of use, fingerprint authentication has become
the biometric technology of widest choice. A growing number of notebook PCs and
computer peripherals are coming to market with built-in fingerprint readers. Scores
of products are available, including keyboards, mice, external hard drives, USB flash
drives and readers built into PC card and USB plug-in devices. Most of these units
are relatively inexpensive.
8.10.4 Protection of Identity
Almost 50 million people subscribed to some form of identity-theft protection in
2010.
Those services, which cost about $120 to $300 a year, promise to protect your ID
by monitoring your credit reports 24/7, scouring “black-market chat rooms” for
your personal information, removing your name from marketing lists, and filing
fraud alerts. Some throw in up to $1 million in insurance.
Many of these services come from banks, which account for more than half of the
$3.5 billion a year spent on ID-theft protection subscriptions.
In a sense, consumers who buy this protection from their banks are, in fact,
helping to foot the bill for services that financial institutions are already obligated
to provide. Federal law requires that they shield their customers from losses
stemming from credit-card and bank-account fraud.
20
Source www.computerworld.com/article/2556908/security0/biometric-authentication.html
180
These protection plans provide questionable value, and some promoters of these
services have been charged by the Federal Trade Commission for misleading sales
practices and false claims. This is not to say that Identity theft is not a serious
problem.
In 2010 there were 8.1 million identity fraud victims (this was down 27% from
the year before.) Clearly, this constitutes a serious threat, but the number, 8.1
million victims, overstates the danger.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, more than 80 percent of what
gets reported as identity theft involves fraudulent charges on existing
accounts. In most of these cases a cardholder’s liability is limited to $50 for
a lost or stolen credit card and for debit cards, liability for an unauthorized
transaction is limited to $50 if it is reported within two business days of the
date a cardholder learns of it.
8.10.4.1 Social Engineering
Often identity theft (as well as many other types of breaches of security) is brought
about by means of psychological manipulation, i.e. “social engineering”
This can take many forms. At its simplest, just a phone call asking for information
can often be all that is needed. More sophisticated schemes exist and two that have
come to enjoy some public notoriety are called “phishing” and “spear phishing”.
8.10.4.1.1 Phishing
Phishing is a technique for obtaining private information by sending an e-
mail that appears to come from a legitimate source
—bank, credit card company, …—
requesting "verification" of information and warning of some consequence if
the requested information is not ”verified.” The e-mail will usually contain a
link to a fraudulent web page that seems legitimate. This Web page will have
a form requesting information such as home address, PIN number for ATM,
and/or credit card number.
8.10.4.1.2 Spear Phishing
Phishing attempts directed at specific individuals or companies have been
termed spear phishing. In contrast to bulk phishing, spear phishing attackers
will gather and use personal information about their target to increase their
probability of success. Spear phishing gained notoriety when it was learned
that the tactic had been used successfully to gain access to accounts related to
the 2016 presidential campaign of Hillary Clinton.
181
8.10.5 Some Other Social Concerns

8.10.5.1 Effects on Employment
Technological unemployment is the loss of jobs caused by technological change.
Such change typically includes the introduction of labor-saving machines or more
efficient processes, either of which permit the same work to be done by fewer
people.
Historical examples include artisan weavers reduced to poverty after the
introduction of mechanized looms.
A more contemporary example of technological unemployment is the
displacement of retail cashiers by self-service tills.
In the case of the Internet, online shopping sites are reducing the number of
“brick and mortar” stores, and eliminating many jobs for clerks, cashiers, etc.
It is widely accepted that technological change can cause short-term job losses.
Whether technological unemployment will lead to lasting increases in
unemployment has long been a subject of controversy.
Participants in the technological unemployment debates can be broadly
divided into groups: optimists and pessimists.
Optimists agree that innovation may be disruptive to jobs in the short
term but assert that various compensation effects work to ensure there
will not be a long term negative impact on jobs.
Pessimists, on the other hand, contend that, at least in some
circumstances, new technologies can lead to a lasting decline in the total
number of workers being employed.
The phrase "technological unemployment" was popularized by Lord Keynes in
the 1930s, but the issue of machines displacing human labor has been discussed
since at least Aristotle's time.
The Internet has also created new methods for beginning new businesses and for
artists and creators to receive payment directly from their fans and supporters.
Many would be entrepreneurs are using the Internet to ask large numbers of
people for small investments/donations to help provide capital to open businesses.
This practice is known as crowdfunding.
kickstarter.com is the best known crowdfunding platform. The company's
stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life".
Patreon is the largest of the platforms that provide business tools for
content creators to receive funding directly from their fans.
182
8.10.5.2 Effects on Education

The Internet has had a deep impact on the world of education. It has revolutionized
the way education is imparted. Classrooms have been brought right into the homes
of the students. There is little doubt that the Internet has become an engine of
progress and has had an extremely dramatic effect on our education system. It has
created a new fresh approach with wider availability of online education.
The web technology has made it easy for students all over world to gain skills
they need to progress in society and enhance their life styles. Students are
becoming proficient with computers and the Internet at much younger ages. It
motivates many students to acquire better thinking skills, remain well informed
and grow as responsible citizens for their countries.
The vast majority of middle and high school teachers who are involved in high-
level educational programs say the Internet has a "major impact" on their ability
to access content and resources for their teaching.
8.10.5.2.1 Distance Education
On no area of education has the Internet had a greater effect than that of
distance education.
Distance education or long-distance learning is the education of students
who may not always be physically present at a school. Distance learning
originated with the offering of correspondence courses, in which the student
communicated with a school by mail. Today, the development of computerized
communication has made online education not only possible, but, in fact quite
common.
The widespread use of computers and the internet have made distance learning
easier and faster, and today virtual schools and virtual universities deliver full
curricula online. The capacity of the Internet to support voice, video, text and
immersion teaching methods has made earlier forms of telephone, radio,
television, and text based education somewhat redundant. However, many of
the techniques developed with the earlier systems, and lessons learned, are
being used in Internet delivery.
In the United States in 2011, it was found that a third of all the students enrolled
in postsecondary education had taken at least one accredited online course in
a postsecondary institution.
183
For those who have access to the right technology, there is evidence that
learning online can be more effective than traditional in person learning in a
number of ways. Some research 21 shows that on average, students retain 25-
60% more material when learning online compared to learning in a classroom.
This is mostly due to the students being able to learn faster online; e-learning
requires 40-60% less time to learn than in a traditional classroom setting
because students can learn at their own pace, going back and re-reading when
they need to, skipping, or accelerating through concepts as they choose.
The effectiveness of online learning does vary among age groups. The general
consensus is that children, especially younger children, require a structured
environment because kids tend to be easily distracted. For younger students to
get the full benefit of online learning, there needs to be an effort to provide this
structure and to go beyond simply replicating a physical class/lecture through
video capabilities.
8.10.5.2.2 COVID-19 Pandemic
Even before COVID-19, there already had been high growth and adoption in
education technology, and, of course, there has been a significant surge in
usage since the pandemic began. While some believe that the unplanned and
rapid move to online learning – with no training, insufficient bandwidth, and
little preparation – will result in a poor user experience that is not conducive
to sustained growth, others believe that a new hybrid model of education will
emerge, with significant benefits. There are, however, challenges to overcome.
Some students without reliable internet access and/or technology struggle to
participate in digital learning. In the US, there is a significant gap between
those from privileged and disadvantaged backgrounds: while virtually all 15-
year-olds from a privileged background said they had a computer to work on,
nearly 25% of those from disadvantaged backgrounds did not22.
Many are concerned that the pandemic will further widen the digital divide.
21
https://www.shiftelearning.com/blog/bid/301248/15-facts-and-stats-that-reveal-the-power-of-
elearning
22
https://www.oecd.org/pisa/
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8.10.5.3 Net Neutrality

Net neutrality is the principle that Internet service providers should treat all data
on the Internet equally, and not discriminate or charge differently by user, content,
website, platform, application, type of attached equipment, or method of
communication. For instance, under these principles, internet service providers
should not intentionally block, slow down or charge extra for specific websites
and/or online content. This principle is sometimes enforced through government
mandate.
A widely cited example of a violation of net neutrality principles was the Internet
service provider Comcast's secret slowing ("throttling") of uploads from peer-to-
peer file sharing (P2P) applications (BitTorrent would be the best known
example). Comcast did not stop blocking these protocols, until the Federal
Communications Commission ordered them to stop.
AT&T was also caught limiting access to FaceTime23, so that only those users
who paid for AT&T's new shared data plans could access the application.
Supporters of net neutrality in the United States want to designate cable
companies as common carriers, which would require them to allow Internet
service providers (ISPs) free access to cable lines, the same model used for dial-
up Internet. They want to ensure that cable companies cannot screen, interrupt or
filter Internet content without a court order. Common carrier status would give
the FCC the power to enforce net neutrality rules.
in April 2015, the FCC issued its Open Internet Order, which reclassified Internet
access - previously classified as an information service - as a common carrier
telecommunications service; i.e. a public utility. But on December 14, 2017, the
Commission, voted to partially repeal the 2015 Open Internet Order, classifying
Internet access once again as an information service.
23
FaceTime is Apple's video and audio chatting platform that lets iPhone users communicate with
one another through the standard FaceTime video protocol or using the FaceTime audio
feature.
185
8.11 Questions
8.11.1 Completion
8.1.1 The Internet was originally developed by the US federal government, a
project of _______
8.1.1 The Internet first came into being in 1964 as an interconnection between four
_______: one at University of California Santa Barbara, one at University of
California Los Angeles, one at Stanford University and one at the University of
Utah.
8.1.2 In practice, an individual will often access the Internet from his home, using
a(n) ______ to connect to a local Internet service provider (ISP)
8.1.3.1 The World Wide Web is a system of “web______” (documents and other
web resources.)
8.1.3.1 WWW web pages are identified by _______’s.
8.1.3.1 The public use of the Internet, and the World Wide Web in particular, began
to explode in the early 1990’s. This was sparked primarily by the 1993 release
of “_______”, the first widely available browser with graphic capabilities.
8.1.3.1.2 WWW pages are often written in__________, which enables an easy-to-
use and flexible connection and sharing of information over the Internet.
8.1.3.1.2 WWW web pages are interlinked by _______ links.
8.1.3.1.3 The communication between client and server takes place using the
Hypertext Transfer ________(HTTP).
8.2 The term E-commerce (also written as e-Commerce, eCommerce or similar
variations), refers to trading in products or services using computer ________
8.2.1 ________.com is currently the largest company specializing in online B2C
business.
8.2.2 ______Inc. is an American multinational corporation and e-commerce
company, providing consumer to consumer (as well as business to consumer)
sales services via Internet.
8.3 A ______is a website which allows collaborative modification of its content and
structure directly from the web browser.
8.6 In the 1990s, using a browser to view web pages—and to move from one web
page to another through________—came to be known as 'web surfing'.
8.9.1 ________, is the standard language used to create web pages.
186
8.9.2 A network ________is a network security system that monitors and controls
the incoming and outgoing network traffic based on predetermined security
rules.
8.9.3 Computers (on networks) must send and receive information to and from
computers, often computers on other networks. It is the function of devices
called _______ to determine where to send and whether to accept/receive such
information.
8.9.4 A ________is a computer that receives and responds to requests from client
machines.
8.9.6 Devices in a LAN will typically communicate by means of either a physical
medium (typically twisted pair cable) or radio waves (________).
8.10.1 The term “________” is used to refer to online etiquette over networks, such
as online communities, forums, and even online learning environments.
8.10.2.2 ________ is any software used to disrupt computer operations, gather

sensitive information, or gain access to private computer systems.
8.10.4.1 kickstarter.com is the best known ________ platform.

8.1.2 In general, small local Internet service providers connect to medium-sized
regional networks which connect to large national networks, which then connect
to very large bandwidth networks which make up what is called the Internet
________
a) architecture
b) backbone
c) infrastructure
d) Web
8.1.3 The Internet has had a profound effect because it provides a number of
valuable “services” for its users. Among these services is ______
a) FTP
b) IM
c) VoIP
d) all of the above are Internet services
187
8.1.3.1 The World Wide Web is a system of “web pages” (documents and other
web resources) which are identified by “_______” and are interlinked by
hypertext links
a) URL’s
b) VDT’s
c) widgets
d) podlets
8.1.3.1 Web pages can be accessed via the Internet using a program called a “Web
_______
a) Accesser
b) Searcher
c) Browser
d) Surfer
8.1.3.1 The World Wide Web was designed and built by

a) Tim Berners-Lee
b) Marc Andreeson
c) Bill Gates
d) Steve Jobs
8.1.3.1 Mosaic was developed by a team led by

a) Tim Berners-Lee
b) Marc Andreeson
c) Bill Gates
d) Steve Jobs
8.1.3.1 Netscape Navigator was developed by a team led by

a) Tim Berners-Lee
b) Marc Andreeson
c) Bill Gates
d) Steve Jobs
8.1.3.2 _______was the first service implemented on the Internet

a) WWW
b) FTP
c) Email
d) VoIP
188
8.1.3.3 ______ is a standard network protocol used to transfer computer files from
one host to another host over a TCP-based network (such as the Internet.)
a) WWW
b) FTP
c) Email
d) VoIP
8.1.3.4 ______ is a type of online chat which offers real-time text transmission over
the Internet
a) WWW
b) FTP
c) Email
d) VoIP
8.1.3.5 _______ is a methodology for the delivery of voice communications (and
other kinds of multimedia sessions) over the Internet
a) WWW
b) FTP
c) Email
d) VoIP
8.2.1 _________ refers to transactions in which a user purchases goods or services
from a company.
a) B2B
b) B2C
c) C2B
d) C2C
8.2.2 _________ refers to transactions in which one individual purchases goods and
or services from another individual.
a) B2B
b) B2C
c) C2B
d) C2C
8.2.3 The number of _______ e-commerce transactions is much greater than the
number of transactions of the other classes.
a) B2B
b) B2C
c) C2B
d) C2C
189
8.7 Is a system that enables users to search for documents on the World Wide Web
a) Google
b) Bing
c) Yahoo! Search
d) all of the above
8.8 Social network sites are web-based services that allow individuals to:
a) create public profiles
b) create lists of users with whom to share connections
c) view and cross the connections within the systems
d) all of the above
8.9.3 A router is a networking device that forwards data ________ between
computer networks
a) clusters
b) globules
c) packets
d) cells
8.9.5 ________ is the protocol used by major Internet applications such as the
World Wide Web, email, remote administration and file transfer
a) HTML
b) IP
c) TCP
d) all of the above
8.10.1 Following the rules of netiquette _______
a) improves the readability of your messages
b) lays the groundwork for making trustworthy connections
c) helps other people to better understand you
d) all of the above
8.10.4.1 Using the Internet to ask large numbers of people for small
investments/donations to help provide capital to open a business is known as
___________.
a) kickstarting
b) crowdfunding
c) collaborating
d) all of the above
190
8.11.3 True-False
8.1.2 The architecture of the Internet is based on the specification of the TCP/IP
protocol, and was designed to connect any two networks.
8.1.2 In order to reduce expenses, most ISP’s limit their external Internet
connections to one backbone connection.
8.1.3.1 In 1995, Microsoft released its browser, Internet Explorer. Explorer (mostly
by virtue of being free) quickly became the most widely used browser in the
world.
8.1.3.1.1 The Internet is one of the services provided by WWW.
8.1.3.1.2 In addition to text, hypertext is also used to implement links to tables,
images, videos, sounds (music) and other content forms.
8.4 A majority of blogs are interactive.
8.5 Webcasting differs from podcasting in that podcasting refers to live streaming
while webcasting simply refers to media files placed on the Internet.
191
Index
9. Index
3D printer; 128
3D scanner; 105
A
Abacus; 1
Accelerometer; 12, 566, 125
Activity monitoring; 66
Adapter card; 91, 93
Address; 34, 81
Address Bus; 44, 8081
Addressable memory; 81
Adobe; 61, 131
Adobe Acrobat Reader; 61
Adobe Postscript; 131
ADSL; 44
Adware; 20, 176, 17920
AI (artificial intelligence); 5, 17, 86, 113
AIX; 51
Alexa; 7, 39, 112, 113
Alexa Skills; 113
ALU; 33, 79
Amiga; 52, 57
Amiga Autoconfig; 57
Analytical engine; 3
Android; 2149, 53, 53, 55, 77, 113, 155
Android Auto; 555
Android TV; 55
Android Wear; 55
ANN; 17
Anti-virus; 20, 68
Antikythera mechanism; 2
AOL: 158, 172
Apple;10, 53, 56, 111
Apple II; 10
Apple App Store; 55
Apple Lisa; 52
Apple Macintosh; 52
Apple Newton; 111
Apple Pay; 116
Apple SIRI; 39, 112, 113
Apple TV; 113
AppleDOS; 52
AppleWatch; 113
193
Index
Application programmer interface (API); 59

Application Service Provider (ASP); 62
Application Software; 49, 58
Application suite; 58
ARPANET; 157
Artificial Intelligence (AI); 5, 17, 86, 113
Artificial Neural Network (ANN); 17
ASCII; 90
ASR-33; 50, 143
Assembly language; 85
Astrolabe; 2
AT&T; 51, 111, 185
Atari; 52
Atari ST; 5252
ATM; 388, 129, 181
AZERTY; 104
B
B2B; 159
B2C; 159
Babbage, Charles; 3
Backdoor; 73, 177
Baidu; 111
BASIC; 86
Batch Processing; 50
Bay; 91
Bell Labs; 51, 86, 111
Bell-LaPadula; 146
Biba; 146
Binary; 2, 81, 85, 89
Binary number; 2, 85
Binary representation; 81, 85, 89
Biometric authentication; 180
Bit; 17, 34, 80, 90
Bitcoin; 164
BitDefender; 178
BitTorrent; 185
Blockchain; 164
Blog; 165
Bluetooth; 3231, 43, 101, 175
Blu-Ray; 140
Bootloader; 35
Boot-up; 84
Botnet; 21, 177
194
Index
Broadband; 15884
Browser; 13, 58, 59, 61, 65, 86, 144, 155, 156, 158, 162, 166,168
Buffer; 35, 13735
Bullying; 65
Bundle; 588, 179
Byte; 34, 36, 81, 90
C
C (programming language); 86
C++; 86
C*; 86
C2C; 159
Cache; 35, 87
CAD; 59, 108
CAE; 58
Camera; 12, 23, 36, 38, 55, 72, 99, 102, 108, 162, 171
CamScanner; 21
Card reader; 499
CD; 31 35, 36, 140
CDC; 8
Cell; 33, 34, 81
Central Processing Unit (CPU); 7, 16, 33, 50, 79, 84
CERN; 155
Chat room; 158
Chinese Wall; 147
Chrome OS; 54
Chromebook; 54
Circuit board; 32, 79, 91
CISC; 8181
Client; 14, 62, 157, 169, 179
Client-server application; 62
Client server network;14,
Clock; 33, 80
Clock Cycle; 33
Clock Generator; 33
Clock speed; 80
Clock Tick; 3333
Cloud storage; 144
CMOS; 88
COBOL; 86
Color depth; 105
Color scanner; 105
195
Index
Colossus; 3
Command Line Interface; 52, 77, 99
Commercial Software; 60
Commodore; 10, 52
Commodore Amiga; 52
Commodore PET; 10
Compiler; 56, 87
Computer Ethics; 65, 69
Computer Forensics; 22, 29
Computer Literacy; 18, 20
Computer network; 13, 19, 42, 159, 169, 171
Computer program; 15, 49, 57, 64, 79, 85
Computer Software; 49, 61, 62
Content access software; 5958
Control Data Corporation; 8
CDC; 8
CDC 6600; 8
Control Unit; 33, 7933
Cookies: 179
Cortana; 7, 39, 112, 113
CP/M; 52
CPU; 8, 16, 20, 33, 5033, 7935, 81, 84, 8779
Cray; 8
CRM; 58
Crowdfunding; 182
CRT; 40, 12040
Cryptanalysis; 3, 9
Cryptocurrency; 20, 164
Cryptomining; 20
Cursor; 37, 106, 108
Cyberbullying; 20, 64, 65, 67
Cyberstalking; 22
D
Daisy wheel printer; 129
Data compression; 145
Datagram; 170
Darknet: 169
Dark Web: 169169
DARPA; 83, 111, 153
Database; 58, 62
Data Bus; 44, 80
196
Index
DBMS; 58
DDoS; 21, 177
DDWG; 93
Debug; 566, 86
DEC; 8
Desktop publishing software; 589
Device Driver; 57
Difference engine; 3
Digital;
Digital-animation editors; 59
Digital Cameras; 38, 55
Digital currency; 163
Digital divide; 20, 184
Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC); 8
Digital images; 37
Digital photos; 38
Digital Research; 52
Digital wallet; 160
Digital watch; 13
DIP switch; 57
Direct carrier billing (DCB); 163
DisplayPort; 93
Distance education; 183
Document scanner; 105
Dot matrix printer; 125, 127
Dragon Dictate; 111
DSL; 44
DTSS; 51
DVD; 35, 36, 140
DVI; 93
Dvorak Simplified Keyboard; 103
Dye-sublimation printer; 128
E
EBCDIC; 91
e-commerce; 5, 159, 186
e-mail; 5, 154, 157
Educational software; 19, 59
Electronic payment; 160
embedded computers; 13
embedded systems;13
Emoticon; 174
Encryption; 71, 169, 171
197
Index
ENIAC; 4
Enterprise Software; 58
Entertainment Software; 59
Ergonomics; 103
Ethernet; 32, 43
Ethics; 62, 66, 69, 173
EULA; 60
Event calendars; 55
Expansion bus; 91
Extranet; 171
F
Facebook; 5, 13, 19, 167
Facial Recognition Technology; 22
Fiber-optic; 44
File transfer protocol (FTP); 154, 157
Firewall; 20, 168, 171, 179
first amendment rights; 63
Flash Drive; 381, 112, 137, 141, 180
Flatbed scanner; 37, 105
Flat panel display; 40, 120
Flat panel technology; 41, 12037
Flexible display; 41
Flexible keyboard; 101
Flip-flop; 3434, 81
Floating point; 8, 80
FLOPS; 80
Floppy disk; 142
FOAF; 168
Font-face; 130
Font-style; 130
Forensics; 22, 29
FORTRAN; 86
Freeware; 61
Frontier; 9
FRT; 22, 23
FTP; 154, 157
Fugaku; 9
Fujitsu; 7, 9
G
Game consoles; 38, 55, 110, 123, 171
Gamepad; 110
198
Index
Gas plasma; 121

GEM; 52
Gesture; 12, 55, 56
Gigaflops; 8080
Gigahertz; 80
GNOME; 54
Google; 5, 7, 19, 21, 39, 55, 111, 155, 160, 163, 166, 16755
Google+; 19, 167
Google Assistant 7, 39
Google Chrome; 155
Google Pay; 16019
Google Play Store; 21, 55, 163
Google search; 5
GPS; 112, 555
GPS navigation; 55
GPU; 93
Graphical user interface; 5, 37, 52
Graphic-art software; 59
Graphic images; 38
Graphics tablet; 109
GUI; 5, 377, 52, 56, 99, 107
H
Hacking (Hacker); 20, 29, 67, 168, 175, 178
Handheld projector; 41, 124
Hand-held scanner; 10541
Haptic; 6
Harassment; 67
Hard copy 40, 42, 119. 125, 130
Hard Disk; 35, 34, 36, 71, 137, 138, 140
Hashtag; 175
HDD; 31, 138
HDMI; 93
Headphones; 40, 131
Helpdesk; 58
Hertz; 8080
Hewlett-Packard; 7
Hexadecimal: 89
Hitachi; 7
HTML; 156, 168
HTML editors; 5958
HTTP; 157
Hulu; 13
199
Index
Hybrid vehicles; 13
Hyperlink; 156, 166
Hypertext; 156
HyperText Markup Language; 156. 168
I
I/O; 79, 91
I2P; 169
IBM; 4, 7, 9, 10, 57, 62, 882
IBM 650; 4
IBM compatible; 88
IBM Mainframe; 8
IBM Microchannel; 57
IBM Personal Computer (PC); 10
IBM Q network; 82
IBM Simon; 11
IBM Summit; 9
IC; 79
Icon;37, 52, 55, 109
Identity Theft; 66, 181
iFLYTEK; 111
Image scanner; 37, 105
Image projector; 41, 124
Infostealer; 21
Inkjet printer; 42, 126
Instant Messaging (IM); 5, 154, 158
instruction cycle; 84
instruction register (IR); 8484
instruction set; 81
Integrated circuit; 4, 31, 34, 45, 79, 88, 140
integrated development environment (IDE); 59
Intel; 8 54, 80
Intel 4004; 8, 80
Intel x86; 54
Intelligent agent; 5
Interface card; 79
Internet; 5, 13, 199, 73, 153
Internet of Things (IoT);14, 175
Internet service provider (ISP); 154, 185
Internet payment; 162
Interpreter; 87
Intranet; 154, 171
Iomega; 137, 143
200
Index
iOS;49, 55, 56, 113, 155

iPad; 12, 56, 113
iPod; 56
iPhone; 56, 113
IR (instruction registe); 8484
ISA bus; 57
IT Helpdesk; 58
iWork; 58
J
Jacquard loom; 3
Java; 86
Joystick; 6, 99, 108
K
Kay, Alan; 52
KDE; 54
Kemeny, John; 51
Keyboard; 31, 36, 37
Keylogger; 69, 178
Keyword; 112, 166
Keyword spotting; 112
kickstarter.com; 182
Kinesthetic communication; 6
Kiosk; 38
Kurtz, Thomas; 51
L
L1; 87
L2; 87
L3; 87
LAN; 14, 170
Laptop Computers; 10, 110, 140, 156, 175
Laser printer; 42, 125, 12742
LCD; 40, 93, 110, 121
Leibnitz, Gottfried; 2
LEO; 4
LEO III; 50
LibreOffice; 58
LinkedIn; 19, 167
Linux; 49, 54
LISP; 86
Local area network (LAN); 134, 154, 170
Log files; 70
201
Index
Look and feel; 172, 179

Lossless compression; 145
Lossy compression; 145
M
Mac OS; 49, 53
Machine language; 16, 85, 87
Magnetic secure transmission (MST); 161
Magnetic tape; 137, 142
Mainframe computers; 7, 54
Malware; 20, 176, 178
Mechanical calculators; 2
Media development software; 59
Media players; 55, 59
Megahertz; 8080
Microbrowser; 156
Microchannel; 57
Microcomputer; 9, 10, 79, 81
Microphone; 12, 36, 39, 131
Microprocessor; 57, 7979
Microsoft; 53
Microsoft Cortana; 39, 113
Microsoft Internet Explorer; 155
Microsoft Windows; 53, 53, 57
Microsoft Office; 58, 60
Midrange computer; 8
Minicomputer; 8, 51, 142
MIPS; 8080
Mobil payment; 160
Mobile wallet; 161
Modem; 13, 432, 43, 57, 154, 170
Monitor; 40, 92, 110, 120, 123, 130
Mosaic; 155
Motherboard; 32, 79, 81, 88, 91
Mouse; 36, 37, 106, 107
MP3; 13, 112
MS-DOS; 52
MST; 161
MSX; 57
Multimedia; 59, 93, 156,
Multimedia development software; 59
Multi-Tasking System; 50
202
Index
Multi User System; 50

N
Napier, John; 2
Near field communication (NFC); 160
Netflix; 13
Netiquette; 173
Net neutrality; 185
Network card; 79
Network Interface Controller (NIC); 32, 42
Neural Network: 17, 112110
Newton, Isaac; 2
NFT; 165
NIC; 32, 42
Nokia 9000 Communicator; 111
Notebook Computers; 11
Nuance; 111, 113
NuBus; 57
O
OCR; 105
OLED; 41, 120, 123
Online banking; 5
Online education; 183
Online shopping; 5, 19, 159, 182
On-screen keyboards; 101
Open Source (OSS); 61, 73, 168
Operating System (OS); 35, 49, 51, 55, 68, 74, 86, 88, 155
Optical Storage; 31 140
Organic light-emitting diode (OLED); 41, 120, 123
OS; 35, 49, 51, 55, 68, 74, 86, 88, 155
Outsourcing; 19
Overclocking; 33
P
P2P; 14, 185
Palm; 11
Paper tape; 137, 142
parallel port; 92
Pascal, Blaise; 2
Pascal (programming language); 86
PATA; 139
Patreon; 182
Paypal; 162
203
Index
PC (program counter); 8484

PCB; 7979
PDA; 11, 123
PDP; 8, 111
Peer to peer network (P2P); 14, 185
Perpetual License; 60
PERQ; 52
Persistent storage; 79
Personal Computer; 5, 8, 10, 51, 57, 80, 86
Personal Digital Assistant (PDA); 11, 123
PET (Commodore PET); 10
Phishing: 181181
Piracy; 62, 65
Pirates; 65, 65
Plagiarism; 65
Plasma display technology; 41, 121, 135
Plotter; 129
Plug and Play; 57
Podcast; 166
Pointing device; 37, 106, 108, 110
Portable Computers; 11
Primary Storage (RAM); 31, 137
Privacy; 682, 65, 68, 72, 179
Processor;16, 31, 33, 34, 57, 79, 81, 85
Processor size; 8080
Processor speed; 80
Product engineering software; 59
Productivity; 18
Productivity Software; 599
Programming language; 85
Projection keyboard; 102
Projector; 41, 124
Proprietary software; 60, 69
Punched card; 3, 37, 49, 137, 143
Q
Quantum computers; 17, 82
qubits,17, 82
Quick response (QR) code; 162
QWERTY; 103
QWERTZ; 104
204
Index
R
RAID; 139
RAID levels’ 140
Random Access Memory (RAM); 31, 34, 81, 87, 88
Ransomware; 20, 176, 178
rar (data compression format); 145
Read only memory (ROM); 34, 88
Register; 79, 84
Resolution; 41, 106105, 120, 129
Ritchie, Dennis; 51, 86
RISC; 81
robots.txt; 16781
ROM; 34, 88
Rotational latency; 356, 138
Router; 13, 42, 169
S
SaaS; 60, 61, 144
SATA; 139
Scanner; 36, 37, 105
ScanSoft; 113
Scareware; 20, 176, 179
Secondary Storage; 35, 34, 35, 49, 88, 137, 139, 140, 141
Search engine; 166
Seek time; 36, 138
Semiconductor memory; 5, 34, 81
Serial port; 92
Server;14, 54, 58, 61, 73, 144, 157, 169, 170, 172, 179
Shareware; 61
Silicon; 34
Silicone; 101, 126
Simulation software; 59
Single Tasking System; 49
SIRI; 7, 39, 112, 113
Site license; 60
Skype; 15, 61, 158
Slide rule; 2
Smartphone; 11, 12, 15, 23, 386, 38, 533, 53, 55, 65, 102, 109, 112, 17156, 160, 171
Smart TV; 13, 56
SMS; 163
Social engineering: 181
Social networking; 19, 65, 166, 167
205
Index
Soft copy; 40 119, 120, 130

Software as a Service; (SaaS);60, 144
Software Suite; 58
SOLARIS; 51
Solid ink printer; 128
solid state devices; 5
solid-state drive (SSD); 31, 137, 140
Sound card; 79, 131
SoundHound; 111
Spam; 157, 177
Speech Recognition; 7, 111
Speakers; 39, 131
Spear phishing: 181
Spider:167
Spiderbot: 167
Spreadsheet; 58
Spyware; 20, 176, 178
SSD; 31, 137, 140
Stuxnet; 74
Subscription License; 60
Summit (supercomputer); 9
SUN Microsystems; 51, 8651
Supercomputer; 8, 54
Swipe; 56
System board; 32, 79
System Software; 49, 53, 56, 58
System Unit; 7979
T
Tandy Radio Shack; 10
Tablet; 12, 38, 55, 109
Tablet Computer; 12, 388, 55
TCP; 153, 157, 170
TCP/IP; 153, 170
technological unemployment; 182
Telecommuting; 15, 18, 19, 20
Teletype; 50, 90, 14250
Telerobotics; 6
Terminal; 40, 50, 120, 160, 161
The Onion Routing (TOR); 169
Thermal printer; 129
Thompson (and Ritchie); 51
Three Rivers Computer Corporation; 52
206
Index
Tianhe-2; 9
Time Sharing System; 50, 51
Time-slice; 50
TOR; 169
Torvalds, Linus; 54
Touchpad; 38, 99, 110
Touchscreen; 112, 368, 101, 109
Trackball; 108
Transistor; 4, 5, 344, 45
Trojan 20(Trojan horse); 20, 176, 178
TRS 80; 10
Twitter; 5, 13, 19, 167, 175
U
UDP; 170
Unicode; 90
Unicode Transformation Formats (UTF); 90
Unisys; 7
UNIVAC; 4
Universal Serial Bus (USB); 31, 44, 92
UNIX; 49, 51, 54, 86, 90, 145
USB; 31, 44, 92, 137, 139, 141, 180
Utility Programs; 49, 56
V
VDT; 40, 12040
VDU; 40, 12040
Video cameras; 55
Videoconferencing: 155, 18
Video Connector; 93
Video cards; 79, 93, 124
Video games; 40, 55, 59, 110, 125
Video projector; 124
VideoTelephony: 15
Vimeo; 13
Virtual assistant; 7, 113
Virtual keyboard; 12, 55, 102
Virtual objects; 6
Virtual printer; 128
Virtual private network (VPN); 15, 172
Virtual reality (VR); 6, 125
Virus; 20, 29, 56, 64, 66, 68, 74, 168, 176, 177, 178
VoIP; 15, 154, 158
207
Index
Volatile; 31, 35, 88, 137

Von Neumann; 17
VPN: 15, 172
VR: 6, 125
VUI; 7
W
Wearable; 41, 123, 178
Web browsers; 13, 58, 59, 61, 65, 86, 144, 155, 156, 158, 162, 166,168
Webcast; 166
Web crawler: 167
Web portal: 158, 172
Web server; 157, 172, 179
Wiki; 165
Wikipedia; 5, 165
Windows; 53. 53, 57, 74, 99, 103, 113, 145
Wireless; 13, 32, 42, 72, 101, 171, 175
Word processor; 58, 99
Workplace Privacy; 69
World Wide Web (WWW); 5, 90, 153, 154, 155, 156, 165, 166, 168, 169, 170
Worm; 20, 168, 176, 177, 178
WWW; 5, 90, 153, 154, 155, 156, 165, 166, 168, 169, 170
X
XENIX; 51
Xerox; 52, 107, 128
Xerox 8010 Information System; 52
Xerox Alto; 52
Xerox Phaser; 12852
Xerox Star; 52
Y
YouTube; 13, 19
Z
zip (data compression format); 145
Zip drive; 137, 143, 144, 145
Zoom; 5, 15
208
Answer Key
10-Answer Key
(Answers to half of the end of chapter questions.)
1.4 Questions:
1.4.1 Completion
1. Humans have always found it necessary to perform some kinds of calculations,
and over the centuries, people have used many _______ to perform these
calculations
ANS: devices
1.1.1 Several kinds of analog computers were constructed in ancient and medieval
times to perform astronomical calculations. These include the Antikythera
mechanism and the __________, both developed in ancient Greece (c. 150–100
BC)
ANS: astrolabe
1.1.4 In the United States, _________, the first general purpose, programmable
computer was initially designed to compute artillery firing tables for the US
army
1.1.7.1 __________computers are computers used primarily by commercial and
governmental organizations for critical applications and bulk data processing
such as census, industry and consumer statistics, enterprise resource planning
and transaction processing
ANS: Mainframe
1.1.7.2 The term minicomputer is no longer widely used. The term _______
computer is now preferred
ANS: midrange
1.1.7.3 Supercomputers were introduced in the 1960s, made initially, and for
decades primarily by Seymour _____ at Control Data Corporation (CDC), then
at subsequent companies, all bearing his name or monogram.
ANS: Cray
1.1.7.7 A(n) _______computer is a mobile computer with a touchscreen display,
circuitry and battery in a single unit
ANS: tablet
1.1.8 With increased use of computers it became important to move data from one
computer to another quickly and efficiently. This, then, motivated the
development of computer _________
ANS: networks
209
Answer Key
1.1.8.1 A(n) ______ is a computer that receives and responds to requests from
client machines.
ANS: server
1.3.4 The term _______ was once used to describe a computer expert who used his
ANS: hacker
1. The oldest known calculating device is the abacus which was invented in
_______over 2000 years ago.
a) Asia
b) Rome
c) India
d) Greece
ANS: A
1.1.2 _________ described the binary number system that is used in all modern
computers
a) Pascal
b) Leibnitz
c) Newton
d) Lovelace
ANS: B
1.1.4 _________ was the world's first programmable, electronic, digital computer
a) Colossus Mark 1
b) ENIAC
c) LEO 1
d) UNIVAC
ANS: A
1.1.5 It was in the ________’s that IBM entered the computer business
a) 1920
b) 1930
c) 1940
d) 1950
ANS: D
210
Answer Key
1.1.7.4 The first successfully mass marketed personal computer was the ______
a) Apple II
b) TRS-80
c) Commodore PET
d) IBM PC
ANS: C
1.1.7.5 The ________ can be considered the first smartphone.
a) Apple Newton
b) IBM Simon
d) Palm TX
ANS: B
1.1.8.1 A ________ is a computer that receives and responds to requests from other
machines
a) client
b) server
c) peer
d) all of the above
ANS: B
1.4.3 True-False
1.1.3. One of the reasons that Babbage failed to make a working difference engine
is that he turned his attention to a more advanced design which he called the
analytical engine
ANS: T
1.1.7.3 As of 2018, the fastest supercomputer was the Cray 1
Ans F,
In Nov 2018, the IBM Summit at Oak Ridge National Laboratory became the
fastest supercomputer in the world. Before Nov 2018, the two fastest machines
were both in China.
1.1.7.8 The reduction in size, price and power consumption of computer
components has made it possible to install general purpose computers as
embedded systems in many devices)
Ans F
The reduction in size, price and power consumption of computer components
has made it possible to install specialized computers as embedded systems in
many devices
211
Answer Key
1.3.5 The term hacker was once used to describe a computer expert who used his
break into computer systems
Ans T
1.3.6 Since the early 1980’s computer crime and computer related crime have
increased.
Ans T
2.8 Questions:
2.8.1 Completion
2. The component which actually performs the actions/executes the commands that
the computer carries out is called the processor or ______
Ans CPU
2.2 The term "memory", (primary memory, primary storage) is ___________
semiconductor memory, i.e. integrated circuits consisting of silicon-based
transistors
Ans addressable
2.2 Most home or office computers include magnetic disk drives and have only a
minimal hardware initialization core and bootloader in ROM (known as the
______in IBM-compatible computers).
Ans BIOS
2.4 Traditional _______devices include the keyboard, mouse and scanner.
Ans input
2.4.4 A(n) _________is a visual display which is sensitive to where a user is
pressing on it and transmits this information to the computer
Ans touchscreen
2.5.2.1.2 OLED’s are used to produce _____ displays
Ans flexible
2.5.2.3 The newest types of projectors are ________projectors
Ans handheld
212
Answer Key

2. Computer memory (Primary storage, Random access memory or RAM) is
typically ________(when the computer is turned off, the contents of memory are
erased.)
a) short term
b) volatile
c) temporary
d) all of the above
Ans B
2. In most systems, the basic components will be mounted on or connected to the
computer’s ________
a) motherboard
b) CPU
c) bay
d) bus
Ans A
2.2 ROM is implemented using ________types of memory

a) expensive
b) inexpensive
c) volatile
d) nonvolatile
Ans D
2.3 On modern computers _____ are normally used for secondary storage
a) hard disk drives
b) optical drives
c) flash drives
d) all of the above
Ans A
2.3 The time taken to access a given byte of information stored in random-access
memory is measured in billionths of a second (_________.)
a) microseconds
b) milliseconds
c) nanoseconds
d) macroseconds
Ans C
213
Answer Key
2.5.2.1.1 Most of the modern flat-panel displays use _______ technologies

a) CRT
b) LCD
c) VDT
d) DVD
Ans B
2.6.4 An Ethernet port is an example of a(n) _______ device
a) input
b) output
c) communications
d) storage
Ans C
2.8.3 True-False
the same basic components
Ans T
2.2 Access to locations in RAM is generally much faster than to locations in ROM
Ans T
Access to locations in RAM is generally much faster than to locations in ROM.
It is for this reason that only minimal initialization software will be in ROM
2.3 Rotating optical storage devices (such as CD and DVD drives), have much
shorter access times than do rotating magnetic storage devices, such as hard
disks.
Ans F
Rotating optical storage devices (such as CD and DVD drives), have even
longer access times than do rotating magnetic storage devices, such as hard
disks
2.4.5 Most laptops and tablets come with digital cameras built in.
Ans T
2.6.1 Early network interface controllers were commonly built into computer
motherboards, but most on most modern computers, they are implemented on
expansion cards that plugged into a computer bus
Ans F
Early network interface controllers were commonly implemented on expansion
cards that plugged into a computer bus, but most modern computers have a
network interface built into the motherboard
214
Answer Key
3.4 Questions
3.4.1 Completion
3. _______ software is software which provides an interface and services both for
users and for other software
Ans System
3.1.1.4.2.2 On PCs, _______is the most popular operating system
Ans Windows
3.1.1.4.2.3 ________ has the largest installed base of all general-purpose operating
systems
Ans Linux
3.1.2 The term system software can also be used for software development tools
(like________, linkers and debuggers)
Ans compilers
3.2 The collective noun application software refers to all applications
collectively. This distinguishes it from ________ software, which is mainly
involved with running the computer.
Ans system
3.2 _________Software can refer to video games, screen savers, programs to
display motion pictures or play recorded music
Ans Entertainment
3. Computer programs (collectively known as Computer Software) can generally
be divided into two classifications:
a) System Software and User Software
b) System Software and Application Software
c) Network Software and User Software
d) Network Software and Application Software
Ans B
3. _________ software is software designed to provide specific services for users
a) System
b) User
c) Network
d) Application
Ans D
215
Answer Key
3.1.1.3.1 The first successful multiuser time sharing system was

a) DTSS
b) UNIX
c) Multics
d) ENIAC
Ans A
3.1.1.4.1 ______ is a personal computer operating system with a command line
interface.
a) AppleDOS
b) CP/M
c) MS-DOS
d) all of the above
Ans D
3.1.1.5.1 Android works with a user interface that is mainly based on direct
manipulation, using touch gestures that loosely correspond to real-world actions,
such as_________, to manipulate on-screen objects
a) swiping
b) tapping
c) pinching
d) all of the above
Ans D
3.4.3 True-False
3.1.1.2 In the early days of computing, CPU time was expensive, and peripherals
were very slow
Ans T
3.1.1.4 Personal computers are intended to be operated directly by an end-user who
is not necessarily a computer expert or technician
Ans T
3.1.1.5 The vast majority of modern smartphones use one of three operating
systems: Android, Linux, or iOS
Ans F
The vast majority of modern smartphones use one of two operating systems:
Android or iOS
216
Answer Key
3.3.1.1 There are two contrasting ethical views on the issue of piracy, and both have
their valid points.
Ans T
3.3.1.2.2.1 The majority of identity theft victims do not realize that they are victims
until it has negatively impacted their lives.
Ans T
3.3.1.2.2.4 Computer viruses currently cause hundreds of thousands of dollars
worth of economic damage each year.
Ans F
Computer viruses currently cause billions of dollars' worth of economic
damage each year
4.11 Questions
4.11.1 Completion
4. In a desktop computer, most of the electronic components are housed in an
enclosure a called the ______unit
Ans system
4.1.1 Most modern CPUs are _________ meaning they are contained on a single
integrated circuit (IC) chip.
Ans microprocessors
4..4 ______memory, is random access memory (RAM) that a computer
microprocessor can access more quickly than it can access regular RAM
Ans Cache
4.6.1.16 One of the earliest (and still one of the most commonly used) systems for
storing representations of characters in computer memory is______
Ans ASCII
4.7.1 An expansion bus is a computer bus which moves information between the
internal hardware of a computer system (including the CPU and RAM) and
peripheral devices. It is a collection of wires and _______ that allows for the
expansion of a computer
Ans protocols
4.9.1 A USB port is a standard cable connection interface for personal computers
and consumer electronics devices. USB stands for Universal Serial_______, an
industry standard for short-distance digital data communications
Ans Bus
217
Answer Key

4 In a desktop computer, most of the electronic components are housed in an
enclosure a called the ________.
a) motherboard
b) cache
c) system unit
d) all of the above
Ans C
4.1 The term Motherboard specifically refers to a(n) _________with expansion
capability
a) PCB
b) CPU
c) ALU
d) RAM
Ans A
4.1.1.2 One might describe the speed of a microprocessor as a number of ______
a) Hertz
b) MIPS
c) FLOPS
d) any of the above
Ans D
4.1.1.3 ________is a CPU design strategy based on the insight that a simplified
instruction set can provide higher performance. The simplified instruction set
allows the CPU to be optimized to execute these instructions more efficiently
a) FLOPS
b) ROM
c) RISC
d) CISC
Ans C
218
Answer Key
4.3 An instruction cycle (sometimes called a fetch–decode–execute cycle) is the

basic operational process of a computer. It is the process by which a computer
retrieves a program instruction from its memory, determines what actions the
instruction dictates, and carries out those actions. This cycle is repeated
continuously by a computer's _________, from boot-up to when the computer is
shut down.
a) ALU
b) Ports
c) motherboard
d) CPU
Ans D
4.5 The computer____________, locations in ROM
a) cannot read information from, and cannot write to
b) cannot read information from, but can write to
c) can read information from, but cannot write to
d) can read information from, and can write to
Ans C
4.6 The primary function of a computer is ________ processing.
a) information
b) numerical
c) binary
d) ASCII
Ans A
4.8 Drive bays are most commonly used to store _____, ,
a) disk drives
b) front-end USB ports
c) I/O bays
d) all of the above
Ans A
4.11.3 True-False
4.2.1 RAM is considered "random access" because it is hard to predict how long it
will take for the processor to access any given cell.
Ans F
RAM is considered "random access" because you can access any memory cell
directly without accessing the previous cells first
219
Answer Key
4.5 ROM is implemented using nonvolatile types of memory

Ans T
4.6.1.1 ASCII codes use 8 bits
Ans F
Computer designers have come to use binary (two state) equipment to store
representations of data
5.5 Questions
5.5.1 Completion
5. Examples of ______ devices include keyboards, mouse, scanners, digital cameras
and joysticks
Ans input
5.1 In computing, a computer keyboard is a(n) _________-style device which
uses an arrangement of buttons or keys to act as electronic switches
Ans typewriter
5.1.1.3 The vast majority of flexible keyboards in the market are made from
_________
Ans silicone
5.1.2.1 The common _______-based layout was designed early in the era of
mechanical typewriters, so its ergonomics were compromised to allow for the
mechanical limitations of the typewriter
Ans QWERTY
5.2 An image _______ is a device that optically scans images and converts them to
digital representations of the images
Ans scanner

5. A ______ is an example of an input device
a) keyboard
b) mouse
c) scanner
d) all of the above
Ans D
220
Answer Key
5.1.1.1 There are three different PC keyboards: The three differ somewhat in the
placement of:
a) the function keys
b) the control keys
c) the return key
d) all of the above
Ans D
5.1.1.4 _______ keyboards have become very popular for cell phones, due to the
additional cost and space requirements of other types of hardware keyboards
a) Projection
b) Flexible
c) Software
d) all of the above
Ans C
5.1.2.3 The _______ keyboard layout is widely used in Germany and much of
Central Europe
a) QWERTZ
b) DVORAK
c) AZERTY
d) QWERTY
Ans A
________scanners where the document is placed on a glass window for
scanning
a) flatbed
b) window
c) document
d) industrial
Ans A
5.3 A ______device is an input interface that allows a user to input spatial data to a
computer by controlling the position of a cursor on the computer display
a) cursor
b) spatial
c) pointing
d) all of the above
Ans C
221
Answer Key
5.3.1 The optical mouse _______

a) is cheaper than a mechanical mouse and responds more slowly
b) is cheaper than a mechanical mouse and responds more quickly
c) is more expensive than a mechanical mouse and responds more slowly
d) is more expensive than a mechanical mouse and responds more quickly
Ans D
5.3.4 A _______ touch screen panel is coated with a thin metallic electrically
which is registered as a touch event
a) resistive
b) surface wave
c) capacitive
d) all of the above
Ans A
5.3.6 ________ are a common feature of laptop computers, and are also used as a
substitute for a mouse where desk space is scarce
a) Touchscreens
b) Touchpads
c) Joysticks
d) all of the above
Ans B
5.4.3 True-False
5.1 A keyboard typically has characters engraved or printed on the keys and each
press of a key typically corresponds to a single written symbol
Ans T
5.1.1.1 The IEEE has established a standard computer keyboard design that all
manufacturers conform to.
Ans F
There is no standard computer keyboard, although many manufacturers imitate
the keyboards of PCs
5.2 There are a number of different arrangements of alphabetic, numeric, and
punctuation symbols on keys of computer keyboards
Ans T
5.3.3 Most joysticks include buttons called triggers
Ans T
5.3.4 Capacitive touch screens are not affected by outside elements and have high
clarity
Ans T
222
Answer Key
6.3 Questions
6.3.1 Completion
6. After a computer executed a program, has processed some data, it will probably
be desirable for the computer to produce some kind of tangible effect in the
outside world; for it to produce some kind of _______
Ans output
6.1.1.2.2 A(n) _______display consists of two glass plates separated by a thin gap
filled with a gas such as neon
Ans plasma
6.1.1.3 Flexible OLED’s are often used in ________ devices
Ans wearable
6.1.2.2 _______printing differs from other printing technologies in that each page is
always rendered in a single continuous process without any pausing in the
middle, while other technologies like inkjet can pause every few lines.
Ans Laser
6.1.2.4.5 _______printers are widely used in cash registers, ATMs, gasoline
dispensers and some older inexpensive fax machines.
Ans Thermal
6.1.3.1 A(n) ______is a small line attached to the end of a stroke in a letter or
symbol.
Ans serif
6.2 _________are designed to allow a single user to listen to an audio source
privately, in contrast to a speaker, which emits sound into the open air, for
anyone nearby to hear.
Ans Headphones
6.2 In the context of telecommunication, a ______is a combination of a headphone
and a microphone.
Ans headset
223
Answer Key

6.1.1 A VDU is:
a) a monitor
b) a printer
c) a wearable
d) a speaker
Ans A
6.1.1.3 Flexible OLED’s, which are often used in wearable devices,
a) are relatively heavy and are somewhat power hungry
b) are light weight but are somewhat power hungry
c) are relatively heavy but require little power
d) are light weight and require little power
e none of the above
Ans D
6.1.2 _______ printers spray tiny dots of ink on a surface to create an image
a) inkspray
b) inkjet
c) inkdot
d) spraydot
Ans B
6.1.2.3 ________ printing is a type of computer printing which uses a print head
that prints by impact, striking an ink-soaked cloth ribbon against the paper
a) Dot matrix
b) Inkjet
c) Laser
d) Thermal
Ans A
6.1.2.4.3 ________ printers are most commonly used as color office printers, and
are excellent at printing on transparencies and other non-porous media
a) Dot matrix
b) Inkjet
c) Laser
d) Thermal
Ans E
Solid ink
224
Answer Key
6.1.2.4.4 _________ printers are now increasingly used as dedicated consumer

photo printers
a) Dot matrix
b) Inkjet
c) Laser
d) Thermal
Ans E
Dye sublimation
6.1.2.4.6 These printers were also referred to as letter-quality printers because they
could produce text which was as clear and crisp as a typewriter.
a) dye-sub
b) daisy-wheel
c) dot-matrix
d) thermal
Ans B
6.3.3 True-False
6.1.1.2.2 Very large displays generally use plasma display technology
Ans T
6.1.1.2.2 Liquid crystal displays are lightweight, compact, portable and cheap and
they are also more reliable than CRTs.
Ans T
6.1.2.1 Consumer inkjet printers with photographic-quality printing are widely
available
Ans T
6.1.3.1 There is considerable debate as to which type of font, serif or sans-serif, is
easier to read. There are studies to support both sides of the issue.
Ans T
6.1.3.1 The text in this question is displayed using a serif font.
Ans T
7.9 Questions
7.9.1 Completion
7.0 Computer data storage, often called storage or memory, is a technology
consisting of computer components and recording media used to retain
_______data
Ans digital
225
Answer Key
7.0 ________storage does not lose the data when the device is powered down—it is
non-volatile
Ans Secondary
7.2 With _____ storage, data is recorded by making marks in a pattern that can be
read back with the aid of light, usually a beam of laser light
Ans optical
7.3 A flash drive is a data storage device that includes flash memory with an
integrated _______ interface
Ans USB
7.4.3 Paper tape was widely used during much of the twentieth century for
___________communication
Ans teleprinter
7.4.5 The ______drive is a medium-to-high-capacity (at the time of its release)
removable floppy disk storage system that was introduced by Iomega in late 1994
Ans Zip
7.0 Modern computer systems typically have________
a) two orders of magnitude more secondary storage than primary storage but
b) two orders of magnitude more secondary storage than primary storage and
c) two orders of magnitude more primary storage than secondary storage and
d) two orders of magnitude more primary storage than secondary storage but
Ans B
7.1 The most common form factor for modern HDDs in desktop computers is
_______ inches
a) 8
b) 5.25
c) 3.5
d) 2.5
Ans C
226
Answer Key
7.1.1 A RAID system can provide the advantage of:

a) lower price
b) greater reliability
c) faster upload speed
d) all of the above
Ans D
7.2 DVD’s hold about ______ of data.
a) 700 MB
b) 4.7 GB
c) 25 GB
d) 50 GB
Ans B
7.3 USB flash drives are often used for _____
a) storage
b) data back-up
c) transfer of computer files
d) all of the above
Ans A
7.4 A floppy disk is a type of disk storage composed of a disk of thin and flexible _______
storage medium, sealed in a rectangular plastic enclosure
a) optical
b) magnetic
c) semiconductor
d) any of the above
Ans B
7.4.2 _________ have/has historically offered enough advantage in cost over disk
storage to make it a viable product, particularly for backup, where media
removability is necessary.
a) Punched cards
c) Magnetic tape
d) all of the above
Ans C
227
Answer Key
7.4.5 The _______ format became the most popular of the superfloppy products
which filled a niche in the late 1990s portable storage market.
a) CD
b) cloud
c) ZIP
d) RAID
Ans C
7.9.3 True-False
7. In practice, almost all computers use a storage hierarchy, which puts fast but
expensive (and small) storage options close to the CPU and larger and more
expensive options farther away.
Ans T
7.1 Hard disks are typically about a million times faster than memory.
Ans F
Hard disks are typically about a million times slower than memory.
7.1.1. In a RAID system, data can be distributed across the drives in one of several
ways, referred to as RAID levels.
Ans T
7.4.4 By 1950 punched cards had been replaced by magnetic tape throughout
almost all industry and government.
Ans F
By 1950 punched cards had become ubiquitous in industry and government.
8.11 Questions
8.11.1 Completion
8.1.1 The Internet was originally developed by the US federal government, a
project of _______.
Ans DARPA
8.1.2 In practice, an individual will often access the Internet from his home, using
a(n) ______ to connect to a local Internet service provider (ISP).
Ans modem
8.1.3.1 WWW web pages are identified by _______’s.
Ans URL
8.1.3.1.2 WWW pages are often written in__________, which enables an easy-to-
use and flexible connection and sharing of information over the Internet.
Ans HTML
228
Answer Key
8.1.3.1.3 The communication between client and server takes place using the
Hypertext Transfer ________(HTTP).
Ans Protocol
8.2.1 ________.com is currently the largest company specializing in online
B2C business.
Ans Amazon
8.3 A ______is a website which allows collaborative modification of its
content and structure directly from the web browser.
Ans wiki
8.6 In the 1990s, using a browser to view web pages—and to move from one
web page to another through hyperlinks—came to be known as 'web
_______’
Ans surfing
8.9.2 A network ________is a network security system that monitors and
controls the incoming and outgoing network traffic based on
predetermined security rules.
Ans firewall
8.9.4 A ________is a computer that receives and responds to requests from client
machines.
Ans server
8.9.6 Devices in a LAN will typically communicate by means of either a
physical medium (typically twisted pair cable) or radio waves
(________)
Ans wifi
8.10.2.2 ________ is any software used to disrupt computer operations, gather
sensitive information, or gain access to private computer systems.
Ans malware
229
Answer Key

8.1.2 In general, small local Internet service providers connect to medium-sized
regional networks which connect to large national networks, which then connect
to very large bandwidth networks which make up what is called the Internet
________
a) architecture
b) backbone
c) infrastructure
d) Web
Ans B
8.1.3.1 The World Wide Web is a system of “web pages” (documents and other
web resources) which are identified by “_______” and are interlinked by
hypertext links
a) URL’s
b) VDT’s
c) widgets
d) podlets
Ans A
8.1.3.1 The World Wide Web was designed and built by

a) Tim Berners-Lee
b) Marc Andreeson
c) Bill Gates
d) Steve Jobs
Ans A
8.1.3.1 Netscape Navigator was developed by a team led by

a) Tim Berners-Lee
b) Marc Andreeson
c) Bill Gates
d) Steve Jobs
Ans B
230
Answer Key
8.1.3.3 ______ is a standard network protocol used to transfer computer files from
one host to another host over a TCP-based network (such as the Internet.)
a) WWW
b) FTP
c) Email
d) VoIP
Ans B
8.1.3.5 _______ is a methodology for the delivery of voice communications (and

other kinds of multimedia sessions) over the Internet
a) WWW
b) FTP
c) Email
d) VoIP
Ans D
8.2.2 _________ refers to transactions in which one individual purchases goods and
or services from another individual.
a) B2B
b) B2C
c) C2B
d) C2C
Ans D
8.7 Is a system that enables users to search for documents on the World Wide Web
a) Google
b) Bing
c) Yahoo! Search
d) all of the above
Ans D
8.9.3 A router is a networking device that forwards data ________ between
computer networks
a) clusters
b) globules
c) packets
d) cells
Ans C
231
Answer Key
8.10.1 Following the rules of netiquette _______

a) improves the readability of your messages
b) lays the groundwork for making trustworthy connections
c) helps other people to better understand you
d) all of the above
Ans D
8.11.3 True-False
8.1.2 The architecture of the Internet is based on the specification of the TCP/IP
protocol, and was designed to connect any two networks
Ans T8.1.2 In order to reduce expenses, most ISP’s limit their external
Internet connections to one backbone connection.
Ans F
Most ISP’s have several redundant network cross-connections to other providers
in order to ensure continuous availability.
8.1.3.1.1 The Internet is one of the services provided by WWW.
Ans F
WWW is, in fact, only one of many services provided by the Internet.
8.4 A majority of blogs are interactive
Ans T
232
Introduction to Computers – Image References
11-Image References
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Abacus: This image comes from the 12th edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica or earlier.
The copyrights for that book have expired and this image is in the public domain
ii
Pullan, J. M. (1968). The History of the Abacus. New York, NY: Frederick A. Praeger, Inc.,
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Astrolabe: Photo taken by Andrew Dunn Whipple Museum of the History of
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v
Pascal’s calculator: Photographer David Monniaux / (2005) Permission is granted to copy,
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vi
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and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License,
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viii
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ix
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x
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xi
UNIVAC I: This image is a work of a U.S. Army soldier or employee, taken or made as part
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Hard Drive; Author: Evan-Amos; This file is licensed under the Creative Commons
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xxx
Optical Disk; Author: Ubern00b; Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify
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SanDisk Cruzer Micro; Author: Evan-Amos; The copyright holder of this work has released this
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xxxii
Typing example.ogv. Modifications made by Parzi. This file is licensed under the Creative
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xxxiii
Tastenmaus von Microsoft; Author: Darkone; This file is licensed under the Creative
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xxxiv
TFT_LCD_display_Samsung_SyncMaster_510N.jpg: Author: MaGioZal; This work is free
software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General
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xxxv
HP LaserJet 5 printer; Author: Thiemo Schuff; This file is licensed under the Creative
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xxxvi
Motherboard; Author: Julianprescott2604juuly; This file is licensed under the Creative
Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license
xxxvii
CPU; Author: Andrew Dunn; This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share
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xxxviii
CPU Block Diagram; Author: Lambtron; This file is licensed under the Creative Commons
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xxxix
Clock Generator; Author: Audrius Meskauskas Audriusa; This file is licensed under the Creative
xl
"Hard drive-en" by I, Surachit. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Commons
xli
xlii
Punched card: Author: Arnold Reinhold; This file is licensed under the Creative Commons
Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic license
xliii
xliv
Scanner; Author: Luke Launderville; This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-
ShareAlike 3.0 License
xlv
Capacitive touchscreen of a mobile phone; Author: Medvedev; This file is licensed under the
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license
xlvi
An Internet kiosk in Hemer, Germany; Author: Asio otus; This file is licensed under the Creative
xlvii
Speakers for notebook computers; Author: Evan-Amos; this work was released into the public
domain
xlviii
Headphones; Author: Adamantios; This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-
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xlix
In-ear headphones; Author: Ballerinus; This file is licensed under the Creative Commons
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Flat Panel Display; Author: Freeware-flo; Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this
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Projector; Author: Michael Movchin; This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-
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lii
HP LaserJet 5 printer; Author: Thiemo Schuff; This file is licensed under the Creative
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liii
Bluetooth mobile phone headset; Author: ed g2s • talk; This file is licensed under the Creative
liv
Maria Toutoudaki/Stockbyte/Getty Images
lv
By Pratyeka - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0,
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By Rama & Musée Bolo - Own work, CC BY-SA 2.0 fr,
lvii
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lviii
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lxiii
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lxiv
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lxvii
CMOS Battery on a Computer Motherboard. © Steve Gschmeissner / Science Photo
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Ports on the back of an Apple Mac Mini
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lxxi
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lxxiii
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236
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lxxx
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lxxxi
By Septagram at English Wikipedia - Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons by Liftarn using
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lxxxii
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lxxxiii
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lxxxiv
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lxxxv
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lxxxvi
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lxxxvii
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lxxxviii
This photo was taken by Evan-Amos as a part of Vanamo Media, which creates public
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lxxxix
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xc
By Original: Evan-Amos Derivative work: Beao - This file was derived from: Usb-thumb-
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xci
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xcii
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xciii
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https://www.mobiletransaction.org/different-types-of-mobile-payments/
xcvii
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Introduction To Computers 2022 Edition - Nodrm

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Introduction

We have created a set of supplementary PowerPoint files, as well as testbanks. We will be

You are welcome to contact us at either darrell.hajek@upr.edu or cesar.herrera@upr.edu .

1.1.8 Communications and Networks ................................................................................... 13

1.2 Computer Definition: .............................................................................................. 16

1.2.1 Information Processing Cycle ...................................................................................... 16

1.4 Questions: ................................................................................................................. 24

2. Computer Components ...................................................................................... 31

2.5 Output Devices ......................................................................................................... 39

2.5.2.2 Projectors ....................................................................................................................................... 41

2.6 Communications Devices ........................................................................................ 42

2.7 Bus: ....................................................................................................................... 44

3.1.1.4 Personal Computer Operating Systems ..................................................................................... 51

3.1.1.4.2.1 Mac OS ................................................................................................................................................................. 53

3.1.1.4.2.2 Microsoft Windows .............................................................................................................................................. 53

3.1.1.4.2.3 Linux Systems ...................................................................................................................................................... 54

3.1.1.5 Smart Phones ................................................................................................................................. 55

3.1.1.6 Smart TV’s ..................................................................................................................................... 56

3.3 Ethical Issues Related to Computer Software ........................................................ 62

Piracy is Unethical .................................................................................................................................................................... 63

3.3.1.2.1.3 Plagiarism ............................................................................................................................................................. 65

3.3.1.2.1.4 Unauthorized access............................................................................................................................................. 65

3.3.1.2.1.5 Spreading viruses ................................................................................................................................................. 66

3.3.1.2.1.6 Activity monitoring .............................................................................................................................................. 66

3.3.1.2.2 Insecurity ................................................................................................................................................. 66

3.3.1.2.2.3 Being Hacked ....................................................................................................................................................... 67

3.3.1.2.2.4 Infection by Viruses ............................................................................................................................................. 68

3.3.1.2.2.5 Being Monitored by Employers .......................................................................................................................... 68

3.3.1.3 10 Commandments of Computer Ethics .................................................................................... 69

3.4 Questions .................................................................................................................. 74

4 System Unit ........................................................................................................... 79

4.2 Memory .................................................................................................................... 81

4.2.2 Quantum Computing.................................................................................................... 82

4.3.1.2 High Level Languages ............................................................................................... 86

4.7 Adapter cards: .......................................................................................................... 91

5.1.2.3 Layouts for languages other than English ............................................................................... 104

5.2 Scanners ................................................................................................................. 105

6 Output ................................................................................................................. 119

6.1.1.3 Organic Light-Emitting Diode (OLED) ................................................................................... 123

6.1.2.4.3 Solid ink printers................................................................................................................................... 128

6.1.3 Visual Output - Fonts ................................................................................................. 130

6.2 Audio Output.......................................................................................................... 131

7 Storage ................................................................................................................ 137

7.9 Questions ................................................................................................................ 147

8 Networks, Internet and the World Wide Web ................................................ 153

8.1.3.1.3 Web Servers........................................................................................................................................... 157

8.1.3.2 Internet Services: E-Mail ........................................................................................................... 157

8.2.2 Consumer-to-Consumer (C2C) .................................................................................. 159

8.3 Wikis ....................................................................................................................... 165

8.6 Surfing the Web ..................................................................................................... 166

8.9.7 Web Portals ................................................................................................................ 172

8.10.2.2.7 Scareware............................................................................................................................................. 179

8.10.2.3 Cookies ....................................................................................................................................... 179

8.10.5 Some Other Social Concerns .................................................................................... 182

8.10.5.3 Net Neutrality ............................................................................................................................ 185

8.11 Questions ......................................................................................................... 186

9. Index ................................................................................................................... 193

5.5.1 Completion.................................................................................................................. 220

11-Image References ............................................................................................... 233