COMPUTER HARDWARE
RESOURCES OF MIS
- By Ranita &
Mridutrishna
Classification of Computer System
• According to size
and memory
capacity:
1. Microcomputers or
Personal Computers
A personal Computer (PC) or a micro
is the smallest general purpose
computer system which can execute
programs to perform a variety of
instruction
2. Mini computers
A minicomputer system is a small
general purpose computer varying in
size from a desktop model to a unit
the size of a four drawer filing cabinet
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Example of a Bullet Point Slide
3. Mainframe
Computer
These systems have the
flexibility to operate
automatically from 2 to 8 bytes
in the same unit of time.
4. Supercomputers
Supercomputers are the most
powerful and expensive
computers made.
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Generations of Computers
First Generation - 1940-1956: Vacuum
Tubes
→expensive to operate
→use a great deal of electricity
→generated a lot of heat
→UNIVAC and ENIAC computers are examples of first-
generation computing devices
Second Generation - 1956-1963:
Transistors
→become smaller
→faster, cheaper,more energy-efficient
→developed for the atomic energy industry
Third Generation - 1964-1971: Integrated
Circuits
→they are faster and require less energy
→smaller and cheaper
→accessible to a mass audience
→interacted through keyboards and monitors and
interfaced with an operating system
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Fourth Generation - 1971-Present:
Microprocessors
→became more powerful
→they could be linked together to form networks
→development of the Internet
→development of GUI's, the mouse and handheld
devices
Fifth Generation - Present and
Beyond: Artificial Intelligence
→Games Playing
→Expert Systems
→Natural Language
→ Neural Networks
→Robotics
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Block Structure
• Block Diagram of Computer :
A convenient graphical representation of
input-output behavior of a system, where the
signal into the block represents the input and
the signal out of the block represents the
output. The flow of information (the signal) is
unidirectional from the input to the output.
• Input Unit:
→Accept the data and instructions from the
outside world.
→Convert it to a form that the computer can
understand.
→Supply the converted data to the computer
system for further processing.
• Output Unit:
The output unit of a computer provides the
information and results of a computation to
outside world. Printers, Visual Display Unit
(VDU) are the commonly used output
devices.
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Contd………..
Storage Unit:
→The storage unit of the computer holds data
and instructions that are entered through the input
unit, before they are processed.
→It preserves the intermediate and final results
before these are sent to the output devices
→It also saves the data for the later use.
Memory Size:
Byte is the space occupied in the memory.
The size of the primary storage is specified in KB
(Kilobytes) or MB (Megabyte). One KB is equal to
1024 bytes and one MB is equal to 1000KB. The
size of the primary storage in a typical PC usually
starts at 16MB. PCs having 32 MB, 48MB, 128
MB, 256MB memory are quite common.
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Classification of storage
The various storage devices of a computer
system are divided into two categories:
• Primary Computer Storage Devices
Random Access Memory
Read Only Memory
•Secondary Computer Storage Devices
Hard Drives
Floppy Discs
Compact Discs
Digital Versatile Disc
Memory Cards
USB Flash Drive
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Secondary Memory
•Magnetic disk storage
•It typically contains several rotating disks, or platters.
The surfaces of the platters are covered in metal
oxide, and read/written by electromagnetic recording
heads, rather like those on an audio cassette recorder.
floppy disks
Hard disks
•Optical disc
•Optical discs are most commonly used for storing
music (e.g. for use in a CD player), video (e.g. for use
in a DVD player), or data and programs for personal
computers.
Compact Disc (CD)
Video CD
DVD and derivatives
Digital Multilayer Disk or Fluorescent Multilayer Disc
•Magnetic tape
•It is a medium for magnetic recording
Videocassette recorders
Compact Cassettes
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Three Business Application based on
Optical Storage Media [Smart card ]
• The inside of a smart card usually
contains an embedded
microprocessor.
• Microprocessor is replacing the
usual magnetic stripe on a credit
card or debit card.
• The data on the stripe can easily be
read, written, deleted or changed
with off-the-shelf equipment.
• Smarts cards may have up to 8
kilobytes of RAM, 346 kilobytes of
ROM, 256 kilobytes of
programmable ROM, and a 16-bit
microprocessor.
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Application:
Credit cards
Electronic cash
Computer security systems
Wireless communication
Loyalty systems (like frequent
flyer points)
Banking
Satellite TV
Government identification
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THANK YOU
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