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The instrumentation of powering a computer is not exclusive to the visual hardware and software, but also the data, communication, people, and procedures utilized. Many people including Pascal and Babbage have paved the way for computer development. As the saying goes though, "the computer is only as good as it's user." Hardware is primarily categorized into input and output devices. While software is divided into systems software and applications software. It is vital that the right procedures are followed carefully with diagrams or verbal instructions in order to obtain a desired outcome. Communication is used extensively via internet or fax to obtain research whether its writing a report or figuring out the seismology of the San Andre's fault. Data, on the otherhand, is differentiated by information because it is unprocessed and "raw." Data is stored in a number of ways, smallest to largest are: bits, bytes, fields, records, files, and databases. Units of capacity include bytes, kilobytes, megabytes, gigabytes, and terabytes. Data consists of, in this case the raw facts and figures, that are processed. Information is manipulated data or otherwise summarized data. Patricia's example was the raw data as an employee's wage rates transacted through the computer into information in the form of payrolls and paychecks. The first computer, remotely similar to our own desktops and laptops, was a sprocket machine that could do simple addition, division, and multiplication with help of logarithmic tables invented by Wilhelm Schikard. Not long after, Blaise Pascal, in 1642, came up with a machine capable of subtracting and addining. He only manufactured fifty of them. Charles Babbage created the difference machine that could compute mathematical tables. And herman Hollerith with the punch card system, the precursor to IBM, The International Business Machines Corporation. The ENIAC, Electronical Numerical Integrator and Computer, was completed in 1945. The basic definition of communication is the transmission of data to and fro computers, or devices, alike. Cables, modems, and ports enable all communication devices to interact with one another. Many of the computer networks, a system of two or more computers linked together that is, are classified into some of the following: Local-area networks (LANs), Wide-area networks (WANs), Campus-area networks (CANs), Home-area networks (Hans), topology, architecture and protocol. The topology in the formation of a star, ring, or bus. The World Wide Web is distinguished by its international weblike topology as Ashley stated. Procedures are many times unstated but part of common practice. Other times, procedures are given in great detail in manuals as in tax laws. A computer's manual is called documentation, rules, guidelines, or instructions to follow when using software or hadware. Many computers, nowadays, have have tutorials and wizards to mitigate the stresses of installing major programs. Software is best described as the step-by-step guidelines that tells the computer what to perform. Applications software, packaged or customized, performs work on more general-purpose tasks. Packaged software are spreadsheets, word processors, graphics, communications programs, and database managers. Whereas operating software enables applications softwares to communicate with the computer. Microcomputer operating systems are Windows, OS/2, DOS, and UNIX. Hardware encompasses both processing, memory, output, input, communications, and secondary storage. Input devices are the keyboard, mouse, and joysick. Output are speakers, printer, and monitor. A fax machine wavers between the two. Secondary storage includes data on an optical disk, magnetic-tape device, and/or floppy disk. Communication paraphernalia are fax modems, cables, and internet modems. |
