Computer Basics

Computer Basics

Mr. Adam Logan
Tapestry Public Charter School

What is a Computer?

A computer is anything that can take data, do
something, and provide a result. This is known
as computation.

Examples of Computers we use:

●PC’s
●Laptops
●Smartphones
●Gaming Systems (Xbox, Playstation…)
●Calculators

What Does a Computer Need?

All computers need four things:

●Input: A way of getting information.
●Output: A way of putting out information.
●Storage: A way of storing information.
●Processing: A way of working with
information.

Photo by Aphonik / Public Domain

What Makes Up Our Computers?

●Our computers are mostly digital
electronic, meaning they use electricity to
work with digits (usually binary).
●They generally have two types of parts:
○Hardware: The physical parts of the
computer.
○Software: The virtual parts of the
computer.

Photo by TheUjulala / CC0

Hardware: Structural

Case
-Used to mount the
motherboard, and any parts
that are too big to be
attached to the motherboard.

Motherboard
-The main circuit-board of a
computer, used to move power
and data.
-Comes in many shapes,
depending on type of computer.
-Almost all parts are attached
directly to slots in motherboard.

Power Supply
-Pulls electricity and delivers it
to the motherboard.
-May or may not include a
battery, which may or may
not be removed.

Photo by Asim18 / Public Domain

Photo by Evan-Amos / Public Domain

Photo by kitchsweb / CC BY-ND 2.0

Hardware: Storage

Hard Disk Drive (HDD)
-“Permanent;” information
stays after turned off.
-Size measured in Gigabytes
(GB)
-Mechanical

Solid State Drive (SSD)
-“Permanent;” information
stays after turned off.
-Size measured in Gigabytes
(GB)
-Electronic
-Faster than HDD, but tends
to hold less.

Random Access Memory (RAM)
-“Temporary;” when the computer
is turned off, the information goes
with it.
-Size measured in Gigabytes (GB).
-Comes in sticks of different sizes.
-Holds information used while
working.

Photo by Darkone / CC BY-SA 2.5

Photo by Intel Free Press/ CC BY 2.0

Photo by lrcfree/ CC0

Hardware: The Processor (CPU)

●Central Processing Unit (CPU)
●The brain of the computer. It handles all
processing of information.
●Can be “multi-core;” a processor made of
multiple smaller processors. Most
processors today are.
●Power is usually measured by the clock
speed, which is in Gigahertz (GHz).
However, this is not always accurate.
●Processors also have a “bit-ness,” which
is the largest numbers they can handle.
64-bit is normal today.

Photo by Eric Gaba / CC BY-SA 3.0

Hardware: BIOS/UEFI

●Basic Input Output System (BIOS)
●Unified Extensible Firmware Interface
(UEFI)

●A chip on the motherboard responsible for
handling booting, hardware configuration,
and similar tasks.
●The computer CANNOT boot without a
working BIOS/UEFI!
●BIOS is an older technology, being
replaced by UEFI, thanks to improved
features and design.
●Despite the difference, it is common for
UEFI to be referred to as BIOS.

Photo by Raimond Spekking / CC BY-SA 4.0

Hardware: Cards and Expansion Slots

●A computer needs peripherals to be
useful. Expansion slots and cards are
used to add new features to a computer.
●Wide variety of card types: Video cards,
network cards, sound cards…
●...But there is also a wide variety of slot
types, such as AGP, PCI, etc.
●Number of cards that can be added
depends on number and types of slots on
motherboard.

Photo by Joydeep / CC BY-SA 3.0

Hardware: USB

●Universal Serial Bus: USB
●All-purpose port type that can be used for
almost anything.
●Can transfer both power and data.
●Different versions of USB which allow for
faster data transfer. Latest is USB 3.1.
●Backwards-compatible with older versions.

Photo by TEL0000 / Public Domain

Software

●Software exists on the computer, stored as binary on “permanent” storage such as a HDD or SSD.
●The most important software on a computer is the Operating System, which handles how the
computer is run. Windows, Mac, and Linux are the most common on PCs, while Android and iOS
are common on phones..
●Programs, or Applications, are any files that perform some sort of task, whether it’s simple or
complex. A program could be a text editor, a game, or anything else. The Operating System only
needs to know that it’s a program, and handles how to run it.
●Programs and data, including the Operating System, are stored as Files.

Resources

●https://www.gcflearnfree.org/computerbasics/

●https://www.lifewire.com/what-is-a-cpu-2618150

●http://www.storagereview.com/ssd_vs_hdd

●https://www.lifewire.com/what-is-random-access-memory-ram-2618159

●https://www.howtogeek.com/56958/htg-explains-how-uefi-will-replace-the-bios/