| Question |
Answer |
| There is no invention – only discovery |
Thomas J. Watson |
| What Computer Do |
Store Information |
| Input Devices |
The keyboard is the most common input device |
| Output Devices |
A video monitor is a common output device |
| Process Information |
The processor, or central processing unit (CPU), processes information and performs all the necessary arithmetic calculations. |
| Primary storage |
is the computer’s main memory |
| Secondary storage |
uses disks or other media |
| Information comes in many forms |
Words . . . Numbers . . . Pictures . . . Sounds... Symbols |
| Even the most sophisticated ocmputer is really only a large well-organized volume of bits.” |
David Harel |
| ASCII |
American Standard Code for Information Interchange |
| Bit |
smallest unit of information |
| Byte |
a grouping of eight bits of information |
| kilobyte |
about 1,000 bytes of information - technically 1024 bytes equals 1K of storage |
| megabyte |
about 1 million bytes of information |
| gigabyte |
about 1 billion bytes of information |
| terabyte |
about 1 million megabytes of information |
| Compatibility |
Each computer has a unique instruction set |
| Speed |
Speed is measured in units called megahertz (mHz). |
| random access memory |
is the most common type of primary storage, or computer memory |
| read-only memory |
information is stored permanently on a chip. |
Ch.18 LTI-MA 509
