Information

Technology
Fundamentals
Prepared by: Sanie G. Bautista
Learning Objectives:
At the end of the session, the students should
be able to:
1. Define basic concepts on computer such as
computer, data processing, data and
information;
2. Relate the development of computing and
computing devices;
3. Describe the development of computing
devices, their capabilities and limitations;
4. Explain the different components of
computer systems;
5. Describe the role of each component in the
functionality of the computer.
Learning Content
1. The Computer
2. Capabilities and Limitations of a Computer
3. History of Computers
4. Classifications of computer
The Computer
What is a Computer?
Computer is an electronic device that accepts
(inputs), processes, stores, and outputs data at
a high speeds according to programmed
instructions.
Five Basic Elements
• Electronic – means all computers are
powered by electricity.
• Programmable – computers follow set of
instructions (called programs) in order to
operate.
• Storage – computers are able to store huge
amount of data for future use (electronic
cabinet).
• Retrieve – computers are able to get back
or return whatever it has stored.
• Process – computers are able to transform or
manipulate data it has stored into useful
information.
Data and Information
 Data is raw, unprocessed facts. It has the potential to
become useful information, but first it has to be
manipulated and transformed. And the best way to do
that is to feed the data into the computer. Data is actually
what computers feed on.
Example :
• Name
• Age
• Sex
 Information is processed data. It is a data that has
already manipulated and transformed into something
useful.
Example:
My name is Sanie.
My birthdate is November 30 1988.
Four Basic Functions of
Computer
• Input – the procedure of feeding or entering
data into a computer.
• Process – the operation of manipulating and
transforming data into something useful. This
function is done through programs.

Programs are written instructions that tell the

computer on how to manipulate and transform
the data it was given to it.

• Output – the result of the processing

function.
• Storage – computers save data and outputs
for later use.
 Flow Diagram of a Computer System
Program
& Data
Input Output
Storage Unit
Unit Unit
Results/
Information

Arithmetic/
Logic Unit
Central
Processing
Unit

Control Unit
 Flow Diagram of a Computer System
Program
& Data
Input Output
Storage Unit
Unit Unit
Results/
Information

Arithmetic/
Logic Unit
Central
Processing
Unit

Control Unit
Capabilities and
Limitations of a Computer
Capabilities of a Computer
1. It can process data quickly.
2. It can perform operations tirelessly.
3. It can give accurate results depending on
the instructions and commands given.
4. It can store, recall, and retrieve information.
5. It can confirm and verify the accuracy of
the information.
6. It can perform multi-tasks.
Limitations of a Computer
1. It needs human intervention.
2. It has a short life span.
3. It cannot formulate information on its own.
4. The information or results generated are user
dependent.
5. It can never replace the capabilities of the
human brain.
History of Computers
Abacus
The abacus was man’s first recorded adding
machine. It was in 500 B.C when the abacus
was invented in Babylonia, then popularized in
China, the abacus is an ancient computing
device constructed of sliding beads on small
wooden rods, strung on a wooden frame.

A very old abacus

A more modern abacus
Napier’s Bone
John Napier, Baron
of Merchiston,
Scotland, invents
logs in 1614. Logs
allow multiplication
and division to be
An original set of Napier's Bones
reduced to addition
and subtraction.

A more modern set of

Napier's Bones
Schickard's Calculating Clock
The first gear-driven calculating machine to
actually be built was probably the calculating
clock, so named by its inventor, the German
professor Wilhelm Schickard in 1623. This
device got little publicity because Schickard
died soon afterward in the bubonic plague.

Schickard's Calculating Clock

Pascaline
In 1642, a French mathematician named Blaise
Pascal invented a mechanical calculation
machine called Pascaline. It was made out of
clock gears and levers, and could solve basic
mathematical problems like addition and
subtraction.

Pascal's Pascaline
Stepped Reckoner
 In 1671, Gottfried Leibniz, a German
mathematician, invented a machine called
steeped reckoner that could multiply 5 digit
and 12 digit numbers yielding up to 16 digit
number.

Stepped Reckoner
Jacquard Loom
In 1801 the Frenchman Joseph Marie Jacquard
developed an automatic loom that was
controlled by punched cards

◄ Jacquard's Loom
showing the threads
and the punched cards

By selecting particular ►
cards for Jacquard's
loom you defined the
woven pattern

◄A close-up of a
Jacquard card
Charles Babbage
In 1822, Charles and print complex
Babbage, invented the mathematical
first modern computer operations. Babbage’s
design: a steamed- difference and
powered adding analytical engine are
machine called the regarded as the first
difference engine to “thinking machines”.
automatically solve These inventions earned
math problems. him the title “Father of
Computers”.
Babbage also invented
the analytical engine. It
was a mechanical
adding machine that
took information from
punched cards to solve
Analytical Engine
Lady Ada Lovelace
The first program was
written by Ada
Augusta Lovelace for
Babbage’s difference
engine. Thus, Ada
Lovelace is credited
with being “the first
computer
programmer”. The
programming ada is
named in her honor.
Lady Ada Lovelace and the
Analytical Engine
Hollerith Desk
In 1890, the first person to
successfully use punched cards
specifically for census taking
was Herman Hollerith. Hollerith
later went on to found the
Tabulating Machine Company,
which later became the
Computer Tabulating Recording
Company. He retired in 1921,
but his company went on to
become the International Hollerith Desk
Business Machines Corporation.
We know it today as IBM.
The Millionaire
The Millionaire (Calculator Machine), the first
efficient four-function calculator, is invented by Otto
Shweiger, a Swiss Engineer in 1893.

Millionaire
Calculator
Z3
In 1941, Konrad Zuse, built the first programmable
computer called Z3. It was the first fully functional,
program controlled computer of the world. The Z3
was presented on May 12, 1941 to an audience of
scientist in Berlin. The demonstration was a success.

Z3
 Harvard Mark I
Howard Aiken was the man to develop the first
computer that run on electricity. It was known as
Mark I. this was a general-purpose computer which
was as big as a hall 8 feet high and 51 feet long.

The Harvard Mark I:

an electro-
mechanical
computer
 Atanasoff and Berry Computer (ABC)
Dr. John Vincent
Atanasoff and his
graduate assistant,
Clifford Berry, built the
first truly electronic
computer, called the
Atanasoff-Berry
Computer or ABC. This
computer used a circuit
with 45 vacuum tubes to
perform the calculations,
and capacitors for
storage. This was also the
first computer to use
binary math. Atanasoff and Berry Computer
(ABC)
The Five Generations of Digital
Computing
There are five generations of computer:
➢ First Generation – 1946 – 1958
➢ Second Generation – 1959 - 1964
➢ Third Generation – 1965 - 1970
➢ Fourth Generation – 1971 - today
➢ Fifth Generation – Today to future
The First Generation: Vacuum Tube
 First-generation computers had vacuum tubes,
resistors, and welded metal joints. They were large,
slow, expensive, and produced a lot of heat. In
addition, first-generation computers often broke down
because of burned-out vacuum tubes.
 In 1945, Presper Eckert and John Mauchly developed
the first operational electronic digital computer, called
ENIAC, for the US Army. ENIAC had more than 18,000
vacuum tubes, and took up to 1,800 square feet of
space. Today, ENIAC’s technology could fit in a
modern wristwatch.
 In 1951, the UNIVAC-1 became the first commercially
available electronic computer. This computer was
designed by Eckert and Mauchly and built by the
Remington Rand Corporation.
 IBM 701 was the IBM’s first electronic computer built in
1953.
 The Second Generation: Transistors
 Instead of vacuum tubes, the second-generation
computers used transistors an exciting new invention at the
time. John Barden, Walter Brattain, and William Shockley of
Bell Telephone Laboratories invented the transistor.
 Magnetic tapes and disk began to replace punched cards
as external storage devices.
 Magnetic cores (very small donut-shaped magnets that
could be popularized in one of two directions to represent
data) strung on wire within the computer became the
primary internal storage technology.
 In 1961, Grace Hopper, the woman that found the first
computer bug, finishes developing COBOL (Common
Business-Oriented Language).
 The Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) founded by Ken
Transistors
Olsen, released the first minicomputer, the PDP-8 in 1964.
 In 1965, Thomas Kurtz and John Kemeny of Dartmouth
College developed BASIC (Beginners All Purpose Symbolic
Instruction Code) as a computer language to help teach
people how to program.
The Third Generation: Integrated
Circuit
 Computers in the third-generation computers relied
on a new technology called integrated circuit. The
integrated circuit is a single wafer or chip that can
hold many transistors and electronic circuits.
 Magnetic tape and disks completely replace
punched cards as external storage devices.
 Magnetic core internal memories began to give way
to a new form, metal oxide semi-conductor (MOS)
memory, which, like integrated circuits, used silicon-
backed chips.
 In 1958 Jack Kilby invented the monolithic integrated
circuit, which is still widely used in electronic systems.
 The C programming language is developed at AT & T
bell Labs by Brian Kerninghan and Dennis Ritchie.
 The Unix Operating System, also written at Bell Labs, is
rewritten using C. This later makes UNIX one of the
most portable operating systems.
The Fourth Generation: Microprocessor
 The fourth-generation is just an extension of the third-
generation technology. This next technological
development is to put more power and capabilities in
one chip called microprocessor which has made
computers the fastest and most powerful they have ever
been.
 In 1975, the Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems
or MITS produced the first Personal Computer. They
named the computer “Altair 8080”. This was the first easily
available micro-computer. It had256 bytes of memory
and ran a version of BASIC written by Bill Gates.
 Apple’s widely successful PC was the Apple II personal
computer. Apple II was the first personal computer to
come in a plastic case and include color graphics.
 In 1978, VisiCalc was released. It is the first spreadsheet
program and it made microcomputers useful to
businesses.
 In 1993, Intel Pentium introduced Pentium Processor, a
microprocessor with 3.1 million transistors
The Fifth Generation: Artificial
Intelligence
 The Fifth Generation Computer Systems was an
initiative by Japan's Ministry of International Trade
and Industry, begun in 1982, to create computers
using massively parallel computing and logic
programming. It was to be the result of a massive
government/industry research project in Japan
during the 1980s.
 This generation’s focus is more on connectivity.
This is to permit computer users to connect their
computers to other computers.
Classifications of
Computer
Classifications of Computers
1) According to size and processing speed
2) According to Data Handled
3) According to Purpose
1. According to size and
processing speed
 Super Computer
 Mainframe Computer
 Mini Computer
 Micro Computer
Super Computer
➢ The fastest type of computer.
➢ They are very expensive and employed for
specialized applications that require immense
amounts of mathematical calculations.
➢ They are mainly used for:
o weather forecasting
o animated graphics
o fluid dynamic calculations
o nuclear energy research
o petroleum exploration
Examples:
o NEC Earth Simulator
o IBM ASCI White
o TERASCALE Computing System
o TERA Supercomputer
o NERSC IBM SP RS/600
Mainframe Computer
➢ A very large and expensive computer capable
of supporting hundreds, or even thousands, of
users simultaneously.
➢ They are slower and less than supercomputers.
➢ They support hundreds or thousands of users at a
time.
➢ They are used as e-commerce and web servers
and in large organizations, banks, universities and
airlines as databases.
➢ Examples,
o IBM 3090
o Andhal 5890
Mini Computer
➢ A midsized computer.
➢ In size and power,
microcomputers lies between
workstations and mainframes.
➢ In general, a minicomputer is
a multi-processing system
capable of supporting from 4
to about 200 users
simultaneously.
➢ They are also known as
midrange computers.
➢ They are used in medium size
business, education and
government departments and
are also used as servers on the
network environment.
➢ Examples:
o IBM’s AS/400e
Micro Computer (Personal Computer)
➢ Is generally a synonym for the more common
term, Personal Computer or PC, a computer
designed for an individual.
➢ It uses microprocessor technology to input,
manipulate, store and output data.
➢ Business use personal computers for word
processing, accounting, desktop publishing, and
for running spreadsheet and database
management applications.
➢ Examples,
o Apple II
(introduced by
Apple Computer in 1977)
o IBM PC (IBM’s first personal
computer)
Two Classifications of
Microcomputers
1.Personal Computer or PC
➢ It is widely popular with people of all lifestyle
because they are powerful, affordable and easy
to use.

Personal computer
 2.Portable Computer
➢ Include laptops or notebooks, sub-notebook,
tablet computer and personal digital assistants.
➢ They are small enough to move easily from one
place to another and they can operate on
batteries.
➢ They are popular with people who travel and
need computing power on the go.

Laptop Notebook
PDA (Personal Tablet PC
Digital Assistant)
2. Portable Computer
a. Laptop/Notebook Computer
➢ A small portable computer. Small enough
that it can sit on your lap.
➢ Use a variety of techniques, known as flat-
panel technologies, to produce a lightweight
and non-bulky display c. screen.
b. Subnotebook Computer
➢ Slightly lighter and smaller than a full-sized
notebook computer.
➢ Have smaller keyboard and screen, but are
otherwise equivalent to notebook computers.
c. PDA or Personal Digital Assistant
➢ A handheld device that combines
computing, telephone/fax, and networking
features.
➢ It can function as a cellular phone, fax
sender, and personal organizer.
➢ Most PDA’s began as pen-based, using stylus
rather than a keyboard for input.
d. Tablet PC
➢ Provides the full power and functionality of
today’s notebook PC’s
➢ Design for a fully equipped personal
computer that allows a user to take notes
using natural handwriting on a stylus or digital
pen.
2. According to Data Handled
a)Analog computers
➢ Analog computers operate on
mathematical variables in the form of
physical quantities that are continuously
varying. For example temperature, pressure,
voltages, etc.
➢ Famous examples of analog computers are
the Planimeter, the nomogram, operational
amplifiers, mechanical integrators, slide
rules, tide predictors,
b. Digital computers
➢ Digital computers deal with mathematical variables in form of
numbers that represent discrete values of physical quantities. The
advantages of digital computers are that they are versatile,
reprogrammable, accurate, and less affected by outside
disturbances. In contrast to analog computers, digital machines
work on numbers. Each variable is converted into numbers and
each number into binary form, i.e. 0 and 1. It is this combination
of 0 and 1 that does all the calculations.
➢ All modern computers, laptops, and calculators are all digital
computers.
c. Hybrid computers
➢ A hybrid is a combination of digital and analog computers. It
combines the best features of both types of computers. It has the
speed of analog computer and the memory and accuracy of digital
computer. Hybrid computers are used mainly in specialized
applications where both kinds of data need to be processed.
➢ Computer used in hospitals to measure the heartbeat of the
patient. Devices used in petrol pump. In scientific applications or
in controlling industrial processes.
3. According to Purpose
a. General-purpose computers
➢ It is capable of dealing to a variety of
different problems and are able to respond to
programs created to meet different needs.
➢ It is capable of storing different programs of
instructions thus they can perform a variety of
operations.
Example is a Desktop Computer
b. Special-purpose computers It is designed to
perform one specific task.
➢ The programs are built into permanently in the
machine and given task are performed very
quick and efficient.
Examples are computers used in monitoring
nuclear reactions, outer space missions, oil
explorations
3. By Purpose
 General-purpose computers – used for a
wide variety of applications such inventory,
payroll, accounting, market research and
sales analysis.
 Special-purpose computers – designed to
perform one specific task. The program of
instructions is built into or permanently stored
in the machines.
Examples are computers used in air traffic
control, satellite tracking, collecting highway
tolls, airline reservations and more.
Thank You!