What is the small program that tells the computer how do you communicate with input output?

Unit 7. Evolution of computers

Click play on the following audio player to listen along as you read this section.

Computer Hardware Basics

– any physical device or equipment used in or with a computer system (anything you can see and touch).

External hardware

• – any hardware device that is located outside the computer.
• – a piece of hardware device which is used to enter information to a computer for processing.
• Examples: keyboard, mouse, trackpad (or touchpad), touchscreen, joystick, microphone, light pen, webcam, speech input, etc.
  
  
• – a piece of hardware device that receives information from a computer.
• Examples: monitor, printer, scanner, speaker, display screen (tablet, smartphone …), projector, head phone, etc.

Internal hardware

• – any piece of hardware device that is located inside the computer.
• Examples: CPU, hard disk drive, ROM, RAM, etc.

Computer Software Basics

Computer software

• – a set of instructions or programs that tells a computer what to do or how to perform a specific task (computer software runs on hardware).
• Main types of software – systems software and application software.

Application software

• – a computer program that provides users with tools to accomplish a specific task.
• Examples of application software: word processing, spreadsheets, presentation, database management, Internet browsers, email programs, media players, accounting, pronunciation, translation, desktop publishing, enterprise, etc.

System Software

– it is designed to run a computer’s hardware and application software, and make the computer system available for use. It serves as the interface between hardware, application software, and the user.

• Main functions of system software – allocating system resources, managing storage space, storing and retrieval of files, providing security, etc.
• Main types of systems software – operating system, device driver, utility software, programming software, etc.

– a software that controls and coordinates the computer hardware devices and runs other software and applications on a computer. It is the main part of system software and a computer will not function without it.

• Main functions of an operating system – booting the computer, managing system resources (CPU, memory, storage devices, printer, etc.), managing files, handling input and output, executing and providing services for application software, etc.
• Examples of operating system: Microsoft Windows, Apple iOS, Android OS, macOS, Linux, etc.

– a software program that is designed to control a particular hardware device that is attached to a computer.

• The main purpose of device driver – it acts as a translator between the hardware device and operating systems or applications that use it.
• It instructs computer on how to communicate with the device by translating the operating system’s instructions into a language that a device can understand in order to perform the necessary task.
• Examples of device driver: printer driver, display driver, USB driver, sound card driver, motherboard driver, ROM driver, etc.

– a type of system software that helps set up, analyze, configure, strengthen, maintain a computer and performs a very specific task (e.g. antivirus software, backup software, memory tester, screen saver, etc.).

All computers take inputs, and process them to give an output. Watch Vasu explain more.

Computers can be programmed to solve problems or complete tasks that make people’s lives easier. General purpose computers include desktop computers, laptops, and mobile phones. These devices can be programmed to perform many varied tasks. Among other things, you can use these computers to communicate with friends online, create picture collages, or play games.

Input, process, and output

Computers, no matter how they are programmed, work with inputs, processes, and outputs.

Input

All computers accept inputs. An input is data that is entered into or received by a computer. This could include a user pressing a key on a keyboard, clicking a mouse to select something on screen, or tapping a touch pad.

Process

The process determines what the computer does with the input. For example, in gaming software, pressing the letter A may be a directional control, moving a character in the game to a different place. A program contains the set of instructions that define the process.

Output

The output is how the computer presents the results of the process. Outputs can be returned to the user in many ways such as text on a screen, printed materials, or as sound from a speaker.

Digital devices (computers) you use in your day-to-day life have inputs, processes, and outputs.

Digital camera

• Input: pressing the button on the top
• Process: capturing and storing a picture
• Output: showing the image on the screen

Word processor (such as Microsoft Word or Google Docs)

• Input: pressing a button on the keyboard
• Process: checking which letter has been pressed and adding the letter to the document in its memory
• Output: showing the correct letter on the screen

Instructions and programs

A program is a set of instructions that a computer can run. Programs are clear, ordered, and in a language that computers can follow.

Programming languages are used to write instructions for computers. There are many different types of programming languages and all of them have the ability to:

• Accept input data
• Process decisions based on conditions being met
• Carry out calculations
• Repeat instructions
• Output information

Programming is a creative task: there is no right or wrong way to complete a task, in the same way that there is no right or wrong way to paint a picture. There are choices to be made, and one way may seem better than another, but that doesn’t mean the other is wrong! With the right skills and experience, a programmer can craft software to solve an unlimited number of problems — from telling you when your next train will arrive to playing your favourite music. The possibilities are constrained only by your imagination. That’s why I love programming.

What makes up a program?

When you create a program for a computer, you give it a set of instructions, which it will run one at a time in order, precisely as given. If you told a computer to jump off a cliff, it would!

1. Turn and face the cliff
2. Walk towards the cliff
3. Stop at the edge of the cliff
4. Jump off the cliff

To stop computers constantly falling off cliffs, they can also make choices about what to do next:

If I won't survive the fall, don't jump off the cliff.

Computers never get bored and are really good at doing the same thing over and over again. Instruction 2 above might look in more detail like this:

 2a. Left foot forward
 2b. Right foot forward
 2c. Go back to instruction 2a

These three concepts are the basic logical structures in computer programming:

1. Sequence: running instructions in order
2. Selection: making choices
3. Repetition: doing the same thing more than once, also called ‘iteration’

I’ll explain these in more detail as you go through the course.

Add to these concepts the ability to deal with inputs and outputs and to store data, and you have the tools to solve the majority of all computing problems.

Discussion

Why is it important to learn that computers only follow the instructions that they have been given? Give your view and discuss this in the comments section.

What is a small program that tells the operating system how do you communicate with a specific device?

What is a small program?

What is the small program that allows a piece of computer hardware to work with the operating system?

What allows a computer to communicate?