The Parts of a Computer System

In general terms computer is an electronic device used to process data, converting the data into information that is useful to people . Any computer -regardless of its type - is controlled by programmed instructions, which give the machine a purpose and tell it what to do.

Computers come in many varieties , including  the personal computer, tinny computers built into appliances and automobiles, and mainframe machines used by many people simultaneously to run a business. despite their differences in size and use, all these computers are part of a system. A complete computer system consists of  four parts: hardware, software, people and data.

The Mechanical devices that make up the computer are called hardware. In other words, hardware is any part of the computer you can touch. Hardware consists of inter connected electronic devices that you can
use to control the computer's operation, input and out put. The generic term refers to any piece of hardware.

Software is a set of electronic instructions consisting of complex codes also know an programs that make the computer perform tasks. In other words, software tells the computer what to do. some programs exist primarily for the computers use and help the computer perform and manage its own tasks. Other types of programs exist primarily for the user and enable the computer to perform tasks, such as creating documents or drawing pictures.

People are the computer operators also know as users. It can be argued that some computer systems are complete without a persons involvement; however no computer is totally autonomous. Even if a computer can do its job without a person sitting in front of it, People still design, build, program and repair computer systems. This lack of autonomy is especially true of personal computer systems, which are the focus of this book and which are designed specifically for use by people.

Data consists of raw facts, which the computer stores and reads in the form of numbers, the computer manipulates data according to the instructions contained in the software and then forwards it for use by people or another computer. Data can consist of letters, numbers, sounds or images. No matter what kind if data is entered into a computer, how ever the computer converts it to numbers. Consequently, computerized data is digital , meaning that it has been reduced to digits, or numbers.

within the computer, data is organized into files. A computer file is simply a set of data or program instructions that has been given a name. A file that the user can open and use is often called a Document. Although many people think of documents simply as text, a computer document can include many kinds of data. For example a computer document can be a text, a group of numbers or any combination of these items. Programs are oraganized into files as well, but because programs are not considered data, they are not document files.

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