Quiz 3

1. Describe the four categories of output

The Four types of output are:

 1. text - usually used in reference to a computer application, a text-based application is one whose primary input and output are based on text rather than graphics or sound.

 2. Graphics(created using computers and, more generally, the representation and manipulation of image data by a computer with help from specialized software and hardware)

 3. Audio (sound reproduction using pulse-code modulation and digital signals. Digital audio systems include analog-to-digital conversion (ADC), digital-to-analog conversion (DAC)

 4. Digital storage- processing and transmission components.

2. The characteristics of LCD monitors, LCD screens, plasma monitors, and HDTVs.

A liquid crystal display (LCD) is a thin, flat electronic visual display that uses the light modulating properties of liquid crystals (LCs). LCs does not emit light directly.

They are used in a wide range of applications, including computer monitors, television, instrument panels, displays, signage, etc. They are common in consumer devices such as video players, gaming devices, clocks, watches, calculators, and telephones. LCDs have displaced cathode ray tube (CRT) displays in most applications. They are usually more compact, lightweight, portable, less expensive, more reliable, and easier on the eyes. They are available in a wider range of screen sizes than CRT and plasma, and since they do not use phosphors, they cannot suffer image burn-in.

LCDs are more energy efficient and offer safer disposal than CRTs. It is an electronically modulated optical device made up of any number of pixels filled with liquid crystals and arrayed in front of a light source(backlight) or reflector to produce images in color or monochrome. LCD screens had surpassed the sale of CRT units. Plasma display screens are made from glass, which reflects more light than the material used to make an LCD screen. Although a few companies have been able to make plasma EDTVs this small, even fewer have made 32in plasma HDTVs. With the trend toward larger and larger displays, the 32in screen size is rapidly disappearing.

3. What are the components inside the systems units?

Computer cases usually include sheet metal enclosures for a power and drive bays, as well as a rear panel that can accommodate peripheral connectors protruding from the motherboard and expansion slots. the case. Such a case will also include the wires needed to connect these ports, switches and indicators to the motherboard.

Internal access

Tower cases have either a single side panel which may be removed in order to access the internal components or a large cover that saddles the chassis. Traditionally, most computer cases required screws to hold components and panels in place (i.e. motherboard, PSU, drives, and expansion cards). Recently there is a trend toward "screwless" cases, in which components are held together with snap-in plastic rails, thumbscrews, and other methods that do not require tools; this facilitates quick assembly and modification of computer hardware.

4. The components of a processor and how they complete a machine cycle.

The fundamental operation of most CPUs, regardless of the physical form they take, is to execute a sequence of stored instructions called a program. The program is represented by a series of numbers that are kept in some kind of computer memory. There are four steps that nearly all CPUs use in their operation: fetch, decode, execute, and writeback. The first step, fetch, involves retrieving an instruction (which is represented by a number or sequence of numbers) from program memory. The location in program memory is determined by a program counter (PC), which stores a number that identifies the current position in the program. After an instruction is fetched, the PC is incremented by the length of the instruction word in terms of memory units. Often, the instruction to be fetched must be retrieved from relatively slow memory, causing the CPU to stall while waiting for the instruction to be returned. The instruction that the CPU fetches from memory is used to determine what the CPU is to do. In the decode step, the instruction is broken up into parts that have significance to other portions of the CPU. The way in which the numerical instruction value is interpreted is defined by the CPU's instruction set architecture (ISA). Often, one group of numbers in the instruction, called the opcode, indicates which operation to perform. The remaining parts of the number usually provide information required for that instruction, such as operands for an addition operation. Such operands may be given as a constant value (called an immediate value), or as a place to locate a value: register or a memory address, as determined by some addressing mode. In older designs the portions of the CPU responsible for instruction decoding were unchangeable hardware devices. However, in more abstract and complicated CPUs and ISAs, a micro program is often used to assist in translating instructions into various configuration signals for the CPU. During this step, various portions of the CPU are connected so they can perform the desired operation. If, for instance, an addition operation was requested, the arithmetic logic unit (ALU) will be connected to a set of inputs and a set of outputs. The inputs provide the numbers to be added, and the outputs will contain the final sum. The ALU contains the circuitry to perform simple arithmetic and logical operations on the inputs (like addition and bitwise operations). If the addition operation produces a result too large for the CPU to handle, an arithmetic overflow flag in a flags register may also be set. The final step, write back, simply "writes back" the results of the execute step to some form of memory. Very often the results are written to some internal CPU register for quick access by subsequent instructions. In other cases results may be written to slower, but cheaper and larger, main memory. Some types of instructions manipulate the program counter rather than directly produce result data. These are generally called "jumps" and facilitate behavior like loops, conditional program execution (through the use of a conditional jump), and functions in programs. Many instructions will also change the state of digits in a "flags" register. These flags can be used to influence how a program behaves, since they often indicate the outcome of various operations. For example, one type of "compare" instruction considers two values and sets a number in the flags register according to which one is greater. This flag could then be used by a later jump instruction to determine program flow. After the execution of the instruction and writeback of the resulting data, the entire process repeats, with the next instruction cycle normally fetching the next-in-sequence instruction because of the incremented value in the program counter. If the completed instruction was a jump, the program counter will be modified to contain the address of the instruction that was jumped to, and program execution continues normally. In more complex CPUs than the one described here, multiple instructions can be fetched, decoded, and executed simultaneously. This section describes what is generally referred to as the "classic RISC pipeline", which in fact is quite common among the simple CPUs used in many electronic devices (often called microcontroller). It largely ignores the important role ofCPU cache, and therefore the access stage of the pipeline.

5. Define a bit and describe how a series of bits represents data.

A bit is the basic unit ofinformation in computing and telecommunications;

 it is the amount of information stored by a digital device or other physical system that exists in one of two possible distinct states. These may be the two stable states of a flip-flop, two positions of an electrical switch, two distinct voltage or current levels allowed by a circuit, two distinct levels of light intensity, two directions of magnetization or polarization, etc. There are several units of information which are defined as multiples of bits, such as byte ,kilobit , megabyte . Computers usually manipulate bits in groups of a fixed size, conventionally named "words". The number of bits in a word varies with the computer model typically between 8 to 80 bits. The International Electro technical Commission's standard IEC 60027 specifies that the symbol for binary digit should be "bit", and this should be used in all multiples, such as "kbit" (for kilobit). However, the letter "b" (in lower case) is widely used too. The letter "B" (upper case) is both the standard and customary symbol for byte. In telecommunications (including computer networks), data transfer rates are usually measured in bits per second (bit/s) or its multiples, such as kbit/s. (This unit is not to be confused withbaud.)

6. Identify the categories of application software.

Word Processing Software: Allows users to create, edit a document. Example: MS Word, Word Pad etc.

Spreadsheet Software: Allows users to create document and perform calculation. Example: Excel, Lotus1-2-3 etc.

Database Software: Allows users to store and retrieve vast amount of data. Example: MS Access, MySQL, Oracle etc.

Presentation Graphic Software: Allows users to create visual presentation. Example: MS Power Point

Multimedia Software: Allows users to create image, audio, video etc. Example: Real Player, Media Player etc.

7. Identify the key features of widely used business programs.

The Most Widely Used Open Source Business Intelligence Software

Jasper Reports is part of the Jasper Soft open source business intelligence suite. Jasper Reports offers a range of reporting and charting features.

Features:

comes with a dashboard designer, which also uses drag and drop features.

8. What are the advantages of using application software on the Web?

Application software, also known as an application or an "app", is computer software designed to help the user to perform singular or multiple related specific tasks. Examples include enterprise, accounting software, office suites, graphics software and media players. Many application programs deal principally with documents. Apps may be bundled with the computer and its system software, or may be published separately. Some users are satisfied with the bundled apps and need never install one.

Application software is contrasted with system software and middleware, which manage and integrate a computer's capabilities, but typically do not directly apply them in the performance of tasks that benefit the user. 9.History of the Internet.

9. History of the Internet.

The history of the Internet starts in the 1950s and 1960s with the development of computers. This began with point-to-point communication between mainframe computers and terminals, expanded to point-to-point connections between computers and then early research into packet switching. Packet switched networks such as ARPANET, Mark I at NPL in the UK,CYCLADES, Merit Network, Tymnet, and Telenet, were developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s using a variety of protocols. The ARPANET in particular led to the development of protocols for inter networking, where multiple separate networks could be joined together into a network of networks. In 1982 the Internet Protocol Suite (TCP/IP) was standardized and the concept of a world-wide network of fully interconnected TCP/IP networks called the Internet was introduced. Access to the ARPANET was expanded in 1981 when the National Science Foundation (NSF) developed the Computer Science Network (CSNET) and again in 1986 when NSFNET provided access to supercomputer sites in the United States from research and education organizations and social networking.

10. What are different storage devices?

• Storage devices hold data, even when the computer is turned of.

• The physical material that actually holds data is called storage medium. The surface of a floppy disk is storage medium.

• The hardware that writes data to or reads data from storage medium is called a storage device. A floppy disk drive is a storage device.

• The two primary storage technologies are magnetic and optical.

• Compact Disk Read-Only Memory (CD-ROM)

  Digital Video Disk Read-Only Memory (DVD-ROM)

  CD-Recordable (CD-R)

  CD-Rewritable (CD-RW)

   Photo CD

Quiz 2

1. There are several methods of getting data into your computer. Some include using a mouse of which there are several different types such as mechanical mouse, optical mouse and cordless mouse. You also have a touchpad and joysticks. Below you will find some other non conventional pen input devices.

Light Pen - Light pen is actually one more pointing input gadget. This will pick up on existence of light. It's a hand held pen fashioned gadget having a photocell installed in it's front-end. Once the front-end on the pen is actually touched on the display screen, the actual photocell registers a position associated with display. This kind of instrument also offers a button. An individual points to the actual object that will end up being chosen on the display screen using the light pen after which clicks the button in the pen. Light pen gadgets are utilized by technical engineers, visual creative designers and so on. These types of gadgets call for unique displays. Light pen can be used on PDA's and also other kinds of portable computers.
The electrical light pen input instrument is usually combined with creating computer software. Designed screen data files are usually joined using a light pen simply by directing it to display positions. A new place shows up on the screen in the area exactly where pen is placed which is sensed through the photocell. The pc software operated the feedback transmission of the instrument.
Digitizer - A Digitizer is also called a graphic tablet and uses a pen input device. It's a flat, rectangle-shaped digital plastic material pad. Every position to the digitizer points to matching video display. It's primarily useful for producing road maps and also engineering blueprints. The actual input gadgets stylus pen and also cursor can be used to trace sketches and also drawings to the digitizer.
Whenever you sketch upon the digitizer with the aid of the stylus pen or cursor, this converts the actual actions associated with stylus or cursor straight into electronic signals which are afterwards routed to the laptop or computer. Therefore a digitizer makes it simple to key in free-hand sketching in to a laptop or computer.
Stylus and Cursor - Stylus pen is actually like a ballpoint pen. It's utilized to compose textual content or make lines (or generate drawings and also pictures) on the exclusively developed graphics display or digitizer. Pen input devices found in several sophisticated graphic devices is called Digital Pen. Generally electronic digital pen supplies much more performance compared to stylus pen.
Stylus pen can be used in graphic programs for instance Computer Aided Design (CAD) and also engineering blueprints and so forth. It's got the convenience of removing textual content as well as lines.
Several portable personal computers make use of touch screens which permit someone to enter any data and even to enable selections in the monitor utilizing a stylus pen or a digital pen. PDA's utilize pen input devices along with tablet Computers quite often use a digital pen. These laptop or computer operates one-of-a-kind platforms also known as optical character recognition. Such a program converts written characters along with symbols to a mode which the computer systems may use and also process all of them.
The actual cursor is surely an input product. It's also used to trace sketches and also drawings with a graphic tablet or perhaps digitizer. This appears like some sort of computer mouse, with the exception of it's got a window using crosshairs, therefore the end user is able to see through to the actual digitizer. Cursor is generally known as Puck.

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2. A game controller is a device used with games or entertainment systems used to control a playable character or object, or otherwise provide input in a computer game. A controller is typically connected to a game console or computer by means of a wire, cord or nowadays, by means of wireless connection. Controllers which have been classified as game controllers are keyboards, mice, game pads, joysticks, etc. Special purpose devices, such as steering wheels for driving games and light guns for shooting games, are also game controllers. Devices such as mice and keyboards can be emulated with a game pad through the use of programs such as 'JoyToKey'. The main function of a game controller is to govern the movement/actions of a playable body/object or otherwise influence the events in a video or computer game. The type of controller used in a game depends on the genre of the game being played (i.e. Steering Wheel controllers for driving games, yoke like for flying, etc).

3. Image resolution describes the detail an image holds. The term applies to raster digital images, film images, and other types of images. Higher resolution means more image detail.

Image resolution can be measured in various ways. Basically, resolution quantifies how close lines can be to each other and still be visibly resolved. Resolution units can be tied to physical sizes (e.g. lines per mm, lines per inch), to the overall size of a picture (lines per picture height, also known simply as lines, or TV lines), or to angular subtenant. Line pairs are often used instead of lines; a line pair comprises a dark line and an adjacent light line. A Line (or TV line, TVL) is either a dark line or a light line. A resolution of 10 lines per millimeter means 5 dark lines alternating with 5 light lines, or 5 line pairs per millimeter (5 LP/mm). Photographic lens and film resolution are most often quoted in line pairs per millimeter.

4. Speech recognition (also known as automatic speech recognition or computer speech recognition) converts spoken words to text. The term "voice recognition" is sometimes used to refer to recognition systems that must be trained to a particular speaker—as is the case for most desktop recognition software. Recognizing the speaker can simplify the task of translating speech.

A webcam is a video camera which feeds its images in real time to a computer or computer network, often via USB, ethernet or Wi-Fi.A videoconference or video conference (also known as a videoteleconference) is a set of interactive telecommunication technologies which allow two or more locations to interact via two-way video and audio transmissions simultaneously. It has also been called 'visual collaboration' and is a type of groupware

5. Discuss how various scanners and reading devices work: optical scanners,
optical readers, bar code readers, RFID readers, magnetic stripe card

An optical reader is a device found within most computer scanners that captures visual information and translates the image into digital information the computer is capable of understanding and displaying.

An optical scanner is any scanning technology that converts a physical image, text, or object into a digitized form that can be stored as a 2D image file on a computer. 3D scanners also exist, but they are not widespread and are sometimes based on different technologies. Optical scanners have been around for decades and their price has dropped accordingly. You can buy low-level used optical scanners on eBay for as little as 20 US dollars (USD) and a new scanner on newegg.com for around 50 USD. Better optical scanners sell for hundreds of dollars.

A barcode reader (or barcode scanner) is an electronic device for reading printed barcodes. Like a flatbed scanner, it consists of a light source, a lens and a light sensor translating optical impulses into electrical ones. Additionally, nearly all barcode readers contain decoder circuitry analyzing the barcode's image data provided by the sensor and sending the barcode's content to the scanner's output port.

An RFID reader is a device that is used to interrogate an RFID tag. The reader has an antenna that emits radio waves; the tag responds by sending back its data. A magnetic stripe card is a type of card capable of storing data by modifying the magnetism of tiny iron-based magnetic particles on a band of magnetic material on the card. The magnetic stripe, sometimes called swipe card or magstripe, is read by physical contact and swiping past a magnetic reading head

6. Summarize the various biometric devices: fingerprint reader, face
recognition system, hand geometry system, voice verification system,
signature verification system, and iris recognition system

Fingerprint recognition or fingerprint authentication refers to the automated method of verifying a match between two human fingerprints. Fingerprints are one of many forms of biometrics used to identify individuals and verify their identity. This article touches on two major classes of algorithms (minutia and pattern) and four sensor designs (optical, ultrasonic, passive capacitance, and active capacitance).

A facial recognition system is a computer application for automatically identifying or verifying a person from a digital image or a video frame from a video source. One of the ways to do this is by comparing selected facial features from the image and a facial database.

It is typically used in security systems and can be compared to other biometrics such as fingerprint or eye iris recognition systems

 Authenticates person’s identity by verifying personal characteristic 

Signature Verification System (SVS) provides an organisation with the ability to deliver a signature or customer image to an operator, enabling identification of the customer

§Fingerprint scanner captures curves and indentations of fingerprint

§

recognition is the computing task of validating a user's claimed identity using characteristics extracted from their voices recognition is the computing task of validating a user's claimed identity using characteristics extracted from their voices.

Iris recognition is a method of biometric authentication that uses pattern-recognition techniques based on high-resolution images of the irides of an individual's eyes.

Hand geometry system measures shape and size of person’s hand

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