How ICT Works
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How ICT Works FOCUS QUESTION >> 2 How does information and communication technology work? TOPICS Expectations • ANATOMY OF A COMPUTER • COMPUTER HARDWARE By the end of this chapter, students will • COMPUTER SOFTWARE • demonstrate an understanding of the terminology associated • COMPUTER COMMUNICATION with information and communication technology • identify types of devices and tools used in information and communication technology WORD WALL • define key terms associated with information and BIOS communication technology bits bus • use current information and communication technology terms bytes appropriately cache • demonstrate an understanding of the computer workstation CDs (compact discs) environment client/server network command-driven interface • explain the basic functions of the components of a computer conductor wires and its peripheral devices CPU (central processing unit) • explain the purpose of an operating system data decode • identify common user interface elements and describe their functions desktop • compare stand-alone and networked computer environments directory • create and maintain a portfolio by selecting samples of their document work, including business communications, that illustrate their drive bays DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) skills and competencies in information and communication DVDs (Digital Versatile/ technology Video Discs) • analyze ethical issues related to information and communication execute technology expansion cards expansion slots • identify the skills and competencies needed to work effectively floppy disks in an information and communication technology environment 30 BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY TODAY NEL WORD WALL (cont’d) Expectations (cont’d) folder • assess their personal competencies and skills in information and functions communication technology gamepads gigahertz (GHz) • demonstrate an understanding of legal, social, and ethical issues graphics card relating to information and communication technology graphic tablets • maintain a portfolio of exemplary work that illustrates their GUI (graphical user interface) skills in information and communication technology, including hard drive the ability to create effective business communications hardware hub icon information GET ON IT! input CHAPTER PROJECT interface LAN (local area network) CREATING SUMMARY BOOKLETS megahertz (MHz) memory During this chapter, you will learn a great deal of new information about menu bar ICT equipment and practices. For times when you need to take in a large menu-driven interface amount of new information, summarizing is a valuable skill to develop. microprocessor With this in mind, your chapter project will be to work with a team modem of two or three classmates to create four summary booklets. The booklets motherboard mouse that you create will correspond with the four major topics of this chapter: network • Anatomy of a Computer • Computer Software NIC (network interface card) • Computer Hardware • Computer Communication nodes open source You and your team will make summary notes as you work through operating-system software each topic. Then, at the end of the chapter, you will use these summary output notes and work together to create illustrated booklets that cover the peer-to-peer network major ideas for each topic. You can use paper, cardboard, magazine peripheral devices cutouts, printed images, markers, and so on, and, if possible, a word- plagiarism processing or desktop-publishing software application. Your booklets platforms should be suitable for students who know very little about information pointing devices and communication technologies (ICTs). power supply printer processing program RAM (random access memory) Anatomy of a Computer ROM (read-only memory) Over the past 60 years, computers have evolved from mammoth scanners machines occupying an entire room to the modern devices that can fit screensaver on our lap or in the palm of our hand. In this chapter, you will look server at what makes these marvels of technology work. As advanced as software today’s computers are, they are still only capable of completing tasks sound card speakers assigned to them by users. They work by carrying out four functions : stand-alone input, storage, processing, and output. In order for a computer to perform these functions, it must have hardware and software. NEL HOW ICT WORKS 31 WORD WALL (cont’d) Expectations (cont’d) folder • assess their personal competencies and skills in information and functions communication technology gamepads gigahertz (GHz) • demonstrate an understanding of legal, social, and ethical issues graphics card relating to information and communication technology graphic tablets • maintain a portfolio of exemplary work that illustrates their GUI (graphical user interface) skills in information and communication technology, including hard drive the ability to create effective business communications hardware hub icon information GET ON IT! input CHAPTER PROJECT interface LAN (local area network) CREATING SUMMARY BOOKLETS megahertz (MHz) memory During this chapter, you will learn a great deal of new information about menu bar ICT equipment and practices. For times when you need to take in a large menu-driven interface amount of new information, summarizing is a valuable skill to develop. microprocessor With this in mind, your chapter project will be to work with a team modem of two or three classmates to create four summary booklets. The booklets motherboard mouse that you create will correspond with the four major topics of this chapter: network • Anatomy of a Computer • Computer Software NIC (network interface card) • Computer Hardware • Computer Communication nodes open source You and your team will make summary notes as you work through operating-system software each topic. Then, at the end of the chapter, you will use these summary output notes and work together to create illustrated booklets that cover the peer-to-peer network major ideas for each topic. You can use paper, cardboard, magazine peripheral devices cutouts, printed images, markers, and so on, and, if possible, a word- plagiarism processing or desktop-publishing software application. Your booklets platforms should be suitable for students who know very little about information pointing devices and communication technologies (ICTs). power supply printer processing program RAM (random access memory) Anatomy of a Computer ROM (read-only memory) Over the past 60 years, computers have evolved from mammoth scanners machines occupying an entire room to the modern devices that can fit screensaver on our lap or in the palm of our hand. In this chapter, you will look server at what makes these marvels of technology work. As advanced as software today’s computers are, they are still only capable of completing tasks sound card speakers assigned to them by users. They work by carrying out four functions : stand-alone input, storage, processing, and output. In order for a computer to perform these functions, it must have hardware and software. NEL HOW ICT WORKS 31 WORD WALL (cont’d) Functions of Computers storage INPUT storage devices The computer collects data or instructions from you. You can provide storage space switch the computer with input by taskbar • keying using a keyboard topology pointing and clicking a mouse or touchpad touchpad • trackball • pointing a stylus USB (Universal Serial Bus) • touching a screen flash drives wallpaper • speaking into a microphone WAN (wide area network) webcams You may think that data and information are the same things, windows but there is an important difference. Data is raw, unprocessed numbers, characters, or symbols. Information is data that has been processed so that it can be understood and used in decision making. STORAGE The computer saves, or stores, data or instructions in its memory for use during processing. PROCESSING Input The computer interprets and processes the data you input. It adds, multiplies, divides, finds, or manipulates data (numbers, text, or symbols) to complete a task you have given it. By the end of the 1990s, many desktop or home computers had more processing power than the computer used to put the first person on the moon in 1969. The Intel Core 2 Duo processor, Storage released in July 2006, contains 291 million transistors. It exceeds speeds of 2 gigahertz (GHz) , is 40 percent more energy efficient, and demonstrates 40 percent better performance when compared to one of its predecessors, the Pentium D. OUTPUT Processing The computer displays or produces information from the data that it processed. The output might be something you see on the screen (such as an answer to a mathematical problem), something you hear (such as a ding when you have made an error), or something you command the printer to print. Output Figure 2.1 The four functions of computers 32 BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY TODAY NEL LITERACY TOOLBOX SUMMARIZING Help! How do I summarize? With some planning, it is writing in your own words. Using anyone else’s actually quite easy. You just have to make sure that you words is called plagiarism . It is unethical and keep track of several pieces of information as you go. illegal. It can get you into serious trouble. 1. Subheadings —These are the words that appear at There are many ways to summarize information. the beginning of a new section. They are bigger See Figure 2.2 and Figure 2.3 below. and bolder than the rest of the text, and they may As you work through this chapter, keep track of be a different colour. Subheadings tell you what main points in your notebook. This will help you do the section will be about. your summary notes. 2. Keywords or Phrases —These can usually be identified by the way that they are formatted. Keywords Ideas in My In this text, keywords and phrases appear in bold Subheadings or Phrases Own Words and italics. They appear this way because they are important terms for you to understand and remember. 3. Ideas in Your Own Words —This is where you will have to read, think about what you have read, and then record what you think the main ideas are in your own words. As you will discover later, in Figure 2.2 Some people find it helpful to create a Chapter 4, it is very important that you practise chart with each of the three headings above.