Chapter 1
Computer System Overview
Computer’s are a combination of
1. Hardware- The physical electronic components of a computer are called hardware. E.g - Keyboard, CPU, Monitor, etc.
2. Software- These are the recorded instructions and programs that govern the working of a computer.
Computer Components
1. Input Unit - It is responsible for taking input for the computer.
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2. Output Unit - It is responsible for giving out results for the inputs entered.
3. Central Processing Unit - It is responsible for processing the data and instructions. It comprises of
a. Arithmetic and Logical Unit (ALU)- It is responsible for carrying out the arithmetic instructions and making logical
decisions.
b. Control Unit - It is responsible for controlling and supervising the processing.
4. Primary Memory - It is the internal Volatile memory where data and instructions are stored during processing.
5. Secondary Storage Unit - It refers to the external storage devices which provide permanent memory to the computer system.
The components of a computer system makes the physical structure of a computer whereas the logical structure of a computer is
defined as Computer Organisation.
COMPUTER ORGANISATION
- It refers to the logical structure of a computer.
- Computer’s follow the IPO system i.e., INPUT-PROCESSING-OUTPUT
The functional component of a computer are:
1. INPUT UNIT - It is formed by the input devices attached to the computer. The input unit is responsible for taking input and
converting it into computer understandable form (binary code).
- A computer operates on electricity, so it can only understand the language of electricity i.e., either ON or OFF or high
voltage or low voltage.
- 1 for ON and 0 for OFF
- All the inputs consist of data as well as instruction.
- Some common input devices are:
a. Keyboard
b. Mouse
c. Microphone
2. OUTPUT UNIT - It converts the output in binary form to human readable form.
- Some common output devices are:
a. Monitors
b. Printers
c. Speakers
3. The CPU (Central Processing Unit) - It is the main control center and processing unit. It is also called the brain of the computer
as it guides, directs, controls and governs the performance of a computer.
- The CPU has some sub components that help in carrying out the processing of a task. These are:
a. Arithmetic Logic Unit (ALU) - The ALU performs all the four arithmetics (+,-,*,/) and some logical operations
- When two numbers are added, these numbers are sent from the memory to the ALU and back to the memory.
The result of a logical unit is either TRUE or FALSE.
b. Control Unit (CU) - The CU controls and guides the interpretation, flow and manipulation of all data and information.
Another important function of CU is the program execution i.e., carrying out all the instructions stored in the program.
After getting the instructions from memory in CU, the instruction is decoded and interpreted.
The control unit even controls the flow and of the data from input devices to memory and from memory to output
devices.
c. Registers - Registers or processor registers are small units of data holding places. The CPU uses registers to temporarily
hold some important processing information during the time of processing.
4. The Memory (Main Memory /Primary memory) - The memory of a computer is more like a predefined working place, where it temporarily keeps
information and data to facilitate its performance.
- Each memory location has a unique address . When the task is performed it clears the data.
- A bit is an elementary unit of the memory. Eight bits form I byte. 4 bits form nibble.
- Since a computer's main memory is temporary, secondary space is required to store data and information permanently for later use. The secondary
storage devices are known as storage devices.
PARTS OF MAIN MEMORY/PRIMARY MEMORY
1. RAM - RAM stands for random access memory, the memory can be accessed for information transfer from any desired random location.
- The main drawback of RAM memory is that it is a volatile memory.
- The RAM chips in a computer can be of two basic types :
a. Dynamic RAM (DRAM) - These are made out of transistors and capacitors. The amount of time taken to produce data required from
memory, from the start of data till the availability of data is called memory access time.
- DRAM chips nowadays have an access time ranging from below 20 to 70 nanoseconds.
b. Static Ram - These are made of flip-flops (a binary cell capable of storing one bit of information) and offer faster access time than
DRAMs.
2. ROM - It stands for READ ONLY MEMORY
