What is computer .



Introduction : The term computer is derived from the term compute. To compute means to calculate. Initially computer was assigned to perform arithmetic calculation at a very fast speed.

A computer is an electronic device that operates under the control of instructions stored in its own memory. It accepts data as an input, processes it according to the predefined set of instructions and produce information for serves as output. It also stores the outputted information for future use. Various devices that helps in performing these tasks constitute hardware. These include keyboard, mouse, monitor, processor, RAM, hard disk etc. These device can be classified as input devices, output devices, processing devices and storage devices. The working/operation of all these devices is controlled by programmed instruction provided by the user. A collection of related instructions organised for a common purpose is referred to as a software or a program. Using software, you can perform a verity of activities such as search for information, type a document, balance a budget, make a presentation, play games, listen to music, watch movies and many more.

Computer perform their task with high speed and accuracy. They are can store huge amount of data. They are rarely commit mistakes and thus have high reliability. Computers comes in a variety of forms, from personal computers that everyone is already aware of to large supercomputers.

Computer have made a rapid process. Now almost every person is familiar with the word computer. It have changed the society today. People interact directly or indirectly with computers in one form or the other.

So, a computer is an electronic device that accepts the data as the input from its user, store it , processes it and generates the required output as per the processing instructions provided by the user with high speed and accuracy.



Characteristics of a computer : Computer is a electronic machine that performs the task as described by the instructions given by the user. It is one of the most popular computing devices available. This is primarily due to various characteristics it process. Some prominent characteristics are listed below.

1. Speed : In a computer, the data, instructions and information flow along the electronic circuits with very high speed. A computer can perform millions of instructions per second thus carrying out even the complex tasks in a fraction of seconds. The speed of the computers is measured in nanoseconds and picoseconds. The speed of a computer varies from computer to computer. In case of a super computer, the speed of executing the instructions in a computer is very fast. With the introduction of very fast processing units and other devices connected to computer, the speed of the computer is increasing day by day.

2. Accuracy : A computer is a device which always produce accurate results when valid data and instructions are provided to it. Not only does it simple instructions accurately but even the complex instructions are also performed with high degree of accuracy. Sometimes a computer may give us inaccurate result, but this not due to errors in computer , it is due to inaccurate data entry. For example, if you try to divide a number by 0, then it would give inaccurate results.

3. Large storage capacity :Computer have large storage capacity. This data that it can store can be in any format (text,picture,music,videos etc.). This data is stored in storage devices like RAM, hard disk etc. In RAM, the data is stored temporarily until there is a power supply or it does not get full. On other hand, in case of hard disk, data is stored permanently; it is not subject to change unless extensively asked to do so. The storage capacity is usually measured in units of bytes, kilobytes(KB), megabytes(MB) and so on.

4. Never gets tired : Unlike human beings, the computer can works continuously without getting tired. Without the lack of concentration, they help us in doing a number of jobs that require a great accuracy. Even if there are millions of instructions to be performed, it perform the first instruction with same speed and accuracy as the last instruction.

5. Versatility : A computer is a versatile machine. By the term versatile we mean to say that it can do a variety of tasks at the same time depending upon the instructions fed to it and their hardware characteristics. It can be used to write a letter to a friend using a word processor and at the same time listen to various songs through a media player.

6. No Intelligence : A computer has no intelligence of its own. It only performs the tasks that are given ti it as instructions with high speed and accuracy. For example, if you ask a computer to perform an instruction that is not predefined then it may not be able to do so. Thus, if a computer runs a desktop publishing, it becomes a desktop publisher and if it runs a word a word processing software it becomes a word processor.

Besides, having no intelligence it does not has any feelings. It is devoid of any emotions.

7. Automatic : A machine which works itself without any human participation is said to be an automatic machine. Computer are automatic machines, a job when started on a computer carries out until it gets finished without any human intervention. A set of instructions which which acts as a program code are given to a computer and it processes these instructions automatically. When the job is completed, the next one is executed automatically. The computers perform the instructions with high speed and accuracy because they are automatically performed without any human intervention.





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