Computer - Overview

Today’s world is an information-rich world and it has become a necessity for everyone to know about computers. A computer is an electronic data processing device, which accepts and stores data input, processes the data input, and generates the output in a required format.

The purpose of this tutorial is to introduce you to Computers and its fundamentals.

Functionalities of a Computer

If we look at it in a very broad sense, any digital computer carries out the following five functions −

Step 1 − Takes data as input.

Step 2 − Stores the data/instructions in its memory and uses them as required.

Step 3 − Processes the data and converts it into useful information.

Step 4 − Generates the output.

Step 5 − Controls all the above four steps.

Advantages of Computers

Following are certain advantages of computers.

High Speed

• Computer is a very fast device.
• It is capable of performing calculation of very large amount of data.
• The computer has units of speed in microsecond, nanosecond, and even the picosecond.
• It can perform millions of calculations in a few seconds as compared to man who will spend many months to perform the same task.

Accuracy

• In addition to being very fast, computers are very accurate.
• The calculations are 100% error free.
• Computers perform all jobs with 100% accuracy provided that the input is correct.

Storage Capability

• Memory is a very important characteristic of computers.
• A computer has much more storage capacity than human beings.
• It can store large amount of data.
• It can store any type of data such as images, videos, text, audio, etc.

Diligence

• Unlike human beings, a computer is free from monotony, tiredness, and lack of concentration.
• It can work continuously without any error and boredom.
• It can perform repeated tasks with the same speed and accuracy.

Versatility

• A computer is a very versatile machine.
• A computer is very flexible in performing the jobs to be done.
• This machine can be used to solve the problems related to various fields.
• At one instance, it may be solving a complex scientific problem and the very next moment it may be playing a card game.

Reliability

• A computer is a reliable machine.
• Modern electronic components have long lives.
• Computers are designed to make maintenance easy.

Automation

• Computer is an automatic machine.
• Automation is the ability to perform a given task automatically. Once the computer receives a program i.e., the program is stored in the computer memory, then the program and instruction can control the program execution without human interaction.

Reduction in Paper Work and Cost

• The use of computers for data processing in an organization leads to reduction in paper work and results in speeding up the process.
• As data in electronic files can be retrieved as and when required, the problem of maintenance of large number of paper files gets reduced.
• Though the initial investment for installing a computer is high, it substantially reduces the cost of each of its transaction.

Disadvantages of Computers

Following are certain disadvantages of computers.

No I.Q.

• A computer is a machine that has no intelligence to perform any task.
• Each instruction has to be given to the computer.
• A computer cannot take any decision on its own.

Dependency

• It functions as per the user’s instruction, thus it is fully dependent on humans.

Environment

• The operating environment of the computer should be dust free and suitable.

No Feeling

• Computers have no feelings or emotions.
• It cannot make judgment based on feeling, taste, experience, and knowledge unlike humans.

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