Fundamental of a Computer System

Fundamental of a Computer System

A computer system is a collection of hardware and software components designed to provide an effective tool for computation. Computer system are used in every walk of life to assist us in the various tasks we perform. The wide availability of the internet has enhance the use of computer for information sharing and communication. Computer system allows us to store, process, display and communicate information. In any modern computer system even a simple one, in general needs several different programs in order to accomplish its various functions. 

The Characteristics of Computers

Much of the world runs on computers and computers profoundly changed human life mostly for better. What is the characteristics for computer:

• Speed

A computer is a very fast device. It can carry out instructions at a very high speed obediently, uncritically and without exhibiting any emotions. It can perform in a few seconds the amount of work that a human being can do in an entire year – if he work day and night and is nothing else.

Some calculation that would have taken hours and days to complete otherwise, can be completed in a few seconds using the computer. The speed of computer is calculated in MHz, that is one million instructions per second.

• Accuracy 

Accuracy of a computer is consistently high and the degree of accuracy of a particular computer depends on the instructions and the type of processor. But for a particular computer, each and every calculation is performed. For example, the computer accurately give the result of division of any number up to 10 decimal points.

• Versatility 

Versatility is one of the most wonderful things about computer. Multi-processing features of computer makes it quiet versatile in nature. One moment, it is preparing the results of particular examination, the next moment it is busy preparing electricity bills, and in between it may be helping an office secretary to trace an important letter in seconds.

It can perform different types of tasks with same ease. All that is required to change its talent is to slip in a new program into it. Briefly, a computer is capable of performing almost any task provided that the task can be reduced to a series of logical steps.

• Reliability 

Computer provide very high speed accompanied by an equality high level for reliability. Thus computers never make mistakes of their own accord.

• Power of Remembering

A computer can store and recall any amount of information because of its secondary storage capability. Every piece of information can be retain as long as desired by the user and it can be recalled information almost instantaneously. Even after several years, the information recalled will be as accurate as on the day when it was fed to the computer.

• No I.Q 

A computer is a magical device. It can only perform tasks that a human being can. The difference is that it performs these tasks with unthinkable speed and accuracy.

It posses no intelligence of its own. Its I.Q is zero at least till today. It can only perform what is programmed to do. Hence, only the user can determine what tasks a computer will perform. Computers have no sense of meaning, cannot perceive and are only able to make simple robotic decision about the data they receive.

• Common Data Used

One item can be involved in several different procedures or accessed, update and inspected by a number of different users. This can hinder the work of those who need access to data. As the time is changing, more and more facilities are being added to the computers they can perform but in practical life many tasks are limited to these basic operations.

• Diligence 

The computer is a machine, does not suffer from the human traits of tiredness. Nor does it loses concentration even after working continuously for a long time.

This characteristics is especially useful for those jobs where same tasks is done again and again. It can perform long and complex calculations with same speed and accuracy from the start till the end.

• Storage

The computers have a lot of a storage devices which can store a tremendous amount of data. Data storage is essential function of the computer. Second storage devices like floppy disk can store a large amount of data permanently.