Computer Practice N4
Lecturer: Mikhail Francis
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Topic 1: Computing concepts and
application skills
Module 1: ICT systems and basic PC skills
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Overview:
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
• Unit 1.1: Introduce the concepts of ICT’s, the digital world and
digital citizenship
• Unit 1.2: Explain what a personal computer is and how it is used
• Unit 1.3: Explain and operate an operating system
• Unit 1.4: Explore the file management operations of the operating
system
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1.1.1. Digital world
• A digital world is the availability
of computer technology that can
be used by people to
communicate with over the
internet in daily life.
• Computers are everywhere:
• cell phones, smart TV’s, cars
• Smart watches, cameras,
• Air conditioners, washing
machines, microwaves, etc
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Unit 1.1
Introduction to the concepts of
ICT’s, the digital world and
digital citizenship
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1.1.2. Digital citizen
• Is any person that uses
digital devices and connects
to the Internet for purposes
of work, study or even
personal use.
• Can you imagine life
without:
• WhatsApp,
• Facebook,
• YouTube,
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Digital citizen
• A digital citizen means
understanding the
risk with using
computers.
• You leave behind a
digital footprint of
your activities when
you are online.
• Criminals can now
use your personal
information if you do
not protect it.
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1.1.4. What is ICT?
• Information and communication technology (ICT) is the
combination of computing devices to share information and
network connections like the Internet.
• Information: messages, images, videos and documents.
• Technologies: computers, cell phone towers, satellites and the
internet
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1.1.5. Different types of ICT systems
• Information Systems
• Control Systems
• Communication
Systems
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1.1.6. Computer usage and applications as part of society
Personal uses
Organisational uses
• Social media apps: WhatsApp,
Facebook, etc
• YouTube for Video streaming.
• Browsing the internet.
• Online purchases.
• Business software that can store
and process information for the
business.
• Use ICT to mange business and
staff across multiple branches.
• E-commerce applications to sell
goods or services online.
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1.1.7. Portable and mobile devices
• A portable or mobile device is a
computing device that can be
moved around easily like:
• cell phones, laptops, tablets,
• Smart glasses, smart watch, smart
clothes, etc.
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Unit 1.2
Personal computers and how
they are used
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1.2.1. Hardware, software, memory and storage
Personal Computer
Is a general-purpose
computer where the
size, capabilities and
price make it feasible
for individual use.
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1.2.2. Types and forms of computers
• Servers
• Workstations
• Personal Computers (PC)
• Portable devices
• Embedded computers
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1.2.3. The information processing cycle
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1.2.4. Categories of hardware
• Computing hardware is broken into five main categories:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Input devices
Output devices
Communication devices
Processing devices
Storage devices
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1.2.5. Computer memory
• The computer’s memory is primary storage and there are two
important types of memory:
• Read Only Memory (ROM)
• Random Access Memory (RAM)
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1.2.6. Storage hardware
• Storage hardware is the
permanent place for storing
data.
• Internal storage:
• Hard disk drive (HDD)
and solid state drive
(SSD) .
• External storage:
• External hard drives, flash
memory sticks, etc.
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1.2.7. Purpose of Storage devices
• The main purpose of storage hardware is to store data.
• There are however, different reasons for choosing
between the different storage devices:
• Processing
• Portability
• Backup
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1.2.8. Storage vs Memory
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1.2.9. Characteristics of a hard disk drive
• It provides large storage capacity.
• It is reliable data storage.
• It can be noisy because it has
movable parts.
• It consumes a lot of power.
• These disks inside the HDD rotate
at speeds of 5400 to 15000
revolutions per minute (rpm)
• The faster the speed, the better
the performance of the computer.
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1.2.10 Advantages of solid-state drives
• They are faster than HDDs, between 25 to 100 times faster.
• They consume less power making them more energy efficient.
• They don’t have movable parts so they are more durable than HDDs,
and they are not noisy.
• Data cannot be lost because of magnetic interference.
• They are slim line and compact.
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1.2.11. Computer performance depends on:
• How fast the CPU can work and
• how much data it can store in its primary
memory.
• how fast data can be moved the storage
device to the computer’s memory.
• We will now take a look at how the
components that contributes to the
computers speed.
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1.2.12. System software and application software
• System Software
• Software that is intended for the computer.
• It controls and maintains the operations of a computer and its
devices.
• System Software is made up of two categories, the Operating
System and Software Tools.
• Application Software
• Application software is software that is intended for the user.
• Application software can be individual applications, like
Facebook, or they can belong to a Suite of applications, like
Microsoft 365 or Google-suite.
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1.2.13. Software for different categories of computer
Different types of software available to go with the different types of
computing devices:
•
Servers
•
PCs and Laptops
•
Android devices
•
Apple devices
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Unit 1.3
Starting up and shutting down
an operating system
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1.3.1. Typical functions of the OS
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1.3.2. How the OS interacts with software applications and
hardware
• The operating system is the interface
between the user and the computer.
• The operating system manages the
• computing resources such as hardware
and application software.
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1.3.3. Types of operating systems
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Unit 1.4
Exploring the file management
operations of the operating
system
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File organisation refers to the structure of a file and the way it is
stored on a storage device
The Window file system uses a hierarchical structure to organise the
file and folders.
The Windows File Structure:
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• The root folder is the first and main folder. It is usually the main
storage device
• A folder is a container in which files and subfolders are stored.
• A subfolder is simply a folder stored inside another folder.
• The files contain data such as filename, type, location, size, date
and modified.
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File Explorer
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Types of files
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