Computers Overview

The definition given for a computer at www.dictionary.com is:  A device that computes, especially a programmable electronic machine that performs high-speed mathematical or logical operations or that assembles, stores, correlates, or otherwise processes information.

 

In today’s culture you would be hard pressed to find someone who did not know what a computer was. It seems like computers run our society. These programmable devices have empowered our society to automate just about anything from building cars, to driving trains, to launching space ships, to firing missiles. These things are operations computers do on a large scale. What are some common tasks computers help or enable us to do today?

 

One of the most prevalent activities we use a computer for is emailing. Email stands for ‘electronic mail’. Computers, when linked to a phone line, cable line, or wireless hub are able to take digital information and send it all over the world. 

 

Another activity we use computers for is word processing. Computers make it possible to write words through a keypad onto a digital screen. The software in the computer makes it possible for us to edit and delete and add to our document. Twenty years ago this type of word processing was only available to rich people or members of the government! We have certainly come a long way.

 

One of the most influential inventions in western culture is the Internet. Our computers link to the Internet the same way it links to send and receive email. Once linked to the Internet computer users are able to move from homepage to homepage and view digital documents that are hosted by servers along the digital ocean of the Internet. 

 

In our culture there are two major types of computers: the desktop computer and the laptop computer.   A desktop computer is a computer comprised of a keyboard for typing, a monitor for viewing information, and a CPU (central processing unit) tower that is the main area where the information is processed. These types of computers are typically the largest computers and are capable of storing large amounts of information.

 

The desktop’s counterpart is the laptop computer. A laptop is also known as a notebook computer due to the way it folds together like a notebook. A laptop has all the same features of a desktop only in a much smaller form. The same amount of power is found in a computer that, when closed, is typically no larger than one inch thick and fifteen inches wide. People who are highly mobile and perform their jobs in transit generally use laptop computers. The compact nature of the laptop affords its users high performance while on the go.