EE-058 FCE-Output

Devices |1

FCE-Assignment#01

Output Devices

Contents
Contents.................................................................................................................................................1

Before learning Output Devices we need to understand these terms.

Peripherals

Computer Hardware comprises of Peripherals which includes Devices such as input,

output and storage devices.

A device or unit that operates separately from the CPU but is connected to it is known
as Peripheral. A peripheral is a device attached to a host computer but not part of it, and is
more or less dependent on the host. Peripheral devices are external devices that connect to the
computer through ports, such as USB, Ethernet, and parallel ports. It expands the host's
capabilities, but does not form part of the core computer architecture.

Common peripherals such as:

• Storage
• Input device
• Output device
• Display device
• Graphical output device
• Computer display

Devices
 EE-058 FCE-Output
Devices |2

Any machine or component that attaches to a computer is generally known as a

Device. Examples of devices include disk drives, printers, mice, and modems. These
particular devices fall into the category of peripheral devices because they are separate from
the main computer.

Output

The information produced by a program or process from a specific input is called

Output. Output is the information produced by the computer program and perceived by
the user.

The kinds of output the program produces, and the kinds of input the program accepts,
define the user interface of the program.

Generally, feedback and output are often used interchangeably.

• OUTPUT tends to refer specifically to explicit output, something that is
INTENTIONALLY provided for the user.
• FEEDBACK includes BYPRODUCTS of operation that happen to contain
information. INPUT

PROCESS

OUTPUT

Output Devices

Another classification of a peripheral is an output device. Output devices translate

information stored in the computer and present it in a way that humans can understand it. It
may be in the form of text, images, sounds, frequency or other media to a display screen,
printer, loudspeaker, or storage device.

Examples of output devices are

 EE-058 FCE-Output
Devices |3

• Monitor
• Printer
• Sound Card
• Speakers
• Video Card
• Buzzers

Visual Display Unit (VDU)

Virtually all computers use some type of screen as their primary output device. There
are two categories of screen: cathode ray tube and LCD.

CRT screens:

The cathode ray tube (CRT) type screen is usually called a monitor and makes use of
the same technology as a television screen. A beam of electronics is fired from an electronic
gun at the back of the tube. This strikes the front of the tube which is covered in a
phosphorescent material which glows when struck by electrons. Between the electron gun
and the screen the beam is modulated by a signal to produce the image you see on the screen.

Solid state screens:

Solid state screens, also known as LCD or Liquid Crystal Displays, make use of tiny
transistors to emit light and create an image. Originally, LCD screens were confined to
laptops, but they are increasingly used with desktops. They are usually called flat screens
when used as separate units with desktops.
 EE-058 FCE-Output
Devices |4

Multimedia Projectors:

A projector is a device generally including a light source and an optical system

projecting and enlarging an image onto a screen. It is a modern analog of the slide
projector or overhead projector. Image and video projection systems are used to display a still
or video image. These projection systems have become increasingly popular, particularly
where they are appropriately sized for use on a table top and may be easily carried by a user.
Projectors are used for various applications, e.g. presentations with personal computers in
companies, movie viewing at home, and so on.

Projectors modulate light beams emitted from a light source in accordance with image
information and project it on an enlarged scale. The projector directs the display image to the
display screen from which the image is reflected for viewing. The projection display device
modulates a light beam emitted from a light source with an electro-optical device called a
light valve, and projects the modulated light beam onto a screen to display an image. The
projector as a display constructing a small screen image uses a cathode ray tube or a liquid
crystal display (LCD). As the light valve of such a projector, a liquid crystal device is mainly
used.

Video Cards

A video card, video adapter, graphics-accelerator card, display adapter or graphics

card is an expansion card whose function is to generate and output images to a display. Many
video cards offer added functions, such as accelerated rendering of 3D scenes and 2D
graphics. Other modern high performance video cards are used for more graphically
demanding purposes, such as PC games.
The CPU, working in conjunction with software applications, sends information about
the image to the graphics card. The graphics card decides how to use the pixels on the screen
to create the image. It then sends that information to the monitor through a cable.

Printing

Printers

Printers produce a hard copy of the output on paper. There are three main types of
printer: Dot matrix, Inkjet and Laser. The following table compares the three types.

Dot matrix Inkjet Laser

Initial cost Low Medium High
Cost per printed page Low High Medium
Speed Low Medium High
High volumes No No Yes
Noise level High Low Low
 EE-058 FCE-Output
Devices |5

Dot matrix Inkjet Laser

Print quality Low Medium High
Print graphics No Yes Yes
Print in color No Some Some
Print source Ink ribbon Ink Toner powder

Plotters

A plotter consists of a device that can move paper both backwards and forwards. On
the top of the device one or more pens are able to move horizontally across the paper. The
combined movement of the pens horizontally across the paper and the vertical movement of
the paper allow complex continuous diagrams to be drawn.

Some plotters allow different color pens to be used to create diagrams in multiple
colors. In other types of plotters, the paper lies on a flat bed. The mechanics of the plotter are
so designed that the pens can move both across and down the paper to create the diagram.
Plotters are usually used in conjunction with CAD (Computer Assisted Design) programs.
These are used in everything from the design of ships and machines to buildings.

Acoustic Output

Speakers

Speakers are used in the reproduction of sound by transforming electrical signals into
air pressure waves that are as close as possible to the originally recorded sound. A speaker is
used as an acoustic output means in an audio-video system or multi-media system.
The line between the computer and a home entertainment system is becoming blurred.
Computers are able to play music directly from a CD or play a film from a DVD. You can
even fit your computer with a radio or TV card to add these functions.

Headphones

Headphones are a pair of small loudspeakers, or less commonly a single speaker, with
a way of holding them close to a user's ears and a means of connecting them to a signal
source such as an audio amplifier, radio or CD player. They are also known as earphones, ear
buds, stereo phones and headsets.
 EE-058 FCE-Output
Devices |6

Sound Cards

A sound card (also known as an audio card) is a computer expansion card that
facilitates the input and output of audio signals to and from a computer under control of
computer programs. Typical uses of sound cards include providing the audio component for
multimedia applications such as music composition, editing video or audio, presentation,
education, and entertainment (games). Many computers have sound capabilities built in,
while others require additional expansion cards to provide for audio capability.

Let’s discuss about some special devices which can perform both INPUT and OUTPUT.

Input/Output Devices

Some devices that perform both input AND output operations are referred to as I/O
(input/output) devices and their operations are called I/O operations. Examples of common
input and output components are disk drives, modems and network cards. A touch screen
monitor on an ATM or a videogame controller that shakes when the player is hit can both be
considered an I/O device.

Disk Drives

In computer architecture, the combination of the CPU and main memory (i.e. memory
that the CPU can read and write to directly, with individual instructions) is considered the
brain of a computer, and from that point of view any transfer of information from or to that
combination, for example to or from a disk drive, is considered I/O.
A CD or DVD burner would also be an I/O device, since it can both read and write data to
discs.

Touch Screens

A touch screen is a special type of screen in which the screen not only displays output but
also responds to being touched.
• A typical example is their use in auto tellers at banks.
• Another example is to be found in information screens in shopping malls.
PDAs have touched sensitive screens. You would use a special stylus to touch icons on the
screen or to write. Character recognition software then converts your writing to input text for
the PDA.

Network Cards
Devices for communication between computers, such as modems and network cards,
typically serve for both input and output.
 EE-058 FCE-Output
Devices |7

A network interface card, network adapter, network interface controller (NIC),

or LAN adapter is a computer hardware component designed to allow computers to
communicate over a computer network.
Modem
A modem is a device (modulator/demodulator) used for data transmission from or to a
data communication equipment such as a laptop or a personal computer over communication
circuits. Digital subscriber line (DSL) is a technology that provides high-speed
communications using telephone lines. DSL modems provide the ability to transmit data at
higher rates across twisted pair telephone wiring.