Unit-I

Interacting with the Computer or Human Computer Interaction (HCI):

Humans interact with computers through a user interface. This includes software, such as what is
displayed on the computer monitor, and hardware, such as the mouse, keyboard and other
peripheral devices. As a result, the study of HCI focuses on user satisfaction. Attention to human
machine interaction is important, because a poor interface can make it hard for users to benefit
from even the simplest systems. In a corporate or factory setting, a poor user interface could have
more severe consequences.

Usability and user experience goal awareness is essential to all HCI design, as follows:

 Usability: Central to interaction design and operations through specific computer system
criteria, including efficiency, safety, utility and learning/retention.
 User Experience: Focuses on creating systems that are satisfying, enjoyable, entertaining,
helpful, motivating, aesthetically pleasing, creativity supportive, rewarding, fun and
emotionally fulfilling.

Definition of Computer:

Computer is an electronic device for storing and processing data, typically in binary form,
according to instructions given to it in a variable program.

Computer Organization:

Computer Organization refers to the level of abstraction above the digital logic level,
but below the operating system level. At this level, the major components are functional
units or subsystems that correspond to specific pieces of hardware built from the lower
level building blocks described in the previous module.
 A closely related term, computer architecture, emphasizes the engineering decisions
and tradeoffs that must be made in order to produce a "good" design. The computer
architect answers questions like...

o How many registers should there be?

o What machine instructions should there be?
o How should the cache be organized?
o What hardware support should there be for virtual memory?

A BRIEF COMPUTER HISTORY

 The computer as we know it today had its beginning with a 19th century English
mathematics professor name Charles Babbage.
He designed the Analytical Engine and it was this design that the basic framework of the
computers of today are based on.
 Generally speaking, computers can be classified into three generations. Each generation
lasted for a certain period of
time, and each gave us either a new and improved computer or an improvement to the
existing computer.
 First generation: 1937 – 1946 - In 1937 the first electronic digital computer was built by
Dr. John V. Atanasoff and Clifford Berry. It was called the Atanasoff-Berry Computer
(ABC). In 1943 an electronic computer name the Colossus was built for the military.
Other developments continued until in 1946 the first general– purpose digital computer,
the Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer (ENIAC) was built. It is said that this
computer weighed 30 tons, and had 18,000 vacuum tubes which was used for processing.
When this computer was turned on for the first time lights dim in sections of
Philadelphia. Computers of this generation could only perform single task, and they had
no operating system.
 Second generation: 1947 – 1962 - This generation of computers used transistors instead
of vacuum tubes which were more reliable. In 1951 the first computer for commercial use
was introduced to the public; the Universal Automatic Computer (UNIVAC 1). In 1953
the International Business Machine (IBM) 650 and 700 series computers made their mark
in the computer world. During this generation of computers over 100 computer
programming languages were developed, computers had memory and operating systems.
Storage media such as tape and disk were in use also were printers for output.
 Third generation: 1963 - present - The invention of integrated circuit brought us the third
generation of computers. With this invention computers became smaller, more powerful
more reliable and they are able to run many different programs at the same time. In1980
Microsoft Disk Operating System (MS-Dos) was born and in 1981 IBM introduced the
personal computer (PC) for home and office use. Three years later Apple gave us the
Macintosh computer with its icon driven interface and the 90s gave us Windows
operating system.
 As a result of the various improvements to the development of the computer we have
seen the computer being used in all areas of life. It is a very useful tool that will continue
to experience new development as time passes.
Basic Structure of Computer:

All types of computers follow a same basic logical structure and perform the following five basic
operations for converting raw input data into information useful to their users.

Following diagram shows the basic structure of Computer:

Input Unit

This unit contains devices with the help of which we enter data into computer. This unit makes
link between user and computer. The input devices translate the information into the form
understandable by computer.

CPU (Central Processing Unit)

CPU is considered as the brain of the computer. CPU performs all types of data processing
operations. It stores data, intermediate results and instructions (program). It controls the
operation of all parts of computer.

CPU itself has following three components

 ALU (Arithmetic Logic Unit): Arithmetic logic unit performs all arithmetic operations
such as addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. It also uses logic operation for
comparison.

 Memory Unit: Memory unit is an essential component of a digital computer. It is where

all data intermediate and find results are stored. The data read from the main storage or
an input unit is transferred to the computer's memory where they are available for
processing. This memory unit is used to hold the instructions to be executed and data to
be processes.
  Control Unit: The control unit of a CPU controls the entire operation of the computer. It
also controls all devices such as memory, input/output devices connected to the CPU. CU
fetches instructions from memory, decodes the instruction, interprets the instruction to
know what the task are to be performed and sends suitable control signals to the other
components to perform for the necessary steps to execute the instruction.

Output Unit

Output unit consists of devices with the help of which we get the information from computer.
This unit is a link between computer and users. Output devices translate the computer’s output
into the form understandable by users.