Computer Essentials Essay

CS 1010, Computer Essentials 1 Cou rse Learning Outcomes for Unit I Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to: 1. Explain the relationship between digital basics and computer hardware. 1.1 Discuss the significance of digitization and its impact on the digital revolution in reference to data representation, p rocessing, and security. 1.2 Describe the difference between system software, an operating system, application software, and a computer program. 1.3 Describe personal computer basics, microprocessors and memory, storage devices, input and output devices, and hardware security. Reading Assignment Chapter 1: Computer and Digital Basics Chapter 2: Computer Hardware Unit Lesson Today we live in a highly digitized society, which affects our economy, privacy, freedom and democracy, and intellectual property. The digital revolution consists of four phases , which are identified as data processing, personal computing, network computing, and cloud computing. Technology has changed as the revolution has progressed. As users, we expect information to be available 24/7 , and most of the time it is just a click awa y. Parsons and Ajo (2014) stated that “the digital revolution is an ongoing process of social, political, and economic change brought about by digital technology, such as computers and the Internet” (p. 4). It has been said that the digital revolution actu ally started during World War II. The Internet was developed as a military project that society relies heavily on today. Without the Internet, where would we be today? Commercial concerns , academic entities, and research facilities rely heavily on the Inte rnet. e-Commerce is a product of the digital revolution ; some of the popular websites associated with e -commerce are Amazon and eBay. What a great way to shop by using e -commerce in the comfort of one’s own home. You do not have to go out and fight the Ch ristmas crowds on Black Friday ; you can shop Black Monday instead online. Computerized m edical health records are another product of the digital revolution. Many doctors use electronic records and patients can get accounts to view their own information. S ocial media is another facet of the digital revolution ( e.g., Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Myspace). Cell phones are a product of this revolution , also. Cell phones were originally huge devices , unlike how they look today. Today cell phones have the ca pability of little computers. The data processing phase of the digital revolution consisted of big corporate and government computers, custom applications, Citizens Band Radio (CB) radios, Advanced Research Projects Agency Network (ARPANET), and arcade ga mes. Phase two of the revolution consisted of personal computers , including small standalone computers powered by local software. Other characteristics of personal computing include desktop computers, standalone applications, dial -up Internet access, Ame rica Online (AOL) and CompuServe, and two -dimensional (2 -D) action games. UNIT I STUDY GUIDE Computer Basics CS 1010, Computer Essentials 2 UNIT x STUDY GUIDE Title Phase three consisted of network computing , which is nothing more than a group of computers networked together sharing data and resources. Additional characteristics of network comp uting include d laptop computers, monolithic software suites, cable and satellite Internet access, the Web and virtual worlds, and three -dimensional (3 -D) multiplayer. Phase three is when the Internet became available for public use. Phase four is what is known as cloud computing . This last phase includes smartphones and tablets, handheld applications and cloud -based applications, fourth generation (4G) and Wi -Fi (local area wireless technology) Internet access, social media, and touchscreen micr ogames. Digital devices consist of computer basics, computer types and uses, and lastly , microcontrollers. Digital data is represented by numbers, texts, images and sound, quantifying bits and bytes, and circuits and chips. Digital processing is made poss ible by programs and instruction sets and processor logic (Parsons & Ajo, 2014). Password security plays a major role in our digital society. Authentication protocols should be utilized for a safe computing environment and secure passwords are a key. If a hacker cannot guess a password, there are other means such as phishing and using keylogger software that can be used . Passwords should be unique and not identifiable with a user. A common rule of thumb when creating passwords is not to use anything that is familiar to yourself like birthdates, addresses, phone numbers, and things of that nature. Using the combination of letter, numbers, and special characters is good rule of thumb for the creation of passwords. The length of the password is another consid eration. The longer the password, the more secure it is . Password theft is a serious problem and leads to identity theft. Consider the report of Russian hackers stealing 1.2 billion passwords in August 2014. At the time it was reported, Hold Security state d that this was considered the largest incident of password theft in digital history (Money.CNN, 2014). Personal computers and desktop computers consist of many parts. Some of the components may include a printer, system unit, mouse, keyboard, sound syste m, display system, network and Internet access, and storage. There are many options to consider before purchasing a computer of any type. Some of the considerations include cost, type of computer, memory, processing speed , and the list goes on. Two resou rces that may be valuable , before purchasing a computer , are PCWorld and MacWorld magazines, just to name a few. Finally, it is important to protect your computer once you have bought it. Anti -theft devices can be used to lock your computer whether it is a laptop or desktop device. Protecting your computer from power surges is another consideration , since power surges can render a device useless. A power strip or an uninterruptible power source (UPS) should be used to protect your device from power surges. Many people have heard of , or experienced the “blue screen of death” on their computer when their digital display shows a blue screen with white writing indicating that the operating system cannot recover from an error. The blue screen of death renders a computer system non -functional. Troubleshooting and diagnostic tools can help to find what the problem is to. Repair professionals should be used as your last resort. This course should give you the skills you need to do some trouble -shooting yourself. You should perform regular maintenance on your computer , which includes: scanning your computer for viruses at least weekly, keeping your spyware definitions updated, and running utilities that ensure peak performance for your hard drive. References O’T oole, J., & Pagliera, J. (2014, Aug .). Russian criminals steal 1.2 billion passwords. Money.CNN . Retrieved from http://www.money.cnn.com/2014/08/05/technology/se curity/russian -hackers -theft/ Parsons, J. , & Oja, D. (2014). New perspectives on computer concepts 2014, comprehensive (17th ed.). Boston, MA: Cengage. CS 1010, Computer Essentials 3 UNIT x STUDY GUIDE Title Suggested Reading Review Orientation pages (0 -2 through 0 -43) in your textbook. This orientation is useful for understanding the basic functions of your computer. Learning Activities (Non -Graded) Microsoft offers several featured tutorials for the Office suite including 2007/2010/2013 Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, Access, and Word. Complete at least one tutorial for any of the Microsoft Office products located at http://office.microsoft.com/en - us/training/ . Micros oft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel are used extensively in this course and in many professions. Completing the tutorials for these products may be beneficial. Non -graded Learning Activities are provided to aid students in their course of study. You do not ha ve to submit them. If you have questions, contact your instructor for further guidance and information.