A computer system consists of hardware and software that work together to help solve problems.
A program is a series of instructions that the hardware executes one after another
Software consists of a program paired with the data the program uses. Software is the intangible counterpart to the physical hardware components.
CPU: A device that executes the individual commands of a program
I/O Devices: Things like mouse, keyboard, monitor, etc that allow a human being to interact with the program
Main Memory (RAM): A storage device that holds the software and data that is used by the CPU while it is being processed. The CPU reads program instructions from the main memory, executing them one at a time until the program ends
Secondary Memory (Drives): Devices that hold software and data in a relatively permanent manner.
Operating System: Core software of a computer. The operating system…
Application: Most software that is not an operating system. Applications provide a UI (typically a GUI in most modern operating systems) to interact with a program.
The interface is an important part of the software, because to the user, it is the program.
Two fundamental techniques are used to store and manage information: analogue and digital.
analogue: continuous, in direct proportion to source of information. Eg. alcohol thermometer, electronic signal used to represent vibrations of sound wave (voltage is proportional to original sound wave.)