WHAT IS A COMPUTER?

A computer is a digital electronic machine that can be programmed to carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations automatically. Modern computers can perform generic sets of operations known as programs. These programs enable computers to perform a wide range of tasks

Types of Computer

Depending upon the internal structure and subsequent features and applicability, computer system is categorized as follows −

Mainframe Computer

It is high capacity and costly computer. It is largely used by big organizations where many people can use it simultaneously.

Super Computer

This category of computer is the fastest and also very expensive. A typical supercomputer can solve up to ten trillion individual calculations per second.

Workstation Computer

The computer of this category is a high-end and expensive one. It is exclusively made for complex work purpose.

Personal Computer (PC)

It is a low capacity computer developed for single users.

Apple Macintosh (Mac)

It is a sort of personal computer manufactured by Apple company.

Laptop computer (notebook)

It is a handy computer that can be easily carried anywhere.

Tablet and Smartphone

Modern technology has advanced further. It has helped develop computers that are pocket-friendly. Tablets and smartphones are the best examples of such computer.

The characteristics of the computer system are as follows −

Speed

A computer works with much higher speed and accuracy compared to humans while performing mathematical calculations. Computers can process millions (1,000,000) of instructions per second. The time taken by computers for their operations is microseconds and nanoseconds.

Accuracy

Computers perform calculations with 100% accuracy. Errors may occur due to data inconsistency or inaccuracy.

Diligence

A computer can perform millions of tasks or calculations with the same consistency and accuracy. It doesn’t feel any fatigue or lack of concentration. Its memory also makes it superior to that of human beings.

Versatility

Versatility refers to the capability of a computer to perform different kinds of works with same accuracy and efficiency.

Reliability

A computer is reliable as it gives consistent result for similar set of data i.e., if we give same set of input any number of times, we will get the same result.

Automation

Computer performs all the tasks automatically i.e. it performs tasks without manual intervention.

Memory

A computer has built-in memory called primary memory where it stores data. Secondary storage are removable devices such as CDs, pen drives, etc., which are also used to store data.

MOST COMMON COMPUTER ABBREVIATIONS

Abbreviation	Full-name
A/D	Analog-to-Digital
ABC	Atanasoff Berry Computer
ACM	Association for Computing Machinery
AI	Artificial Intelligence
ALGOL	Algorithic Language
ALU	Arithmetic Logic Unit
AMD	Advanced Micro Devices
ARPANET	Advanced Research Project Agency Network
ASCII	American Standard Code for Information Interchange
BASIC	Beginners All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code
BCD	Binary Coded Decimal
BIOS	Basic Inpute Output System
BIPS	Billions of Instructions Per Second
BPI	Bytes Per Inch
CAD	Computer Aided Design
CAE	Computer Aided Engineering
CAN	Campus Area Network
CASE	Computer Aided Software Engineering
CD	Compact Disk
CDC	Control Data Corporation
CD-R	CD-Recordable
CD-ROM	Compact Disk Read Only Memory
CD-RW	CD Read/Write
CL	Command Language
CLI	Command Line Interface
COBOL	Common Business Oriented
CODASYL	Conference On Data Systems
CPU	Central Processing Unit
CRT	Cathode Ray Tube
D/A	Digital-to-Analog
DAT	Digital Audio Tape
DBMS	Data Base Management System
DBS	Demand Based Switching
DDL	Data Definition Language
DDS	Digital Data Storage
DEC	Digital Equipment Corporation
DMA	Direct Memory Access
DNA	Digital Network Architecture
DPI	Dots Per Inch
DRAM	Dynamic RAM
DSN	Distributed Systems Network
DTS	Digital Theater System
DVD	Digital Video/Versatile Disk
EBCDIC	Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code
EDSAC	Electronic Delay Storage Automatic Calculator
EDVAC	Electronic Discrete Variable Automatic Calculator
EFM	Eight-to-Fourteen Modulation
ENIAC	Electronic Numerical Integrator And Calculator
EPG	Electronic Programming Guide
EPIC	Explicitly Parallel Instruction Computing
EPROM	Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory
FAT	File Allocation Table
FDM	Frequency Division Multiplexing
FEP	Front End Processor
FLOPS	Floating Point Operations Per Second
FM	Frequency Modulation
FMS	File Management System
FORTRAN	FORmula TRANslation
FSK	Frequency Shift Keying
FTP	File Transfer Protocol
GB	Giga Bytes
GFLOPS	Giga FLOPS
GHz	Giga Hertz
GNU	Gnu Not Unix
GPRS	General Packet Radio Service
GSM	Global System for Mobile communication
GUI	Graphical User Interface
HP	Hewlett Packard
HSS	Hierarchical Storage System
HTML	HyperText Markup Language
HTTP	HyperText Transport Protocol
IBM	International Business Machine
IC	Integrated Circuit
IDN	Integrated Digital Networks
IP	Internet Protocol
IrDA	Infrared Data Association
ISDN	Integrated Services Digital Network
ISP	Internet Service Provider
JPEG	Joint Photographic Experts Group
JRE	Java Runtime Engine
JSP	Java Server Pages
KB	Kilo Bytes
KHz	Kilo Hertz
LAN	Local Area Network
LCD	Liquid Crystal Display
LED	Light Emitting Diode
LPM	Line Per Minute
LSI	Large Scael Integration
MAN	Metropolitan Area Network
MAR	Memory Address Register
MB	Mega Bytes
MBR	Memory Buffer Register
MHz	Mega Hertz
MIDI	Musical Instrument Digital Interface
MIPS	Millions of Instructions Per Second
MNP	Microcom Network Protocol
MPEG	Moving Pictures Experts Group
MS-DOS	MicroSoft Disk Operating System
MVT	Multiprogramming with Variable Tasks
NIC	Network Interface Card
NICNET	National Informatics Center NETwork
NOS	Network Operating System
OCR	Optical Character Recognition
OMR	Optical Mark Reader
OS	Operating System
OSI	Open System Interconnection
OSS	Open Source Software
PAN	Personal Area Network
PC	Personal Computer
PDF	Portable Document Format
PDL	Program Design Language
PDP	Program Data Processor
PIP	Peripheral Interchange Program
PROM	Programmable Read-Only Memory
QoS	Quality of Service
RAM	Random Access Memory
ROM	Read Only Memory
SDLC	Software Development Life Cycle
SEQUEL	Structured English QUEry Language
SGML	Syntax for Generalized Markup Language
SIMM	Single In-line Memory Module
SNA	Systems Network Architecture
SNOBOL	StriNg Oriented and symBOlic Language
SQL	Structured Query Language
SRAM	Static RAM
SSI	Small Scale Integration
TB	Tera Bytes
TCP	Transport Control Protocol
TDM	Time Division Multiplexing
UDP	User Datagram Protocol
ULSI	Ultra Large Scale Integration
UPC	Universal Product Code
URL	Uniform Resource Locator
USB	Universal Serial Bus
UTF	Unicode Transformation Format
VAN	Value Added Network
VCR	Video Cassette Recorder
VDT	Video Display Terminal
VGA	Video Graphics Array
VOD	Video-On-Demand
VoIP	Voice over Internet Protocol
VSAT	Very Small Aperture Terminal
WAN	Wide Area Network
WAP	Wireless Application Protocol
WiMAX	Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access
WLAN	Wireless Local Area Network
WLL	Wireless Local Loop
WORM	Write Once Read Many
WWW	World Wide Web
XHTML	eXtensible HyperText Markup Language
XML	eXtensible Markup Language
X.400	Electronic Mail Protocol
X.500	Directory Server Protocol

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