On computer and telecommunication devices, a port (noun) is generally a specific place
for being physically connected to some other device, usually with a socket and plug of
some kind. Typically, a personal computer is provided with one or more serial ports and
usually one parallel port.
Types of Ports:
Parallel
An interface on a computer that supports transmission of multiple bits at the same time;
almost exclusively used for connecting a printer. On IBM or compatible computers, the
parallel port uses a 25-pin connector.
Serial
It is a general-purpose personal computer communications port in which 1 bit of
information is transferred at a time. In the past, most digital cameras were connected to
a computer's serial port in order to transfer images to the computer. Recently, however,
the serial port is being replaced by the much faster USB port on digital cameras as well as computers.
SCSI
A port that's faster than the serial and parallel ports but slower and harder to configure
than the newer USB port. Also know as the Small Computer System Interface.
A high-speed connection that enables devices, such as hard-disk drives and network
adapters, to be attached to a computer.
USB
USB (Universal Serial Bus) is a plug-and-play hardware interface for peripherals such as
the keyboard, mouse, joystick, scanner, printer and modem. USB has a maximum
bandwidth of 12 Mbits/sec and up to 127 devices can be attached. With USB, a new
device can be added to your computer without having to add an adapter card. It typically is located at the back of the PC
Firewire
FireWire is simply a really fast port that lets you connect computer peripherals and
consumer electronics to your computer without the need to restart. It is a simple
common plug-in serial connector on the back of your computer.
It has the ability to chain devices together in a number of different ways without
terminators for example, simply join 2 computers with a FireWire cable for instant highspeed networking.
Input Devices
Mouse
A mouse is a small device that a computer user pushes across a desk surface in order to point to a place on a display screen and to select one or more actions to take from that position. The mouse first became a widely-used computer tool when Apple Computer made it a standard part of the Apple Macintosh. Today, the mouse is an integral part of the graphical user interface (GUI) of any personal computer. The mouse apparently got its name by being about the same size and color as a toy mouse.
Keyboard
On most computers, a keyboard is the primary text input device. A keyboard on a computer is almost identical to a keyboard on a typewriter. Computer keyboards will typically have extra keys, however. Some of these keys (common examples include Control, Alt, and Meta) are meant to be used in conjunction with other keys just like shift on a regular typewriter. Other keys (common examples include Insert, Delete, Home, End, Help, function keys, etc.) are meant to be used independently and often perform editing tasks.
Joystick
In computers, a joystick is a cursor control device used in computer games. The joystick, which got its name from the control stick used by a pilot to control the ailerons and elevators of an airplane, is a hand-held lever that pivots on one end and transmits its coordinates to a computer. It often has one or more push-buttons, called switches, whose position can also be read by the computer.
Digital Camera
A digital camera records and stores photographic images in digital form that can be fed to a computer as the impressions are recorded or stored in the camera for later loading into a computer or printer. Currently, Kodak, Canon, and several other companies make digital cameras.
Microphone
A device that converts sound waves into audio signals. These could be used for sound recording as well as voice chatting through internet.
Scanner
A scanner is a device that captures images from photographic prints, posters, magazine pages, and similar sources for computer editing and display. Scanners come in hand-held, feed-in, and flatbed types and for scanning black-and-white only, or color. Very high resolution scanners are used for scanning for high-resolution printing, but lower resolution scanners are adequate for capturing images for computer display. Scanners usually come with software, such as Adobe's Photoshop product, that lets you resize and otherwise modify a captured image
A mouse is a small device that a computer user pushes across a desk surface in order to point to a place on a display screen and to select one or more actions to take from that position. The mouse first became a widely-used computer tool when Apple Computer made it a standard part of the Apple Macintosh. Today, the mouse is an integral part of the graphical user interface (GUI) of any personal computer. The mouse apparently got its name by being about the same size and color as a toy mouse.
On most computers, a keyboard is the primary text input device. A keyboard on a computer is almost identical to a keyboard on a typewriter. Computer keyboards will typically have extra keys, however. Some of these keys (common examples include Control, Alt, and Meta) are meant to be used in conjunction with other keys just like shift on a regular typewriter. Other keys (common examples include Insert, Delete, Home, End, Help, function keys, etc.) are meant to be used independently and often perform editing tasks.
In computers, a joystick is a cursor control device used in computer games. The joystick, which got its name from the control stick used by a pilot to control the ailerons and elevators of an airplane, is a hand-held lever that pivots on one end and transmits its coordinates to a computer. It often has one or more push-buttons, called switches, whose position can also be read by the computer.
A digital camera records and stores photographic images in digital form that can be fed to a computer as the impressions are recorded or stored in the camera for later loading into a computer or printer. Currently, Kodak, Canon, and several other companies make digital cameras.
A device that converts sound waves into audio signals. These could be used for sound recording as well as voice chatting through internet.
A scanner is a device that captures images from photographic prints, posters, magazine pages, and similar sources for computer editing and display. Scanners come in hand-held, feed-in, and flatbed types and for scanning black-and-white only, or color. Very high resolution scanners are used for scanning for high-resolution printing, but lower resolution scanners are adequate for capturing images for computer display. Scanners usually come with software, such as Adobe's Photoshop product, that lets you resize and otherwise modify a captured image
All computers have the following essential hardware components
Input
The devices used to give the computer data or commands are called Input devices. Includes keyboard, mouse, scanner, etc
Processor
A processor is the logic circuitry that responds to and processes the basic instructions that drive a computer.
The term processor has generally replaced the term central processing unit (CPU). The processor in a personal computer or embedded in small devices is often called a microprocessor.
Short for microprocessor, the central processing unit in a computer. The processor is the logic of a computer and functions comparably to a human central nervous system, directing signals from one component to another and enabling everything to happen
Memory
Memory is the electronic holding place for instructions and data that your computer's microprocessor can reach quickly. When your computer is in normal operation, its memory usually contains the main parts of the operating system and some or all of the application programs and related data that are being used. Memory is often used as a shorter synonym for random access memory (RAM). This kind of memory is located on one or more microchips that are physically close to the microprocessor in your computer. Most desktop and notebook computers sold today include at least 16 megabytes of RAM, and are upgradeable to include more. The more RAM you have, the less frequently the computer has to access instructions and data from the more slowly accessed hard disk form of storage.
Memory is also called primary or main memory.
Storage
Computer storage is the holding of data in an electromagnetic form for access by a computer processor. It is also called secondary storage. In secondary storage data resides on hard disks, tapes, and other external devices.
Primary storage is much faster to access than secondary storage because of the proximity of the storage to the processor or because of the nature of the storage devices. On the other hand, secondary storage can hold much more data than primary storage.
Output
The devices to which the computer writes data are called Output devices. Often converts the data into a human readable form. Monitor and printer are output devices.
The devices used to give the computer data or commands are called Input devices. Includes keyboard, mouse, scanner, etc
Processor
A processor is the logic circuitry that responds to and processes the basic instructions that drive a computer.
The term processor has generally replaced the term central processing unit (CPU). The processor in a personal computer or embedded in small devices is often called a microprocessor.
Short for microprocessor, the central processing unit in a computer. The processor is the logic of a computer and functions comparably to a human central nervous system, directing signals from one component to another and enabling everything to happen
Memory
Memory is the electronic holding place for instructions and data that your computer's microprocessor can reach quickly. When your computer is in normal operation, its memory usually contains the main parts of the operating system and some or all of the application programs and related data that are being used. Memory is often used as a shorter synonym for random access memory (RAM). This kind of memory is located on one or more microchips that are physically close to the microprocessor in your computer. Most desktop and notebook computers sold today include at least 16 megabytes of RAM, and are upgradeable to include more. The more RAM you have, the less frequently the computer has to access instructions and data from the more slowly accessed hard disk form of storage.
Memory is also called primary or main memory.
Storage
Computer storage is the holding of data in an electromagnetic form for access by a computer processor. It is also called secondary storage. In secondary storage data resides on hard disks, tapes, and other external devices.
Primary storage is much faster to access than secondary storage because of the proximity of the storage to the processor or because of the nature of the storage devices. On the other hand, secondary storage can hold much more data than primary storage.
Output
The devices to which the computer writes data are called Output devices. Often converts the data into a human readable form. Monitor and printer are output devices.
Computer Types According to Capability
Tuesday, July 24, 2012Supercomputers
A supercomputer is a computer that performs at or near the currently highest operational rate for computers. A supercomputer is typically used for scientific and engineering applications that must handle very large databases or do a great amount of computation (or both). At any given time, there are usually a few well-publicized supercomputers that operate at the very latest and always incredible speeds. Perhaps the best-known builder of supercomputers has been Cray Research, now a part of Silicon Graphics. Some supercomputers are at "supercomputer center," usually university research centers, some of which, in the United States, are interconnected on an Internet backbone (A backbone is a larger transmission line that carries data gathered from smaller lines that interconnect with it) known as vBNS or NSFNet. At the high end of supercomputing are computers like IBM's "Blue Pacific," announced on October 29, 1998. Built in partnership with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, Blue Pacific is reported to operated at 3.9 teraflop (trillion floating point operations per second), 15,000 times faster than the average personal computer. It consists of 5,800 processors containing a total of 2.6 trillion bytes of memory and interconnected with five miles of cable.
Mainframe Computers
A very large and expensive computer capable of supporting hundreds, or even thousands, of users simultaneously. In the hierarchy that starts with a simple microprocessor (in watches, for example) at the bottom and moves to supercomputers at the top, mainframes are just below supercomputers. In some ways, mainframes are more powerful than supercomputers because they support more simultaneous programs. But supercomputers can execute a single program faster than a mainframe. The distinction between small mainframes and minicomputers is vague (not clearly expressed), depending really on how the manufacturer wants to market its machines.
Servers / Minicomputers
A midsized computer. In size and power, minicomputers lie between workstations and mainframes. In the past decade, the distinction between large minicomputers and small mainframes has blurred, however, as has the distinction between small minicomputers and workstations. But in general, a minicomputer is a multiprocessing system capable of supporting from 4 to about 200 users simultaneously.
Desktops
These are also called microcomputers. Low-end desktops are called PC’s and high-end ones “Workstations”. These are generally consisting of a single processor only, some times 2, along with MB’s of memory, and GB’s of storage. PC’s are used for running productivity applications, Web surfing, messaging. Workstations are used for more demanding tasks like low-end 3-D simulations and other engineering & scientific apps. These are not as reliable and fault-tolerant as servers. Workstations cost a few thousand dollars; PC around a $1000.
Portables
Portable computer is a personal computer that is designed to be easily transported and relocated, but is larger and less convenient to transport than a notebook computer. The earliest PCs designed for easy transport were called portables. As the size and weight of most portables decreased, they became known as laptop computer and later as notebook computer. Today, larger transportable computers continue to be called portable computers. Most of these are special-purpose computers - for example, those for use in industrial environments where they need to be moved about frequently.
PDA (personal digital assistant) is a term for any small mobile hand-held device that provides computing and information storage and retrieval capabilities for personal or business use, often for keeping schedule calendars and address book information handy. The term handheld is a synonym. Many people use the name of one of the popular PDA products as a generic term. These include Hewlett-Packard's Palmtop and 3Com's PalmPilot.
Most PDAs have a small keyboard. Some PDAs have an electronically sensitive pad on which handwriting can be received. Apple's Newton, which has been withdrawn from the market, was the first widely-sold PDA that accepted handwriting. Typical uses include schedule and address book storage and retrieval and note-entering. However, many applications have been written for PDAs. Increasingly, PDAs are combined with telephones and paging systems.
Some PDAs offer a variation of the Microsoft Windows operating system called Windows CE. Other products have their own or another operating system.
Ranking w.r.t. installed number
PC’s
PDA’s
Workstations
Servers
Wearable (picture is provided)
Mainframes
Supercomputers
At the highest level, two things are required for computing
Hardware
Computer equipment such as a CPU, disk drives, CRT, or printer
Software
A computer program, which provides the instructions which enable the computer hardware to work
A supercomputer is a computer that performs at or near the currently highest operational rate for computers. A supercomputer is typically used for scientific and engineering applications that must handle very large databases or do a great amount of computation (or both). At any given time, there are usually a few well-publicized supercomputers that operate at the very latest and always incredible speeds. Perhaps the best-known builder of supercomputers has been Cray Research, now a part of Silicon Graphics. Some supercomputers are at "supercomputer center," usually university research centers, some of which, in the United States, are interconnected on an Internet backbone (A backbone is a larger transmission line that carries data gathered from smaller lines that interconnect with it) known as vBNS or NSFNet. At the high end of supercomputing are computers like IBM's "Blue Pacific," announced on October 29, 1998. Built in partnership with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, Blue Pacific is reported to operated at 3.9 teraflop (trillion floating point operations per second), 15,000 times faster than the average personal computer. It consists of 5,800 processors containing a total of 2.6 trillion bytes of memory and interconnected with five miles of cable.
Mainframe Computers
A very large and expensive computer capable of supporting hundreds, or even thousands, of users simultaneously. In the hierarchy that starts with a simple microprocessor (in watches, for example) at the bottom and moves to supercomputers at the top, mainframes are just below supercomputers. In some ways, mainframes are more powerful than supercomputers because they support more simultaneous programs. But supercomputers can execute a single program faster than a mainframe. The distinction between small mainframes and minicomputers is vague (not clearly expressed), depending really on how the manufacturer wants to market its machines.
Servers / Minicomputers
A midsized computer. In size and power, minicomputers lie between workstations and mainframes. In the past decade, the distinction between large minicomputers and small mainframes has blurred, however, as has the distinction between small minicomputers and workstations. But in general, a minicomputer is a multiprocessing system capable of supporting from 4 to about 200 users simultaneously.
Desktops
These are also called microcomputers. Low-end desktops are called PC’s and high-end ones “Workstations”. These are generally consisting of a single processor only, some times 2, along with MB’s of memory, and GB’s of storage. PC’s are used for running productivity applications, Web surfing, messaging. Workstations are used for more demanding tasks like low-end 3-D simulations and other engineering & scientific apps. These are not as reliable and fault-tolerant as servers. Workstations cost a few thousand dollars; PC around a $1000.
Portables
Portable computer is a personal computer that is designed to be easily transported and relocated, but is larger and less convenient to transport than a notebook computer. The earliest PCs designed for easy transport were called portables. As the size and weight of most portables decreased, they became known as laptop computer and later as notebook computer. Today, larger transportable computers continue to be called portable computers. Most of these are special-purpose computers - for example, those for use in industrial environments where they need to be moved about frequently.
PDA (personal digital assistant) is a term for any small mobile hand-held device that provides computing and information storage and retrieval capabilities for personal or business use, often for keeping schedule calendars and address book information handy. The term handheld is a synonym. Many people use the name of one of the popular PDA products as a generic term. These include Hewlett-Packard's Palmtop and 3Com's PalmPilot.
Most PDAs have a small keyboard. Some PDAs have an electronically sensitive pad on which handwriting can be received. Apple's Newton, which has been withdrawn from the market, was the first widely-sold PDA that accepted handwriting. Typical uses include schedule and address book storage and retrieval and note-entering. However, many applications have been written for PDAs. Increasingly, PDAs are combined with telephones and paging systems.
Some PDAs offer a variation of the Microsoft Windows operating system called Windows CE. Other products have their own or another operating system.
Ranking w.r.t. installed number
PC’s
PDA’s
Workstations
Servers
Wearable (picture is provided)
Mainframes
Supercomputers
At the highest level, two things are required for computing
Hardware
Computer equipment such as a CPU, disk drives, CRT, or printer
Software
A computer program, which provides the instructions which enable the computer hardware to work
Future of the Web: Semantic Web
The Semantic Web is an idea of World Wide Web inventor Tim Berners-Lee that the
Web as a whole can be made more intelligent and perhaps even intuitive about how to
serve a user's needs. Berners-Lee observes that although search engines index much of
the Web's content, they have little ability to select the pages that a user really wants or
needs. He foresees a number of ways in which developers and authors, singly or in
collaborations, can use self-descriptions and other techniques so that context-understanding
programs can selectively find what users want.
Who invented the Web & Why?
"CERN is a meeting place for physicists from all over the world, who collaborate on
complex physics, engineering and information handling projects. Thus, the need for the
WWW system arose "from the geographical dispersion of large collaborations, and the
fast turnover of fellows, students, and visiting scientists," who had to get "up to speed
on projects and leave a lasting contribution before leaving."
CERN possessed both the financial and computing resources necessary to start the project. In the original proposal, Berners-Lee outlined two phases of the project: First, CERN would "make use of existing software and hardware as well as implementing simple browsers for the user's workstations, based on an analysis of the requirements for information access needs by experiments."
Second, they would "extend the application area by also allowing the users to add new material."
Berners-Lee expected each phase to take three months "with the full manpower complement": he was asking for four software engineers and a programmer. The proposal talked about "a simple scheme to incorporate several different servers of machine-stored information already available at CERN."
Set off in 1989, the WWW quickly gained great popularity among Internet users. For instance, at 11:22 am of April 12, 1995, the WWW server at the SEAS of the University of Pennsylvania "responded to 128 requests in one minute. Between 10:00 and 11:00
CERN possessed both the financial and computing resources necessary to start the project. In the original proposal, Berners-Lee outlined two phases of the project: First, CERN would "make use of existing software and hardware as well as implementing simple browsers for the user's workstations, based on an analysis of the requirements for information access needs by experiments."
Second, they would "extend the application area by also allowing the users to add new material."
Berners-Lee expected each phase to take three months "with the full manpower complement": he was asking for four software engineers and a programmer. The proposal talked about "a simple scheme to incorporate several different servers of machine-stored information already available at CERN."
Set off in 1989, the WWW quickly gained great popularity among Internet users. For instance, at 11:22 am of April 12, 1995, the WWW server at the SEAS of the University of Pennsylvania "responded to 128 requests in one minute. Between 10:00 and 11:00
What is a Web site?
A Web site is a related collection of World Wide Web (WWW) files that includes a
beginning file called a home page. A company or an individual tells you how to get to
their Web site by giving you the address of their home page. From the home page, you
can get to all the other pages on their site. For example, the Web site for IBM has the
home page address of http://www.ibm.com. IBM's home page address leads to
thousands of pages but a web site can also be just of few pages.
https://www.google.com.pk/
https://www.google.com.pk/
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