ICTlecture1 for 1st Semester Students of BS(CS)

ICT Lecture 01

1. APPLICATIONS OF INFORMATION AND
COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY (ICT)
Ms. Saba Shams
Lecture#1

2. What is ICT?
•The term Information and Communication Technology can be considered as an extended version
of the term IT as it involves a C that represents the communication of data by electronic means,
usually over some distance. Here, communication refers to the media broadcasting technologies,
audio/video processing and transmission and telephony.
•ICTincludes all the tools and systems we use to handle and share information. This means things like
computers, the internet, phones, and other technologies that help us communicate and manage data.
•Recently, the term ICT has been used to refer to the integrating telephone and audio/ visual networks
with computer networks. This integration has provided large savings of costs due to the elimination of
telephone networks. Simply, ICT can be seen as the integration of information technology with commu-
-nicationtechnology.

3. Objective of course unit:
It is clear that you require some skills ranging from basic to advanced, that are needed to be able to work
with computer based information systems. Simply, you will require the capability of using computers and
computer software in order to deal with information and communication technologies. Therefore, the fund
amental objective of this course unit is to be able to:
Convert
Store
Protect
Process
Transmit/communicate and
Retrieve information
by using computers and its software. So, now you can understand that the computer skills are necessary
and highly related to ICT.

4. What is computer?
•A computer is, at its most basic, a machine which can take instructions, and perform computations
based on those instructions.
•A computer is an electronic device which is capable of receiving the inputs (data from the user),
storing it for a desired period of time, manipulating it according to the set of instructions ( called ,
program) and producing the output to the user in desired form. It performs a variety of operations in
accordance to the set of instructions.
•A computer is an electronic device that manipulates information, or "data". It has the ability to store,
retrieve, and process data. You can use a computer to type documents, send email, and browse the
internet. You can also use it to handle spreadsheets, accounting, database management, presentati
ons, games, and more.

5. Key Process of Computers:

6. Characteristics of Computers:
•Speed : A computer can perform tasks very fast. For example, the amount of work that a human
being can do in an entire year can be accomplished by a computer within a few minutes.
•Reliability : Computers have a low failure rate. The high reliability of the components enables the
computer to produce consistent results.
•Accuracy : The accuracy of a computer is consistently high. Errors can occur in a computer, but
these are mainly due to human mistakes.
•Versatility : The computers have the capacity to perform completely different type of work. You may
use your computer to prepare payroll slips at the moment. Next moment you may use it for inventory
management or to prepare electric bills.

7. Characteristics of Computers:
•No IQ : Computers cannot do any work without instructions from the user. It performs the instruction
s at good speed and with accuracy.
•Storage : The computer has built-in memory called Primary Storage, which stores data that the pro
cessing unit can access directly. Although Primary Storage has limited capacity, it is crucial for proce
ssing. Data can also be stored in Secondary Storagedevices like floppies, which are external and p
ortable. Data from Secondary Storage must be moved to Primary Storage for the computer to proces
s it. This transfer happens quickly, typically in milliseconds.

8. Limitations of Computers:
It is obvious that the computer has a variety of capabilities. Similarly, this man made machine has some
its own limitations as well. Such as,
The computer can do only what you tell it to do-you cannot expect the computer give you something
which you did not ask.
It cannot generate information on its own-the computer will work only if you operate it and give the
instructions. It cannot give you information unless you feed it required data.
It will give wrong information if you feed it with wrong data-the computer cannot identify what the
correct data and what the wrong data are.
It cannot correct wrong instruction-if you give the computer wrong instruction, it will not be able to
do anything to rectify it. The only thing it can do is to stop functioning till you correct the mistake.

9. Different types of Computers:
The computers can be mainly classified into four categories as briefly described below. This classification
is done based on the size and the data processing power.
•Microcomputers: Most common type of computers in the society, can be used at your workplace, at
school or on your study desk at home. Used by single user at a time. Small in size. Also called
Personal Computers (PCs).
•Minicomputers: used by multi-users. In the middle when the computers are ranged from smallest to
largest. Used in laboratories.
•Mainframes: Largest in size. Capable of handling and processing very large amounts of data.
•Super computers: Used for performing complex scientific and numerical computations such as we
ather forecasting, fluid dynamics, nuclear simulations. Sometimes called as “Workstations”.

10. Different types of PCs:
A Personal Computer (Mostly referred to as PCin the community) is designed as a more user-friendly d
evice to be directly used by the end-user rather having an especially skilled separate computer operator.
It is less expensive compared to other types of computers. PCs come in different forms . It is noticeable t
hat only few famous forms of PCs used today are listed below and the list may be extended by adding m
any more in the future with the advancement of the technologies.
Desktop
Laptop
Netbook
PDAs
Wearable Computers
Tablets

11. Main parts of Computer system:
Computers come in many varieties, from tiny computers to very large super computers. But no matter
how complex it is or how big it is, every computer is part of a system. A complete computer system
consists of four main parts as follows :
Hardware: The tangible parts that make up the computer are called Hardware. The physical
parts such as monitor, key board, processor, and speakers can be identified as hardware.
Software: Computer software is a set of instructions that tells computer hardware what to do.
The computer will work according to the instructions given to it. We can use the generic term
computer program to refer any piece of software.

12. Main parts of Computer system:
•Data: Data is any fact or piece of information that a computer can use. This can include text,
documents, images, audio clips, or software programs. A computer's main job is to convert this
data into useful information for the user. The computer takes data from various sources or the
user and processes it to produce meaningful information. Raw data entered into the computer
may not make much sense until it is processed.
•User: Computers can automate many tasks, but they aren't completely automatic because they
often need a human operator's involvement. Even if a computer seems to work without someone
sitting in front of it, remember that people design and build the programs it runs. Humans also
repair computer systems when necessary. So, users are an essential part of a computer system.

13. Thank you
Any Question?