Free Essays on Computers

This paper is about the computer. Today computers are used by hundreds of millions of people. There have been many advances in the computer. The computer used to weigh 30 tons and filled warehouse size rooms, but today can be as light as 3 pounds and fit in a persons pocket. There were basically three times the computer was mentioned. One as a mechanical computing device, in about 500 BC The other as a concept in 1833, and the third as the modern day computer in 1946. The first mechanical calculator was called the abacus. The abacus is a is a string of moving beads. The first concept of the modern computer was first outlined in 1833 by the British mathematician Charles Babbage. His outline contained all of todays features in a computer today. Those features are memory, a control unit, and output devices. Even though Babbage worked on the machine for over 40 years he never actual saw it work. The modern computer grew out of intense research efforts mounted during World War II. The military needed faster ballistics calculators, and British cryptographers needed machines to help break the German secret codes. Early as the 1940's the German Inventor, Konrad Zuse, produced the first operational computer. It was used in aircraft and missile designs, but the German government would not let him improve the machine so it never reached its maximum capability. Two engineers called John W. Mauchly and J. Presper Eckert Jr. from the University of Pennsylvania constructed a calculator. Its construction was an enormous feat of engineering. The 30-ton machine was 18 feet high and 80 feet long, and contained 17,468 vacuum tubes linked by 500 miles of wiring. This calculator performed 100,000 operations per second, and its first operational test included calculations that helped determine the feasibility of the hydrogen bomb. Computers were finally made to a smaller size in 1958 by Jack Kilby. He used less expensive silicon chips, this made ... Free Essays on Computers Free Essays on Computers The following benefits are feasible if the ordering process at Three in Bun were modified: Employees could spend less time writing the same things over and over again and more time getting a new range of customers. It will take less time to get more of the products and this will make the customers much happier. Less wasted resources. Supplies would last 50% longer then they do now. Operational A new system will decrease the amount of equipment use and paperwork. Customer information will be available in an easily accessible form to any employee. Employees will have time to complete meaningful job duties, alleviating the need to hire some temporary clerks. Technical Three in Bun already has a successful way of operation in the ordering process. To handle the increased volume of data however, it will need to purchase a new database server. Economic A detailed summary of the costs benefits, including all assumptions, is attached. The potential costs of the purposed solution could range from $20,000 to $25,000. The estimated savings in supplies and postage alone will exceed $40,000. If you have any questions on the attached detailed cost/benefit summary or require further information please contact me. Based on the findings presented in this report, we recommend a continued study of the ordering system at Three in Bun.... Free Essays on Computers People always tend to seek the easy way out looking for something that would make their lives easier. Machines and tools have given us the ability to do more in less time giving us, at the same time, more comfort. As the technology advances, computers become faster and more powerful. These new machines are enabling us to do more in less time making our lives easier. The increased use of computers in the future, however, might have negative results and impact on our lives. In the novel, Nine Tomorrows by Isaac Asimov often criticizes our reliance on computers by portraying a futuristic world where computers control humans. One of the images which Asimov describes in the book is that humans might become too dependent on computers. In one of the stories, Profession, Asimov writes about people being educated by computer programs designed to educate effortlessly a person. According to the Profession story people would no longer read books to learn and improve their knowledge. People would rely on the computers rather than "try to memorize enough to match someone else who knows" (Nine Tomorrows, Profession 55). People would not choose to study; they would only want to be educated by computer tapes. Putting in knowledge would take less time than reading books and memorizing something that would take almost no time using a computer in the futuris tic world that Asimov describes. Humans might begin to rely on computers and allow them to control themselves by letting computers educate people. Computers would start teaching humans what computers tell them without having any choice of creativity. Computers would start to control humans’ lives and make humans become too dependent on the computers. Another point that is criticized by Asimov is the fact that people might take their knowledge for granted allowing computers to take over and control their lives. In a story called The Feeling of Power, Asimov portrays how people starte... Free Essays on Computers This paper is about the computer. Today computers are used by hundreds of millions of people. There have been many advances in the computer. The computer used to weigh 30 tons and filled warehouse size rooms, but today can be as light as 3 pounds and fit in a persons pocket. There were basically three times the computer was mentioned. One as a mechanical computing device, in about 500 BC The other as a concept in 1833, and the third as the modern day computer in 1946. The first mechanical calculator was called the abacus. The abacus is a is a string of moving beads. The first concept of the modern computer was first outlined in 1833 by the British mathematician Charles Babbage. His outline contained all of todays features in a computer today. Those features are memory, a control unit, and output devices. Even though Babbage worked on the machine for over 40 years he never actual saw it work. The modern computer grew out of intense research efforts mounted during World War II. The military needed faster ballistics calculators, and British cryptographers needed machines to help break the German secret codes. Early as the 1940's the German Inventor, Konrad Zuse, produced the first operational computer. It was used in aircraft and missile designs, but the German government would not let him improve the machine so it never reached its maximum capability. Two engineers called John W. Mauchly and J. Presper Eckert Jr. from the University of Pennsylvania constructed a calculator. Its construction was an enormous feat of engineering. The 30-ton machine was 18 feet high and 80 feet long, and contained 17,468 vacuum tubes linked by 500 miles of wiring. This calculator performed 100,000 operations per second, and its first operational test included calculations that helped determine the feasibility of the hydrogen bomb. Computers were finally made to a smaller size in 1958 by Jack Kilby. He used less expensive silicon chips, this made ... Free Essays on Computers â€Å"Computer Literacy: Body of Knowledge or Myth† Table of Contents Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 Historical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 Case Study - Bubba College . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Regional Survey and Review of Current Textbooks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 Materials Used . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Other References and Sources of Material on the subject . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 Appendix A. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 Appendix B. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 Introduction Agnst College is in the process of creating and implementing a revised computer literacy course called CIS110: Computer Literacy. A debate of what computer literacy is led to this report. In this report we hope to reexamine the issues of computer literacy and, in some small way, define a body of knowledge which may offer an educational framework for educators as we approach the new millennium. Is computer literacy still following the cycle of hardware, software, data, procedures, and people, or has it ‘morphed’ into a new definition? Does computer literacy include the understanding and knowledge of the five components, or has it been reduced in scope? What is today’s definition of computer literacy anyway? Computer Literacy ... Free Essays on Computers Computers There are many different sides to the discussion on moral and ethical uses of computers. In many situations, the morality of a particular use of a computer is up to the individual to decide. For this reason, absolute laws about ethical computer usage are almost, but not entirely, impossible to define. The introduction of computers into the workplace has introduced many questions as well: Should employers make sure the workplace is designed to minimize health risks such as back strain and carpal tunnel syndrome for people who work with computers? Can employers prohibit employees from sending personal memos by electronic mail to a friend at the other side of the office? Should employers monitor employees' work on computers? If so, should employees be warned beforehand? If warned, does that make the practice okay? According to Kenneth Goodman, director of the Forum for Bioethics and Philosophy at the University of Miami, who teaches courses in computer ethics, "There's hardly a business that's not using computers."1 This makes these questions all the more important for today's society to answer. There are also many moral and ethical problems dealing with the use of computers in the medical field. In one particular case, a technician trusted what he thought a computer was telling him, and administered a deadly dose of radiation to a hospital patient. In cases like these, it is difficult to decide who's fault it is. It could have been the computer programmer's fault, but Goodman asks, "How much responsibility can you place on a machine?"(3). Many problems also occur when computers are used in education. Should computers replace actual teachers in the classroom? In some schools, computers and computer manuals have already started to replace teachers. I would consider this an unethical use of computers because computers do not have the ability to think and interaction an interpersonal basis. Com... Free Essays on Computers All-digital, active-matrix LCD Flat-panel displays produce flicker-free images with twice the brightness, sharpness, and contrast ratio of a typical CRT display. The high-performance graphics engine in the Power Mac G4 or PowerBook G4s provides an all-digital signal between the computer and the Apple flat-panel displays, producing undistorted screen images every time. Thanks to this all-digital approach, there’s no need to convert the digital signal to analog form (a process that inevitably leads to image degradation, since translation errors often cause screen distortion and artifacts). Certified color All-digital technology means you get consistent color from edge-to-edge as well as color consistency over time. Apple flat panel displays are immune to heat, humidity and electromagnetic fields that can cause color changes to a CRT. And while Apple displays leave the factory at tuned to perform out-of-the-box, you can use calibration devices such as the GretagMacbeth Eye-One to create a custom ColorSync profile. This gives you the peace of mind that an Apple display will integrate perfectly into your color workflow, ensuring accurate color from screen to print.... Free Essays on Computers Over the past ten years billions of dollars have been spent on computers for our nation’s schools. The goal was to improve and update our educational system but there is very little evidence of change through the years and taxpayers that have been paying for these upgrades in the schools want to know where the payoff is. A small Belridge school district in Mckittrick, California was proud to be the first and only in the state to provide every student with two Apple IIg computers, one for school and one for home. It reshaped its curriculum to use computers in all subject areas and they thought it was working well. The parents were shocked to hear when the annual standardized test scores came in, that the entire first grade class, along with more than a third of the 64-member student body, had scored below their grade level for both reading and math. The school’s officials argued that students had scored even worse before the help of the computer program but in fact this was just one case where the computer program had failed. Many skeptics think schools should give up but educators and parents continue the fight to keep computers in the schools. Research has proven that electronic drill and practice programs make children better spellers. Intensive preparation programs raise S.A.T. scores. So-called integrated learning systems, which deliver entire curriculums to student’s sittings at workstations in a learning laboratory, practically guarantee that grade point averages will go up. So why all the confusion? Everyone is worried that too many tax dollars are being wasted on computers for kids when the old learning system worked just fine. They feel children do not need computers in school, that they can learn to use them at home, or in college, or even after they enter the work force. New York University’s Neil Postman writes in his article â€Å"The End of Education: Redefining the Value of School† that â€Å"approximately 35 million... Free Essays on Computers A computer is an electronic device that can receive a set of instructions or program and the carry out this program by performing calculations on numerical data or by compiling and correlating other forms of information. ("Computer" Encarta). It also performs calculations and processes information with astonishing speed and precision. Computer Technology has improved our lives. It will continue to affect our future which will lead to an easier, less complicated lifestyle, with more job opportunities and their benefits. ("Computer." America On-line). The modern world of high technology could not have come about except for the development of the computer. (Astle 1). Different types and sizes of computers find uses throughout society in the storage and handling of data, from secret government files to banking transactions to private household accounts. ("Computer" Encarta). Research and development in the computer world moves simultaneously along two-paths hardware designs and software innovations work in each are alternately influences the other.("The Future Of Computers" America On-line) Computers help people in many different ways, but many people prefer to use paper and pencil to write and to use folders and file cabinets to organize there papers. ("The Future of Computers." America On-line.) Many people in the world use computers to make their lives easier. Such advances computer technology will benefit us all. People use computers for research, organization, writing, communication for personal or business matters and even to look up stock updates. (Astle 786). Whether it is personal or business, computers can help make our daily life easier. Typing is quicker and easier and its also a lot neater than hand writing. When you type on a computer you can look at them and open them a lot faster than having a folder of papers you have to carry around where ever you go. (Masters 654). Computers can also help with editing a paper, they can...