Chapter 1 Introduction to Computers and Programming

System software

the programs that control and manage the basic operations of a computer are generally referred to as a system software

Key words or reserved words

the words that make up a high- level programming language

Pixels

tiny dots on a image

Storing characters

any piece of data that is stored in a computer's memory must be stored as a binary number

Bytes

A computer's memory is divided into tiny storage location known as bytes. - one byte is only enough memory to store a letter of the alphabet or a small number

Microprocessors

CPU's are small chips known as microprocessors

Machine language

CPUs only understand instructions that are written in machine language

Software

Programs are commonly referred to as a software. Software is essential to a computer because without it a computer can do nothing

Read only memory (ROM)

a computer can read the contents of ROM, but cannot change its content or store additional data

Syntax error

a mistake such as a misspelled key word, a missing punctuation, character or the incorrect use of an operator

Programmer/ Software Developer

a person with the training and skills necessary to design, create, and test computer programs Work in: business, medicine, government, law enforment, agriculture, academics entertainment and almost every other feild

Interpreter

a program that both translates and executes the instuctions in a high level programming

Compiler

a program that translates high-level language program into a separate machine language program

Program

a set of instructions that a computer follows to perform a task Ex: Microsoft Word, Powerpoint

Syntax

a set of rules that must be strictly followed when writing a program

Code

a statement that a programmer writes in a high-level programming

Binary numbering system

all numeric values are written as sequences of 0's and 1's Ex: 10011101

High level language

allows you to create powerful and complex programs without knowing how the CPU works, and without writing large numbers of low- level instructions

Universal Serial Bus Drives/ USB drives

are small devices that plug into the computers USB port and appear to the system as a disk drive - stored in flash memory

Software developmental tools

are the programs that programmers use to create, modify, and test software

Low level language

because assembly language is so close in nature to machine language it is referred to as low-level language

Digital data

data that is stored in binary and a digital device is any device that works with binary data

Bits (binary digit)

each byte is divided into eight smaller storage location known as bits (known as switches that can be turned off and on) OFF= 0 ON=1

Secondary Storage

is a type of memory that can hold data for long periods of time even when there is no power to the computer

Unicode

is an extensive encoding scheme that is compatible with ASCII, and can also represent the characters of many of the world's language

Output

is any data the computer produces for people or for other devices. Ex: sales report, list of names, graphic images. The data is sent to an output device which formats and presents it

Input

is any data the computers collects from people and from other devices. The components that collects the data and sends it to the computer is called an input device

Operating system

is the most fundamental set of programs on a computer. An operating system controls the internal operations of the computer's hardware, manages all of the devices connected to the computer

Central Processing unit (CPU)

is the part of a computer that actually runs programs (CPU is often referred to as the processor, CPU is the most important component in a computer because without it the computer could not run software - BIG VACUMS

Random access memory (RAM)

main memory is commonly known as random- access memory (RAM) - called this b/c CPU is able to quickly access data stored at any random location in RAM - Volatile type of memory that is used for only temporary storage

Main memory

main memory is the computers work area. This is where the computer stores a program while the program is running, as well as the data that the program is working with

IDE's (integrated development environments

most IDE's combine the following programs into one software package

Two's complement

negative numbers are encoded using the two's complement technique

Utility Program

performs a specialized task that enhances the operation of the computer or safeguards data

Operators

programming language have operators that perform various operations on data

Application software

programs that make a computer useful for everyday tasks are known as application software

Floating- point notation

real numbers are encoded using the floating- point notation technique

Hardware

refers to all of the physical devices, or components that a computer is made of

American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII)

set of 128 numeric codes that represent the English letters, various punctuation marks, and other characters Ex: A= 65

Cloud storage

storage that is stored on a remote server via the Internet or via a companys private network

Solid state drives

store data in solid state memory are more popular b/c the drive does not require any moving parts and operates faster than traditional disk drives

Traditional disk drives

stores data by magnetically encoding it onto a circular disk

Instruction set

the entire set of instructions that a CPU can execute is known as the CPU's instuction set

Statements

the individual instructions that you use to write a program in a high- level programming language are called statements

Digital

used to describe anything that uses binary numbers

Assembler

used to translate an assembly language program to a machine language program

Assembly language

uses short words that are known as mnemonics - mnemonics add numbers, mul typically means to multiply numbers, mov typically means to move value to a location in a memory

Fetch- decode- execute cycle

when a CPU executes the instructions in a program it is engaged in a process that is known as the fetch decode execute cycle 1. Fetch (read) 2. Decode (decodes the instructions) 3. Execute (perform the operation)

Running/ Executing

when a computer is performing the tasks that a program tells it to do we say that the computer is running or executing the program