Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
At a very basic hardware level, computers perform three pri
mary types of operations on data: the storage and retrieval of data,
the comparison of different data items, and the arithmetic or logical
manipulation of data. All of this work is done following specified
instructions. Computers can be particularly effective when applica
tions require a significant use of one or more of these operations.
Further, computers are particularly useful to us when the work we
have done corresponds well with their skills. Let's focus on what
work you might have that could take advantage of a computer.
help me?
Many uses of the computer involve variations on the theme of
storing and retrieving data. Here we'll take a look at four common
types of storage and retrieval activities that you may encounter:
word processing, databases, multimedia filing, and networking and
communication.
Word Processing
Word processing and desktop publishing provide good illustrations of how our
needs mesh nicely with the characteristics available in computers. Word process
ing involves at least two types of work. Think of the last time you needed to
write a paper for your English class: When you opened your wordprocessing ap
plication, what did you need it to accomplish? First, any English paper involves
text—the words that form the raw data for the composition. This text must be
stored and retrieved, and much of the value of using a computer for word pro
cessing arises from this data storage. When drafts of your paper are stored, they
can be opened for editing, and you thereby can take advantage of information
already present (you don't have to retype the whole document, thank good
ness!); you only need to note modifications, and the computer incorporates your
changes with the rest of the paper that has remained the same. Without the
computer's ability to store and retrieve data, computers would be of little value
in wordprocessing applications.
