ICT for Beginners - session 3 (C&G 4249 iTQ) - Buying a PC

Computer Basics – week 3

Operating systemsMusic and video

(Video files to student folder / get mics)

Recap

The LEFT mouse button to select

Recap

Hardware or Software?

Recap Dummies videos:Section 7 – Wordpad

Recap: Inside a computer

Recap: Inside a computer

The Processor or CPU:The brain of the computer

Random Access Memory (RAM):Short term memory usedby the CPU (volatile!)

Hard Drive:Long term storage

Recap: Inside a computer

Graphics Card

Sound Card

USB Card

Any Questions?

Buying a PC

vs

Buying a PC

£300

Intel Dual Core CPU 4 GB memory 500 GB storage

£1000

Intel Core i7 CPU 12 GB memory 3 TB storage Radeon Graphics

Buying a PC

£300

Surfing the Web◦ inc iPlayer etc

eMail Word Processing Watch/make DVDs Basic photo and

video editing Simple games

£1000

…all of that plus: Watch/make Blueray Superfast! Professional photo

and video editing High end real-time

gaming

Buying a PC They all come with a version of Windows

Operating System (more later…)– unless you go for an Apple Mac

£300 or £1000 - they won’t look at lot different on the shelf

Computing power will double every 18 months, but prices will remain fairly constant

Moore’s Law (1965)

Laptops and Netbooks You trade power for portability – less bang

for you buck!

Netbooks even more so – but they are only really intended for surfing and writing

Netbooks don’t even have CD or DVD players

Some Final Advice Decide what you’re going to use it for – do

you need a laptop? – do you need extreme power?

Check what you’re getting – often great deals on desktop don’t include keyboard, mouse, speakers or even a monitor!

Why pay for Anti-Virus?

Any Questions?

Memory RAM

(Random Access Memory)Fast but expensiveVolatile

Memory ROM

(Read Only Memory)Fast but can’t be changed

Memory (storage) Hard Drives

Used for long term storageCheap Stable

Memory (storage) Other types of storage memory you might

come across:

Any Questions?

Operating Systems A computer is just a box of electronics that

does nothing until it’s told to

Operating Systems This is what an Operating System does –

makes all the bits talk to each other

Pre-Windows

DOS (Disk Operating System) was the first OS

It was not easy to use

Video on next slide…

What Windows Does

What to look for in Windows

Video on next slide…

Files and Folders

Files and Folders

Files and Folders

Files and Folders

Video on next slide…

Any Questions? Just a quick look at using extra features on

the mouse, then we’ll have a break…

Break

Double-click

The LEFT mouse button

Click 1: SelectClick 2: Execute

Right-click

The RIGHT mouse button

Often brings up a menu:

Using Media Player Media = Music or Videos

Follow your tutor’s instructions to open the Music folder

Right-click on amusic file and selectPlay

Using Media Player

Try to play some of the other music files

Using Media Player Now try to play some videos…

Using Windows Sound Recorder

Start >>> All Programs >>> Accessories…

Record yourself saying two things you have learned today…

Using Windows Sound Recorder Save your recording to the Desktop

Play it back using Media Player

When You’re Done: Shut Down

Any Questions? Next Week:

◦ Special Keys◦ Networks◦ What is the Internet?◦ Printers and Gadgets◦ Quizzes

>>>Ends<<<