Input, Output, and

Storage

Input Devices

Output Devices

Storage Devices

2003 The McGraw-Hill Companies

Input Devices
Input device captures information and translates it into a form
that can be processed and used by other parts of your computer.
Keyboards
Pointing devices
Game controllers
Scanners
Styluses
Microphones
Digital cameras
Web cams

p. 5.130 Fig. 5-1

Input Devices

The keyboard is the most common input

device.

Keyboard include three button

p. 5.131 Fig. 5-2

Types of Input Devices

p. 5.131 Fig. 5-2

Pointing Devices

Pointing devices are mainly used to choose and enter

commands

Pointing devices tend to have PS/2 connectors or

USB connectors

PS/2 connector fits into a PS/2 port, which a small round

socket with small holes that fit the pins on the connector

USB connectors fit into USB ports, and these are small
rectangular openings on the back or front of your computer,
or even on your keyboard or monitor

p. 5.131 Fig. 5-2

Pointing Devices

Various pointing devices are available

Types of pointing devices:

Mouse

Trackball

Touchpad

Pointing stick

p. 5.132 & P. 5.133 Fig. 5-3 & Fig 5.4

Game Controller

Game controllers are used mainly to play games

Types of gaming devices

Gamepads

Joysticks

Gaming wheels

Force feed

p. 5.134 Fig. 5-5

Specialized Input Devices

Other types of input devices include:

Scanners

Styluses

Microphones

Digital cameras

Web cams

p. 5.135 Fig. 5-6

Scanner
Scanner

is a light sensitive device that helps you

copy or capture images, photos, and artwork
that exist on paper. Types of scanners include:
Flatbed

or Desktop
Hand Held Scanners

Styluses

Stylus is an input device consisting of a thin

stick that uses pressure to enter information
or to click and point
Styluses are used with:
Tablet

PCs
Graphics tablets

p. 5.135 Fig. 5-6

Microphones

Microphones are used to

input audio
Main types of microphones
are:
Desktop

microphones
Headsets

Speech recognition is
increasingly being included in
application software

Digital Cameras

Digital cameras are used to:

Download images to a computer

Post pictures to the Web
Produce videos

Resolution is measured in megapixels

Higher the resolution, better the
image quality, but the more expensive
the camera

Web Cams

Web cam is a video camera that

can be used to take images for
uploading to the Web

5.2 Output Devices

Output devices take information
within your computer and
present it to you in a form that
you can understand
Main output devices:
Monitors
Printers
Speakers

Flat Panel Display Devices

Devices with flat-panel displays
Tablet PCs
PDAs -personal digital assistant
Cellular phones
Desktop computers
PDA (personal digital assistant) is a term for any small mobile
hand-held device that provides computing and information
storage and retrieval capabilities for personal or business use,
often for keeping schedule calendars and address book
information handy. The term handheld is a synonym.

Monitors
CRT Cathode Ray Tube
Big & Heavy
Thin Film transistor liquid
Crystal display(TFT- LCD)

p. 5.137 Fig. 5-9

Printers
Dot Matrix Printer
Inkjet most popular
Makes images by forcing droplets
through nozzles
Top speed is 20 pages per minute

Laser
Forms images using an electrostatic
process
Prints between 3 and 30 pages per
minute

Printers - Cont
Resolution of a printer is the
number of dots per inch (dpi) it
produces.
Higher the resolution, better the
image, and usually the more
costly the printer

Printers - Cont.

Multifunction printer:

Scan, copy, fax, and print

Can be either inkjet or laser

Cost less than buying

individual units

Take up less desk space

p. 5.139 Fig. 5-11

Speakers

A speaker is a device that

produces computer output as
sound

Speakers are common

devices in computer systems
Examples include:

Built-in speaker

Two-device set speakers

Surround sound speakers

Storage Devices

Storage device stores information to be

recalled and used at a later time
Storage device consists of:
Storage medium
Storage device
Three major technology types for
information storage:
Magnetic
Optical or laser
Flash memory

Storage Medium Terms

1 Byte
= 8 bits
1 Kilobyte (KB) 1024 Bytes
1 Megabytes (MB) 1024 KB
1 Gigabytes (GB) 1024 MB
1 Terabytes (TB) 1024 GB

Magnetic Storage Devices:

Internal Magnetic Hard Disk

Magnetic storage devices can be

either internal or external

Internal magnetic hard disks are

fixed inside the system unit
External magnetic hard disks are
portable

Magnetic Storage Devices:

Internal Magnetic Hard Disk
Internal hard disk is a magnetic
storage device with
One or more thin platters that store
information sealed inside the disk
drive.
Read/write heads access the
information on surface
Heads read information while copying
it from disk to RAM
Heads write information when copying
it from RAM to disk

Magnetic Storage Devices:

External Magnetic Hard Disk
External hard disks are
magnetic storage media which
are portable storage units that
you can connect to your
computer as necessary
Great for backup storage devices
Ability to transport your hard disk
from one computer to another

Hard Drives
Long term storage system
and application software
Operating system and
application software are
copied from the hard disk
to memory
Capacity measured in
gigabytes

Floppy Disks and Zip Disks

Removable magnetic storage media
come in two basic types:
Traditional floppy disks
Zip disks

These storage media are useful for:

Storing files for backup or security
purposes
Transferring files from one computer to
another

Removable Magnetic
Storage: Floppy Disk
Floppy Mylar disk
Housed inside a hard plastic
casing
Thin, flexible plastic disk
3.5 inch floppy disks
also called floppies, diskettes,
floppy disks
Holds about 1.44 megabytes of
information

High-capacity disks
Zip disk

p. 5.144 Fig. 5.15

Removable Magnetic
Storage: Zip Disk
High capacity plastic platter disk
Called removable hard disks
Provide a higher storage capacity than Mylar
disks
Example - Zip disk with capacity of 100MB,
250MB, and 750MB

Optical Storage
CDs
DVDs
Both are optical
storage and have
three formats:
Read-only
Write-once
Read-and-write

Optical Storage Media

Read-Only
CD-ROM
DVD-ROM

Fully Read-andWrite
CD-RW
DVD-RW or
DVD+RW or
DVD-RAM

Flash Memory Cards

Flash memory cards have
high-capacity storage
laminated inside a small
piece of plastic
Flash flash memory cards do
not need a drive with moving
parts to operate

Flash Memory Card Readers

Some devices have flash memory slots
into which you slide your flash memory
card
Other devices can use an external flash
memory card reader in order to transfer
information
A flash memory drive is a flash memory
storage medium for a computer that is
small enough to fit in your pocket and
usually plugs directly into a USB port

2003 The McGraw-Hill Companies