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Components of ICT
There are six components of ICT:
Data People
Procedures Components Software
of ICT
Hardware
Information
• Data: It is an individual unit that contains raw material given as input in ICT system. This data is interpreted to
generate an information/processed data. For example, student marks of all subjects entered in a system.
• Procedures: These are methods used to pass data and information to people involved in ICT system. For example,
using code designed in any specific computer language to generate a report card.
• Information: It is the processed data or output/result generated in ICT system. For example, generating report card
of marks entered as data.
• People: People involved in giving input and generating output using the procedures. They use the generated
information for the specific purpose. For example, marks entered by the teacher, report generated by staff of
computer department in a school.
• Software: These are programs and applications used in ICT system. These are available both as front end and back
end tools. For example, MS Word, MS Excel and Visual Basic.
• Hardware: All physical components of the ICT system which we can touch and feel are called hardware. For
example— Input Devices (mouse and keyboard), Output Devices (Monitor and Printer), Processing Device (Central
Processing Unit) and Storage Devices (Hard Disk).
WHAT IS A COMPUTER?
“Man is still the most extraordinary computer of all” —John F. Kennedy
A computer is an electronic device that takes an input from the user and processes it in a desired way and generates
an output in a specific format. This processed data can also be stored in a storage device for future use with keyboard,
mouse, speakers, printer. Computer as a term is not a single unit. It is combination of two major components:
• Hardware: All the physical components of a computer which we can touch and see are called hardware. They are
visible parts of the computer. For example— keyboard, mouse, monitor, printer, motherboard, etc.
• Software: A set of instructions that we give to a computer to get the work done is called software. Let us take an
example of our mobile phone. The mobile that we buy is hardware and the applications that we install on it are
software.
• Software can be categorised in two types:
w System Software: Software that is required to control the functions of a computer is called system software. It
refers to a program that works as a manager of the computer.
Without system software, we cannot use a computer. Some of the examples of system software are:
* Operating systems like Windows, DOS (Disk Operating System),Mobile OS, MAC OS, etc.
* Basic system utilities like disk formatters, file managers,etc.
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