Digital Computer
A digital computer can be viewed as a digital system designed to carry out a
range of computational tasks.
The first electronic digital computer, created in the late 1940s, was
primarily utilized for numerical computations.
By convention, digital computers operate using the binary number system,
consisting of two digits: 0 and 1. A binary digit is known as a bit.
A computer system is divided into two main components: hardware and software.
The hardware includes all the electronic components and electromechanical
devices that make up the physical structure of the computer.
The software of a computer comprises the instructions and data that the
computer uses to execute various data-processing tasks.
The software of a computer comprises the instructions and data that the
computer uses to execute various data-processing tasks.
Block diagram of a digital computer
The Central Processing Unit (CPU) includes an arithmetic and logic unit for data manipulation, several registers for data storage, and a control circuit for fetching and executing instructions.
The memory unit of a digital computer provides storage for both instructions and data.
The Random Access Memory (RAM) is used for the real-time processing of data.
Input-output devices are used to receive input from the user and display the final results to them.
The input-output devices connected to the computer include the keyboard, mouse, terminals, magnetic disk drives, and various communication devices.
