Different input and output devices
The most common ________ are the keyboard and the mouse. We can also interact with a computer by using a lightpen, a scanner, a trackball, a graphics tablet, a voice recognition device or a _________.
A keyboard is a set of keys on a terminal or computer, including the standard typewriter keys (for letters and numbers), _______ and several special keys.
A mouse allows you to control the ______ and move around the screen very quickly. As you move the _______ on your desk, the pointer on the ______ moves in the same direction.
A scanner ‘sees’ images and converts the _______or pictures into electronic codes that can be understood by the ______. With a flatbed colour scanner, the paper with the image is placed face down on a glass screen. Once the scanner is activated, it reads the image as a series of ____ and then generates the digitized image that is sent to the computer and stored as a file.
A digital camera takes photos electronically and converts them into digital data (_____made up of 1s and 0s). It has a special light-sensitive silicon chip.
A camcorder, or ______, records moving pictures and converts them into _____ that can be stored and edited by a computer with special video ______. They are also used to send live video images via the Internet. In this case they are called web cameras, or ______.
Displays, often called ______ or screens, are the most used _____ on a computer. They provide instant feedback by showing you text and graphic images as you work or play. Most desktop displays use Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) or Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) technology, while nearly all portable computers incorporate _____. Because of their slimmer design and lower energy consumption, LCD monitors (also called _____ displays) are replacing CRTs. An LCD is made of two glass plates with a _____ material between them. The crystals block the light in different quantities to create the image. Active-matrix LCDs use TFT (thin film transistor) technology.
Exercise 28. Translate into English.
1. Матеріальні частини, до яких ми можемо доторкнутися і які можна побачити, називають апаратним забезпеченням. 2. Програмне забезпечення – це набір інструкцій або програм, які наказують устаткуванню, що робити. 3. Системний блок – це основа комп’ютерної системи, у якій багато електронних компонентів, що обробляють інформацію. 4. Центральний процесор – це головний пристрій комп’ютера, який виконує операції обробки даних і керує периферійним обладнанням комп’ютера. 5. Оперативна пам’ять тимчасово зберігає інформацію, яку використовує центральний процесор, коли комп’ютер увімкнуто. 6. Після вимкнення комп’ютера всі дані з оперативної пам’яті зникають. 7. Майже кожна інша складова комп’ютера поєднується із системним блоком за допомогою кабелів, які під’єднуються в спеціальні порти на задній панелі системного блока. 8. Центральний процесор включає пристрій керування, арифметично-логічний пристрій регістрів пам’яті. 9. Арифметично-логічний пристрій виконує арифметичні і логічні операції. 10. Пристрій керування організовує процес виконання програм і координує взаємодію всіх пристроїв під час її роботи.
Listening
Exercise 29. (Track 3). A) You are going to listen to two people making enquiries in a computer shop. The shop assistant is telling them about the two models below. Listen and fill in the missing information.
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iMac Processor speed 2.33 GHz RAM ____________ Hard drive capacity ______________ DVD drive included? Yes Operating system _______________ Includes Internet software Price ______________ |
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MacBook Processor speed _________________ RAM ____________ Hard drive capacity ______________ DVD drive included? ____________ Operating system _______________ Includes Internet software Price £1,029 |
B) Listen again and answer the following questions.
1. What does Core Duo technology actually mean?
2. What is the iMac more suitable for?
3. What is the MacBook more practical for?
4. What computer have the customers decided to buy?
Language work. Function of an item.
Rule: We can describe the function of an item in a number of ways. Study these examples. Using the Present Simple 1. ROM holds instructions which are needed to start up the computer. Used to-infinitive, Used for +--ing form 2. ROM is used to hold instructions which are needed to start up the computer. 3. ROM is used for holding instructions which are needed to start up the computer. Emphasizing the function 4. The function of ROM is to hold instructions which are needed to start up the computer. |
Exercise 30. Match each item in with its function. Then describe its function in two ways.
Item |
Function |
RAM CPU mouse clock monitor keyboard DVD-ROM drive ROM |
controls the cursor inputs data through keys like a typewriter displays the output from a computer on a screen reads DVD-ROMs holds instructions needed to start up the computer stores information while you are using it controls the timing of signals in the computer controls all the operations in a computer |
Exercise 31. Describe the functions of these items.
scanner software flash drive peripherals
webcam hard disk drive motherboard hardware
Grammar. Past Simple / Past Continuous.
Exercise 32. Complete the sentences by putting the verbs into the Past Simple or Past Continuous.
1. While the company … (plan) its move to another factory site, the chairman … (decide) to retire. 2. The thieves … (break) into Joan’s flat while she … (visit) her aunt. 3. They … (get) married when they … (travel) through India. 4. John … (stay) with his friends when he … (hear) the news. 5. I … (have) dinner, when they … (shoot) the president.
6. While they … (discuss) the problems of farming, the animals … (escape). 7. The crowds … (cheer) the town mayor when he … (speak) about the new developments. 8. He … (collapse) at the ninth hole when he … (play) golf with his son. 9. They … (sit) silently while the director … (explain) the need to cut the workforce.
Exercise 33. Complete these stories using the Past Simple or Past Continuous of the verbs given.
1. Flight 2001 … (fly) from London to New York when it suddenly … (encounter) turbulence and … (drop) 15,000 feet. The plane … (carry) over 300 passengers and a crew of 17.
2. Simon 1) … (walk) home from work the other day when he 2) … (notice) something shining on the pavement on the other side of the road. A car 3) … (come) down the street, so he waited until it had driven past, then he 4) … (cross) over. When he 5) … (get) to the other side he saw it was a shiny gold coin! He 6) … (look) around to make sure no one 7) … (look), then he 8) … (bend) down to pick it up. Imagine his surprise when he 9) … (not/ can) move it! He 10) … (be) just about to give up when he 11) … (hear) a strange sound behind him. Someone 12) … (laugh) at him, but he couldn’t see who it 13) … (be). Two little boys 14) … (hide) behind a hedge, laughing at anyone who tried to pick up the coin they had stuck to the pavement with glue!
3. Last night I … (be) alone at home. I … (lie) on my bed and … (watch) TV when I … (hear) a strange noise. The noise … (come) from the kitchen. I … (go) downstairs, … (pick up) a heavy vase from the table and … (head for) the kitchen. I … (open) the door very slowly. Then I … (see) someone. He … (search) in the fridge. I … (be) so frightened that I … (drop) the vase I … (carry) and it … (crash) onto the floor. The man … (turn) towards the door and I … (see) his face. It was my husband!
Exercise 34. Group work. A) Match each headline with the beginning of one of the news stories. Then choose one of the stories and make up more information about it. One student starts the story. Then another student tells what happened next and so on.
1. Illusion or aliens?
2. Identical Twins Reunited After 45 years Apart
3. Man Receives Letter Mailed 50 Years Ago
4. Job Applicant’s Life Saved by Being 5 Minutes Late for Interview
Paul Jones got a surprise when he opened his mailbox last week.
A strange light hit up the sky as three students were driving home last night.
Lisa Miller is lucky. She missed her bus while she was on her way to a job interview.
Ellen and Mary could hardly believe their eyes when they saw each other.
Pre-reading task
Exercise 35. Discuss these questions.
1. What types of storage devices do you know?
2. What do a CD and DVD stand for?
3. What formats of CD and DVD do you know?
4. What storage device is the most convenient for you? Why?
5. What is the origin of the words “floppy”, “Blu-ray” and “flash drive”?
6. Is there any difference between the words “disk” and “disc”?
Jigsaw reading and speaking
Exercise 36. Divide into 3 groups (group A, group B and group C).
Stage 1. Read the text of your group, write down key words from the text, translate them, explain their meaning in English and write a set of questions based on your text. Complete the table below with the information from your text.
Stage 2. Tell your partners from other groups about the text you have read. While listening other groups complete the table with appropriate information. You may ask questions if you need to complete the table.
Stage 3. Ask questions you have prepared, and other groups will try to answer them using the information from the table.
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Characteristics or Operation |
Types, formats and capacity |
Advantages Disadvantages |
Possible uses |
Magnetic storage |
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Optical storage |
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Flash memory |
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