• Unit 1: Introduction to Computer Technology

    In this unit, we will discuss some of the advances in technology that led to the development of modern computers. We will begin our study with a look at the different components of a computer. We will then discuss the ways in which we measure hardware and software performance before discussing the importance of computing power and how it motivated the switch from a single-core to a multi-core processor.

    Completing this unit should take you approximately 7 hours.

    • Upon successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

      • list the major advances that have taken place in the history of computer technology;
      • list the basic elements in a computer block diagram; and
      • identify and discuss some of the latest trends in computing industry.

    • 1.1: Introduction to Computer Processors

      • Computer History Book

        Explore each of these articles, which focus on the early history of computers and give some insight into the early history of computers. They will introduce you to the powerful ideas that enabled computer architecture of today and that will influence computer architecture of tomorrow.

      • History of Computing Hardware (1960–Present) Page

        The main purpose of this article is to take a look at the history of computers from the third generation computers of the 1960s to today's technology of microcomputers, which have allowed for a computer presence in people's homes.

    • 1.2: Components of a Computer

      • Personal Computer Hardware Page

        Read this article for a solid overview of various components of a computer, including the motherboard, power supply, removable media devices, secondary storage, sound cards, and input and output peripherals.

    • 1.3: The Role of Processor Performance

      • CPU and Processor Time Counter Page

        Read this introduction to computer performance and information about computing processor time. In most programming languages, there is a process to measure elapsed time, such as time() in C. By subtracting the time at the beginning of a process from the time at the end you get the total time for a particular operation. Usually short operations are put in a loop that repeats the operation a sufficient number of times to get an accurate measurement.

      • Microprocessor Design and Performance Page

        This article gives more information on computer performance, including some helpful definitions.

      • Computing Benchmarks Page

        This article discusses benchmarks, which help measure computer performance.

      • Amdahl's Law Page

        This article introduces Amdahl's law, which can be used to measure how certain improvements to performance can be measured. A general form of Amdahl's law is: (that part of the time that is improved/the improvement factor) plus that part of the time that is not improved equals the new improved time. Speedup factor is the old time divided by the new time. Be sure to study the examples.

    • 1.4: The Power Problem

      • The Need For A Radical New Type Of Computer Architecture Page

        This article is about the challenges facing computer architecture in building more powerful computers for high performance applications and for faster, cheaper, more efficient computers for IT applications. The author is responding to another article on extreme-scale computing, which you may read by following the link if you desire.

    • 1.5: The Switch to Parallel Processing

      • Parallel Computing Landscape Page

        Watch this lecture for an understanding of the reasons behind the switch to parallel computing. This lecture provides motivation, insight into thinking about computer architecture, and an explanation computing trends.

    • 1.6: Case Study: A Recent Intel Processor

      • Data Types, Operators, and Variables Page

        The beginning of the lecture is administrative, so you may skip to around 16:14. It introduces the concept of computational thinking. While the course is an introduction to programming, computational thinking applies to both software (via programming) and to hardware (via computer architecture). Pay particular attention to the computer block diagram, the program counter and the way instructions relate to the computer hardware.

    • Unit 1 Assessment

      • Unit 1 Assessment Quiz
        Receive a grade

        Take this assessment to see how well you understood this unit.

        • This assessment does not count towards your grade. It is just for practice!
        • You will see the correct answers when you submit your answers. Use this to help you study for the final exam!
        • You can take this assessment as many times as you want, whenever you want.