CONNECTING COMPUTERS A computer is an electronic device for working with information The information can be numbers words pictures movies or sounds Desktops laptops tablets and even smartphones are the main types of computers Computers communicate or talk with other computers through networks A computer network is like a group of people There are different kinds of networks that people use These include family school sports and work networks Each person Students can use computer networks to get homework assignments and talk to their teachers 4
An Ethernet cable connects devices like computers to a local network The cables look like telephone cords within a network shares and communicates information to other people in the network Similarly when a computer shares information with another computer it is part of the same computer network Cables radio waves and satellites can link computers to each other These links are like glue that holds the network together Think About It Think about all the networks you belong to Give examples of ways you communicate with other people in your network 5
THE HISTORY OF COMPUTERS Vocabulary Digital means data is in the form of a numerical language that computers can understand The first digital general purpose computer ENIAC Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer was introduced to the public in 1946 Like other early computers its many parts took up an entire room ENIAC was one of the earliest digital computers 6
The Programma 101 was an early version of a computer that could fit on a desk Computers became smaller with time The Programma 101 was introduced in 1965 It was revolutionary because it could fit on top of a desk It was very expensive so it was not meant to be sold to the general public In 1968 Hewlett-Packard introduced the HP 9100A It was the first desktop that was a personal computer However the HP 9100A was sold as a calculator because people thought a computer had to be big Since the 1960s many companies have developed personal computers Over the years they have become much smaller lighter and cheaper than the early versions They can store and share larger amounts of information as well 7
