Background of Computer

Computer:
Computer is an electronic device that can perform mathematical & logical operations at very high speed.

1.1 Introduction
The basic resources for human society are energy, materials & information. People have learnt over the years-ways to harness energy & various materials for the benefit of society. Information is the resource that is growing so fast that humans have difficulty in keeping pace with it. The radio, television, cinema, satellite channels & number of other resources continuously supply data & information in large volume everyday at unmanageable fast rate. So to store and process the data or information, computer plays the vital role. The term data &information are often used interchangeably. However, the distinction between two is given below.

1.2 Data:
It is plural form of datum meaning fact. It can be defined as representation of facts or observation. Data are represented by symbols. For example number, words, quantity, etc are data.

1.3 Information:
Data arranged in useful & meaningful form is known as information. In simple words, we can say that data are raw facts & information is relevant knowledge produced as output of data processing. Data processing is the cycle of input, processing and output. For data processing computers are used. Sometimes the input given to the computer is called data and output from computer is called information.
Information = Data +Meaning