Computer Science - Introduction to Computing Homework

This document presents a comprehensive solution to an Introduction to Computing homework assignment. The solution addresses several key concepts, including the inability to install modern operating systems on an older computer due to hardware limitations. It explains the role and importance of an operating system, differentiates between Network Operating Systems (NOS) and standard operating systems, and contrasts Wide Area Networks (WANs) and Local Area Networks (LANs). The assignment also explores different types of transmission media, such as bounded (coaxial, twisted pair, and fiber optic cables) and unbounded (radio wave, microwave, infrared) media, detailing their characteristics and applications. Furthermore, the solution clarifies the differences between volatile and non-volatile memory, using RAM and hard drives as examples. Finally, the document provides calculations of the document's size in various units. The assignment includes relevant references to support the presented information.

Running head: INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTING
INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTING
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author note:

1INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTING
Question 1:
a) Processor Speed – 466 MHz
b) Processor Model - Intel Celeron
c) Processor Manufacturer -Intel
d) Sound Card Manufacturer-Creative Labs
e) Graphics Card Slot Type-AGP
f) Video Memory-4 MB
g) Actual Screen Image Size-800 x 600
h) RAM Capacity- 64 MB
i) Type of RAM- SDRAM
j) Operating System – Microsoft Windows 98 and Home Essentials
It is not possible to Install Windows 7 or Window 8 and 8.1 to this Computer. The
requirements are:
 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor*
 1 gigabyte (GB) RAM (32-bit) or 2 GB RAM (64-bit)
 16 GB available hard disk space (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit)
 DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver
The system does not support the mentioned requirements. Hence , the installation cannot be
performed .

2INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTING
Question 2:
Operating system:
Operating system can be regarded as the most essential program, executed on any
computer system. Operating system is essential for every computer system. With an operating
system, the computer is just a bare machine without any use. A computer cannot be used without
the combination of hardware and software. Only hardware and software alone cannot perform
the programs that are used to be executed by the computer system. There should be effective
communication between the software and hardware in order to make the computer work.
Operating systems are deployed to manage both the hardware and software and make effective
communication between them. The operating system performs basic task like processing input
from the keyboard and displaying it on the screen, keeping track of different files and directories,
stored on different storage drives and it also controls different peripheral devices like mouse,
printers. However, operating systems, used for larger systems, are more powerful and assigned
with greater responsibilities of managing several programs simultaneously and accurately.
Network Operating System (NOS):
NOS is basically an operating system for the computer, which helps in managing
workstation and personal computer. It is also used to manage the older terminal that is connected
with the help of local area network, commonly known as LAN. NOS provides necessary
interface to share file using printer, database and applications. It can manage the network
directory, security and other important aspects related to the network.

3INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTING
Question 3:
Difference between Wide Area Network (WAN) and Local Area Network (LAN):
Wide Area Network (WAN):
WAN is networking technology used in telecommunication and computer networking.
The network is extended to serve a large geographical area. The network helps to communicate
with devices that are far distant. Wide area networks need telecommunication circuits that are
designed in leased fashion to make communication with devices.
The network is deployed by government, educational institutes and business
organizations to send and receive data over the network. This network is highly effective for
business organizations as it allows for communication with clients and other organizations,
regardless of their location and distance. The internet can be considered as wide area network.
Local Area Network (LAN):
However , local area network , commonly referred to as LAN, is used to establish
connection between computers that are within short and limited distance. Many LANs makes use
of the technologies related to wireless communication which are normally built in and used by
Smartphones, tablet computers and laptops. The concept of wireless network has become very
popular due to ease of use and simple installation technique.

4INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTING
In the LAN, connection between devices is maintained with the help of leased line, leased
services. Over the internet, the connection is maintained through virtual private network,
popularly known as VPN. Two of the most popular technologies that are commonly used for
local area networks are Ethernet and Wi-Fi.
LAN is used for short area communication like interconnecting devices in residence,
school, laboratory, university campus or office building.
Question 4:
Different types of transmission media:
Transmission media helps to transmit data from between two connected devices. Two
types of transmission media is primarily used (Polak and Laskowski 2016):
 BOUNDED/GUIDED MEDIA
 UNBOUNDED/UNGUIDED MEDIA
BOUNDED MEDIA:
Bounded media provides physical links for transmitting data and the signal follows a
narrow path for travelling through the media. These links are referred to as guide media. The
common types of bounded media that are mainly used include Coaxial Cable, Fiber Optics
Cable, and Twisted Pairs Cable
COAXIAL CABLE:

5INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTING
The most common form of common form of transmission media that is widely used for
communication is coaxial cable. It is constitutes of two conductors parallel to each other, hence
the name coaxial cable. Copper is used as the primary conductor for this cable through which the
actual data travels.
Following are coaxial standards commonly used :
 50-Ohm RG-7 or RG-11 : used with thick Ethernet.
 50-Ohm RG-58 : used with thin Ethernet
 75-Ohm RG-59 : used with cable television
 93-Ohm RG-62 : used with ARCNET.
CHARACTERISTICS OF COAXIAL CABLE
 Low cost
 Easy to install
 Up to 10Mbps capacity
 Medium immunity form EMI
 Medium of attenuation
ADVANTAGES COAXIAL CABLE

6INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTING
 Inexpensive
 Easy to wire
 Easy to expand
 Moderate EMI immunity
DISADVANTAGE COAXIAL CABLE
 Entire network stops working due to a single cable failure.
Twisted Pair Cable:
Twisted pair cable can be regarded as one of the most preferred cable network used for
communication. The transmission speed supported is up to 100 mps. Two types of twisted pair
cables are commonly used:
1. Unshielded twisted pair (UTP):
Unshielded twisted pair or popularly known as UTP is commonly preferred for
communication. It has an impendence value of 100 ohm. The cost is also less than the Shielded
twisted pair (STP) and it is also easily available due to the demand. There are five levels for
rating of the UTP.

7INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTING
Category 1
These are used for low speed com
Category 2
Supports up to 4 mps implementation.
Category 3
Supports up to 16 mps
Category 4
Used for large distance with high speed with support up to 20mps.
Category 5
This is the highest rating for UTP cable and can support up to 100mps.
Characteristics of UTP
 low cost
 easy to install
 High speed capacity
 High attenuation
 Effective to EMI
 100 meter limit
Advantages of UTP:
 Easy installation

8INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTING
 Capable of high speed for LAN
 Low cost
Disadvantages of UTP
Suitable for short distance communication due to attenuation
2. Shielded twisted pair (STP):
It is similar to UTP but has a mesh shielding that’s protects it from EMI which allows for
higher transmission rate.
IBM has set some rules to categorize STP cable.
Type 1:
It uses two pairs of 22-AWG
Type 2:
It includes type 1 with 4 telephone pairs

9INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTING
Type 6
It contains two pairs of standard shielded 26-AWG
Type 7
It consist of 26-AWG standard shielded in pair.
Type 9
It consist of 26-AWG shielded wire
Characteristics of STP:
 Medium cost
 Easy to install
 Higher capacity than UTP
 Higher attenuation, but same as UTP
 Medium immunity from EMI
 100 meter limit
Advantages of STP:
 Shielded
 Faster than UTP and coaxial

10INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTING
Disadvantages of STP:
 More expensive
 Difficult to install
 High rate of attenuation
Fiber Optics:
Fiber optics transmits data with the help of electrical signals. Light is converted into
electrical signals for data communications. It supports only one-way communication as the light
travels in only one direction. To enable two-way communication to take place, another device is
needed in the communication. Pulse of light is sent through the cable to another device
connected at the other end. These pulses are then encoded to “1’s” and “0’s” which is decoded a
by the end device to facilitate the communications.
The cable can be divided into core and cladding. Glass is used for core through which
light travels and for the cladding part a reflective material is used so that light cannot pass
through it due to internal reflection. Fiber optics are used for long distance and high speed
communication due to lower attenuation property of the cable (Kumar 2014).
UNBOUNDED/UNGUIDED MEDIA :
It referrers to transmission media that is extends beyond the traditional bounded cable
system. These types of transmission media are used for high speed communication and operated
at very high frequency. The main three types of unbound transmission media include : Radio
wave, Micro wave, Infrared.

11INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTING
Question 5:
Difference between volatile memory and non-volatile memory:
There are fundamental differences between volatile memory and non-volatile memory (Meena,
Sze and Chand 2014)
Volatile Memory:
Any storage device that can hold data temporarily and all the data are erased as soon as
the device is disconnected from the power source is known as volatile memory. The best
example of volatile memory is the Random Access Memory ( RAM ), which can only retain data
as long as the power supply is on and all the data is cleared once disconnected from the source.
Non Volatile Memory:
Any storage device that is capable to store data permanently and all the data is not
erased as the device is disconnected from the power source, is known as volatile memory. The
best example of volatile memory is the Hard Drive , which can retain data permanently once
stored and retains it even when it is disconnected from the power source.
Question 6:
a) There are about 21972 characters in the 15 pages document
b) That is 21.97265625 kilobytes
c) That is 0.0215 megabytes
d) There is about 10,986 nibble is the fifteen (15) pages documents .
e) If the whole document occupies 17.5 megabytes on the disk;
i. That is 17500 kilobytes
ii. That is 0.00175 gigabytes

12INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTING
References:
Kumar, M.S., 2014. Fundamentals of Optical Fibre Communication. PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd..
Meena, J. S., Sze, S. M., Chand, U., & Tseng, T. Y. (2014). Overview of emerging nonvolatile
memory technologies. Nanoscale research letters, 9(1), 526.
Polak, R. and Laskowski, D., 2016. Network reliability with use of various transmission media. Journal of
KONBiN, 39(1), pp.57-78.