1. Hardware means the different types of equipment a computer consists of.
2. A computer’s hardware comprises a central processing unit (CPU) which is the heart and brain of the computer.
3. Input and output devices capable of putting information into a computer and getting it out of it are types of peripheral equipment. Peripherals are the units connected to the CPU: input devices, output devices and storage devices.
4. The simplest and most common type of input device is a keyboard, containing a typewriter keyboard.
5. A laser printer is a kind of output device to print information.
6. Software means the programs needed to operate computer equipment.
7. These programs are on disks, the hard disks inside the computer, or floppy disks, or on CD-ROMs, that is, Compact Disk Read Only Memory, which you can put on or store a large amount of information. A disk is a storage device made of flat circular plates with magnetizable surfaces. A hard disk is a disk made from a solid magnetic material and used as a storage device. A floppy disk (also called diskette) is a disk made of flexible plastic material upon which data are stored on magnetic tracks. Tracks are areas marked on the surface of a disk. A disk drive is the electronic mechanism that actually reads what is on a disk. In hard disks, the disk and the drive are built into a single unit.
8. A word processor is a computer used to write documents, letters and reports, or the software that is used for this purpose.
9. Databases are programs, which allow you to store, look at or change a large quantity of information quickly and easily.
10. Graphics are pictures and symbols a computer program can produce.
11. An extra copy on a floppy disk is called a back-up copy, a copy of data or software, usually kept in case the original disk is damaged or destroyed.
12. A bug possible in a computer operation, also a virus is a software problem or error in a program. Debugging means correcting program errors or bugs.
13. People send e-mail (electronic mail) messages with the help of the Internet, a system that lets computers connect by telephone lines.