Computers have come into being in a very big way. Whether you have one or not, they do impact your life, and will continue to grow as an industry even more in the coming years. In the early 1900’s our society gradually changed from an agricultural to an industrial society. Now in the late 1900’s we are witness to the change from an industrial society to an informational society.

 It does not matter if you like computers, work with them, hate them, or attempt to completely avoid computers. They are in you car, your TV sets, VCR’s, and just about any common electrical device that has more than an on and off option. The banks use them to control your money. The governments use them to collect and save information about its’ public. And stores use them to track the type of merchandise you usually purchase.

 While Operating Systems, Applications, Programs, Hardware, and Technology continue change, the very basics of using a computer remain the same. You turn it on and either ask it for information that it already knows, or put new information into it. The common sense rules also remain the same:
 

1. Don’t be afraid of a computer (It’s only a case full of wires, boards, and chips - It won’t bite)
1. BEFORE YOU MAKE ANY CHANGES: Backup the current settings and files so you can always go back to where you were before you started !!!
1. Save your work often !!!
1. Keep a backup of your important files !!!
1. Keep your floppy disks and tape backups away from extreme temperatures, and any sources of magnetic fields. (One of the most common reasons for a floppy disk to go bad are when users put them on top of or near the computer and/or monitor)
1. Do NOT remove a floppy disk while the little disk drive light is on. (It would be the same as pulling a phonograph album off the turn table without lifting the arm off the record)
1. Keep an updated "System Disk" in order to start your PC in case of an emergency.
1. And of course don’t throw the PC out a "window" (pun intended) or dump water into it.

You can break down a computer system into 2 major categories, (and a whole bunch of sub-categories)

1. Hardware
or
2. Software

 HARDWARE:

This is the physical part of your computer: The monitor screen, the computer case, the keyboard, the mouse., and any number of other things that you can add to a PC.

 Often the things like your mouse, a printer, a scanner, joy-sticks and other items you might attach to your computer are referred to as peripheral devices (just "techno-babble" for the things you can add on to a PC). You may hear terms like input and output devices, again just fancy computer slang for keyboards, mice, scanners, (the input devices), monitors, and printers (output devices). I guess some computer people feel that if they make up a few big words, it will create job security.

 All of this "hardware" technology is changing; new port technology is being developed to take advantage of the new printer technology, new, controller cards, and chips are being designed to improve hard disk speed, chips are constantly changing to improve performance, and even memory is changing; FPM or Fast Page Mode, RAM used to be the standard, now the rage is EDO or Extended Data Out RAM, and VEDO, CV-RAM, CD-RAM, ED-RAM, may be the next big fad. It is hard to guess what technology will be adopted as tomorrow’s standards. Just keeping track of all the new acronyms and techno-babble can be a full time job.

 SOFTWARE:

These are the files that a computer uses. They can be on your computers Hard Disk (the storage area inside your computer), on floppy disks, tape backups, or CD-ROMs. At the software level, things break down into even more sub-categories:

 1. SYSTEM SOFTWARE
These are the files that help you communicate with the computer. The translate the strokes you make on the keyboard, and clicks you do with the mouse into the 1’s and 0’s that a computer understands. Since a computer is an electrical device, the only things that it understands by its self are ON and OFF. The ON and OFF are represented by the 1’s and 0’s that system software sends to the computer

2. APPLICATIONS AND PROGRAMS
These are the programs you see running when you walk by a computer. The can be anything from a word processor to the screen saver that is displaying pretty pictures on the screen.

3. DATA FILES
These are the files that hold the information you and your computer need so that it can save information, and call it up later

System Software (DOS and Windows):

These are the files your computer needs to understand what you type on the keyboard, or where you click your mouse. When your computer first starts up (boots), it checks the physical things that are attached to it (like the floppy disk drives, keyboard, mouse, Hard Disk, etc.)

THEN it looks for the system software files as the translator between man and machine. Our computers use the DOS software (Disk Operating System). First the computer reads some very special files (io.sys, then msdos.sys, then command.com). Without these files you would never be able to run your PC and for that reason these system files are hidden from the normal users "line of fire" so to speak. And even if you did look at the inside of the files they wouldn’t make much sense because they are full of special characters like smiley faces, funny boxes, 1s and 0s. Because these files are so necessary it is always good to keep a backup of them stored away In case of an emergency (more on how to do this later).

Once these files are loaded into your computers brain the PC looks for 2 more very special files called CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT. These two files are what tell your computer the special things it needs to know: Are you attached to a network? Do you have a modem? Do you want to start Windows right away? - and other useful information. While these files are just text files - You SHOULD NOT make any changes to them unless you have a fair amount of experience in setting up computers. You SHOULD also keep backup copies of these files stored away.

 Once a computer has finished loading DOS, the majority of PCs today immediately load Windows. While some may argue that Windows IS an Operating System (and Windows 95 only fuels that debate), others claim that it is simply a "shell" that runs on top of DOS. Regardless of what you call it - It is a special program that most computers use today. When Windows starts it loads several special files (actually Windows loads a whole bunch of files). Typing win and pressing enter first loads WIN.COM - Then (in order) system.ini, win.ini and, progman.ini. These *.INI files (INItialization) are common with a great many of the Window programs. The system.ini file loads the drivers (special *.drv files) and tells Windows about your special software programs, then win.ini tells your computer your special settings in Windows; like what colors to use, how fast your mouse should move, what printer you want to use etc. and the progman.ini file tells Windows what groups you have and how to arrange them.

While there are other files that can get "marked" as system files (like network files, disk compression (often named dblspace.*) , memory swap files, etc.) the ones mentioned above are the most common, and most important.

 Applications and Programs:

These are the files that actually do something on your computer. Programs like MS Word may actually start because you "double-clicked" on an icon that pointed to a program called winword6.exe. Computers actually only understand a very few "file extensions" (the three letters after a (.) period in a file name). DOS understands you want to do something when you type a file name that ends in EXE (executable), COM (command), or BAT (batch). Windows adds one more type - PIF (Program Information File), and Windows 95 adds the *.lnk files for shortcuts, or links.

Programs can be broken down into several types of categories:

• Word Processors
• Databases
• Spreadsheets
• Presentation Programs:
• Communication Packages
• Games
• Desktop Publishing packages
• Graphic Design
• Program Languages and compilers
• Multi-Media programs

Anti-Virus programs: Norton, McAfee, Thunderbyte, PC-Cillin, etc.

Diagnostic and Repair Programs: scandisk, defrag, Norton Disk Doctor and Speeddisk, Check It,

Win Checkit, First Aid, Crash Gurard.

Monitors: Resource Monitor, Wintune, Win SKSRM, Sysmonitor, etc.

Un-Installers: Micro Help’s Uninstaller, Clean Sweep, Remove-It, etc.

Disk editors: sysedit, regedit, Norton’s diskedit, Fileedit, etc.

Shell programs or "Add-ons": DOSSHELL, PC Tools Desktop, Norton Desktop, Dashboard, Tabworks, etc. (Many consider Windows itsself a shell, although more so with the 3.x versions than the 95 version.)
 
 

Along with those types of programs, you may hear the term "Applet" - These are just little programs that are added on to another program (Like MS Draw for Word, and Text Art for WordPerfect) that allow you to customize and enhance your work. They can not "run" on their own, so even though they may have an EXE ending or extension, you will still need to be running the parent program to make use of them.

 Data Files:

These files are the ones that the user creates: Word documents and letters, Database files with phone numbers and other information, Spreadsheet tables, and even pictures, and artwork you create or modify. However ... (many programs also have their own data files that you never see: *.ini files that store your preferences, window colors, fonts, and sizes, *.dat files that programs read when they start or perform an action, *.dic files that are read when spell checking, and *.dll files that contain information about your printers, toolbars, drivers and menu items). Some files are very easy to look at and read (ASCII text files), others can only be read from the program they were written in, or by the internal workings of Windows and the programs themselves.
 

The Big things to remember:

1. Keep your files away from extreme temperatures, as well as magnetic and electrical influences.
1. Backup And Save Your Files.
1. Keep a system disk available incase your computer won’t start.

Put a floppy disk in drive A:

 From Windows:

1. You can start File Manager, click on Disk, then click on the Make System Disk
1. Then click and drag the files autoexec.bat, and config.sys to drive A:

From DOS:

1. From C:\> - (c:\, and enter - them "cd\" and enter) - type "sys a:" and press enter
1. type "copy autoexec.bat a:" - and press enter, then type "copy config.sys a:" - and press enter
1. Do not type the quote marks (" ") when entering a command from DOS

1. Click on the start button
1. Highlight ‘Settings’
1. Click on Control Panel
1. The Control Panel window will open
1. Double-Click ont the Add/Remove Programs Icon
1. Click on the Startup Disk tab
1. Put a floppy disk in drive A:
1. Click on the Create Disk button

 Other Files You May Want From The Hard Drive: for trouble shooting, and emergencies:

sys.com, scandisk.*, and undelete.*, format.com, fdisk.* msd.*, [edit.com and qbasic.exe (you will need both these files in DOS versions under 6.22 and under.]

file: help-01.hrml
created: 1996
edited: 2002