Chapter 3 - Input & Output

What is Input ?

·         Any data or instructions used by a computer
·         Input devices translate data into a form that the system unit can process
·         Some hardware input devices include:

Ø  Keyboards

Ø  Mice

Ø  Pointing

Ø  Scanning

Ø  Image capturing

Ø  Audio-input

    Keyboard Entry

        ·         Keyboards

Ø  Traditional keyboards

Ø  Laptop keyboards

Ø  Virtual keyboards

Ø  Thumb keyboards

Pointing Devices

Provide an intuitive interface by accepting pointing gestures and converting them into machine readable input.  Wide variety of devices such as:

Ø  Mouse

Ø  Touch screen

Ø  Game controller

Ø  Stylus

Mouse Types

·         Optical mouse
Ø  Has no moving parts
Ø  Emits and senses light to detect mouse movement
Ø  Can be used on any surface

·    ·         Wireless mouse

Ø  Battery operated
Ø  Uses radio waves or infrared light waves

·         Touch pads
Ø  Controls pointer by moving and tapping your fingers on the surface of the pad

   

Touch Screen

·         Can be touched with more than one finger

·         Common on mobile devices
Ø  Apple iPhone
Ø  Notebook computers
Ø  Desktop monitors

         

 ·         Stylus is a pen-like device 

Ø  Used on tablet
Ø  Uses handwriting recognition software

Gaming Controllers

·        Provide input to computer games

·        Joysticks use pressure and direction of the stick

·        Gaming mice are similar to a mouse but high precision

·        Game pads use both hands

·         Motion sensing device control games by user movement

 

Scanning Devices

·         Scanners convert scanned data into a form the system   unit can process

Ø  Optical scanners

o   Flatbed scanners

o   Document scanners

o   Portable scanners

o   3D scanners

Card Readers

·           Interpret encoded information that is stored on debit, credit and identification cards

Ø  Magnetic card reader

o   Information read from strip when swiped through reader

o   Smart cards hold additional security information

Bar Code Readers

Contain photo-electric cells that scan or read bar codes or the zebra striped marks printed on product containers

·            Wand readers

Ø  Hand – held readers

·            UPCs and MaxiCode readers

Ø  UPC are heavily used in grocery stores for automated checkout and inventory control

Ø  MaxiCode used by shipping companies for routing packages

RFID Readers

Radio-frequency identification

·            Tiny chips embedded in most anything contain electronically stored information that can be read using an RFID reader located several yards away.

Ø  Tracking pets

Ø  Update and control inventories

Ø  Read passports

 

Character and Mark Recognition Readers

Recognize special characters and marks

·                  Character and mark recognition devices

Ø  Magnetic-ink character recognition (MICR)

o   Used by banks to read encoded characters on checks

Ø  Optical-character recognition (OCR)

o   Reads preprinted characters such as wand scanners

Ø  Optical-mark recognition (OMR)

o   Sense the presence of absence of marks used for test scoring

Image Capturing Devices

·            Create or capture original images

Ø  Digital Camera

o   Capture images digitally and store in memory

Ø  Web Cams

o   Capture images and send to a computer

 

Audio-Input Devices

·            Voice recognition systems

Ø  Use a microphone, sound card, and special software

Ø  Users can operate computers and create documents using voice commands

Ø  Included in many smart phones

o   Siri in iPhones

o   Cortana in Windows phones

o   Google Now in Google phones

What is OUTPUT ?
• Process data or information
• Types of output:
-Text 
-Graphics/photos 
-Audio & video 

• Output devices 
-Monitors 
-Printers 
-Audio-output devices 

Monitor Types

•Flat-panel monitors                                 
-Require less power to operate 
-Portable and thin 
-Most are backlit

~Three types: 
-Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) 
-Older monitors 
-Light Emitting Diode (LED) 
-More advanced backlighting 
-Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) 
-Thin layer organic compound that produces light 

•Curved Monitors 
~ Has a concave screen that provides better viewing angles near the edges of  the screen 
-Used by high-end gamers 
-Used for smart watch displays 

•E-book Readers 
~ An e-book is a traditional books printed in electronic form 
~ E-book readers are dedicated mobile devices for storing and displaying e-books  
-Use e-ink technology 
-Produce images that reflect light 
-Kindle 
-Nook 

• Other Monitor Types 
~ Other monitors 

     Digital/interactive whiteboards 
-Connects to a computer or project 

     Controlled using a special pen or even your finger
      -Classrooms and corporate boardrooms 

     Ultra High-definition television (UHDTV) 
-Digital output delivering a much clearer and more detail image that regular  HDTV

      Digital Projector 
      -Project the images from a traditional monitor onto a screen or wall


Printers  
~Translates information that has been processed by the system unit 
~Output referred to as hard copy 
~Features 
-Resolution 
-Color 
-Speed 
-Memory 
-Duplex printing

Printer Types 

•Ink-jet printers
~ spray ink at a high speed
-Reliable, quite and inexpensive

•Laser printers
~ uses a laser light beam to produce images
-Fast, excellent quality
-Personal or shared

•3D Printers
~ create 3-D shapes with a thin layer of material repeatedly until created
-Additive manufacturing

Other Printers 
•Cloud printers 
-Connected to the Internet to provide services to others on the Internet
-Thermal printers
-Plotters

Audio and Video Devices 

~Translates audio 
 -information from  the computer into sounds that  people can understand
-Speakers and headphones
~Bluetooth Technology
-Wireless technology
-Used to connect to speakers and headsets

Combination Input and Output Devices 

~Headsets  
-Combine a microphone and headphones

~Multifunctional devices (MFD) 
-Cost efficient but lower quality
-All-in-one printers are a good example

~Telephones 
-Known as Telephony and Internet Telephony
-Voice-over IP (VoIP)
-Hangouts
-Face Time
-Skype

Drones and Robots 
~Drones or unarmed aerial vehicles 
-Take input from a controller and send back video and sound to the user
-Very cost effective now

~Robots 
-Use microphones, cameras and other sensors as input
 -Output is dependent on the use for the robot
-Assists in surgery

~Virtual Reality 
-Created in 3D through computers for a virtual experience
-Headgear with gloves have sensors to collect data that work with software

Ergonomics 

~Study of human 

~factors related to things people use 

~Fit the task to the user to avoid: 

-Eyestrain and headache 

-Back and neck pain 

-Repetitive strain injury 

Ergonomic Challenged Devices 

~Portable devices are not set up for ergonomics 

~Laptops 

-Because the keyboard and monitor are connected, they cannot be set up ergonomically 

~Tablets 

-Tablet hunch is caused by the users head being improperly aligned to the viewing surface

~Smartphones 

-Blackberry thumb results from using thumbs to type on a tiny keyboard