A COMPUTER

PLEASE COMMENT ON THE FOLLOWING

Nothing represents modern life better than computers: they have entered its every aspect and can even be considered the symbolic representation of the modern world.

START UPDo you consider yourself to be “computer literate“?

If ‘yes’, in which areas? If ‘no’, why?

Does having a computer help make your life easier?Or does it make your life more complicated? Please explain. How have computers changed the way you work or study?What are the differences between first computers and modern ICT devices?Are there any disadvantages of using computers in our everyday lives?What do you think computers will be used for in the future?

PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING TEXT:

I remember a time before cellphones, computers, and video

games. These memories remain ever clear in my mind.

As a kid and even a teenager I never imagined the way

technology would not only change my life, but also, the

world.

The computer has replaced so many things I used as a child,

that I'm not even sure where to begin. My Grandma, (God

rest her soul) was like the big sister I never had when I was

a teenager. I could tell her anything, and she always gave

me good advice and never judged me. In order to

communicate with her I wrote her letters and she wrote me

back. I am so happy that I still have those

memories of her.

Now everyone sends e-mail, yes, even myself. It's so much quicker and more effective, because you get a response so much sooner.

When I was a kid, dinner was always at the kitchen table at the exact time every day! We would all be finished and had everything cleaned up, so we could all sit around the TV for the evening news with Dan Rather. That's how we got our news.

Because of my busy lifestyle, I now get my news every time I log on, by looking at the news links on my Yahoo! page. If I see news I want to read more about, I click on the link.

In grade school and high school when I needed to write a report I would go to the set of encyclopedias we had to do my research. Then write my paper. If the paper I was writing was about something current, I used the evening news or went to the library to look through newspapers.

Now it's all about Google. Between my daughter and myself, we use Google many times a day. While writing my papers as a kid if I didn't know how to spell a word, I used a dictionary. Now I either look up the word in an on line dictionary or use spell check.

How about you?Can you think about of life before computers, cellphones, and video games!

Any memories?

The first computers were people. "Computer" was originally a job title: it was used to describe those people whose job it was to perform repetitive arithmetic calculations. In the 1930s, with the first electric powered computers, the word started referring to a machine.

The earliest electronic computers were not personal in any way: they were enormous, hugely expensive, and required a team of engineers and other specialists to keep them running. The capacity of the early generation of computers was determined by their physical size: the greater the size, the bigger the volume. Besides, many of early computer technology innovations were developed for military purposes and kept secret from the public for decades.

In time, new technologies made it possible to build computers that were smaller in size. One of the most significant inventions in the history of computers was certainly the microprocessor. Before it was invented, computers needed a separate integrated-circuit chip for each one of their functions, but now whole processors could fit into a single chip that can run the computer’s programs, store information and manage data all by itself.

This innovation made it cheaper and easier to manufacture computers and led to the introduction of the first personal computers in the 1970s. BASIC programming language, adapted by Bill Gates and Paul G. Allen (Harvard students at the time), made the first PCs easier to use. The two programmers soon founded a company of their own - Microsoft. Soon afterwards, Steve Jobs and Peter Wozniak made a homemade computer Apple I that would likewise change the world. The PC revolution was ready to begin.

During the next few decades, personal computers gradually become irreplaceable, both in offices and at homes. New inventions, such as Graphic User Interface and computer mouse, made PCs even more convenient and user-friendly. Hundreds of companies sell personal computers, accessories, sophisticated software and games, and PCs are used for a wide range of functions from basic word processing to editing photos to managing budgets. Today, laptops, smart phones and tablet computers allow us to have a PC with us wherever we go and to do almost anything.

1. What did the word computer originally mean?

2. What was one of the most important inventions regarding computers according to the text above? Explain why.

3. Explain the importance of Steve Jobs and Bill Gates for computer history.

4. Find several adjectives that describe modern computers in the text above.

I Answer the following questions:

INTERNET

The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet Protocol Suite (TCP/IP) to serve billions of users worldwide.

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WHAT IS INTERNET?WHAT IS INTERNET?

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It is a network of networks that consists of millions of private, public, academic, business, and government networks.

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HISTORYHISTORYThe origins of the Internet reach back to the 1960s when the United States funded research projects of its military agencies.

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Development of new networking technologies commercialized an international network in the mid 1990s.

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As of 2009, a quarter of Earth's population uses the services of the Internet.

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INTERNET TODAYINTERNET TODAYDuring the 1990s, it was estimated that the Internet grew by 100 percent per year, with a brief period of explosive growth in 1996 and 1997.The estimated population of Internet users is over two billion.

The Internet can now be accessed almost anywhere by numerous means, especially through mobile Internet devices, from anywhere there is a wireless network supporting that device's technology.

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INTERNET TODAYINTERNET TODAY

is the country which has the world’s fastest broadband connection. They offer great Internet speed for the lowest price in the world.

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JAPAN

This is a big problem of Internet users from all over the world, today.When a computer connects to a network and begins communicating with other computers, it is essentially taking a risk.

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SECURITYSECURITY

Basic security measures involve protection by well selected passwords, change of file permissions and back up of computer's data.Security will probably always be high on the IT agenda simply because cyber criminals know that a successful attack can be very profitable.

Antivirus programs and Internet security programs are useful in protecting a computer or programmable device/system from malware such as viruses, Trojans, spyware, worms or bots.

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SECURITYSECURITY

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ACCESSIBILITYACCESSIBILITYThe prevalent language for communication on the Internet is English.

Common methods of Internet access in homes include dial-up, landline broadband, Wi-Fi, satellite and 3G technology cell phones.

Public places to use the Internet include libraries and Internet cafes.

Entirely new forms of social interaction, activities, and organizing.

Social networking websites have created a new form of socialization and interaction.

Also many political groups use the Internet to achieve a new method of organizing in order to carry out their mission, having given rise to Internet activism.

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SOCIAL IMPACTSOCIAL IMPACT

Some governments, such as those of Iran, North Korea, the People's Republic of China, and Saudi Arabia, restrict what people in their countries can access on the Internet, especially political and religious content.

SOCIAL IMPACTSOCIAL IMPACT

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In the first decade of the 21st century the first generation is raised with widespread availability of Internet connectivity, bringing consequences and concerns in areas such as personal privacy and identity, and distribution of copyrighted materials.

SOCIAL IMPACTSOCIAL IMPACT

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INTERNET HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT

Find some

about Internet and its use of today.