40th birthday of the mouse

One computer device could be called as being most in touch with humans, the mouse, which celebrated its 40th birthday on December 1, 2008. The first computer mouse was a little wooden box with a single red button on top and a wire hanging from the back, because of which it was likened to a rodent. And while computers have transformed from big white boxes to cool flat screens and laptops, the mouse has stayed the same. Its designer, Douglas Engelbart, is not a rich man as he never got any royalties because the patent expired before the mouse became a must have.

INTRODUCTION AND CONFIGURATION OF A COMPUTER

The word 'computer' is derived from the word 'compute'. It is a fascinating machine, which helps in our day-to-day affairs such as education, business, transport, banking, medicine, industry, agriculture, design, entertainment, and may be defined as an electronic machine that receives data and programs, stores them, processes the data according to the program and presents the results to the user. This is the main reason that the computers have become the part of our everyday life.

The following are the main components of a computer:

• Input unit
• Central Processing Unit (CPU)
• Output Unit
  

A computer system combines the following elements:

• hardware
• software
• people
• procedures
• data
• connectivity(when two or more computers are connected to each other)

THE COMPONENTS OF A COMPUTER

Basic Components:

• Processor
• Motherboard
• Hard disk
• RAM(Random Access Memory)
• Display/Video card
• Keyboard
• Floppy drive
• CD drive
• Mouse
• Monitor(Vedio display unit)
• etc.

Optional Components:

• Printer
• Scanner
• Modem
• DVD Drive
• Speakers
• Microphone
• Zip Drive
• Web Camera
• Joystick
• etc.