Computer Fundamentals

Punched card is not associated with personal computers. A punched card is a piece of stiff paper that contains either commands for controlling automated machinery or data for data processing applications.

All three devices can produce hard copies (paper output). Line printers and dot matrix printers are both impact printers that create physical documents, while typewriter terminals combine keyboard input with printed output.

MANIAC (Mathematical Analyzer, Numerical Integrator, and Computer) was the nickname given to the computer used at Los Alamos National Laboratory in 1952 for H-bomb calculations. ENIAC was earlier (1940s), while UNIVAC was a commercial computer.

William English (Bill English) built the first computer mouse prototype in 1964 under Douglas Engelbart's direction at Stanford Research Institute. Engelbart invented the concept, but English was the engineer who physically constructed it.

Word length refers to the number of bits a processor can handle in a single operation. Common word lengths are 32-bit or 64-bit, meaning the CPU processes 32 or 64 bits at a time. It is not measured in physical units like millimeters or bytes.

In the early 1980s, when this question was written, 256K of RAM was considered substantial for business applications. 4K and 16K were too small for serious business work, while 64K was minimal. The question reflects historical computing context.

Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human characteristics or behavior to non-human entities like gods, animals, or objects. When applied to computers/machines, it's called anthropomorphism. Cybernetics and AI are technical fields, not the act of assigning human traits.

The ALU (Arithmetic Logic Unit) is the CPU component responsible for arithmetic operations (addition, subtraction) and logical comparisons (greater than, equal to). The control unit directs operations, while the disk unit stores data.

George Boole developed Boolean algebra and symbolic logic in the mid-1800s, which became the foundation for digital computer logic. Herman Hollerith developed punch card tabulation, Von Neumann contributed to computer architecture, and Pascal was a programming language pioneer.

When multiple users access a central computer simultaneously, each user needs a terminal (keyboard and display) to communicate with the central system. Terminals allow many users to share the central computer's resources through time-sharing.

The program counter is a specific CPU register that keeps track of execution by holding the memory address of the next instruction to be executed. Index registers and memory address registers serve different functions in address calculation and data transfer.

Digital plotters produce high-quality line drawings and are the standard output device for CAD systems. They offer superior resolution and precision compared to dot matrix or line printers, making them ideal for technical drawings and graphs.

Intelligent terminals have their own processor and memory, allowing users to program them for specific tasks. They can execute instructions independently without constant mainframe communication. Dumb terminals and VDTs only display and send data, while smart terminals have limited processing capabilities but aren't user-programmable.

Buffer memory temporarily stores data being transferred between devices of different speeds. The CPU quickly sends print output to the buffer, then immediately continues processing other tasks while the buffer slowly feeds data to the printer. This prevents CPU idle time.

Computer memory stores both data and programs (instructions). The CPU fetches program instructions from memory to execute operations. Bytes and bits are units of measurement, while registers are CPU components, not memory contents.

Multi-user systems save costs by connecting multiple dumb terminals (which only have keyboard and display) to a single processing unit. Dumb terminals are inexpensive because they lack independent processing power. Workstations and PCs have their own processors, while mainframes are the central processing units themselves.

Octal (base-8) is used as a shorthand representation of binary (base-2) because each octal digit represents exactly 3 binary digits. When binary numbers become too long to work with conveniently, converting to octal makes them more compact and readable. For example, binary 10111011 becomes octal 273.

Bipolar semiconductor chips (using ECL or TTL logic) are fast but expensive and power-hungry, making them suitable for ALU operations where speed is critical. MOS (Metal-Oxide Semiconductor) technology is slower but much cheaper, allows high-density integration, and is ideal for large primary memory (RAM) storage. Silicon and Germanium are raw materials, not specific technologies.

IBM's PS/2 line used the newer 3.5 inch diskette format, which became the industry standard replacing the older 5.25 inch disks. The 3.5 inch diskette came in a rigid plastic case with a sliding metal shutter, offering better protection than the flexible 5.25 inch disks.

EBCDIC (Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code) is an 8-bit character encoding developed by IBM and used primarily in IBM mainframe computers. It's different from ASCII, which is more common in smaller systems. Minicomputers and microcomputers typically use ASCII, while supercomputers use various encodings but rarely EBCDIC.

The ALU performs comparison operations as part of its decision-making capabilities. It can determine if one value is greater than, less than, or equal to another, which is fundamental for conditional branching in programs. All three comparison types are standard ALU operations.

Option (2) is correct.