Our Digital World: Introduction to Computing

Our Digital World: Introduction to Computing, 5th Edition......Page 1
Copyright page......Page 2
Brief Contents......Page 3
Contents......Page 5
Who Are You?......Page 9
Taking a Chapter Tour......Page 10
Dynamic Training......Page 13
Chapter Review and Assessment......Page 14
Karen Lankisch......Page 15
Denise Seguin......Page 16
Acknowledgments......Page 17
Why Does It Matter?......Page 21
1.1 Just What Is a Computer?......Page 22
Supercomputer......Page 23
Laptop......Page 24
The Convergence of Computing Devices......Page 25
Computers Are Everywhere......Page 27
Finding a Career in Computing......Page 28
1.4 What Is Information Technology?......Page 29
The Information Processing Cycle......Page 30
Summing Up......Page 36
Terms to Know......Page 38
Projects......Page 39
Class Conversations......Page 42
Why Does It Matter?......Page 45
Cutting-Edge Internet......Page 46
The Future of the Internet......Page 48
What Is the Web?......Page 49
2.3 Joining the Digital World......Page 53
Connecting to the Internet......Page 54
Paying for the Privilege: Internet Service Providers......Page 55
How Browsers View What’s Online......Page 56
IPs and URLs: What’s in an Address?......Page 57
Browsing Web Pages......Page 58
Searching for Content Online......Page 59
Evaluating Web Content......Page 62
The Invisible Web (aka the Deep Web)......Page 64
B2B E-Commerce......Page 65
C2C E-Commerce......Page 66
2.7 Connecting in Cyberspace......Page 67
Email......Page 68
Instant Messaging......Page 69
Audio and Video Conferencing......Page 70
Summing Up......Page 71
Terms to Know......Page 73
Projects......Page 74
Class Conversations......Page 77
Why Does It Matter?......Page 79
3.1 A World of Digital Devices......Page 80
The Motherboard......Page 81
Power Supply......Page 82
Ports......Page 83
Storage......Page 85
A Wide Assortment of Input Devices......Page 87
Getting the Most from Your Computer with Output Devices......Page 90
What Processor Speed Do You Need?......Page 94
How Much Memory and Storage Is Enough?......Page 95
Which Operating System Is Right for You?......Page 96
Should You Opt for Higher-End Graphics and Sound?......Page 97
Summing Up......Page 98
Terms to Know......Page 100
Projects......Page 101
Class Conversations......Page 104
Why Does It Matter?......Page 105
Starting Your Computer......Page 106
The Operating System Package......Page 108
A (Brief!) History of Operating Systems......Page 109
Understanding Platforms and Platform Dependency......Page 110
Network Operating Systems......Page 115
The Future of the OS......Page 116
Configuring Hardware......Page 117
Controlling Input and Output Devices......Page 118
Managing System Performance and Memory......Page 119
Managing File Systems......Page 122
Providing Search and Help Capabilities......Page 123
Sending the Computer to Sleep or Shutting It Off......Page 125
A Wealth of Mobile OS Choices......Page 126
Summing Up......Page 129
Terms to Know......Page 130
Projects......Page 131
Class Conversations......Page 135
Why Does It Matter?......Page 137
5.1 Software’s Role in the World of Computing......Page 138
Productivity Software......Page 139
Software to Keep Us Organized......Page 143
Graphics, Multimedia, and Web Pages......Page 145
Entertainment and Personal Use......Page 147
Software Gets Professional......Page 148
Mobile Applications......Page 151
Developing Software......Page 152
How Software Is Delivered to You......Page 153
How We Pay for Software......Page 155
Importing and Exporting......Page 156
Embedding and Linking Content......Page 157
Using Shared Features......Page 158
Summing Up......Page 159
Terms to Know......Page 161
Projects......Page 162
Class Conversations......Page 165
Why Does It Matter?......Page 167
6.2 Exploring Communications Systems......Page 168
Types of Signals......Page 169
Transmission Speed......Page 170
Wired Transmissions......Page 172
Wireless Transmissions......Page 173
Wireless Networking Standards......Page 176
Types of Networks......Page 179
Network Architecture......Page 180
Network Topologies......Page 182
Network Devices......Page 183
Network Operating Systems......Page 186
6.7 Securing a Network......Page 187
6.8 Interesting Trends in Networking......Page 188
Cloud Computing......Page 189
The Evolution of 5G......Page 190
Summing Up......Page 192
Terms to Know......Page 195
Projects......Page 196
Class Conversations......Page 200
Why Does It Matter?......Page 201
7.2 Social Technology Comes of Age......Page 202
How the Social Web Was Born......Page 203
Overview of Social Technology Today......Page 205
The Future of Social Technology......Page 206
How Blogging Has Evolved......Page 207
The Many Uses of Blogs......Page 208
The Amazing Growth of Social Networking......Page 210
Interesting Trends for Social Networks......Page 211
How Social Bookmarking Works......Page 215
What’s a Wiki?......Page 216
Who’s Using Wikis?......Page 217
How Media Sharing Works......Page 218
How People Are Using Media Sharing......Page 219
Summing Up......Page 220
Terms to Know......Page 221
Projects......Page 222
Class Conversations......Page 224
Why Does It Matter?......Page 227
8.1 The Role of Security and Privacy in Your Digital World......Page 228
Computer Security: Where’s the Threat?......Page 229
Basic Tools of Computer Security......Page 231
Protecting Your Home Network......Page 232
The Menace of Malware......Page 233
How Is Malware Spread?......Page 237
Managing Cookies (Hold the Milk)......Page 238
Foiling Phishers: No Catch Today......Page 239
Social Media Risks: Click Wisely......Page 240
Protecting Your Laptop or Tablet and Its Precious Data......Page 241
Using Wi-Fi Safely......Page 242
Mobile Phone Security......Page 243
Data Privacy in the Cloud......Page 245
Data Privacy and Wearables......Page 246
Corporate Security Tech Tools......Page 247
Preventing Unauthorized Access......Page 248
Denial-of-Service Attacks......Page 249
Data Protection in Disastrous Times......Page 250
Building Firewalls......Page 251
Keeping Viruses and Spyware under Control......Page 252
Using Passwords Effectively......Page 253
Using PINs......Page 254
Summing Up......Page 255
Terms to Know......Page 257
Projects......Page 259
Class Conversations......Page 262
Glossary......Page 265
Index......Page 281
Photo Credits......Page 293