Part 1 of a Series of Basic Tutorials about Computers and Computer Terminology, aimed at turning "Computer Dummies" into "Computer Understanders". :)

I hear it all the time, statements like "I don't know nuthin' 'bout no computers...", or "I'm a computer Dummy.", or something along those lines...

The sad thing is that, usually in those cases, it is True... The redeeming value is that, also in those cases, it is easy to have a basic understanding of a computer, at least enough that you can know the major parts of a computer and what they do in relation to each other and your data. Having this understanding will help you both when you use the computer, and also when you talk to other people about topics related to computers, whatever the circumstances.

We have vocabularies so that we can communicate effectively when talking about specific subjects; that applies to computers just as it does to your business, recipes for cooking, mathematics, and any other number of things where there are task-specific tools and measurements. In the computer world, there are some words that can be applied to nearly every computer ever made that people use. We'll concentrate on those terms, and I'll explain them to you in a way that should make it easy to understand. Then, the next time you "talk computer", you can do so in a way which is easy, correct, *and* effective.

Think of your computer as a standard office desk... It sits there in front of you, ready to be used to help you organize and work your way through nearly any task you give yourself. Nearly every desk has:

1. A top surface to work on.
2. A 'file folder drawer' for storage of documents and files and folders.
3. A pull-out drawer for small items that you use frequently.

These three things have their equivalents in computers, below:

1. RAM - Short for "Random Access Memory", has short-term but fast-to-access data storage (...it is 'short term, because if the power to the computer gets turned off, then RAM 'forgets' what was in there!). The more RAM your computer has, the more files you can be working on at the same time. So more RAM gives you more 'room' (more desk top surface) to spread out all the individual papers in a folder, so that you don't have to shuffle back and forth to find the one you want. Less RAM means that you cannot see all of the papers of a folder at once; you have to stack some here or there, to fit them all in. This makes working slower, and not as effective or efficient. ...
2. Hard Drive (or Hard Disk Drive) has long-term, but relatively slow-to-access storage ('long term' means that data on a hard drive is still there even when the power is turned off). This is where you store data when you are not actively working on that data. "Files" equate to the things/data which fill "Folders". A 'Folder', in computer-speak, is more properly called a "Directory". The Files in a Directory can be text files (plain or fancy documents composed of only words), or 'executables' (files that can be made to run, by 'executing' them), or one of many other types of File. There are some other important things to know about a Hard Drive, which we will get into in a future blog.
3. The "Task Bar" - that's the thin strip you see at the bottom of your computer screen which has a way to Start programs, shows you what program windows you have open, what time it is, that sort of thing. It displays the status of your computer and any programs running on it which you have started.

So, to put this into perspective/use: 

• your computer is up and running, and you click on a Program or Document icon (an "icon" is the little picture that is associated with individual programs or files, so that you can easily recognize and differentiate them from one another).
• The computer keeps a record of where on the Hard Drive the Directory for that icon is, so when you click it, it goes into the Hard Drive and pulls out the data,
• putting it into RAM, so that you can work on it, and you,
• looking at the Task Bar, should see a small block with the name of the document or program, which indicates to you that it is up and running.

Congratulations!!! You are no longer a Dummy. :)

This is the first of a series of blogs planned which will help you understand and use your computer better. We welcome any feedback or questions pertaining to the above!