A presentation I did for my son\'s BSA Troop about Computers Merit Badge

1. Get your Pancake
tickets TONIGHT!!!!
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 1 Jon Davis

2. Computers Merit Badge
•Online Safety
•What is a computer and what does it “do”?
•History of the computer
•Computer Programs
•Networking and the Internet
•Copyrighted material
•Careers
The Jacquard loom

3. Online Safety
• Never give personal information in Chat rooms
– Name, Address, Phone Number, Age
• NEVER give your password(s) to anyone
– Except your parents in case of emergency
• Look for HTTPS:// on sites (SSL security)
• Watch out for fake websites that look REAL
• http://www.opendns.com/phishing-quiz/
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 3 Jon Davis

4. What is a computer?
• A computer is a programmable machine
designed to automatically carry out a
sequence of arithmetic or logical operations.[1]
• Integrated circuit
– Microprocessor
• Intel 8080 (1974, 8-bit)
• Motorola 6800 (1974, 8-bit)
• CISC – Complex Instruction Set Computing
• RISC – Reduced Instruction Set Computing
[1] Wikipedia
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 4 Jon Davis

5. What makes a computer a computer?
• Computer case • Keyboard, Monitor
– Power supply • Optional Components
– Motherboard – Mouse
• CPU – Printer
• Memory
– Scanner
• Expansion slots
– Speakers
– Hard drive, CD/DVD
drive – External drive(s)
– Ports
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 5 Jon Davis

6. Where are computers used?
• Home (Personal Computer)
• Cell phones
• Cars
• Appliances
• Traffic control signals
• Cash registers
• Others???
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 6 Jon Davis

7. What can a computer do?
• Spreadsheet • Games
– Family budget • Music / Movies
– Household assets
• Word processor
– Letters
– School papers
• Email
• Powerpoint
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 7 Jon Davis

8. History of the Computer
• ENIAC
– Univ. of PA (Moore School)
– Vacuum tubes
– 1800 sq. ft.
• Commodore 64
– Integrated circuit
– 64 kB RAM
– $135 production cost
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 8 Jon Davis

9. History of the Computer
• Apple / IBM
– Apple II IBM PC XT
– Macintosh / x86 based PCs
• Microprocessor capability gains
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 9 Jon Davis

10. History of the Computer
• Apple / Windows
– Macintosh (Apple) x86 based PCs (Windows)
• Microprocessor capability gains
– Moore’s law
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 10 Jon Davis

11. Computer Programs
• Program: A computer program (also
software, or just a program) is a sequence of
instructions written to perform a specified
task with a computer.[1]
• Programs are written in programming
“languages” (e.g. COBOL, FORTRAN, C++, Java)
COBOL – Common mainframe programming language for business applications
FORTRAN – Common scientific programming langauge
C++ – An early UNIX programming language, has been adapted to other O/S’s
Java – A hardware independent programming language used in many arenas
[1] Wikipedia
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 11 Jon Davis

12. Computer Programs
• Commonly used software programs
• Email
– Outlook, Outlook Express, Thunderbird, Eudora
• Integrated Office Suites
– Microsoft Office, WordPerfect
Suite, OpenOffice, NeroOffice (MAC), Google Docs
• Word Processor
• Spreadsheet
• Presentations
• Drawing
• Database
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 12 Jon Davis

13. Review
• Name of an early • What program is not in an
computer Office Suite
– Word processor
– UNIVAC
– Web browser
– ENIAC – Database
– ShopVac – Speadsheet
• Which is older • Which is optional
– Commodore 64 – Monitor
– Mouse
– Macintosh
– CD Drive
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 13 Jon Davis

14. Computer Programs - Security
• Anti-virus
– Kaspersky
– Symantec
– Trend
– McAfee
– AVG
• Anti-malware
– MalwareBytes
– Adaware
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 14 Jon Davis

15. Computer Programs - Security
• Passwords
– Weak, Moderate, Strong
– http://www.passwordmeter.com/
• Firewalls
– Windows built-in
– Many A/V vendors offer firewalls also
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 15 Jon Davis

16. The Internet (World Wide Web)
• We owe it all to Al Gore!
• Computers all over the world connected by
communications hardware and software
• ISO OSI framework
– Messages travel between computers in things
called packets. Packets consist of a long string of
1’s and 0’s arranged in a standardized fashion
– An email can be sent from Pennsylvania and arrive
in California within seconds
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 16 Jon Davis

17. Components of a home “network”
• Cable modem (may have a router built-in)
• Router (possibly wireless)
• Ethernet cable or 802.11 wireless adapter
– 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n
• IP address (4.2.2.2)
• MAC address (54-CE-61-0B-D1-0F)
• DHCP and DNS
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 17 Jon Davis

18. Software “piracy”
• Making or installing illegal copies of software
– OK to make backups copies of CDs / DVDs
– Usually OK to install on multiple machines, as long
as only one is in use at any given time
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 18 Jon Davis

19. Software Licensing
• Proprietary software
– Microsoft Office, Norton anti-virus, many games
• Shareware
– Available to download and try
– Author expects compensation for continued use
• Freeware
– Open to distribute freely (possibly source code)
– GNU GPL
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 19 Jon Davis

20. Music and Video copyrights
• Most music and video is copyrighted
• It is not legal to download music and store it
on your personal computer for later playback
without having paid a pre-determined price
– iTunes … most songs cost $0.99
– Bearshare, Limewire, etc. are “illegal”
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 20 Jon Davis

21. Career Opportunities
• Systems administrator
• Network administrator / Network security
• Telecommunications engineer (convergence)
• Business Analyst
• Programmer / Web developer
• Database administrator (DBA)
• Technician (Helpdesk)
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 21 Jon Davis

22. Questions
John Hamilton
6/21/2012 Computers Merit Badge Slide 22 Jon Davis