In this paper we will discuss input and output devices, as well as storage devices and there affect on the speed of a computer. We will see when it is appropriate to use each device, as well as examine advantages and disadvantages of some of the devices.
The first thing that we will discuss is what devices we would use for inputting particular types of data. Of particular interest, we will be taking a look at data from printed questionnaires, telephone surveys, bank checks, retail tags, and long documents. For printed questionnaires, the best choice for inputting the data would be to use an optical data reader that uses OCR, optical character recognition (Stair, 2006.) The questionnaire could be scanned with this reader and converted into a text document. The best input for telephone surveys would be voice recognition devices. This would allow the information to immediately be converted into usable data. Bank checks should be inputted with Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR) devices (Stair, 2006.) Special ink is used to print characters on checks which can be read by both people and the MICR device. Point-of-Sale (POS) devices are used for retail tags (Stair, 2006.) These devices can incorporate multiple input devices such as bar code readers, keyboards, and a mouse in order to track inventory, sales, and other measurable data for a business. The last type of data is a long document. If the document already exists, it can inputted by using a scanner. Otherwise, the computer user will have to type it on a keyboard using word processing software. The other option would be to use a microphone and voice recognition software in order to speak what is to be put into the document.
The next issue that we are concerned about is using the proper output device for a particular situation. The most used output devices are different types of monitors and printers. We will not concern ourselves with whether a specific type of monitor or printer should...