In this exercise you will use a presentation program. Don’t worry if you do not understand all the tools and commands right now; you will have a chance to wor[r]
(1)Lesson 4: Computer Software and Concepts Lesson Objectives
In this lesson you will be introduced to application software, look at different application programs and explore the typical ways software is used. Upon completion you will be familiar with the following:
different types of applications
file types used by different applications What is Software?
We use the term software to refer to everything (that is not hardware) that makes a computer run, including operating systems and application programs
A program is a sequence of instructions that guide a computer through a series of actions designed to perform specific tasks, such as calculating the results of a formula and displaying those results onscreen
Programs are written by programmers who use special programming languages What is an Application Program?
Objective 13.1
An application program is a software program that gives you the ability to create files that are useful for sharing information
That means, an application program allows you to create a book report about The Scarlet Letter, or a spreadsheet showing your current grade status, or a presentation on sea otters
You use an application program to do work
Different application programs are designed to help you produce different kinds of work. The kind of work you need to do will determine which application program you should use
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Word Processing
A word processing application enables you to create, edit, save, format and print documents. Most word processing programs also allow you to insert pictures and other objects
You can use a word processing application to create letters, memos, invoices, faxes, articles, and sometimes basic Web pages, newsletters, forms, brochures, or flyers
The following examples of documents you can produce with word processing programs include a letter, a newsletter, and a class assignment
Some popular word processing applications include: Microsoft Word
Word Perfect Google Docs
When you start a word processing program, you see a blank page on the screen and a blinking cursor
It looks a lot like sitting down with a pencil and a sheet of paper, doesn’t it? There are endless possibilities – you just need to start typing
Files created with a word processor are called documents. Documents created with Microsoft Word have a .docx file name extension
A file name extension is a suffix added to the base name of a computer file, and separated from the base name by a dot (.). Operating systems and application programs use file name extensions to recognize the format of a file and to identify which program created the file and which program may be used to open the file successfully
Try It! Exercise
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In this exercise you will use a word processor. Don’t worry if you do not understand all the tools and commands right now; you will have a chance to work more indepth with Microsoft Word in an upcoming lesson. The purpose of this exercise is to get an idea of what working in a word processing program is like
On the desktop, doubleclick the 7328 Student Files folder In the Contents pane, doubleclick Software
Doubleclick AboutMe to open this empty document in Microsoft Word. The blinking cursor is called the insertion point. It shows you where text will be entered when you begin to type
Type: My name is , then press Word enters the text, then moves the insertion point to the next line Press again to add a blank line, then type: This is the first time I have used a word processing program. It seems pretty simple. All I have had to do so far is type
Notice that when the text reaches the right margin, Word automatically moves the insertion point down to the next line
Press + to save your changes, then click the (Close) button at the far right corner of the Word window to exit Microsoft Word
What did you think about using a word processing program? Did it seem pretty straightforward?
Spreadsheets
Spreadsheet programs perform mathematical calculations, help you analyze data, and produce graphs, charts, and diagrams. If you need to track numbers or analyze information for trends or patterns, a spreadsheet is a good choice
Spreadsheets provide the ability to sort, find or filter information, and are very useful for managing and manipulating large amounts of data. You can use spreadsheets to track information such as reading minutes, school supply expenses, assignment or report marks, and so on, as shown in the following figure
Popular spreadsheet applications include: Microsoft Excel
Quattro Pro Google Sheets
When you start a spreadsheet program, you see an empty ledger sheet on the screen
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A ledger is an accounting book. The page is organized into rows and columns. The intersection of a row and column is called a cell
You enter data into the cells of the spreadsheet. The rows and columns help you organize your data
The rectangle with the border around it shows the current cell; this is your current position in the spreadsheet A spreadsheet file is called a workbook and it can contain any number of individual worksheets or reports. For example, an entire workbook may be called Geometry and the workbook might include a worksheet for theorems, and a worksheet for proofs, and a worksheet for formulas
Workbooks created in Microsoft Excel have a .xlsx file name extension
Try It! Exercise
In this exercise you will use a spreadsheet program. Don’t worry if you do not understand all the tools and commands right now; you will have a chance to work more indepth with Microsoft Excel in an upcoming lesson The purpose of this exercise is to get an idea of what working in a spreadsheet program is like
On the desktop, navigate to the 7328 Student Files\Software folder, if necessary.
Doubleclick MyClasses to open this empty spreadsheet in Microsoft Excel. The rectangle with the border around it shows that the current position of the cursor is cell A1
Type: Math, then press Excel enters the text in cell A1, and moves the cursor to cell A2 Type: History, then press
Type: Reading, then press Type: Technology, then press
Press + to save your changes, then click the (Close) button at the far right corner of the Excel window to exit Microsoft Excel
Did you like your first look at a spreadsheet program? Do you think entering text into separate cells would help keep your data organized?
Presentations
Presentation programs allow you to share information in the form of a slide show. These types of applications include a slide editor that allows you to create and add text to slides, as well as features that allow you to insert and manipulate graphic images. They also include a builtin slide show system for presenting your content Most presentation applications allow you to add text, formatting, charts, diagrams, tables, images and even sound and video clips to slides. You can also add special effects such as animations, and apply different types of transitions as you move from one slide to another in a slide show
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The following is a sample of files you can create with a presentation program including an award certificate, and an entire presentation shown in slide sorter view
Popular presentation applications include: Microsoft PowerPoint
Keynote for Mac Google Sheets
When you start a presentation program, you see a slide, and a navigation pane that allows you to move from one slide to another
Slides contain placeholders for text that you enter. Click a placeholder and type the text that you want
The slide shown in the figure at the left contains two placeholders – one for a title and one for a subtitle
PowerPoint includes several types of slide layouts, and each layout contains a different arrangement of placeholders. By adding slides with different layouts, you can create slideshows that are interesting and pleasing to view
Files created in presentation programs are called presentations or slide shows. Slide shows created in Microsoft PowerPoint have a .pptx file name extension
Try It! Exercise
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In this exercise you will use a presentation program. Don’t worry if you do not understand all the tools and commands right now; you will have a chance to work more indepth with Microsoft PowerPoint in an upcoming lesson. The purpose of this exercise is to get an idea of what working in a presentation program is like
On the desktop, navigate to the 7328 Student Files\Software folder, if necessary.
Doubleclick DigitalLit to open this empty presentation in Microsoft PowerPoint. The first slide in every presentation is a title slide
In the slide, click the placeholder called Click to add title, then type: Digital Literacy to enter a title In the slide, click the placeholder called Click to add subtitle, then type: Skills for Today and Tomorrow Notice that as you add text to slide in the slide pane, the text shows up in the slide thumbnail in the navigation pane as well
Above the navigation pane is a command button that says “New Slide.” Click the New Slide button to add a new slide to the presentation. Ask your teacher for help if needed
PowerPoint adds a new slide to the presentation with a different layout than the first one In the slide, click the placeholder called Click to add title, then type: Word Processors
Press + to save your changes, then click the (Close) button at the far right corner of the PowerPoint window to exit Microsoft PowerPoint
Do you think it would be easy or difficult to add information to a presentation one slide at a time? How do you think presentation programs compare to spreadsheets and word processors?
Entertainment Programs
Entertainment software is used to play multimedia content. They can be installed on your own computer, game console or mobile device, and are also made available as web applications The term “multimedia” includes any content that contains graphics, audio, or video. You can view audio and video files in a “player” program. Popular player applications include: Windows Media Player (Windows) QuickTime (Mac OS X) SMPlayer (Linux) In addition to the player that comes preinstalled with your operating system, you can download and install other player applications (such as RealPlayer) from the Internet
These programs include features similar to those on physical audio and video players such as play, rewind, repeat, or shuffle buttons. They also include the ability to create your own playlist that consists of songs you want to listen to, in the order you want to hear them
Some examples of entertainment software include Windows Media Player, Windows Media Center, iTunes, GarageBand, iPhoto, iMovie
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Multimedia files must be saved in a file format recognized by your player software in order for your computer to play them
Popular video formats are .avi; .mov; .mpg/mpeg; mp4; and .wmv Common audio formats are .aiff; .mp3; and .wav
Try It! Exercise
In this exercise you will be introduced to a multimedia program included with Windows, and you will go online to view an entertainment environment. If you do not have sound available on the system, your teacher may provide a demonstration to the class instead
Click the Start button and point at All Programs. When the menu appears, scroll in the list if necessary and click Window Media Player
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The number and type of albums or audio files that appears in the list will depend on what has been saved on your system. The screen here shows only the default audio files that are included with Windows 7
Click the first item in the list and then click the Play button at the bottom You should now be listening to the sample song for this album
Click the Stop button to end the audio
Click the Play tab near the top right corner of the window. (This panel may already be displayed if someone has used Windows Media Player prior to this exercise.)
Windows Media Player shows a playlist based on the listed items. You can choose to save the playlist as shown, drag the audio items up or down the list to change the play order, or click Clear list to remove the list. You can also use the Create playlist button to create a new playlist for audio or video items
Now let’s watch a video in Windows Media Player
In the left pane, click Videos
Windows 7 comes with a sample Wildlife video installed
Doubleclick the Wildlife in HD video to begin playback. (If the Wildlife in HD video is not available, skip to Step 9.)
Click the Stop button to stop playback
Click the Go to Library link to return to the Windows Media Player library Close the Windows Media Player window
Now let’s visit an Internet site that offers online games for entertainment and education Click the Internet Explorer icon on the taskbar
In the address bar at the top, type: www.disney.com and press Click Games from the navigation bar near the top of the screen
Click a game of your choice and play for a few minutes. What options are available for this online
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entertainment game?
When you are finished, close the web browser
Graphics Programs
Graphic design programs are sometimes grouped with multimedia software programs because in addition to manipulating pictures, you can use some of these programs to create or edit sounds or video (Adobe Flash is used to create motion clips, for example)
A dedicated graphic design program is different from a software program with builtin drawing features. For example, Word or PowerPoint may offer picture manipulation tools, but they are not as flexible or powerful as a dedicated graphic design program
Popular graphics packages include: Adobe Illustrator
Adobe Photoshop CorelDraw
Microsoft Paint Microsoft Visio
Popular image file formats supported by most graphics programs include: .gif, .jpg or .jpeg, .png, and .tiff
The following figure shows Microsoft Paint and Adobe Photoshop; you can use Paint to create simple diagrams and you can use Photoshop to manipulate photographs
Try It! Exercise
In this exercise you will try using a simple drawing program called Paint that is included with Windows Click the Start button, point at All Programs, click Accessories, and then click Paint
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You will now create a small drawing of a mountain peak to practice using a drawing program On the Home tab, in the Shapes group, click the (Triangle) shape
The cursor changes to show indicating you can now draw the shape. You will create the shape by clicking at where the top of the triangle will be and then drag to set the height and width of the shape
www.disney.com