4 Listening

The best way to learn about a word processor is to use it. However, I will briefly describe some of the main features.

You can use a word processor in any circumstances where you would otherwise use a typewriter. The two machines are very similar in function, although the word processor has many advantages that are not matched by a conventional typewriter. The most obvious difference is the ease of correcting mistakes. As the text is not printed as it is entered, corrections can be made at any time. Printing is carried out when the document is to your satisfaction.

When using a typewriter, it is necessary to press the carriage return key at the end of each line of text. A word processor carries out this function automatically; it is known as word-wrap. As a new line is started, the spacing of the text on the last line is adjusted so that the left and the right hand edges line up. This is known as justification and gives a professional appearance to the text. In most word processors, justification can be ‘switched off’ to give the text a ragged right-hand margin. On a word processor, the carriage return key is often referred to as the return or enter key. It is used to start a new line of text, for example the beginning of a paragraph.

Word processors make use of a cursor. This is usually a small flashing line or block and indicates the point at which text will be entered on the screen. Most keyboards have a group of four keys marked with arrows, each pointing in one of the following directions: left, right, up, down. These are known as the cursor keys and as the name suggests are used for moving the cursor around the text for editing purposes.

Cursor editing usually applies to the manipulation of smaller blocks of text, say a maximum of one line, and consists of inserting, deleting and replacing text. For example, to correct a spelling mistake, first of all use the cursor to the right of the incorrect letter and delete it using the delete key. This key is usually found above the enter key and is marked with an arrow pointing to the left. The required replacement letter is then simply typed from the keyboard and the rest of the text in the paragraph will simply re-align itself.

Keys:

1 First Steps in IT English: Words, Notions, Measurements

Unit A Parts and Measurements

1 Vocabulary

a) 1-с, 2-b, 3-d, 4-a, 5-c, 6-a, 7-b, 8-a, 9-b, 10-d

b) a-5 b-9 с-7 d-10 e-3 f-2 g-1 h-4 i-6 j-8

c) a-3, b-5, c-9, d-1, e-10, f-2, g-6, h-4, i-8, j-7

d)

to process data

to control hardware

to watch movies

a binary digit

an operation system

to type letters

to measure size

to play games

to run a program

a storage device

e)

Central Processing Unit

Random Access Memory

Read Only Memory

Hard Disk Drive

Digital Versatile Disk

f)

character – letter

speed – rate

device – hardware

keep – store

image – picture

software – program

storage – memory

operate – work

part – component

computer – machine

g)

1- run, 2- measure, 3-movies, CPU, 4-processes, 5-graphics, RAM

h)

1) CD-rewriter (abbr CD-RW)

2) device

3) drive

4) printer

5) keyboard

6) monitor

7) mouse

8) PC abbr personal computer

9) peripheral

10) tower

Unit B what is a computer