5. Listening: “Computer uses”

a) Match these words (1-8) to the correct locations (a-d).

1. games 2. machines 3. tickets 4. wages

5. flight 6. letters 7. barcode readers 8. tills

a) a factory b) a supermarket c) a travel agent d) a home

b) Listen to the tape. Identify which place is described in each extract.

6. A) Learn new words:

A bill – счет, квитанция To connect with the Internet – подключиться к сети Интернет Electronic checkout till – электронные кассы A barcode – штрихкод A barcode reader – сканер штрихкодов In the store – в магазине, на складе Wages – зарплата An account – банковский счет To link – связывать To supply with – снабжать чем-либо

To enable – давать возможность To search and sort – искать и сортировать Therefore – поэтому Hardware – аппаратное обеспечение Software – программное обеспечение To attach – присоединять Equipment – оборудование A bank cheque – банковский чек

b) Read and translate the text.

We use a PC for writing letters, for playing games, to calculate our bills, and to connect with the Internet.

We've got electronic checkout tills with barcode readers. They read a special barcode on almost everything we sell. They calculate the bill for the customer. At the same time they send information to a larger computer, so we always know exactly what we've got in the store.

We make washing machines and refrigerators. The machines we use to make them are controlled by computers. We also use computers to calculate our wages, to keep the accounts, and to look after all materials and parts.

Our terminal links to airline offices. If you want to fly anywhere in the world, we can tell you at once if there's a seat on the flight you want. We can supply you with the tickets and we can reserve your hotel - all by computer.

* * *

Most machines are designed to do one job. Computers are different: they are general purpose machines. By changing the program instructions, computers can be used to process information in very different ways. For example, a word processor program allows the computer to process text, a spreadsheet program enables the computer to perform calculations, a database program is used for searching and sorting records, and a browser program is used for looking at pages on the Internet (the Internet is the connection of computers from different parts of the world). Computers are therefore used in almost every type of work and are found almost everywhere. Computer equipment is known as hardware and programs and data are called software.

A variety of devices can be attached to a computer. Input devices are used to enter data into the computer for processing. An input device called a magnetic ink character reader (M1CR) is used to read characters printed using magnetic ink. Magnetic ink characters are commonly found on bank cheques.

An optical input device called a barcode reader uses the reflection of a light beam to read a sequence of printed parallel bars called a barcode. The bars are of different thickness, and each sequence of bars represents a different number according to a standard code. Barcode labels are used to code items. Each item can be identified by a computer, using a barcode reader to scan the labels. Barcodes are used in industry, shops, and supermarkets for stock control and to allow a computer to look up the price of items being purchased.

c) Find English equivalents to the following expressions.

1) Изменяя команды, компьютеры могут быть использованы для обработки данных разными путями. 2) Следовательно, компьютеры, используемые для разных видов работ, можно обнаружить везде. 3) Разные устройства могут быть присоединены к компьютеру. 4) Магнитные надписи можно увидеть на банковских чеках. 5) Оптические приспособления для ввода ванных, называемые сканерами штрихкодов, используют отражение светового луча для считывания определенной последовательности штрихов, называемых штрихкодом.