Characteristics of computer
Computers are fast
Speed
is one of the main characteristic of a computer. A computer can perform
billions of calculations in a second. The speed of a computer is
measured in Mega Hertz (MHz) or Gega Hertz (GHz). For example,
multiplying 639 and 913 can take a couple of minutes if a human performs
such calculations, but computer can perform millions of such
calculations in a fraction of second.
Computers are accurate
Computers
can perform operations and process data faster but with accurate
results and no errors. Results can be wrong only if incorrect data is
fed to the computer or a bug may be the cause of an error.
Storing Data
Storage
capacity is another big characteristic of a computer. A computer can
store large amount of data. This data can be used at any time and also
from any location. The storage capacity of a computer is measured in Mega Byte, Gega Byte, Tera Byte.

Bit
The
smallest unit of data in a computer is called Bit (Binary Digit). A bit
has a single binary value, either 0 or 1. In most computer systems,
there are eight bits in a byte. The value of a bit is usually stored as
either above or below a designated level of electrical charge in a
single capacitor within a memory device.
Nibble
Half a byte (four bits) is called a nibble.
Byte
In most computer systems, a byte
is a unit of data that is eight binary digits long. A byte is the unit
most computers use to represent a character such as a letter, number or
typographic symbol (for example, “g”, “5”, or “?”). A byte can also hold
a string of bits that need to be used in some larger unit of
application purposes (for example, the stream of bits that constitute a
visual image for a program that displays images or the string of bits
that constitutes the machine code of a computer program).
In
some computer systems, four bytes constitute a word, a unit that a
computer processor can be designed to handle efficiently as it reads and
processes each instruction. Some computer processors can handle
two-byte or single-byte instructions.
A
byte is abbreviated with a “B”. (A bit is abbreviated with a small
“b”). Computer storage is usually measured in byte multiples. For
example, an 820 MB hard drive holds a nominal 820 million bytes – or
megabytes – of data. Byte multiples are based on powers of 2 and
commonly expressed as a “rounded off” decimal number. For example, one
megabyte (“one million bytes”) is actually 1,048,576 (decimal) bytes.
Octet
In
some systems, the term octet is used for an eight-bit unit instead of
byte. In many systems, four eight-bit bytes or octets form a 32-bit
word. In such systems, instructions lengths are sometimes expressed as
full-word (32 bits in length) or half-word (16 bits in length).
Kilobyte
A Kilobyte (kb or Kbyte) is approximately a thousand bytes (actually, 2 to the 10th power, or decimal 1,024 bytes).
Megabyte
As a measure of computer processor storage and real and virtual memory, a megabyte (abbreviated MB) is 2 to the 20th power byte, or 1,048,576 bytes in decimal notation.
Gigabyte
A Gigabyte
(pronounced Gig-a-bite with hard G’s) is a measure of computer data
storage capacity and is “roughly” a billion bytes. A gigabyte is two to
the 30th power, or 1,073,741,824 in decimal notation.
Terabyte
A Terabyte is a measure of computer storage capacity and is 2 to the 40th power of 1024 gigabytes.
Petabyte
A Petabyte (PB) is a measure of memory or storage capacity and is 2 to the 50th power bytes or, in decimal, approximately a thousand terabytes (1024 terabytes).
Exabyte
An Exabyte
(EB) is a large unit of computer data storage, two to the sixtieth
power bytes. The prefix exa means one billion billion, or on
quintillion, which is a decimal term. Two to the sixtieth power is
actually 1,152,921,504,606,846,976 bytes in decimal, or somewhat over a
quintillion (or ten to the eighteenth power) bytes. It is common to say
that an Exabyte is approximately one quintillion bytes. In decimal
terms, an Exabyte is a billion gigabytes.
Zettabyte
A Zettabyte
(ZB) is equal to one sextillion bytes. It is commonly abbreviated ZB.
At this time, no computer has one Zettabyte of storage. It has 1024
Exabytes.
Yottabyte
A Yottabyte
is equal to one septillion bytes. It is commonly abbreviated YB. At
this time, no computer has one Zettabyte of storage. It has 1024
Zettabytes.
Computers are versatile
Computer
is a versatile machine. They are used in various fields. They are used
in Schools & Colleges, at hospitals, at government organizations and
at home for entertainment & work purposes.
They can communicate
Computers
have the ability to communicate, but of course there needs some sort of
connection (either Wired or Wireless connection). Two computers can be
connected to send & receive data. Special softwares are used for
text and video chat. Friends & family can connect over the internet
and share files, photos & videos online.
We can do multitasking
Multitasking
is also a computer characteristic. Computers can perform several tasks
at a time. For example you can listen to songs, download movies, and
prepare word documents all at the same time.
No Intelligence
Computers
don’t have any intelligence of their own. They follow a set of
instructions fed into them by manufacturer. The user knows what to do
and when to perform a specific task.