4 Representing data in the PC
4.1 Introduction
Personal computers, or PCs, are very versatile computers and can perform a huge range of tasks. So whereas the uses of the kitchen scales and the digital camera indicate clearly what types of data are to be represented, the PC leaves the field very broad indeed. I have therefore chosen to consider some of the data representations used when families and friends use emails to keep in touch. Very conveniently, these lead to some different data representations.
At their simplest, emails are text only. So I shall look first, in Section 4.2, at how text can be represented.
But people are increasingly exchanging photos, video clips and even sound files via email, using the attachment facility. You already know how still pictures such as photos can be represented, but in this section I shall show you how moving pictures and sound can be represented, in Sections Section 4.3 and 4.4 respectively.
Finally, in Section 4.5 I will look at relevant input and output considerations for the PC.