Original subtitles

In the last video I mentioned that people don't need to understand how a computer

works for them to use it, because abstraction makes things simpler for us.

That's technically true, but since you're stepping into the world of IT,

you do need to understand all the layers of a computer and how they work.

It's essential that you understand how the different pieces interact so

you can resolve any issue that may arise.

For the rest of this course we'll deep dive into the layers of

computer architecture, and learn all the parts that make up a computer.

A computer can be cut into four main layers, hardware,

operating system, software, and users.

The hardware layer is made up of the physical components of a computer.

These are objects you can physically hold in your hand.

Laptops, phones, monitors, keyboards, you get the idea.

In the next lesson you'll learn all of the components of the computer and

how they work.

You'll even be able to build your own computer by the end of this module.

The operating system allows hardware to communicate with the system.

Hardware is created by many different manufacturers.

The operating system allows them to be used with our system,

regardless of where it came from.

In the next few lessons, you'll learn about the major operating systems

that we use today, and you'll be able to understand

all of the underlying components that make up an operating system.

By the end of these lessons, you'll have a strong grasp on the major components of

any operating system, like Android or Windows, and

use that knowledge to navigate any operating system.

The software layer is how we as humans interact with our computers.

When you use a computer, you're given a vast amount of software that you interact

with, whether it's a mobile app, a web browser, a word processor,

or the operating system itself.

Later in this course, we'll learn how software is installed on our systems, and

how we interact with different types of software.

The last layer may not seem like it's part of the system, but

it's an essential layer of the computer architecture, the user.

The user interacts with the computer and she can do more than that.

She can operate, maintain, and even program the computer.

The user layer is one of the most important layers we'll learn about.

When you step into the field of IT, you may have your hands full with

the technical aspects, but the most important part of IT is the human element.

While we work with computers every day, it is the user interaction that makes up most

of our job, from responding to user emails to fixing their computers.

By the end of the course,

you'll also learn how to apply your knowledge of how a computer works

to fix real world issues that can sometimes seem random and obscure.

We'll do this by learning how to utilize problem solving tactics to identify

issues and solutions.

There's a lot ahead.

The next instructor you're going to meet is a friend of mine, Devon.

And I know there's no better person to teach you about hardware.

He'll even show you how to build a computer from its component parts,

pretty cool.

But before you get to building that computer, we've got a quiz coming up for

you on binary counting.