Some common input devices

We useinput devices every time we use a computer. Simply speaking, it is these devices which allow us to enter information. Without them, the computer would not know what we want it to do.

Some of the things we do with input devices are: move a cursor around the screen, enteralphanumeric text, draw pictures, and even enter binary data in the form of graphics or audio wave forms.

Input devices have a history as long as computers themselves. Perhaps the first input device was the simple electronic switch ( similar to a light switch ) which turned bits on or off. There were hundreds or even thousands of these switches on larger computers. It used to take a team of programmers hours or even days to set up a computer to performa single calculation.

Switches and jumpers are still used today on computers. For instance the power button on the computer is a switch which is also an input device telling the computer to power on or power off. Tiny switches called jumpers are also widely used on motherboards to change important settings such as processor clock speed or memory speed.

Most likely the most popular input devices are the keyboard and the mouse. And instead of a mouse on a laptop computer you normally have a touchpad. Different people prefer different input devices for doing same task. For instance, many graphic artists prefer to use a stylus and graphics tablet rather than a mouse. It might offer them a greater deal of artistic freedom, or precision while performing their work.

Not only PCs and mainframes use input devices. Almost all computers feature some kind of input device. Special scanners are used in many stores and warehouses called barcode readers to enter stock and sell items at the cashier. These are input devices as well. Even microphones can technically be called input devices as a computer can respond to them and interpret them as incoming data.

Corporations and especially government institutions are already implementing the second generation of input devices to improve security. These include retina scanners and/or fingerprint readers to replace or improve accuracy of username and password authentication. You will be seeing more of this kind of biometric authentication in the coming years as a general remedy for weak or leaked passwords.

(based on: http://www.english4it.com)

2. Give an accurate translation of the words and word expressions:

1) alphanumeric
2) an electronic switch
3) to set up a computer
4) to power on/off
5) to change settings
6) a stylus
7) precision
8) barcode readers
9) to enter stock
10) retina scanners
11) to improve accuracy
12) password authentication
13) leaked passwords
14) biometric authentication

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