Old Technology
Computer Parts
Know Your Tech!
Timeline
Computer Science
100
What is this old piece of technology called?
What is a floppy disk?
These store data that can be read by a computer as they spin. They were actually floppy without the square case! These were around before CDs - the square case became iconic, and is used in many programs today as the "save" icon.
100
What computer hardware device can you use to click, drag, and point to things?
A mouse!
100
'Firefox', 'Chrome', and 'Safari' are what type of computer software?
What is a web browser?
You use these to access and view web pages on the internet!
100
What decade where personal computer first commercialized?
1970's
100
What "language" do all computers speak, at the basic level?
Binary
*bonus if you know what number this is in binary: 101
200
These once stored movies on them. What are they called?
VHS Tapes!
These came before DVDs (which are like CDs, but can store more data).
These worked by putting the tape into a player that would read signals from the special magnetic tape inside the plastic case. The tapes had to be rewound every time you watched a movie by spinning the tape backwards. This is where the term "rewind" comes from, when you go backwards on a video!
200
Which input device is used to enter letters, numbers, and other characters into a computer?
What is a keyboard?
200
What cord is this?
A USB cord
*Bonus if you are more specific on the type of USB cord*
200
What decade was the internet first created (computers first sending messages to each other)?
1950s
200
What do we call a group of computers all connected together?
A network!
300
This piece of technology was used before computers to type things evenly and cleanly. What is it called?
A typewriter!
These were used all the way up until the 80s for most typing. They used ink ribbons to coat each key, and when the keys hit the page, they left marks for each letter.
300
'Laser', 'Dot Matrix' and 'Inkjet' are types of which output computer device?
*Hint - it involves paper!*
What is a printer?
300
What is the name of Apple's desktop operating system?
What is Mac OS?
*bonus if you can name another popular operating system!*
300
What decade was the iPhone released in?
2000's (2007)
300
What symbol is this?
What is a USB port symbol?
400
This device is still used today, but it has now become mostly digital (around the 1980s) and now wireless! What is it?
A rotary telephone!
More modern landline phones usually have circuit boards and buttons.
This one, from the 1980s, shows the inside of a simple phone:
400
What is the computer's main circuit board called?
What is a motherboard?
400
SMS, or short messaging service, is commonly referred to as?
Texting, or text messages!
400
In which decade was the first computer animation feature film? Bonus if you can name the film.
1990's (1995, Toy Story)
400
What tech do we use to send signals from computer to computer, without using the internet?
*Hint - it starts with a color.*
Bluetooth!
500
These large discs were used to play music at home.
What are vinyl records?
These work by having a needle move through tiny grooves pressed into the record, and as the record spins, the vibrations they make are amplified through speakers to play the sounds (music)!
500
What's the "official" term for a computer screen?
What is a monitor?
500
What file format is most common for images?
*hint, it looks like this "file.????"*
.jpeg!
*bonus if you can name another kind of image file!*
500
In which decade was the first computer animation feature film? Bonus if you can name the film.
1990's (1995, Toy Story)
500
What key is this, and what is it used for?
What is the Apple Command Key, and it's used for shortcuts!
*bonus if you can name the same key on a Microsoft computer!*