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## Chapter 2: Input Devices ### Objectives * state the need for input devices * explain the term 'data capture' * explain the difference between manual data input and automatic data input * define 'source document' * list different types of input devices * list some of the characteristics of input...

## Chapter 2: Input Devices ### Objectives * state the need for input devices * explain the term 'data capture' * explain the difference between manual data input and automatic data input * define 'source document' * list different types of input devices * list some of the characteristics of input devices * state some of the uses of various input devices ### Why do we need input devices? A computer needs input, output, and storage devices to accept data, process the data, and produce useful output. All of these devices are called peripherals. Input devices are the pieces of equipment used to enter data into the computer. ### Figure 2.1 The figure shows two input devices: the keyboard and the mouse. ### Data Collection Data capture is the first stage of entering data into a computer. This is the point where input devices are used to input data that the computer will process or store. There are two main ways to input data: * **Manual data input:** Enters data into the computer by hand, one transaction at a time. Examples of devices used for manual data input are keyboards, mice, touch screens, light pens, graphics tablets, and voice input devices. * **Automatic data input:** Enters data directly into the computer from source documents. Source documents are documents where data is first recorded. Data entered from these documents is transferred directly from the document into the computer's memory. As data is captured at the source, for example from barcodes on supermarket items or from national lottery slips using optical mark readers (OMRs), it's entered directly into the computer.