Chapter 5 - Output: Getting Results from Computers

Abstract

This chapter discusses output process of the computer for obtaining results. Among the most common forms of computer output are printed reports, which are normally divided into three categories—detail reports, which list every item being processed; summary reports, which provide a concise overview of the information; and exception reports, which highlight individual items requiring human attention. Impact printers, in contrast to nonimpact printers, generally produce letter-quality copies. They do, however, have some disadvantages over nonimpact printers. Because of their many moving parts, impact printers tend to be noisy and generate a great deal of heat. They may also be expensive to build and repair. Some computer output devices can produce three-dimensional effects called holograms. The most promising technology appears to be computer-controlled laser holography. Using speech synthesis, computers actually speak their outputs. The three most common forms of speech synthesis are waveform digitization, phoneme coding, and linear predictive coding.