Overview

Basics of Information Technology is the opening chapter of the Maharashtra State Board (MSBSHSE) HSC Information Technology course studied at the Std XI level. Before a student can learn to design a web page, work with a database, or understand cyber law — the topics that follow in this course — it helps to first understand what a computer actually is, what "information technology" means, and why it has become so central to modern business and everyday life. This chapter builds that foundation.

We begin with the difference between data and information, and the meaning of Information Technology (IT) itself. We then study the two halves that make up every computer system — hardware (the physical parts you can touch) and software (the programs that tell the hardware what to do) — and look at the main categories of each, including the different kinds of input, output, and storage devices and the crucial role of the operating system. We trace the generations of computers, showing how machines evolved from room-sized valves to today's tiny, powerful chips. Finally, and most importantly for a commerce student, we look at the many applications of IT in business and commerce, from billing and accounting to banking, e-commerce, and communication.

Maharashtra's HSC Std XI Information Technology syllabus for this foundation topic draws on the same, universally accepted computer-fundamentals principles taught in computing education across India and worldwide, even though the Maharashtra State Board's own Balbharati textbook develops and sequences them in its own way. None of the material below reproduces any particular publisher's text — it explains well-established, standard concepts of information technology in our own words. We begin with data, information, and the meaning of IT.