Applications of Computers in Accounting part of computer system: hardware-oriented, software-oriented and internal procedure. Hardware–oriented procedure provide details about components and their method of operation. The software-oriented procedure provides a set of instructions required for using the software of computer system. Internal procedure is instituted to ensure smooth flow of data to computers by sequencing the operation of each sub-system of overall computer system.
. . Data These are facts and may consist of numbers, text, etc. These are gathered and entered into a computer system.
The computer system in turn stores, retrieves, classifies, organises and synthesises the data to produce information according to a pre-determined set of instructions. The data is, therefore, processed and organised to create information that is relevant and can be used for decision-making. . .
Connectivity It is being acknowledged as a sixth element of the computer system. The manner in which a particular computer system is connected to others say through telephone lines, microwave transmission, satellite link, etc. is the element of connectivity. .
Capabilities of Computer System A computer system possesses some characteristics, which, in comparison to human beings, turn out to be its capabilities. These are as follows ; Speed : It refers to the amount of time computers takes in accomplishing a task or completes an operation. Computers require far less time than human beings in performing a task. Normally, human beings take into account a second or minute as unit of time.
But computers have such a fast operating capability that the relevant unit of time is fraction of a second. Most of the modern computers are capable of performing a million calculations per second and that is why the industry has developed Million Instructions per Second (MIPS) as the criterion to classify different computers according to speed. Accuracy : It refers to the degree of exactness with which computations are made and operations are performed. One might spend years in detecting errors in computer calculations or updating a wrong record.
Most of the errors in Computer Based Information System(CBIS) occur because of bad programming, erroneous data and deviation from procedures. These errors are caused by human beings. Errors attributable to hardware are normally detected and corrected by the computer system itself. The computers rarely commit errors and perform all types of complex operations accurately.
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