text:
Virtues/Gratitude

Introduction
Gratitude is the virtue of rejoicing in what is. It is expressing the feeling of joy we get from all that brings us joy. It is the opposite of regret, which is a feeling of sadness for what is, and of nostalgia, which aches for a past which is now gone.

Gratitude is an effective antidote to many destructive emotions. You can't be hateful when you're grateful!

Only you can decide to be grateful, it is an expression of your autonomy.

The Virtue of Gratitude
When you are grateful, it is impossible to also be hateful, angry, or fearful. Gratitude cannot be requested, demanded, or coerced, it can only be given. It is a gift, not an exchange.

Gratitude is a virtue because we chose to celebrate, rather than to resent, what is.

The Roman philosopher Cicero declared: "Gratitude is not only the greatest of the virtues but the parent of all others."

Everyday Gratitude
Begin by saying “thank you” to those who show you kindness. In addition, welcome awe into your life, savor it, and enjoy acknowledging it. Practice the virtue of gratitude everyday as you count your blessings:
 * Breathing in and breathing out.
 * The sunrise, the sunset, the moonrise, and the stars in the sky.
 * Blue skies, puffy clouds, gentle rains, snow, and other fascinating weather.
 * Music, art, humor, and all that is beautiful.
 * Running, jumping, singing, dancing, and all that is fun.
 * Forests, meadows, mountains, beaches, and all the beauty of nature.
 * Family, friends and others who love you, and who you love.
 * Laughter and a sense of humor.
 * The hammock, indoor plumbing, lights, air conditioning, and a roof over my head.
 * Good health, fitness, mental acuity, literacy, memory, curiosity.
 * Fresh water, food to eat, and a warm quiet place to sleep.
 * Rainbows and song birds.
 * Chocolate, apples, oranges, and cherries.
 * Literacy and the local library.

For more inspiration, visit the everyday gratitude site.

Because many 12-step programs recognize the virtues of "an attitude of gratitude" many resources are available. A search for: 12-step program gratitude will identify many gratitude-related resources.

Assignment
Part 1: Gratitude Visit – Recall someone who was kind to you but who you never properly thanked. Write out a one-page note thanking them in depth. Visit that person and read the entire note to them.

Part 2: What Went Well (Three Blessings) – Every night for the next week, set aside ten minutes before going to sleep. Write down three things that went well today and why they went well.

title: Virtues/Gratitude


text:
Virtues/Humility

Introduction:
The sun shines with equal brightness on each of us. It shines no more brightly on you, and just as importantly, it shines on you as brightly as others. Humility is the realization that although we are each very special, we are nobody special.

Humility requires us to exercise our dignity without drifting into vanity.

At its core, humility is openness to learning. It is deciding that facts are more real and more important than ego. It is the opposite of ego involvement. It is the decision to overcome the asymmetry of our first-person viewpoint. Humility is recognizing that what matters to you really is as important as what matters to me. Humility provides balance to our confidence.

The root word of humility is humus, meaning earthly and dictionary definitions contrast humility with pride in its excessive forms of arrogance, hubris, or egotism.

The book The Power of Humility identifies these twelve characteristics of humility :
 * Openness—Poised to learn more about ourselves, others, and the world we live in. Receptive to understanding what is. Willing to change beliefs, opinions, and attitudes as new information is assimilated.
 * An attitude of “I don’t know” —If you wish to see the truth, then hold no opinions for or against anything. Suspend judgment while you continue to learn.
 * Curiosity—Wanting to discover what is not known. Exploring more deeply, wanting to learn more.
 * Innocence—We never see what does not exist and we always see what does. We are free of our (non-existent) egos.
 * A childlike nature—A combination of enthusiasm, openness, innocence, and curiosity,
 * Spontaneity—Living authentically in this moment.
 * Spirituality—Connecting with all that is beyond ourselves,
 * Tolerance—Respecting the beliefs, customs, and practices of ourselves and others,
 * Patience—tolerant of delay, annoyance, tedium, or other hardship without complaint,
 * Integrity—Wholeness; integrating virtue throughout our character. Integrating our actions and our character. Living as our authentic selves.
 * Detachment—Separating from distractions that compromise our own integrity, and
 * Letting go—Dismissing our ego involvement. Know that we cannot fix anyone else. Detach from all that we cannot change.

Together these lead to serenity and an inner peace.

The Virtue of Humility
The French philosopher Vladimir Jankélévitch said “Humility equals truth.” The profound truths of humility—an honesty without illusions—where learning thrives, opinions succumb to facts, dignity prevails, we are equal with others, and hubris is scorned, endow humility with virtue.

Everyday Humility
Find a healthy and gratifying balance between vanity and servility. Consider adopting some of these simple guidelines to practice humility each day.
 * Resist the temptation to prove you are right in conversations.
 * Go an entire day without using the words “I”, “me”, or “myself”.
 * Resist the temptation to correct the inconsequential errors of others
 * Answer “I don’t know” when asked a question you do not know the answer to.
 * Learn something new.
 * Listen carefully to someone you disagree with until you are able to understand and express their point of view.
 * Embrace your own ignorance.
 * Choose dialogue over debate. Suspend judgment while you continue to learn.
 * Avoid or concede dominance contests.
 * Minimize your use of jewelry, makeup, and trendy fashions.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Virtues/Humility


text:
Virtues/Simplicity

Introduction
Simplicity is the virtue of removing the unrelated things to reveal the essence. Simplicity is the direct alignment with reality and it is the opposite of false and its various manifestations including pretension, prevarication, bloviating, masquerading, exaggeration, denial, grandiloquence, falsehood, or misunderstanding. Simplicity is the opposite of excess, and its various manifestations including opulence, extravagance, gaudiness, ostentatiousness, and waste. Simplicity is also the opposite of indirect, and its various manifestations including oblique, roundabout, convoluted, devious, and circuitous. Simplicity fully enjoys the magnificent essence it has revealed.

Simplicity is not simple-mindedness, nor is it simplistic. Simplicity grasps the essence that organizes what is apparently complex. It reveals an elegance that often is only understood after examining and comprehending immense complexity. Simplistic ideas are false because they take invalid short-cuts that misrepresent the complexities, subtleties, and full scope of reality.

Because we value simplicity we find humor in the Rube Goldberg machine.

“Everything is both simpler that we can imagine,” says Goethe, “and more entangled that we can conceive.”

Simplicity is not about a life of poverty, but a life of purpose. It is not asceticism it is authenticity.

In choosing between two plausible theories, scientists generally favor the simpler one. According to Occam's razor, all other things being equal, the simplest theory is the most likely to be true. The similar concept of parsimony is used in philosophy of science. The simpler explanation of a phenomenon is more highly valued.

The Virtue of Simplicity
Simplicity reveals what is directly without pretense or exaggeration. It is a mean between excess and deficiency. Paraphrasing Albert Einstein, “Everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler.”

Everyday Simplicity
Practice the virtue of simplicity every day in these ways:
 * Truth is simple, lies and cover-ups are complex. Speak directly, candidly, and straightforwardly.
 * Acceptance is simple (but not often easy), denial is complex. Embrace what is.
 * Think clearly, and then speak clearly. Speak less while saying more.
 * Making excuses is complex, doing what you say you will do is simple.
 * Avoid jewelry, elaborate makeup or hairstyling, tattoos, body piercings, and pretentious fashions. Dress and groom simply.
 * Eschew obfuscation!
 * Remove the obvious, add the meaningful.
 * Simplify bureaucracies to focus on adding value while reducing activity.
 * Eat food, not too much, mostly plants.
 * Shed your burdens and distractions.
 * Resolve destructive emotions, and overcome addictions.
 * Clean out your closets, attic, basement, and garage.
 * Value silence and sanctuary. Create silence in your life and take time to enjoy it. Lean to quiet your mind.
 * Actively listen to great music.
 * Walk more, drive less.
 * Fix it yourself rather than calling the plumber, gardener, or handyman.
 * Want what you have. Focus on what matters.
 * Align your worldview to correspond to the real world as it truly is. Adopt a global perspective.
 * Transcend dogma.
 * Embrace who you are; explore the essence of “I am” Unmask your True Self.

You may choose to evolve toward Voluntary simplicity which is a way of living that is outwardly simple and inwardly rich.

Simplicity is surprisingly difficult. You may have to progress toward many of the virtues listed earlier to prepare yourself for simplicity.

Assignment
Part 1: Examine your beliefs, speech, habits, clothing, jewelry, furnishings, and other possessions to identify any that are pretentious, ostentatious, false, extraneous, cumbersome, obsolete, or merely clutter.

Part 2: Decide how you can improve your life by removing something you are holding onto.

Part 3: Do so!

Part 4: Pledge to make “no excuses” for your behavior over the next week or month. Notice if this helps move you toward simplicity. Note, we are not suggesting a moratorium on sincere apology, instead if your habit is to arrive late to the meeting, smile awkwardly, and make up some flimsy excuse, try simply arriving on time.

Further Reading:
Students interested in learning more about simplicity may be interested in the following materials:

 * (Evaluate the book Insanely Simple.)
 * (Evaluate the book Graceful Simplicity: The Philosophy and Politics of the Alternative American Dream. )
 * (Evaluate the book Insanely Simple.)
 * (Evaluate the book Graceful Simplicity: The Philosophy and Politics of the Alternative American Dream. )
 * (Evaluate the book Graceful Simplicity: The Philosophy and Politics of the Alternative American Dream. )

title: Virtues/Simplicity


text:
Virtues/Tolerance

Introduction:
“You're entitled to your own opinions”, Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan declares, “but you're not entitled to your own facts.” This succinctly (and rather bluntly) captures the extent and essential boundaries of tolerance.

Tolerance is essential in the realm of opinion, and has no place in the realm of fact.

Two types of errors, each a form of intolerance, become apparent:
 * 1) Treating as fact what is indeed opinion, and
 * 2) Dismissing fact as mere opinion.

Sustaining and propagating these errors are the tools of tyrants and ideologues, bigots and racists.

Discerning the distinction between fact and opinion—the essential skill of tolerance—can be difficult. It requires us to apply a robust theory of knowledge.

Intolerance is the wrongful arrogation of power to force conformity. Intolerance is the error in thinking that perpetuates hatred.

Nontolerance
Some behavior is so wrong it cannot be tolerated. The categorical moral imperatives not to kill, steal, or maliciously deceive others are examples of behavior that is outside the bounds of tolerance. A tolerant person is nontolerant of such reprehensible behavior.

The United States Air force Academy honor code states:

We will not lie, steal or cheat, nor tolerate among us anyone who does.

This clear statement of nontolerance establishes the boundaries of what is tolerable to a cadet.

Characteristics of Tolerance
The book The Truth about Tolerance describes ten “truths of tolerance”. They are paraphrased here:

 * 1) Tolerance is a patience toward a practice or opinion you disapprove of — Tolerance is being agreeable—listening carefully and treating the person with dignity and respect—while you disagree. You continue a critical analysis of all you know and believe to be true, in light of the different viewpoint expressed by the person you disagree with. In the best case each of you has learned from the other. In the end you may or may not be persuaded, yet because of your tolerance the relationship has been strengthened by your dialogue, not eroded by obstinacy or mistrust. Without disagreement there is not tolerance, only affirmation. As Voltaire famously said: “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.”
 * 2) Tolerance has limits—Reality is beyond opinion. Tolerance is relevant to opinion, not fact. The test of truth is its correspondence to reality, and when opinion meets face-to-face with reality, reality must ultimately prevail. Furthermore, erosion of the categorical moral imperatives is intolerable. Tolerating cruelty and brutality is abdication, not respect.
 * 3) Tolerance allows for spirited and principled debate—Your well-founded beliefs deserve to be heard, advocated, and vigorously debated. Expect them to be dissected, analyzed, questioned and criticized long before any consensus emerges. Identifying, examining, and resolving inconsistencies increase our understanding. Truth continues to be forged from critical consideration of dissent and new points of view. The skeptics help us all move forward, the demagogues do not. In addition, confronting destructive behavior is an act of compassion and courage, not brutality.
 * 4) Nontolerace is essential and distinct from intolerance—Certain reprehensible behavior, including beeches of the categorical moral imperatives, cannot be tolerated. Nontolerance—the straightforward refusal to tolerate a wrong—expresses the limits of tolerance. Tolerant people are nontolerant towards brutality. Paradoxically, intolerance is not to be tolerated. Tolerance finds a balance between indulgence—anything goes—and narrow-mindedness. Tolerance is the thoughtful virtue resolutely between intolerance and nontolerance.
 * 5) Tolerance is the virtue that makes peace possible—Tolerance allows people the liberty and personal freedom of self-determination. Toleration promotes the free exchange of ideas, including criticism and debate of public policy in the interest of the people. Toleration sustains civic order by promoting its on-going criticism, analysis, debate, and improvement by the people, and in the best cases, for the people. Finally, nontolerace establishes what is unacceptable in the culture.
 * 6) Respect the person as your disagree with their ideas—Criticism—disagreeing with an opinion, idea or behavior—is distinct from insult—an attack on the person’s very being. Care for their humanity as you take offense at their opinions. We can separate who people are from what they think and do. Don't initiate or tolerate Ad hominem attacks
 * 7) Tolerance is not philosophical indifference—You can care very much about what is true and what is false, what is kindness, and what is brutality, while exercising tolerance. Tolerance helps move us toward truth, not away from it, by promoting dialogue and making space for critical thinking. “Unless one loves the truth,” Jacques Maritain once wrote, “one is not a man.”
 * 8) Tolerance is consistent with your own well-founded convictions about truth and moral behavior—When an opinion is expressed, ask yourself “is it true?” and proceed skillfully from there, making as much progress toward common understanding as the cultural limits of respect and the frailties of human nature will allow.
 * 9) Vigorous deliberation of disagreement and moral evaluation is promoted by tolerance and moves us toward a common understanding of the good—Ongoing deliberation, conducted in good faith, continues to forge truth and advance human rights. Tolerance does not extend to aggressive intolerance—the coercive suppression of other points of view. Tolerance provides the space for a culture of dialogue, where we can all benefit.
 * 10) Tolerance respects context – If your grandmother makes a racial slur at a family gathering we can tolerate it as a reminder of the progress made during her lifetime. If a politician makes a racial slur at a town hall meeting, it is intolerable. Achieve both truth and grace.

United Nations Year for Tolerance
The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 1995 the United Nations Year for Tolerance with UNESCO as the lead organization. Their Declaration of Principles on Tolerance addresses the meaning of tolerance as follows:

1.1 Tolerance is respect, acceptance and appreciation of the rich diversity of our world's cultures, our forms of expression and ways of being human. It is fostered by knowledge, openness, communication, and freedom of thought, conscience and belief. Tolerance is harmony in difference. It is not only a moral duty, it is also a political and legal requirement. Tolerance, the virtue that makes peace possible, contributes to the replacement of the culture of war by a culture of peace.

1.2 Tolerance is not concession, condescension or indulgence. Tolerance is, above all, an active attitude prompted by recognition of the universal human rights and fundamental freedoms of others. In no circumstance can it be used to justify infringements of these fundamental values. Tolerance is to be exercised by individuals, groups and States.

1.3 Tolerance is the responsibility that upholds human rights, pluralism (including cultural pluralism), democracy and the rule of law. It involves the rejection of dogmatism and absolutism and affirms the standards set out in international human rights instruments.

1.4 Consistent with respect for human rights, the practice of tolerance does not mean toleration of social injustice or the abandonment or weakening of one's convictions. It means that one is free to adhere to one's own convictions and accepts that others adhere to theirs. It means accepting the fact that human beings, naturally diverse in their appearance, situation, speech, behaviour and values, have the right to live in peace and to be as they are. It also means that one’s views are not to be imposed on others.

The International Day for Tolerance is now celebrated on November 16 every year, in recognition of the Paris Declaration which was signed that day in 1995 by 185 member states.

Religious Tolerance
The various religious doctrines and dogma are largely matters of faith, not matters of fact. Therefore our tolerance must extend to matters of religious opinion, but not to false claims of matters of fact. Tolerance need not extend to any claims that faith alone—regardless of the strength, sincerity, and passion of its conviction—establishes fact. Do your best to progress beyond theism.

The Virtue of Tolerance
Tolerance is a prerequisite to exercising the liberties of free speech and freedom of religion. Tolerance preserves the dignity of each person as it accommodates and explores a rich diversity in ideas, cultures, and beliefs through civil discourse and dialogue. Tolerance promotes learning because, as John Stuart Mill tells us: “received opinion may be wrong and the heretic right.” Robin Barrow cautions us that: “It is partly because there are limits to what we can be sure about in the moral domain that tolerance and freedom are virtues.” Adopting an open mind represents a commitment to the pursuit of knowledge through dialogue.

Everyday Tolerance
Find an authentic balance between indulgence and narrow-mindedness. Consider adopting some of these simple guidelines to practice tolerance each day.
 * When you are in a conversation that is becoming difficult because you strongly disagree with the opinions being expressed, work to shift the tone of conversation away from dogma and debate and towards dialogue.
 * Rekindle a conversation with someone you have stopped speaking to, perhaps as a result of a sharp difference of opinions. Suspend judgment. Balance inquiry and advocacy. Seek to resolve your conflict, or at least begin to understand the viewpoint of the other. Promote both truth and grace.
 * Do not tolerate messages originating from bad faith. Fact checking tools such as snopes and FactCheck make it easy to assess the accuracy of popular rumors, myths, and beliefs. Use these tools to assess suspicious rumors and propaganda and correct the falsehoods rather than pass them on. Challenge people who continue to act in bad faith. Advance no falsehoods.

Assignment
Part 1: Describe the extent and boundaries of your tolerance. What behaviors—perhaps because they trespass on your own conception of categorical moral imperatives—do you refuse to tolerate? (Are you more or less permissive than an Air Force Cadet?) What ideas and beliefs do you accept as fact, even though they may be denied or debated by others? What annoyances or ideas you disagree with are you willing to tolerate?

Part 2: Describe a time when, although it was difficult for you, you were able to tolerate an opinion you disagreed with. Did you learn from this experience? Describe the thoughts you had at that time and the thoughts you have now about the incident.

Part 3: Describe a time when you stood firmly in nontolerance as you refuted some opinion presented as fact or someone denied the truth of some fact or you rebuked some nontolerable behavior. Describe the thoughts you had at that time and the thoughts you have now about the incident.

title: Virtues/Tolerance


text:
Virtues/Purity

Introduction:
Purity is the virtue of benevolence—acting without any trace of evil or selfish motives. Intentions are pure only when they are free of self-interest, egoism, desire, envy, cruelty, spite, greed, malice, lust, trickery, and dishonesty. Motives are pure only when they are free of power, control, and coercion.

Manipulation and exploitation arise from impure motives.

Pure love is giving, not taking, not a transaction, not a means to an end.

Purity can only be genuine, never faked.

The Virtue of Purity
Purity is good because evil is not.

Everyday Purity
Examine your motives. Strive for purity each day in these ways:
 * Examine your speech. Are you being simple, straightforward, and candid, or is there some intent to deceive? Are you promoting both truth and grace?
 * Examine your friendships. Are the relationships instrumental—sustained by the possibility of gaining some future ego or material benefit—or are they based purely on caring? Do you trade on your friendships?
 * Examine your gift giving and charity. Do you ever give with the thought of receiving something in return, or is your giving motivated purely by caring, kindness, generosity, compassion, and love? Do you ever give complements with the hope of receiving a complement in return? Do you use flattery for personal gain?
 * Examine your persuasion, influences, and charm. Do you ever intend to alter someone’s beliefs to align them with your political or religious ideology, rather than encouraging a broader examination of what is? Would you even be having this conversation if you were not trying to sell something?
 * Become aware of your own hypocrisy. Notice when you are inconsistent in what you say and what you do. Strive to increase your fidelity. Beware; those who espouse purity the loudest may be the least pure. Look first to yourself.
 * Identify your vices, these may include: vanity, envy, jealousy, anger, greed, overindulgence, smoking, excessive drinking, gambling, infidelity, and others. Strive to end these.
 * Reflect on your own sexual behaviors. Have all participants expressed their informed, adult, consent? Is anyone ever deceived, tricked, coerced, shamed, harmed, or regretful as a result? Do the behaviors bring only enjoyment to each participant? Does the sex express caring?
 * Examine your love. Is it conditional—sometimes intentionally withheld to coerce another—or is it unconditional.

Be gentle with yourself, purity is a virtue but absolute purity is unattainable.

Assignment
Part 1: Choose one of the areas described above to examine in detail.

Part 2: For one week, for the area chosen to study, as you act keep a record of each impurity that has crept into your motives.

Part 3: Resolve to purge that impurity from yourself.

title: Virtues/Purity


text:
Virtues/Gentleness

Introduction:
Gentleness is the virtue of doing your good with the least possible harm to others. It is the decision to approach others from a stance of love—or at least benevolence—rather than indifference, or worse. Gentleness is courage without violence, strength without harshness, and love without anger. Gentleness is an inner peace that resists war, cruelty, brutality, aggressiveness, barbarism, coarseness, insult, violence, and other violations of another's sanctity. Gentleness gains its strength from its steady and stable foundation. Gentleness is a constant strength born from serenity and patience that contrasts with the turmoil of outrage, wrath, vengeance, and violence.

At its core, gentleness is a way of thinking and behaving that respects the vulnerabilities inherent in ourselves and others, as it resolves to move forward and do good. It is actively responsive and protective, rather than adversarial, defensive, invasive, or passively submissive. When faced with abuse, gentleness asks ‘how may I respond with acceptance and caring in this situation?’ not ‘how can I hurt or destroy my enemy in the same way that my enemy hurts or destroys me?’

Generosity keeps good company with other virtues, but remains distinct. Generosity seeks to do good while gentleness refuses to do harm, even in the name of being generous. Compassion seeks to reduce the suffering of others, gentleness refuses to cause suffering. When gentleness prevents suffering, it preempts the need for compassion.

Gentleness must not be confused with weakness. Although gentleness walks softly, it can also carry a big stick as these examples illustrate. Employing non-violent civil disobedience, Gandhi led India to independence and inspired movements for non-violence, civil rights, and freedom across the world. More recently the nonviolent campaigns of Leymah Gbowee and the women of Liberia were able to achieve peace after a 14-year civil war. The 14th Dali Lama is a gentle person who guides us with his unwavering dedication to many peaceful social stances. Gentleness is not pacifism. Pacifism rejects the use of violence as a personal decision on moral or spiritual grounds. Gentleness pursues its mission with the least possible harm to others, but may selectively use violence to prevent greater violence. Peace is worth fighting for.

The Virtue of Gentleness
Gentleness is a virtue because harm is not. Gentleness is good because at its core it is the desire to promote the wellbeing of others.

For Aristotle, gentleness is the mean between irascibility and spinelessness.

Everyday Gentleness
Practice the virtue of gentleness every day in these various ways:
 * Develop your empathy, your deep appreciation for another's situation and point of view
 * Learn to recognize violence in all its forms. Pause, reflect, reconsider, and find another way in every instance where you are tempted to use violence. Learn to “stare back” your thoughts of violence and choose a gentle and effective alternatives.
 * Respect and preserve the dignity of all people.
 * Learn to recognize feeling of hatred in all its forms. Pause and replace those thoughts with kindness. It may be helpful to focus on grateful thoughts as an inoculation against the hate.
 * Learn to summon your gentleness and enjoy inner peace at will. Master a technique such as square breathing, heart rhythm meditation, or centering that works best for you. Summon your gentleness to prevent inflicting harm.
 * Your daily practice of the virtues of generosity, compassion, mercy, gratitude, humility, and tolerance prepare you for gentleness.

Assignment

 * Decide you want to become more gentle.
 * Demonstrate your respect for others in every interaction.
 * Know what you can change and what you cannot. Develop the wisdom to know the difference
 * Know the many ways in which you cannot change another person.
 * Complete the Wikiversity course on Transcending Conflict.
 * The next time you are provoked to act harshly pause, reflect, and either remain quiet and let it go, or reflect and create some gentle way to make progress. Practice deliberate restraint.
 * Complete the Wikiversity course on Dignity.
 * Respect and preserve the dignity of all people.
 * Learn to resolve conflict without resorting to coercion, and without abandoning your own goals.
 * The next time you encounter a conflict, resolve it effectively without coercion or inflicting harm.

title: Virtues/Gentleness


text:
Virtues/Good Faith

Introduction
Good faith is the virtue of truthfulness. You might call it sincerity, truthfulness, honesty, veracity, candor, or authenticity, the particular word chosen is less important than the deep respect for the truth they each convey. Truth is correspondence with reality. Good faith requires our acts and our words to agree with our inner life. Good faith is the opposite of mendacity, hypocrisy, duplicity, and other forms of bad faith both publicly and privately. Good faith requires first that you be honest with yourself. Good faith desires truth.

While good faith does allow for errors, it does not tolerate any intent to deceive.

Promote both truth and grace. There are times when balancing compassion and gentleness with truth it becomes prudent to say less. There is no good reason to tell your grandmother she looks old. Before speaking ask yourself is it true? is it helpful? and is it kind? Strike a balance that best fits each situation. Consider carefully what you tell a dying person about their condition. Neither exhibitionism nor tactlessness are virtues.

Truth departs from good faith whenever literal truths are used to send a false message. This can be done by establishing a narrow perspective, then taking quotations out of context, or overgeneralizing from anecdotal evidence rather than using systematic evidence. If the intent is to deceive, it cannot be good will.

Philosophers have disagreed somewhat on the relative priority of truth and justice. An example used to illustrate this dilemma is called the murderer at the door. Suppose an innocent friend is a guest at your house. A known murder then appears at the door asking: “Is your friend here? I have come here to kill him.” Do you tell the murderer the truth and risk the death of your innocent friend, or do you deceive the murder to preserve justice? Kant believes that lying is prohibited in all cases because it violates a categorical moral imperative. Many other philosophers believe that justice takes priority in this example. Casuistry is a method of reasoning used to resolve moral dilemmas. It can become a slippery slope if used to defend deceit in the absence of good faith.

Do not let some absolute interpretation of truth devolve into some form of detached literalism or fanaticism. Keep the good in good faith.

Good faith is at its best when it is combined with justice, prudence, courage, generosity, humility, simplicity, and love.

While lying is not a virtue, neither is foolishness or suicide.

While it is sometimes prudent to withhold the truth in certain circumstances when talking with others, it is not legitimate to lie to yourself. It is better to know you are evil than to pretend you are good.

The Virtue of Good Faith
Good faith is a virtue because bad faith is not. Virtue can only be built from pillars of truth. Truth is considered the foremost virtue of intellectuals and philosophers.

Bad Faith
Gleb Tsipursky provides this list of “Ten Lies” describing language forms often used to avoid telling the truth and practicing good faith. These tricks demonstrate a lack of good faith.
 * Vagueness—a generality that avoids being specific, precise, or falsifiable because there are borderline cases.
 * Glittering generality—an emotionally appealing phrase so closely associated with highly valued concepts and beliefs that it carries conviction without supporting information or reason. It is often used to distract attention from the lack of supporting evidence.
 * Willful ignorance—purposefully avoiding information that disputes attitudes, positions, or beliefs you hold or are advocating.
 * Lie by omission—deceiving by deliberately excluding relevant information contrary to the position you are advocating.
 * Confabulation—unknowingly presenting incorrect memories as factual despite contradictory evidence
 * Deceptive hyperbole—distorting reality by exaggeration.
 * Obfuscation—obscuring the intended meaning of communication by making the message difficult to understand, usually with confusing and ambiguous language.
 * Blatant lie—deliberately spreading false information.
 * Gaslighting— covertly sowing seeds of doubt in a targeted individual or group, making them question their own memory, perception, or judgment.
 * 1) Paltering—using a small truth to cover a big lie.

Becoming familiar with these terms and techniques, and avoiding them, can help you preserve good faith.

Everyday Good Faith
Practice the virtue of good faith every day in these various ways:
 * Be impeccable with your word.
 * Say what you believe, and believe what you say.
 * Seek true beliefs.
 * Advance no falsehoods.
 * Ensure what you say corresponds with reality. Align what you say with what you do. Keep your promises; do what you say you will do. Work to increase trust. Ensure what you say remains consistent day to day, unless new material evidence arises.
 * Be trustworthy; constantly act to earn the trust of others.
 * Refine your theory of knowledge. Use it in good faith.
 * Do not tolerate messages originating from bad faith. Fact checking tools such as snopes and FactCheck make it easy to assess the accuracy of popular rumors, myths, and beliefs. Use these tools to assess suspicious rumors and propaganda and correct the falsehoods rather than pass them on. Challenge people who continue to act in bad faith.
 * Know how you know.
 * Do not use a literal truth to send a misleading message. Use only representative examples to draw a larger conclusion. Don’t overgeneralize. Understand the tyranny of evidence and use it only in good faith.
 * Do not mislead by overstatement, understatement, fabrication, or omission.
 * Beware of your participation in various, often subtle, forms of censorship. For example, if you are referring to toxic waste as produced water, you are not acting in good faith.
 * Do not feign ignorance, indifference, or annoyance, to avoid telling the truth.
 * Beware of hypocrisy and challenge it when you notice it. Begin with yourself.
 * Refrain from modern sophistry—do not use specious arguments to deceive. Deceptive intent is not good faith.
 * There is a long list of words we use to make untruth seem more acceptable. Don’t fall for it.
 * When you are being lied to, challenge the dishonesty.
 * Be suspicious of rumors and gossip. Challenge their accuracy and don't pass on unverified claims. Notify the source of any inaccuracies.
 * If advancing an ideology, defending an honor code, or demonstrating loyalty strains your good faith, it is time to abandon those unhelpful ideas. If your worldview does not align with reality, it is time to update your worldview.
 * Seek true beliefs.
 * Expect intellectual honesty.

Assignment
Part 1: Part 2:
 * Complete the Wikiversity course on candor.
 * Notice each time you are not impeccable with your word. What is going on? Are you being careless, lazy, deceitful, compassionate, or just? Are you acting in good faith, and being for the good? How do you know?
 * Use what you learned above to increase your good faith.

How do you decide what is true? Complete the Wikiversity course Knowing How You Know. Write down your own theory of knowledge, analogous to this example. Know how you know. Use this increased confidence in what you know to strengthen your good faith.

Part 3:

Complete the Wikiversity courses on facing facts and intellectual honesty.

title: Virtues/Good Faith


text:
Virtues/Humor

Introduction:
Humor brings us joy as it exposes a simple truth in some new or unexpected way. We laugh spontaneously when our brains recognize “I never thought of it that way.” And thinking of it “that way” expands our understanding of the world.

We are rewarded with a good laugh when we discover we have prematurely made some mistaken assumption. This bribes our brains into examining and correcting the assumptions we make as we continue to interpret reality. As a result we increase our skill at interpreting what we experience.

Goethe observed: “Nothing shows a man’s character more than what he laughs at.” Humor is a pleasant medium, using jokes as a meme, for displaying intelligence, mutual knowledge, and opinion. Humor reveals our knowledgebase, beliefs, values, and wit—an important form of intelligence—to ourselves and others.

While humor is benign, irony is not. Irony laughs at others, while humor laughs only at the self, or proxies for the self. Laughter from humor brings joy; laughter from irony exposes scorn or contempt. Where irony wounds, humor heals. Irony is merciless, humor is merciful. Irony is humiliating, humor is humble.

The Virtue of Humor
Humor is a virtue because stodginess is not. Humor requires mental adroitness in imagining and understanding a variety of perspectives. This is an important problem solving skill. In addition, humor brings us that particular pleasure known as mirth. Humor pokes fun without malice; it is a harmless joy.

Aristotle considered wittiness the virtue at the mean between buffoonery and boorishness.

Humor acts as a social corrective because it points out mistakes, often publicly. This influences people to become aware of, and avoid, such mistakes.

A person who lacks humor also lacks humility, lucidity, and lightheartedness. Humor challenges those uptight people—the snob, the self-righteous, the pedantic, the bully—who take themselves too seriously.

Everyday Humor
Practice the virtue of humor every day in these various ways:
 * Before saying something you intend to be funny, decide if it is benign humor, or biting irony.
 * If you find yourself amused by childish, sexist, racist, or other exploitive jokes, it may be important for you to reexamine your beliefs and values in those areas. Respect the dignity of all people as you develop your virtuous sense of humor.
 * Be neither the buffoon nor the boor.

Assignment

 * Select a sample of 10 jokes chosen from any source. Select the jokes from anywhere you like, including TV or radio programs, on-line sources, friends, comedy acts, books, or compilations (available on line) such as these 1001 jokes collected for the book Quirkology.
 * Classify each as being either (virtuous) humor or (mean spirited) irony.

title: Virtues/Humor


text:
Virtues/Love

Introduction:
Love lures us toward the good. We speak of love in many ways, for example: I love my wife. I love my son. I love my parents. I love riding my bike. I love Wikiversity. I love this or that pop singer. I love chocolate. I love reading. I love the latest movie. I love all you guys.The first motivation of a new-born infant is to seek an affectionate bond with a mother or mother surrogate. Each example declares our attraction toward, or joy from, something we regard as good.

The Greeks had at least four different words for distinct forms of love: éros, philía, agápe, and storgē. Each describes a particular attraction toward the good.

Éros – wanting something specific that is good— Éros is love manifest as desire. It is a quest for something or someone in particular. We are declaring our éros when we say I would love to hear that new song, or I would love to go sailing, or I would love to meet that hot chick that is new at school. We want it because we recognize it is good. We also declare our éros when we tell our romantic partner “I love you”, declaring “I want you”. Although éros is initially felt for a person, with contemplation it becomes an appreciation of the beauty within that person, or even becomes appreciation of beauty itself.

Philía—enjoying what is good—Philía is the love we enjoy as our hopes and desires are fulfilled; it is enjoying what we have. It is our capacity to derive joy from something or someone. When we are enjoying good music, great food, a walk in the woods, a magnificent sunset, the company of friends, satisfying work, beautiful art, the smiling face of our child, or the comforts of our lover, we feel a love for the good in what we have. We love what brings us joy. This is a love without want.

Storgē—bonding to the goodness of family and friends—This form of affection suggests a path from Philía to Agápe.

Agápe—sharing good with our fellow man—charity, generosity, good will, positive regard, and loving-kindness are all ways we share goodness with others, often strangers, and sometimes even enemies. This is a selfless, benevolent, humble, gratuitous, generous, gentle, giving, and unconditional love. This is a love that is free from ego and therefore frees us. The good radiates from you to the love object. It is the joyful acceptance of the other, any other, as he or she is. At its best it is universal love, extending to all people: lovers, friends, strangers, and enemies.

The Virtue of Love
Virtue is excellence in being for the good. Love draws us toward that good.

Where there is love, the other virtues are superseded and become redundant. Moral duty commands: Act as though you loved.

“A short and true definition of virtue,” said Augustine, “is due ordering of love.”

Love, through its role in procreation, brings us as close as possible to immortality.

Viktor Frankl describes an insight into love that occurred to him while marching to his work detail in a concentration camp: I saw the truth as it is set into song by so many poets, proclaimed as the final wisdom by so many thinkers. The truth—that love is the ultimate and the highest goal to which man can aspire. Then I grasped the meaning of the greatest secret that human poetry and human thought and belief have to impart: The salvation of man is through love and in love.

Indeed, love is all you need.

Religious Teachings
Love is a central theme in many world religions, and various religious traditions offer teachings on love that encompass aspects of compassion, kindness, and selflessness.

Consider reading this essay on /religious teachings/ regarding love.

Everyday Love
Practice the virtue of love every day in these ways:
 * 1) Refuse to hate.
 * 2) Want what you have, savor it and enjoy it.
 * 3) The virtues of fidelity, generosity, compassion, mercy, gratitude, humility, simplicity, tolerance, purity, gentleness, and good faith each prepare us for love. Practice them every day. Love will emerge and strengthen.
 * 4) Let love into your life. The grace of being loved precedes the grace of loving and prepares us for it.

Assignment
Part 1: Notice those things that bring you joy or that you declare your love for. Are they good? What makes them good?

Part 2: List the various loves in your life. This might include a childhood pet, a favorite place, an aunt, uncle, or grandparent, a favorite activity, hobby, song, or book. Recall your feelings of joyful awareness. Extend these joyful feelings toward each person in your present family, including your spouse or lover, siblings, parents, and children. Continue to extend these joyful feelings to those more distant from you, including your neighbors, co-workers, and others. Develop empathy. Eventually strive to extend joyful feelings toward people you disagree with and those you dislike.

Part 3: Work to expand your capacity for love by striving to follow these steps (attributed to Plato): First love the beauty of one individual body; next we love all lovely bodies, since they all partake of the same beauty. Then we love the beauties of the soul, which are superior to those of the bodies; and afterwards the beauty of laws and institutions, followed by the beauty of the sciences, and finally the very soul of beauty, everlasting and supernatural, subsisting of itself and by itself, the beauty of which all lovely things partake, from which they all originate and receive their beauty.

title: Virtues/Love


text:
User:Joshua.thomas.bird

 * About me
 * Google+: http://www.gplus.to/tbird
 * Jabber: joshuathomasbird@jabber.org

Things I'm working on

 * School:Computer Science
 * Introduction to Computers
 * Introduction to Computer Science

 * Computer Science Course Listing

title: User:Joshua.thomas.bird


text:
Computer Logic

Computer logic is an aspect of computer design concerning the fundamental operations and structures upon which all computer systems are built.

Number systems Theory
Numerical systems are based on counting using an alphabet and operations. The decimal number system uses the alphabet {0,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9}, called digits, and the basic operations add, subtract, mulitply, and divide, symbolised as {+,-,*,/}.

The decimal number system has enough digits to count 9 items. To avoid creating as many digits as quantities we might encounter, the idea of relative or positional counting is used. The digit 5, for example can mean five, fifty, five-hundred, or five-millionth. Similarly for all the other digits - except zero (0). Zero is unique in that it serves as a place holder so that the other digits are correctly positioned. Thus the numbers 5, 50, 500, 0.000005 all contain the digit 5 to represent different quantities and the 0 digit merely allows us to correctly position the 5.

Digits are arbitrarily defined, so the digit 2 could mean forty-nine, 3 perhaps means seven (not the digit 7), and so on. While this may seem crazy, the fact is this flexibility is exactly what enables computer scientists to design language aware tools, like word-processors, spell checkers, and rudimentary language translators.

Since computer science is utterly based on Number System Theory, the meaning of digits must be expanded beyond mere counting, quantities, and values. However, passing digits between devices and humans cannot be done arbitrarily, otherwise we would not make sense of the results. For this reason there are basic conventional standards which define what digits will mean under specific situations. One such standard is the American Standard for Code International Interchange, or ASCII.

This Standard is a table which defines what the numbers zero (0) through one-hundred twenty-seven (127) represent. The English alphabet {a,b,c,...,x,y,z} is represented in both upper- and lower-case forms, as well as the digits themselves! Thus, the ASCII for the digit zero (0) is the number 48, one (1) is 49, and nine (9) is 57. Here, we have overloaded the digits to mean both a value (48) and a digit (0). This can lead to problems if we do something like: 48 = 40 + 8; is 48 an ASCII code or the number forty-eight? Unfortunately, the answer is: it depends on the context.

The key to understanding computers lies in unlearning that the digit 1 means one and only one, and learning that the digit 1 identifies something, which may not be a number at all. Similarly for all other digits. Indeed, we often borrow letters {a,b,c,...,x,y,z} to represent digits, too. The letter 'A', for example may represent the number ten, 'B' eleven, and 'F' fifteen. However, underneath all this meaning, the digits themselves have fixed and unique numerical values and obey Number Systems Theory.

Number Systems differ only in their total digits and all can represent the same quantity. So if we only had four digits, say {0,1,2,3}, we could still represent the number twenty as 1104. We arrive at this surprising result by noting that the positional value has changed.

Here we can only count 3 values, so four must be written as 104. By moving 1 one position to the left we show it is four times its value - not ten times! We read it as, "One-zero, in the four Number system". So eight is 104(four) + 104(four), or 204. Twelve is three fours, or 304. Fifteen is twelve plus three or 334. Since sixteen is is four fours, we must again move 1 left another position, giving us 1004 (or "One-zero-zero, in the four Number system"). Nineteen is sixteen plus three, or 1034. Finally, twenty is four fours plus a four or 1104.

Lets pick another number system, say one with twenty digits. The quantity twenty in this system is the number 1020 (or "One, zero, in the twenty Number System"). We conclude that 1104 = 1020, or "One-One-zero in the four Number System equals one-zero, in the twenty Number System".

The astute reader (and you are, aren't you?) will have noticed that a ten-digit number system can represent nine values, four digits only three values, and twenty no more than nineteen. In each case the maximum value is one less than the number of digits. This is true for all number systems. Further, when repositioning digits left (or right), their value changes by a multiple of the number of digits. For a ten digit system the change is a multiple of ten, a four digit system changes by a multiple of four, and a twenty digit system changes each position by a multiple of twenty.

The Base and Power
A Number System is defined by how many digits it has, and this is called the base. We can therefore identify a Number System by its base. The number 1104 can now be read as, "One-one-zero, base four" and know that "One-one-zero, base eight" (1108) might look similar to 1104, but is actually a different value in another Number System.

to be continued ....

Binary, Octal, Decimal and Hexadecimal Systems
Computer systems regularly use numeral systems of bases other than 10. Base 2 (binary), Base 8 (octal), and Base 16 (hexadecimal) numeral systems are used because designing a computer system is simpler in this manner than for other bases.

Binary numbers are the core of all computer operations. Unlike a decimal number, which has ten digits, a binary number is made up of only two digits, 1s and 0s. It is very easy to represent binary values in electrical circuits and computer systems. A high voltage can be used for 1, and a low voltage for 0. A single value, such as a 1 or a 0, is called a bit.

Hexadecimal is often used to represent binary data. The hexadecimal numeral system has the special property that every digit represents exactly four bits, so it can be used as a compact representation of large values. For example, the binary equivalent of the hexadecimal number  is , where   is   (10 in decimal) and 3 is   (3 in decimal).

Conversion
To convert from any base to another we use the 10th base as a portal base 0∙〖10〗^1+7∙〖10〗^0=07=7 then we divide the result by the other base (binary) and get the modular of it until the end 7mod2=1 3mod2=1 2mod1=1 since if the left number is less than the right number then we take down the number itself... after that we put the mod result beside each other from the last result to the first result 7(oct)=111(binary)

Arithmetics of non-decimal numbers
Just as rules exist for arithmetic operations on decimal numbers, there are a number of techniques for evaluating various operations in non-decimal bases.

Several systems have been designed to represent negative numbers in binary. The most commonly used is called two's complement. This system is popular because numbers using this representation are easy to negate, and arithmetic operations can be performed on both positive and negative numbers in the same manner.

In two's complement, binary values whose most significant bit (MSB) is 0 are positive, whereas those whose MSB is 1 are negative. To negate a two's complement binary number, invert all of the bits and add one. For example, 00010110 (22 in decimal) becomes 11101010 (-22 in decimal).

There are two common methods of calculating the two's complement of a binary number. The first is to first use one's complement, which is the simple inversion of each bit (1 becomes 0; 0 becomes 1). So the given binary representation of decimal 22, converted to one's complement is 11101001. To obtain the two's complement from the one's complement, just add 1. This yields 11101010 (-22 decimal). The mechanics of addition will become clearer as you progress. The other method is a shortcut to using one's complement and adding one; it takes advantage of the fact that adding 1 forces you to carry that bit during the addition, so we save ourselves some work ahead of time: beginning with the least significant bit (LSB), keep all of the 0-bits and the least significant 1-bit (10 in our example); then invert all of the bits more significant than that least significant 1-bit (111010); finally, the end result is 11101010 (-22 decimal).

Addition
To perform addition in any number system, begin with the LSB. Combine the two LSB's but if you exceed the base, you must carry a one to the next position. Any difference between the total combination computed and the base is to be left in that position. Here is an example in decimal: 456 + 789: And there you have it! In binary, it is slightly easier, because you will notice that after 1, we have already reached the base, so just zero the current position, and carry that 1 to the next position. It should feel like flipping bits, which it is!
 * 1) In the first place (places are numbered beginning with the least significant bit, a.k.a. right-most), we have 6 + 9, which yields 15. Because we are in decimal, we can only use {0-9}, so after 9, we need to carry one to the next place. 15 = 10 + 5, so 5 remains in the first place, and we carry the 10, but when we carry 10 to the next place, it is represented as 1.
 * 2) In the second place, we have 3 terms to combine: 1 + 5 + 8, yielding 14. Again, 14 = 10 + 4, so we leave 4 as the result in the second place and carry the 10 as a 1 to the third place.
 * 3) In the third place, we have 1 + 4 + 7 = 12. We see that 12 = 10 + 2, so we leave 2 as the result in the third place and carry the 10 as a 1 to the fourth place.
 * 4) In the fourth place, which did not exist at the start of the problem, we have 1. This is the resultant value for the fourth place since there are no other terms with which to combine it.
 * 1) In Binary Addition, We have to use following truth Table
 * 2) The most significant bit in A+B is carry and is taken to next bit in addition.Here is an example: 1111 + 0101;

Subtraction

 * 1) Similar to Addition specified above we can perform binary Subtraction using truth table below

Multiplication
When doing multiplication with binary numbers the following truth table is used. The truth table for addition is also needed.

Example multiplication:

Binary Codes
The most common binary codes are BCD, Excess-3, and Gray Code. Each has its purpose. BCD stands for "Binary-coded decimal" and is just that. Using 4-bit binary strings, each decimal digit is encoded in binary: 48610 = (0100 1000 0110)2. The limit is of course 10012 because 9 is the largest decimal value and the 4-bit binary string has a capacity of 1510.

Excess-3 code is the same as BCD, but adding 0011 (310). Gray Code has the core concept of reducing the number of bitwise changes to 1 for each increment in the counting order. This requires less power in a system, but will seem like an arbitrary sequence at first glance.

 * Please refer to Wikipedia article on Binary code

Logic gates and Digital Circuits
Any arithmetic operation in a computer system can be implemented using basic logical operations, such as AND and OR. In fact, it has been proven that an entire computer system can be designed and implemented using solely the NAND operation.

These logical operations have truth tables associated with them, which enumerate the output signals for particular combinations of inputs. Input signals are typically named A, B, and C, whereas outputs are typically represented as F, G, X, and Y.

The part of a digital logic circuit which performs one of these operations is called a gate. Signals enter these gates (inputs), and the gate generates new signals (outputs) depending on the signals it received.

The time it takes for a gate to generate an output when it receives new inputs signals is not instantaneous, but it is very fast, on the order of picoseconds. This switching time is dependant on the type of gate, and since gates cannot be perfectly manufactured, there is some uncertainty in the exact time.

NOT gate
The NOT gate, more commonly called an inverter or inverting buffer, simply negates a signal. When it receives a low input, it outputs a high signal. When it receives a high input, it outputs a low signal.

AND gate

 * Please refer to Wikipedia article about the AND gate.

An AND gate has two or more inputs, and one output.

OR gate

 * Please refer to Wikipedia article about the OR gate.

An OR gate has two or more inputs, and one output.

NAND gate

 * Please refer to Wikipedia article on the NAND gate.

A NAND gate has two or more inputs, and one output. It is equivalent to the negation of the output from an AND gate with the same inputs.

XOR gate

 * Please refer to Wikipedia article on the XOR gate.

An XOR gate has two or more inputs, and one output.

Boolean Algebra

 * Please refer to Wikipedia article on Boolean algebra, or to the Wikiversity page on Boolean algebra.

Block Diagrams
Block diagrams are used so that somebody looking at a circuit diagram does not have to see the details of every part, every time it appears in the diagram.

Decoders
Decoding is performed by decoder,a combonational circuit with an n-bit binary code applied to its input and an m-bit binary code appears at the output.

Encoders
An encoder is a digital function that perform the inverse operation of a decoder.An encoder has 2'n input lines and n output lines.The output lines generate the binary code corresponding to the input value.

Multiplexers
Multiplexers (sometimes called muxes, singular mux, for short) are used to route multiple signals over a single wire. Select signals are used to select the input signal to allow through to the output.

Demultiplexers (demuxes) perform the inverse operation. They accept a single input, and route it to a selected output.

Latches and Flip-Flops
Latches and flip-flops can store one bit of data each.

D Flip-Flop
A D flip-flop is loaded with the signal present at D when the clock is high, low, rising, or falling (depending on the type used).

Memory
All memory (RAM) is simply collections of flip flops, with a way of addressing a particular segment/word.

title: Computer Logic


text:
Natural Language Processing

Introduction
Natural language processing (NLP) is a subfield of artificial intelligence and linguistics. It studies the problems of automated generation and understanding of natural human languages. Natural language generation systems convert information from computer databases into normal-sounding human language, and natural language understanding systems convert samples of human language into more formal representations that are easier for computer programs to manipulate.

The field is divided in two major categories: The technologies needed for both are very different, "speech" being addressed normally by Electronic or Telecommunications Engineers, while "text" being more addressed by Computer Scientists. Additionally, Speech recognition and speech generation are normally architectured as a layer over a Text recognition / generation engine.
 * Speech Recognition and generation, and
 * text interpretation and generation.

To follow a course on NLP, you must know about Formal languages and Grammars, and be able to program fluently. For the practicals, you must learn a Logic programming language; Prolog is recommended. A rule based programming language can serve as well, although it perhaps is more difficult to master.

Document Decomposition
If you look on this text above Furthermore the text contains more information we could identify, e.g. a header or links. In general a document can contain other document elements images, audio, video or interactive elements like forms or geometric construction that can be manipulated by the reader.
 * the document consists of sections,
 * each section consists of paragraphs,
 * each paragraph consists of sentences,
 * each sentence consist of words and
 * words consist of characters/symbols.

Abstract Syntax Tree
A tree can represent the decomposition of text into substructures. The decomposition of text into sections is e.g. the top level of an Abstract Syntax Tree (AST).

Learning Activities
Introduction Text My Subsection Text of subsection
 * (Abstract Syntax Tree) Draw the top level of the Abstract Syntax Tree (AST) that decomposes this text into sections,
 * (Language Section Decomposition) Look into specific languages like HTML, Markdown, Latex, ... and identify syntax elements that are available to determine headers in a texts,
 * (Regular Expression) write a regular expression e.g. in Javascript that extracts headers (e.g. "Introduction") and the level of the header (i.e. section, subsection, ... )
 * in HTML the level 1 is defined with h1, h2, ... tags, e.g. for section header "introduction" and a subsection "My Subsection" with the level 2
 * in Latex the levels are defined with \section{...}, \subsection{...}, ... command, e.g. for section header "introduction" and a subsection "My Subsection" with the level 2 are defined in Latex with the following commands

\section{Introduction} Text \section{My Subsection}} Text of subsection

title: Natural Language Processing


text:
Election Science

The School of Election Science
The School of Election Science is dedicated to dedicated to the scholarship of group decision making and election systems.

See Voting system and Social choice theory.

Resources (on Wikiversity)
Voting systems

External resources

 * Electowiki with much information about voting systems.
 * The Center for Election Science, non profit formed by people involved with the Center for Range Voting.
 * The Center for Range Voting advocacy organization for Range voting and the study of voting systems.
 * FairVote, advocacy organization, mostly for Instant runoff voting.

title: Election Science


title: File:Nm1.s11.Mtg32.pg4.fig1.svg


text:
User:Susann

Welcome to my user page,

I would like to write a chapter on self-concept and behavioral change. More specifically the internal motivational challenges that may occur when we desire change and need to take on ourselves. Topics may include: formation of self, vulnerabilities, behaviors and what is required for sucessful change/management (how and why).

Cheers

title: User:Susann


text:
Types of computers

Main Course Launch Page - Data Size and Speeds Exit Supplmental Material

Supplemental Course Navigation This is a lesson in the course Introduction to Computers, which is a part of The School of Computer Science

This is a resource to learn about different types of computers that exist.

Supercomputer
Supercomputers are the fastest and the most expensive computers. These huge computers are used to solve very complex science and engineering problems. Supercomputers get their processing power by taking advantage of parallel processing; they use lots of CPUs at the same time on one problem. A typical supercomputer can do up to ten trillion individual calculations every second. Example Supercomputers:
 * K Computer
 * Columbia

Quantum computer
The industry is replacing Supercomputer with Quantum Computers

 * Measures in “Qubits”

Mainframe
Mainframe (colloquially, "big iron") computers are similar to supercomputers in many aspects, the main difference between them is the fact that a supercomputer uses all its raw power to focus on very few tasks, while a mainframe perform thousands or millions of operations concurrently. Due to its nature, mainframes are often employed by large organizations for bulk data processing, such as census, industry and consumer statistics, enterprise resource planning and transaction processing.

Server Computer

A server is a central computer that contains collections of data and programs. Also called a network server, this system allows all connected users to share and store electronic data and applications. Two important types of servers are file servers and application servers.

Servers are a step below supercomputers because they don't focus on trying to solve one very complex problem but try to solve many similar smaller ones. An example of servers would be the computers that Wikipedia stores its encyclopedia on. Those computers have to go and find the page you're looking for and send it to you. In itself, it's not a big task, but it becomes a job for a server when the computers have to go and find lots of pages for a lot of people and send them to the right place. Some servers, like the ones Google uses for something like Google Documents, have applications on them instead of just files, like Wikipedia.

Workstation Computer

Workstations are high-end, expensive computers that are made for more complex procedures and are intended for one user at a time. Some of the complex procedures consist of science, math and engineering calculations and are useful for computer design and manufacturing. Workstations are sometimes improperly named for marketing reasons. Real workstations are not usually sold in retail, but this is starting to change; Apple's Mac Pro would be considered a workstation.

The movie Toy Story was made on a set of Sun (Sparc) workstations

Personal Computer or PC

PC is an abbreviation for a Personal Computer, it is also known as a Microcomputer. Its physical characteristics and low cost are appealing and useful for its users. The capabilities of a personal computer have changed greatly since the introduction of electronic computers. By the early 1970s, people in academic or research institutions had the opportunity for single-person use of a computer system in interactive mode for extended durations, although these systems would still have been too expensive to be owned by a single individual. The introduction of the microprocessor, a single chip with all the circuitry that formerly occupied large cabinets, led to the proliferation of personal computers after about 1975. Early personal computers, generally called microcomputers, sold often in kit form and in limited volumes and were of interest mostly to hobbyists and technicians. By the late 1970s, mass-market pre-assembled computers allowed a wider range of people to use computers, focusing more on software applications and less on the development of the processor hardware. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, home computers were developed for household use, offering some personal productivity, programming and games, while somewhat larger and more expensive systems (although still low-cost compared with minicomputers and mainframes) were aimed for office and small business use.

Today a personal computer is an all-around device that can be used as a productivity tool, a media server and a gaming machine. The modular construction of the personal computer allows components to be easily swapped out when broken or upgrading.

Microcontroller

Microcontrollers are mini-computers that enable the user to store data and execute simple commands and tasks. Many such systems are known as embedded systems. The computer in your car, for example, is an embedded system. A common microcontroller that one might come across is called Arduino.

Smartphone

A smartphone is a mobile device that combines cellular and mobile computing functions into one unit. They are distinguished from feature phones by their stronger hardware capabilities and extensive mobile operating systems, which facilitate wider software, internet (including web browsing[1] over mobile broadband), and multimedia functionality (including music, video, cameras, and gaming), alongside core phone functions such as voice calls and text messaging. Smartphones typically contain a number of metal–oxide–semiconductor (MOS) integrated circuit (IC) chips, include various sensors that can be leveraged by their software (such as a magnetometer, proximity sensors, barometer, gyroscope, or accelerometer), and support wireless communications protocols (such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or satellite navigation).

title: Types of computers


text:
Hardware

Main Course Launch Page - Data Size and Speeds Exit Supplmental Material

Supplemental Course Navigation

Objective
Familiarize the learner with the components of computers and the performance of each of them.

Learning Task

 * Explain how graphic cards can be used for computation in area of Artificial Intelligence!
 * Compare Cloud Computing and linking a large number of computers in network to support complex problem solving!

Hardware
The term "Hardware" refers to the physical elements of a computer; the machinery or the electronics in a computer. A basic computer consists of 4 components:
 * 1) Input device (or input unit e.g. optical, radar, ultrasound, sound sensor, microphones)
 * 2) CPU (Central Processing Unit)
 * 3) Memory (or Memory unit)
 * 4) Output device (Output unit, text, speakers, images, .... )

Input unit and Output unit (I/O)
Input unit sends data to the computer and output unit presents information. Input unit: keyboard, mouse, flash drive, camera, microphones etc. Output unit: monitor, printer, speaker, speakers, etc.

Input and output unit or Input and output device (I/O) provide a way to interact with a computer. Some examples of I/O devices are: keyboard used to input text, mouse, touch pad, camera, monitor, speakers, touchscreen for simultaneous input and output.

Examples of hardware (I/O) in a computer are:

Most of a computer's hardware cannot be seen as it is inside the computer case. Example: Memory, CPU, etc.

Memory Unit
The memory unit is what allows a computer to remember data and information. Similar to human memory, there is short term memory (RAM) and long term memory (Hard Disk Drive (HDD), Solid-State Drive (SSD) or Compact Disk Drive (CDD)).

Examples of hardware (Memory) in a computer are:

When a computer is turned off, it forgets everything in the RAM (short term memory), while it saves everything it will need later into a disk drive (long term memory). When data is needed by the CPU, it's sent from the hard disk drive (HDD) or compact disk drive (CDD) to the RAM. RAM tends to be faster to process, whereas HDD/CDD have more data and require longer to process. CDDs let you change certain parts of the memory, essentially like a book or notebook that you might read and get information from.

A storage medium gives your computer a place to store data and information that it might need in order to operate. Some things that could be stored in memory might be: text documents, photos, programs, and the operating system (OS).

CPU
The CPU (or Central Processing Unit) performs arithmetical and logical operations of the computer system.

Examples of hardware (CPU) in a computer are:

The central processing unit, or processor, is the component of a computer that performs processes. Examples of other tasks performed by the CPU include:

 * Input/Output directions (reading data from an input device/writing information to an output device)
 * Storing data in memory

Motherboard
The motherboard is hardware that makes connections between all of the other components in a computer, effectively telling data where it should go.

Example of hardware (Motherboard) in a computer is:

Expansion cards
The expansion cards are electronic circuits that add specific ability to a computer system.

Examples of hardware (Expansion cards) in a computer are:

Power supply
A power supply (power supply unit) is a device that provides electrical energy to the computer system.

Examples of hardware (Power supply) in a computer are:

Assembled Personal Computer Hardware
The hardware as assembled with a typical personal computer include:

1. Monitor

2. Motherboard

3. CPU (Microprocessor)

4. Main memory (RAM)

5. Expansion cards

6. Power supply unit

7. Compact disk drive (CDD)

8. Hard disk drive (HDD) or secondary compact disk drive (CDD)

9. Keyboard

10. Mouse

See more

 * Input Devices
 * Output Devices
 * Motherboard
 * Memory Unit

title: Hardware


text:
What is data?

Data
Data is any sort of information. data can be given to a computer and asked to do something with it. the result of what it does is also data.

Memory
Data can be stored in memory if the computer is asked to do so. When you burn a CD, you ask the computer to store data on an optical disc.

I/O
I/O lets a computer get information from somewhere and lets it send it somewhere also. It's this premise on which networking is based; one computer can send data to another computer.

Names for different sizes of data
When choosing a new computer we come across terms such as "300GB hard drive" and "500MB download", and to the uninitiated, this can be somewhat disconcerting. Data in a computer is represented in a series of bits. Since the birth of computers, bits have been the language that control the processes that take place inside that mysterious black box called your computer. In this article, we look at the very language that your computer uses to do its work.

Bit
A bit is a binary unit, simply a 1 or a 0. A true or a false. It is the most basic unit of data in a computer. It's like the dots and dashes in Morse code for a computer. Bits are machine readable.

Nibble: A nibble is 4 bits, or half of a byte.

Byte
In computer science a byte is a unit of measurement of information storage, that equals '8 bits', can be used to represent letters and numbers. For example, the number 01000001 is 8 bits long, and represents the letter A in ASCII.

Word
Unfortunately the term "word" has two definitions. The first is the number of bits that the central processing unit (CPU) of a particular computer can handle at one time is the word size for that computer. These word sizes ranged from a nibble to more than 128 bits. The second definition was pretty much driven by all of the people that were writing software to be used to program computers and this definition fixed the word size at 16 bits (or 2 bytes).

KB
A Kilobyte, or KB, is a unit of data that equals 1024 bytes. Actually a kilo means 1000 or 103, so a kilobyte is really a misnomer and 1024 bytes should be a kilobyte. However at the time the term was coined for programming use mainly, and powers of 2 do not fit into 1000 neatly. The use of the abbreviation KB has further masked this anomaly, so today many people still refer to a kilobyte as 1024 bytes.

MB
Megabyte is 1024kB; the kilobyte squared, 10242 bytes.

GB
A gigabyte is a unit of data storage worth a billion bytes meaning either exactly 1 billion bytes (10243) or approximately 1.07 billion bytes. More often than not in advertising, Gigabytes are presented as 1 billion bytes and not 10243 (read the fine print in your adverts!). This explains why a freshly formatted 500GB hard drive shows up at a 450GB one instead. Not too long ago many people were discussing storage in Megabytes. These days, storage has become so cheap that having Gigabytes is considered the norm.

TB
A terabyte is 10244 and is defined as about one trillion bytes, or 1024 gigabytes. Data centres such as those operated by Google handle thousands if not millions of terabytes of data each day. As storage becomes cheaper and faster, terabytes are becoming a commonly heard term.

PB

A petabyte is a unit of information or computer storage equal to one quadrillion bytes (10245). Microsoft stores on 900 servers a total of approximately 14 petabytes.

A petabyte is an extremely large amount of data.

Measurements of Data Speed
Today there are generally 2 ways of describing data transfer speeds: in bits per second, or in bytes per second. As explained above, a byte is made of 8 bits. Network engineers still describe network speeds in bits per second, while your internet browser would usually measure a file download rate in bytes per second. A lowercase "b" usually means a bit, while an uppercase "B" represents a byte.

bps
Known as bits per second, bps was the main way of describing data transfer speeds several decades ago. Bps was also known as the baud rate, therefore, a 600 baud modem was one which could transfer data at around 600bps.

Kbps
kilobits per second, or 1000 bits per second.

Mbps
1,000,000 bits per second (usually used in describing internet download/upload speeds).

Gbps
1,000,000 kilobits per second or 1,000,000,000 bits per second. This term is most commonly heard in local area networks, where the close proximity of machines allows for lightning fast data transfer rates.

title: What is data?


text:
Types of computer software

Boot Code
Boot code is used to create a working environment for the operating system. The term, "boot" is a shortening of the term, "bootstrapping" which answers the problem of a computer needing itself to be in a running state in order to start itself. Early computers required a complicated series of commands entered by hand on a switch panel followed by an "execute" command to create the system environment. Modern computers make use of boot code saved on semi-permanent memory.

A very small program, the code examines the system hardware; initializes environment variables such as date, time and device start order; identifies and starts the internal peripheral devices the computer uses, such as hard drives and video processors; enables the various communication ports and executes the operating system. Booting

Starting a computer from a powered-off state is called, "cold-booting." If the computer is already running and is being restarted, it already has the environment parameters and settings loaded and will skip the initialization routines and perform a "warm boot" by only restarting the operating system.

Operating System
An operating system is a master program that a computer uses to execute both user-level programs as well as the environment routines and drivers necessary for the computer to run. Thus, on a standard personal computer an operating system handles signals from input and output devices, manages memory usage and controls peripherals. Therefore, the operating system is the most important program a computer must run.

DOS, Microsoft Windows XP and Mac OS are some examples of personal computer operating systems. Server-level computers use operating systems such as UNIX and Microsoft Windows Server. LINUX and BSD are versatile enough to be used either in a personal computer or as an operating system in a server, depending on which components are installed.

With the size of most present operating systems a hard disk is required to store the necessary files and programs. Should the operating system become inoperable, many offer a "boot disk" option where a simpler version of the operating system with only the necessary drivers and files is stored on removable devices, usually a CD/DVD-ROM, USB flash drive or floppy disk. Booting the computer with the boot disk allows the system to be accessed and repaired.

Portable devices, such as cellular phones and personal data assistants use specialized, "embedded" operating systems that enable them to do many tasks once only found in "platform" computers, such as email transactions, document operations and database management.

PC/Microsoft DOS
A command-line operating system, MS/PC DOS helped usher in the microcomputer age by providing an operating system that would run on the limited resources of the 8086/8088-based personal computer. MS-DOS

Microsoft Windows
Despite its numerous problems and irritations, Microsoft Windows is rightly credited with enabling the non-technical user to operate a computer without having to learn too many complicated commands and settings and has been instrumental to the increased popularity of the personal computer.

MS Windows versions 1.0 and 2.x

MS Windows version 3.x

MS Windows 9x

MS Windows NT

MS Windows XP

MS Windows Vista

MS Windows 7

MS Windows 8

MS Windows 8.1

MS Windows 10

MS Windows 11

Palm OS
The Palm OS was preceded by the Japanese company PalmSource, and is the dominant operating system for hand-helds. Over 30.1 million PalmOS units (including licensees), according to Sept 2003 Palm Inc. financial reports; with over 22 million total USR/3Com/Palm or Palm Solutions Group branded units shipped (over 4 million per year).  Palm has many security concerns due to it's mobility, such as if lost or stolen palms may have data that can retrieved by others. Also if Palm passwords are interconnected to your PC passwords, anyone has access to personal files on your PC. Palm_(PDA)

Symbian OS
Symbian was a discontinued operating software which is mostly used by the mobile phones. Symbian was the biggest software producers for smart phones. There are the Symbian codes used by different companies as well, Mika Raento has huge examples of Symbian codes [] There are different companies that owns Symbian software: for example,Ericsson and Nokia had the highest percentage ( 47.9%) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symbian

MS Windows CE
Though most versions of Microsoft Windows were developed for desktop applications, a simpler version was created for hand-held devices called, "Windows CE."

Files
A file is one of two things: 1) data file, or a named collection of data or 2) program file, or a program that exists in the secondary storage of a computer.

Computer files make it easier for the user to find and save their data.File_system Computer files are like paper documents that used to be kept in libraries and offices Computer_file.

Exporting a file puts it in a format that many programs can read. Importing a file gets data from another source and converts it to a compatible format. Example: Creating a spreadsheet in Google Docs, exporting the file to CSV (comma separated value) format, opening Microsoft Excel, importing the CSV file, saving the spreadsheet as an excel file.

Example: Certain networks are created to allow users to share files, such as audio, video and pictorial images. Networks like Limewire use a peer-to-peer file sharing method.

Tasks

A computer may perform many different tasks at the same time. Tasks include storing, printing, and calculating. Multitasking is when a computer operates more than one task at a time with one central processor.

A task is a set of instructions (like a plan) that is brought out from memory to execute certain functions. Task_(computers)

In order to allow your computer to multi-task quicker the processor should have high speed(frequency). This will allow you to run more applications at once without affecting your computers performance. Nowadays multicore processors which combines two(dual core) or four(quad core) are coming which have more speed than ordinary ones.

[|podcast]

Task is a real time application which is the study of hardware and software that are subject to real time constraint Task_(computers)

Security
Security could mean confidentiality, integrity or availability of electronic information that is processed by or stored on computer systems. "The only truly secure system is one that is powered off, cast in a block of concrete and sealed in a lead-lined room with armed guards - and even then I have my doubts. ”

Eugene H. Spafford, director of the Purdue Center for Education and Research in Information Assurance and Security  Computer_security

EXAMPLE: FIREWALL A system that prevents unauthorized access to/from a private network. Can be implemented in both hardware and software, or both. This form of security can be used to prevent unauthorized Internet users from accessing private networks connected to the Internet/inappropriate networks. Internet_Firewalls

Applications
Applications are referred to as a type of computer software where the computer's capabilities directly reflect that of the task.Application_software

Custom

Custom software is under the category of application software. The word custom means that the software is specially made for the individual and/or company needs. This software is created by the programmers and software engineers. Custom software can be very expensive since it is only developed on demand. A very good example of a custom soft ware is the application of it in space crafts, ATM'S, and super market check out machines. Custom software, which can also be called bespoke software, is only created for individual companies to be used for research and other things. It is also a risk for a company to develop custom software since it is very expensive or demands huge sums of money to develop.

Custom_software

Commercial
Commercial Software, also known as Proprietary Software or Packaged Software, is software that can be bought and sold. Commercial Software is copyrighted, so you must pay for it in some respect. Examples of this are Microsoft Excel or Adobe Photoshop.

Commercial software is generally bought in retails stores in a physical form. However, in some cases you can download the program you desire over the internet for a lesser fee. Commercial software programs uses things such as passwords and user registrations to make sure only paid customers are using the program. Commercial software such as Norton AntiVirus uses thirty day free trials to familiarize the user with the product before they purchase it.

Shareware
Shareware is basically "try before you buy" software. Unlike most software where you have to buy the software before you can actually use it, the concept of Shareware lets you try a program for a short period of time before you buy it. This gives the consumer an opportunity to test out the software and see if it suits his needs or not. This not only helps the consumer get a feel for the product but is also beneficial to the company providing the Shareware Software to market their product. Shareware has the ultimate money-back guarantee - if you don't use the product, you don't pay for it!

Examples of shareware software would be a trial version of Fracture.It is a screensaver software for the Mac Os-X. In order to use the full version of the software, a ten dollar ($10) registration fee must be paid.

Free / Open Source
Software that has released the files it was written in, usually free, so you can download and change the original code, therefore changing the program.

Viro has contributed 1,571 changes to the kernel (the piece of software that connects the hardware with the applications), over the past three years, according to a new report from the Linux Foundation. That's more than any other individual developer, the report states. In contrast, Torvalds, the kernel's creator and steward, contributed 495 changes. Viro couldn't be reached for comment about the report.

During the past three years, the top 10 individual developers have contributed nearly 15 percent of the changes to the kernel, while the top 30 developers have submitted 30 percent, the report states.

Operating System
An operating system has two main jobs: to coordinate the computers resources and to service applications. Operating Systems were introduced in the 1950's. Operating_system

Kernel
The kernel is the piece of software that connects with the drivers/programs in the user-controlled portion of the computer to the hardware outside of the computer (or in many cases, inside). w:Kernel_(operating_system)

Utilities
Also known as service programs. Utilities perform a variety of functions like disk de-fragmenting or compressing data. When utilities become popular they are usually bundled with the operating system.

Driver

A computer driver is a program that controls a device. There are device drivers for printers, displays, CD-ROM readers, diskette drives, and so on.For other devices, you may need to install a new driver when you connect the device to your computer. In DOS systems, drivers are often files with a .SYS extension. In Windows environments, drivers often have a .DRV extension.

Some kernels, for example, the Linux kernel, have drivers built in, which contrasts to the Windows NT kernel which requires drivers to be loaded by the kernel.

A driver acts like a translator between the device and the kernel so the user can use the device. Each device has its own set of specialized commands that only its driver knows. In contrast, most programs access devices by using generic commands. The driver, therefore, accepts generic commands from a program and then translates them into specialized commands for the device.

Backup
Making copies of data in case the original data is lost or destroyed.

The two reasons for backing up your files are; a) disaster recovery - to restore the files to an operational state following a disaster, and b) to restore small numbers of files after they have been corrupted or accidentally deleted.

Do not confuse backups with archives or fault-tolerant systems. Archives are the first copy of data and back ups are a second copy of data. Also back up systems assume that fault will cause data loss and fault-tolerant systems will not assume fault.

A popular backup utility is Norton ghost, where a user can make an image copy of their files in case of a system crash.

A common method of backup for isolated systems without high-speed network or backup devices is to maintain the system and applications software installation disks locally, near the system, and backup only user data. In the event of a crash one then reinstalls system and application software from scratch and then restores the user data. When using this method one should not neglect to make off-site backups of the commercial software and user data so that in the event of a local disaster such as fire, flood, or earthquake that crunches the system, rapid recovery is still possible if desirable.

A backup allows the user to make a duplicate copy in case the hard-disk drive fails.

Malware
Malware is a program that can destroy and corrupt data on a computer. It can come through a floppy disk, CD, or USB, but now usually comes through email and sometimes even over-the-air (away from the user's control).

Virus are programs that can copy themselves and create problems in one computer without the user ever knowing or authorizing it. Virus can only be spread when they are taken to an uninfected computer. Viruses are commonly confused with computer worms and Trojan horses. A worm has the capabilities to spread itself to other computers without needing to be transferred as part of a host. Trojan horses are files that appear to be harmless until they are executed.

Anti-Virus (or sometimes referred to as Anti-Malware), is a computer program that attempts to identify and eliminate computer viruses. There are two different techniques to accomplish this, examining(scanning) and identifying suspicious behavior.

An example of a Anti-Virus software program is Symantec Norton Anti-Virus. Norton Anti-Virus (NAV) is a popular product of Symantec Corporation and is one of the most widely used anti virus programs. It is aimed at a centrally managed corporate environment and has different features not present in the traditional retail version of the software. Symantec's LiveUpdate provides virus definition updates, which enable Norton anti virus to detect viruses known to Symantec; a total of 73,660[3] viruses as of September 6, 2007. In order to receive updates, a valid subscription is required; an initial subscription good for one year (or 90 days for OEM copies) is included with the purchase.

De-fragmentation
The hard drive is divided into sectors that can hold files. If a file is bigger than a section (which it usually is) it is stored on the next sector. If the next sector is already being used, then it has to store it on a sector farther away, but the address of the new sector is stored so that the computer knows where all the parts of the file are. But if parts of the file are in different sections (aka "fragmented") then it takes a long time to find and make changes to it.

That's where de-fragmenting can help. It dutifully finds sectors that are next to each other big enough to hold a file and copies the file there, then deleting it form the fragmented sectors where it used to be. Defrag

De-fragmentation reduces the amount of space or "fragmentation" in a file space. By using compaction, it creates larger regions of free space. The image to the side of the text represents the allocation of the free space as well as the combining of the files in order to de-fragment the hard drive.

Fragmentation occurs when the operating system cannot or will not allocate enough contiguous space to store a complete file as a unit, but instead puts parts of it in gaps between other files (usually those gaps exist because they formerly held a file that the operating system has subsequently deleted or because the operating system allocated excess space for the file in the first place). Larger files and greater numbers of files also contribute to fragmentation and consequent performance loss. De-fragmentation attempts to alleviate these issues and issues caused by fragmentation.

Scandisk
This is a utility program originally used by DOS and Microsoft Windows that checks and repairs file systems and bad clusters within the system. Previous versions were simple text-based program called CHKDSK. Subsequent versions of the scandisk were still referred to as CHKDSK, but different from the earlier version. The recent versions are now integrated in Disk Properties as "error-checking."

One of the main functions with scandisk is that it can identify and repair physically damaged hard drives by quarantining the damaged area, to avoid files being written in that area, thus avoiding damaged and lost data.

Interfaces
How you work with the computer...

Interfaces is the functioning of two things, ex the way software and hardware interacts or how either would interact with a person ie the user. Interface_(computer_science)

CUI
Character user interface. You type commands into the computer. It's not easy to remember all the commands, and it looks less exciting than a GUI, but it works faster because you're not making the computer waste time showing pretty icons and background images.

This is the precursor to GUI (graphical user interface).

Graphical_user_interface

GUI

GUI is an acronym for "graphical user interface". It allows people to interact with a computer and computer-controlled devices using graphical icons, visual indicators or special graphical elements called "widgets". These icons are used in conjunction with text, labels or text navigation. Graphical_user_interface

The history of the graphical user interfaces came from the Xerox 8010 Star Information System in 1981 from PARC. GUI's are familiar to most people today using Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. Graphical_user_interface

GUI's are important because they are easier to use than command driven interfaces.

Source: Graphical user interface

GUI shell
Graphical user interface (GUI) shells build on top of CUI. The GUI instructs the CUI, and the CUI sends messages to the hardware. - Shell_(computing) GUI shells are very replaceable and software often allows users to create their own GUI to suit their personal need. The most active user generated GUI can be seen in games where users replace the original image with another GUI overlay to suit their personal style. A GUI is a type of user interface which allows people to interact with a computer and computer-controlled devices.

Graphical user interface

DOS Shell

This shell was one of the first successful attempts to create a basic graphical user interface (GUI) type file manager in DOS

DOS Shell

DOS Shell enables the user to type prompts and commands within a user interface.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shell_(computing)

No longer in use, the DOS shell, stands for Microsoft disc operating system. Microsoft set up this 'shell'(program software), to enhance features of their system. Some of these features include: double clicking to open a file on the computer and copying, moving, and renaming files. Some of the benefits of the dos shell is that it did not require long file names to run and it could be used with Microsoft windows. One of the drawbacks to the dos shell was that it could not multi task and so it was replaced when more efficient programs were created. Dos_shell

Widgets
A widget is an interface that a computer user uses such as window or text box. Programmers use widgets to build GUIs (graphical user interfaces).GUI_widget A widget engine is a host software system for running and displaying desktop widgets.

Widgets are also downloadable interactive virtual tools. They help to show users things such as the latest news, time or weather among a variety of other things.

Widget engine

title: Types of computer software


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