Group up the words from the box into the columns below. For some words more than one column is possible.

Exercise 4. Remember the meaning of the terms that you will find in the text. 1. Spread sheet package - a kind of computer programs that you calculate data on sale, taxis, profits and so on. 2. Floppy disk - a disk made of plastic material upon which data are stored on magnetic tracks. 3. Compatible - it is usually said about two computers when their programs can be run on both of them. 4. Peripheral devices, or peripherals are units connected to the central processing units (CPU); they are input devices, output devices and storage devices. 5. Input is the process of transferring data or program instruction into the computer. 6. Output is the result produced by a computer. 7. Storage is the process of keeping information in a special device in computer. 8. Software may be denoted as a set of programs or instructions executed by the computer. 9. Hardware is a computer machinery and equipment. 10. Digital computer is a type of computer that uses a binary system. 11 11. Chip is a tiny piece of silicon containing a complex electronic circuits. Before reading the passage " The Rise of the Personal Computer" find in the text "The Rise of IBM" the chronological information on the models of computers produced by this company. Was the policy of IBM successful in the 1960s? THE RISE OF THE PERSONAL COMPUTER The first personal computer, the Altair, was announced in Popular Electronics in its January 1975 issue. The Altair was also the first example of new computer hardware. It caused a sensation in the computer industry: those who wanted could have their own computers to play with at home, and a mighty computer industry soon began to grow. A young computer hacker from Seattle by the name of William Gates, then a freshman at Harvard, sold the Altair developers a computer language that would run on their machine and that made it possible to program many advanced functions. Emboldened by their success with Altair, Gates and his friend founded Microsoft Corporation, which has become the world's largest person

Education is provided by state schools and independent schools. State schools are free. If pupils go to a public or private school, parents pay for their education. Compulsory education means that all children must attend school between the ages of 5 and 16. Kindergartens and nursery classes are optional. Children start school at the age of five and in 6 years provide secondary education. There are no entrance examinations in comprehensive schools. If pupils want to enter a grammar school, they have to pass the 11+ exams. Pupils take an exam at the end of each 4 stages of education. In England about 93 per cent of children attend state schools, which provide free education.The other 7 per cent attend independet school-private and public schools. Some of these schools are boarding schools where children live and study. If parents want to send their children to a private or a public school, they have to pay for their education. The most famous public schools are Eton, *Harrow* and Winchester.* -For small children, there are state kindergartens, private kindergarten classes*in schools, which are optional. -Secondary education is compulsory. It means all children must attend school between the ages 5 and 16. Most children start their education at the age of 5. Primary school may be divided into two parts: during the first two years reading, writing and arithmetic are taught for about 20 minutes a day. There is usually no written timetable. Much time is spent in modelling from clay or drawing, reading and singing. In Year 3 the *real work* starts. The children have lesson in arithmetic, reading and composition. History, Geography, Nature Study, Art and Music, PE, Swimming are also in the timetable. All schools follow the same National Curriculum. *The children attend the primary school for 6 years. -Comprehensive schools provide compulsory education for children between the ages of 11 and 16. Comprehensive schools affer 5-year courses to all pupils; there are no entrance examinations there. Some children enter grammar school which also provide secondary education. If a pupil wants to study at a grammar school, he or she has to pass the 11+ exams. There are 10 subjects, which all children must study at secondary school, and there are some optional subjects that are different in different schools. The whole period of compulsory education is divided into four stages. At the end of each (Years 2,6,9 and 11) pupils national examinations.