Archive:Spanish/Computers

Chapter 19 (Computers)

Communication

cara a cara - face-to-face
carta - letter
comunicarse - to communicate
me comunico - I communicate
te comunicas - you communicate
enviar - to send
tarjeta - card

On the computer

bajar - to download
buscar - to search
cámara digital - digital camera
canción - song
composición - composition
computadora portátil - laptop computer
crear - to create
curso - course
tomar un curso - to take a course
diapositiva - slide
dirección electrónica - e-mail address
documento - document
escribir por correo electrónico - to send an e-mail address
estar en línea - to be online
grabar un disco compacto - to burn a CD
gráficos - graphics
información - information
informe - report
laboratorio - labratory
navegar en la Red - to surf the Web
página Web - Web page
presentación - presentation
sitio Web - Web site
visitar salones de chat - to visit chat rooms

Usage

complicado(a) - complicated
¿Para qué sirve? - What's it for?
¿Qué te parece? - What do you think?
rápidamente - quickly
Sirve para... - It's used for...

Verbs

tener miedo - to be afraid

Pedir (to ask for)

Pedir, like hacer, is a verbs that has an irregular yo conjugation.

pido - I ask for
pides - you ask for (singular)
pide - he/she asks for
pedimos - we ask for
pedís - you ask for (plural)
piden - they ask for

Note: Remember that usted and ustedes conjugate in 3rd person form.

Servir (to serve)

Servir is also a verb that has an irregular yo conjugation.

sirvo - I serve
sirves - you serve (singular)
sirve - he/she serves
servimos - we serve
sirvís - you serve (plural)
sirven - they serve

Note: See above.

Saber (to know)

In Spanish, there are to ways of the verb, "to know." Saber is used for information or activities you know. It is also an irregular yo conjugation.

sé - I know
sabes - you know (singular)
sabe - he/she knows
sabemos - we know
sabéis - you know (plural)
saben - they know

Note: The usual usted and ustedes warning that you should know by now.

Conocer (to be acquainted with)

Conocer also means "to know," but it talks about familiarity of people, places, and things. Like saber, it has an irregular yo conjugation.

conozco - I know
conoces - you know (singular)
conoce - he/she knows
conocemos - we know
conocéis - you know (plural)
conocen - they know

Note: The usual.

Vocabulario adicional

búsqueda - search
comenzar la sesión - to log on
disco duro - hard disk
impresora - printer
imprimir - to print
marcapáginas - bookmark
multimedia - multimedia
página inicial - home page
tecla de borrar - delete key
tecla de intro - enter key

Cultural Insight (Computer Usage)

In Spanish-speaking countries, the usage of computers is less than in other countries, many home don't have a computer and people tend to go libraries or computer cafés to log on to computers.

Country Focus (Argentina)

Argentina (Spanish: Argentina) is a South American country, constituted as a federation of twenty-three provinces and an autonomous city. It is second in size on the South American continent to Brazil and eighth in the world. Argentina occupies a continental surface area of 2,766,890 km² (1,068,302 sq mi) between the Andes mountain range in the west and the southern Atlantic Ocean in the east and south. It is bordered by Paraguay and Bolivia in the north, Brazil and Uruguay in the northeast, and Chile in the west and south. Argentina also claimed 969,464 km² (374,312 sq mi) of Antarctica, known as Argentine Antarctica, overlapping other claims made by Chile (Chilean Antarctic Territory) and the United Kingdom (British Antarctic Territory), but all such claims are suspended by the Antarctic Treaty of 1957.

Argentina has the highest Human Development Index level and the second highest Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita in purchasing power parity in Latin America. Argentina's nominal GDP is the 31st largest in the world; when purchasing power is taken into account, however, its total GDP makes it the 23rd largest economy in the world.

The country is currently classified as an Upper-Middle Income Country or as a secondary emerging market by the World Bank.

In 1480, the Inca Empire under the rule of king Pachacutec launched an offensive and conquered present-day northwestern Argentina, integrating it into a region called Collasuyu. European explorers arrived in 1516. Spain established a permanent colony on the site of Buenos Aires in 1580; the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata was created in 1776. From the 1950s to 1970s, moderate military and weak civilian administrations traded power. The armed forces took power through a junta in charge of the self-appointed National Reorganization Process until 1983. The military government repressed opposition and leftist groups using harsh illegal measures (the "Dirty War"); thousands of dissidents "disappeared", while the SIDE cooperated with DINA and other South American intelligence agencies, and with the CIA in Operation Condor. Democracy was restored in 1983.

Argentine culture has significant European influences. Buenos Aires, considered by many its cultural capital, is often said to be the most European city in South America, as a result both of the prevalence of people of European descent and of conscious imitation of European styles in architecture. The other big influence is the gauchos and their traditional country lifestyle of self-reliance. Finally, indigenous American traditions (like maté tea drinking) have been absorbed into the general cultural trend.

Factbox:

-Official Language: Spanish

-Other Languages: Welsh, Italian, French, German, other European languages, Native American languages, Levantine Arabic, Chinese languages

-Capital: Buenos Aires

-Government: Democracy

-Area: 2,780,403 sq km (1,078,757 sq mi) (8th)

-Population: 40,301,927 (31st)

-Religion: Christianity (Catholic 92%, Protestant 2%) 94%, Judaism 2%, Islam 1.5%, Buddhism 0.1%, other (Atheism, Traditional beliefs) 2.4%

-Human Development: 0.869 (38th, HIGH)

-Independence: July 9, 1816

-Currency: Argentine Peso

Country Focus (Uruguay)

Uruguay (Spanish: Uruguay) is a country located in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to 3.46 million people, of which 1.7 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area.

It is bordered by Brazil to the north, by Argentina across the bank of both the Uruguay River to the west and the estuary of Río de la Plata to the southwest, and the South Atlantic Ocean to the southeast. Its surface is 176.215 km² being by its territorial extension the second smallest country in South America, larger only than Suriname and the French overseas department of French Guiana.

Montevideo was founded by the Spanish in the early 18th century as a military stronghold. Uruguay won its independence in 1825-1828 following a three-way struggle between Spain, Argentina and Brazil. It is a constitutional democracy, where the president fulfills the roles of both head of state and head of government.

The economy is largely based on agriculture (making up 10% of GDP and the most substantial export) and the state sector, Uruguay's economy is on the whole more stable than in its surrounding states, and it maintains a solid reputation with investors.

According to Transparency International, Uruguay is the second least corrupt country in Latin America (after Chile), with its political and labor conditions being among the freest on the continent.

Uruguay has an impressive legacy of artistic and literary traditions, especially for its small size. The contribution of its alternating conquerors and diverse immigrants has resulted in native traditions that integrate this diversity. Uruguay has centuries old remains, fortresses of the colonial era. Its cities have a rich architectural heritage and an impressive number of writers, artists, and musicians. Uruguayan tango is the form of dance that originated in the neighborhoods of Montevideo, Uruguay towards the end of the 1800s.

Factbox:

-Official Language: Spanish

-Other Languages: European languages, Riverense Portuñol

-Capital: Montevideo

-Government: Democracy

-Area: 176,215 sq km (68,037 sq mi) (90th)

-Population: 3,340,000 (133rd)

-Religion: Christianity (Catholic 62%, Protestant 4%) 66%, Atheism 17.2%, Animism 0.6%, Judaism 0.3%, Buddhism 0.1%, other (Non-religious, Agnostic) 2.4%

-Human Development: 0.852 (46th, HIGH)

-Independence: August 25, 1825

-Currency: Uruguayan Peso