Final Exam Revision- CPT105 Term1, 2013 1. What is a database? Explain briefly with an example.

A database is a collection of related data shared by various categories of users to fulfill the information needs and requirements of an organization. E.g. Patients DB in a clinic 2. What are the different types of software that the computer user interacts with? Browsers, Word Processing, Spreadsheet, DBMS.

3. What is the difference between artificial Intelligence (AI) and expert systems? Expert Systems: A computer application that employs a set of rules based on human knowledge to solve problems that require human expertise. Artificial Intelligence is a practical mechanism that enables computers to stimulate the human reasoning process.

4. What are computer viruses? A computer virus is a software code that can multiply and propagate itself. A virus can spread into another computer via e-mail, through the downloading of files from the Internet, or the opening of a contaminated file. It is almost impossible to completely protect a network computer from virus attacks. Programmed threats are computer programs that can create a nuisance, alter or damage data, steal information, or cripple system functions. 5. List 4 different types of Operating systems. MS-DOS, Windows, Mac OS, Linux/Unix 6. What are binary codes? Binary codes consist of only two digits (0 and 1). Data and instructions are represented electronically with binary codes.

7. What is ecommerce? Give examples.

E-commerce provides the capability of buying and selling products and information on the Internet and other online services. B2B B2C Stelco ePay Service C2C ebay.com

8. What are the different types of memory on the computer system? 1. The Random Access Memory (RAM) stores the programs and data being processed by the CPU. RAM is called temporary or volatile storage as everything in RAM is lost as soon as the microcomputer is turned off. Flash memory chips can retain data even if power is disrupted. 2. Read Only Memory - The ROM chip contains a program that is loaded in the factory. The ROM chip does not evaporate and cannot be changed by users. ROM chips are not volatile and cannot be changed by the user. Read-Only means that the CPU can read or access the program written inside the ROM chip. Computers cannot write or code or change any data or instruction inside the ROM. ROM chips typically contain special instructions for detailed computer operations. ROM instructions may start the computer, give keyboard keys their special control capabilities, and put characters on the screen. Sometimes called firmware 3. CMOS: The CMOS chip provides flexibility and expandability to the computer system. It contains important information that is required every time the computer system is started. This chip provides information such as the total RAM size, types of keyboard, mouse, monitor and disc drive. Unlike RAM its powered by a battery and does not lose its contents when the power is turned off. Its content changes according to changes inside the computer system, such as the addition of new hardware and RAM.

9. What is the difference between the interpreter and compiler?

Source code needs to be compiled or converted into object code before it can be run in any computer. The compilation process is done by the compiler. If this programme is compiled in Linux, it can only be run in Linux. If it is compiled in Windows, it can only be run in Windows.

Interpreter functions to translate and execute programmes line by line. It does not
convert programmes into object code. Programmes in the interpreter are portable, i.e. it can be run using any operating system.
10. What is direct access; explain with the help of an example.

11. What are the different professions in the IT industry? Technical writers Computer trainers Computer technicians Help desk specialists

12. List 4 different kinds of input and output devices. Input devices: Hardware used to provide input to the computer. Translates data into a form that the system unit can process Audio Input Devices: Voice Recognition System, Microphone, Sound card. Image Capturing Devices: Webcams. Digital Camera, Video Camera. Scanning Devices: Scanners, Barcode Reader, QR code Readers. Pointing Devices: Touch Screens, Joystick, and Mouse. Digitizing Devices: Graphical Tablets, Digital Notepads.

Output devices are any hardware used to provide or to create output from the PC Monitors Printers Plotter Speaker

Printers Ink-jet printer Sprays small droplets of ink at high speed onto the surface of he paper. Most photo printers are special-purpose ink-jet printers designed to print photo quality images from digital cameras. Laser printer Personal laser printers are less expensive and used by many single users. Shared laser printers are more expensive and are used by a group of users. Thermal printer Use heat elements to produce images on heat-sensitive paper. Originally these printers were only used in scientific labs to record data.

13. Compare between file storage manually and using a computer application. 14. List 4 types of wireless and wired network connections.

Wireless
INFRARED BROADCAST RADIO MICROWAVE SATTELITE

Wired
Personal Area Network (PAN) Metropolitan Area Networks (MAN) Wide area networks (WAN) Local area networks (LAN)

15. Explain Information Systems. An Information System is a set of procedures that collects or retrieves, processes, stores and disseminates information to support organizational decision making and control. Privacy: What are the threats to personal privacy and how can we protect ourselves? Security: How can access to sensitive information be controlled and how can we secure hardware and software? Ergonomics: What are the physical and mental risks to technology and how can these risks be eliminated or controlled? Environment: What can individuals and organizations do to minimize the impact of technology on our environment? 16. What are "cloud computing" and Server farms?

17. Give a brief explanation of the 1st phase of systems development life cycle. Phase 1: Preliminary Investigation Problems are briefly identified and a few solutions are suggested. Determine the need for a new IS Requested by an end user or manager. Define the problem Examine the current IS in use, determine what information is needed. Suggesting alternatives Suggest some possible plans as alternatives to the present arrangement. 18. Write a short note on the topic: Information technology

Information System Concerns 19. Discuss the topic: Ergonomics? Ergonomics* is the study of ways of ensuring a healthy life in relation to the use of computer equipment. Physical Health Eyestrain and headache Back and neck pain Repetitive strain injury Mental Health Noise Electronic monitoring Techno-stress Stress associated with computer use Harmful to people Several techniques that can be used to overcome the above health problems are: (3*) To use equipment that is more ergonomic. To adopt green computerization. (energy star) To use anti-glare on the monitor. Resting your eyes for 15 minutes for every 2 hours of work. Work according to your own energy capacity, not according to pressure or workload. Exercise appropriately, such as exercising while sitting, eye exercise, etc. The use of a resting place for hands and feet.

20. Discuss three ways to improve the performance of hard disks.

1. Racking the Disk: This can upgrade the performance of a hard disc by predicting data
that are wanted. This is a combination of hardware and software.

2. Redundant Arrays of Independent Disks (RAID): This increases the performance by

having more external storage. A collection of cheap hard discs are arranged by using a special network and software. This group of discs is considered like a large hard disc. However, it performs better than a single disc of the same capacity.

3. Compressing/De-compressing the Files: This is required to remove excessive spaces

from the computer files that have reduced total available storage space. This situation is important because:

(a) It saves time while sending files through the network. (b) It reduces the size of file storage. (c) It is for the purpose of archiving.