Topic 1: Communication

Describe the given topic according to the following questions:

1. Define the concept of information.
2. Describe the relationship between information and sign. What kind of categories do
signs have?
3. Describe (and draw the diagram of) Shannon’s general model of communication.
4. What do we call noise? Define the concept of redundancy. Describe the relationship
between redundancy and noise.
5. What are the useful and unfavorable occurrences of redundancy?
6. Describe the types of communication.
7. Describe the process of communication using a cell phone call as an example.
Topic 2: The categories of software. Legal protection. The value of information
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. What kinds of software have you been using during your school time? Into what kind
of categories can you divide these products?
2. How can we protect intellectual property? How does the copyright law regulate the
possession, the use and copying of software, databases and certain pieces of artwork?
3. Provide an example of the value of data and information. What kind of data can be
collected from us by using certain services?
4. What are the advantages of legally used software compared to pirated copy?
Topic 3: The theoretical basics of computing
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. Describe the von Neumann principles and explain why we need them.
2. Describe the computer generations.
3. Are there any computing devices which do not follow the von Neumann principles?
Topic 4: Types of signals and digitization
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. Describe the different types of signals.
2. What are the main units for measuring the quantity of data?
3. Describe the process of digitizing an image. What is RGB and CMYK?
4. Describe the process of digitization of text. What are ASCII and Unicode?
Topic5: The structure of personal computers
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. Describe the structure of the personal computers used in recent years. What is the
purpose of the mainboard, power supply, and computer case?
2. What factors determine a computer’s performance?
3. Explain the concept, the functions and features of processors.
4. What are the main parts of the processors? What tasks do these parts perform?
5. What processor types do you know?
6. What is the role of memory in computers? What memory types do you know?
Topic 6: Mass storage devices
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. What is the purpose of mass storage devices?
2. How data is stored on the magnetic disks (hard disks)? Describe the operational
process.
3. What are the advantages and disadvantages of optical disc storage devices? Describe
the operational process, types and categories by their capacity.
4. What kind of device had replaced the floppy disk? What are the benefits? How does it
connect to the computer?
5. What is an SSD? What are the advantages and disadvantages of using it in a
computer?
Topic 7: Input peripherals
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. What does the term “input peripheral” mean?
2. What groups of keys can be found on a keyboard?
3. What types of mouse do you know based on sensor type? What is a touchpad?
4. What do we use a scanner for? Describe the concept of DPI.
5. How does the microphone and webcam work? What do we use these devices for?
Topic 8: Output peripherals
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. Define the term “output peripheral”.What does it mean?
2. Group displays based on their working principle. Describe the benefits and
disadvantages of certain types of monitors and projectors.
3. Based on what features would you buy a monitor?
4. Group printers based on their working principle. Describe the benefits and
disadvantages of certain types of printers.
5. What kind of printer would you buy a) for office usage, printing high-volume
documents; b) for infrequent home use? Why?
Topic 9: Computer networks
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. What are the advantages of computer networks?
2. Classify the networks based on their size, the transmission media and their access.
3. What are the advantages and disadvantages of using wireless networks?
4. Describe network topologies.
5. Describe the main purpose of the following devices: network adapter, switch, router,
wireless access point.
Topic 10: Operating systems
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. Define the operating system.
2. What are the functions of the operating system?
3. How can we group the operating systems?
4. How does your operating system visualize the drives, folders and files?
5. Describe the main file management operations of a graphical operating system.
6. Describe the properties of files and folders in your operating system.
Topic 11: The description of the Windows operating system
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. Describe the elements of the user interface of the operating system.
2. How do you install, delete, open and close programs on the used operating system?
3. How can you personalize Windows? Where can you customize settings?
4. How does the power on and off events and the shutdown of the operating system
happen?
5. How does the user log on or off? How can you create a new user account?
6. What maintenance tasks can be performed on the used operating system?
Topic 12: Compressed data storage
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. Describe the necessity and possibility of data compression.
2. What possible advantages and disadvantages may data compression have?
3. What is the point of lossless compression? Show a simple example. Where do they use
it?
4. What is the point of lossy compression? Where is it used?
5. Describe a common file compression program. What are the main functions?
Topic 13: Viruses and computer threats
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. Define the concept of virus. Describe the common characteristics of the viruses.
2. Describe the major classes of viruses. What is a malware?
3. What are the signs of virus infection, how can it be detected?
4. How can you protect your PC against viruses?
5. What kind of attacks can happen when you are online and how can you defend your
computer against them?
Topic 14: Communication on the Internet
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. Describe the role of forums in communication.
2. How can you connect to a web forum, how to register, how to start a new topic and
how to comment to an existing one?
3. Define the concepts of topic and moderation.
4. What are the most important features of online chat? What kind of services do you use
or do you know of? What are the advantages and disadvantages? Compare their
features.
5. What is an online database? List three online databases and present their major
features.
Topic 15: Electronic mail
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. Explain the concept of e-mail, the pros and cons.
2. How does a standard e-mail address look like?
3. Describe the structure of an e-mail. How can you send and receive e-mails?
4. What is spam? How can you set up a spam filter in your e-mail program?
5. Send an e-mail with an attachment to z.kecskes@gmail.com. What attachments can be
dangerous?
6. Describe the “Forward” and “Reply all” function.
Topic 16: Communication in the 21st century: chat, mobile apps, social networks
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. Describe the new ways of communication used nowadays.
2. Define the concept of social networks. What are the social impacts of them? What are
the advantages and disadvantages?
3. Give three examples of community sites and describe one of them in details. What are
the main features of these portals?
4. What are the most important features of online chat? What kind of services do you use
or do you know of? What are the advantages and disadvantages? Compare their
features.
5. What kind of mobile apps do you use for communication? Compare their features,
advantages and disadvantages. What is the main difference using mobile apps and web
apps?
Topic 17: A detailed description of web browsing. Search engines
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. What browsers do you know? Compare their features, advantages and disadvantages.
2. What are the differences between desktop and mobile browsers?
3. What is an URL?
4. Describe the main configuration options of the browser.
5. How can you download a file, save pages and images?
6. Why do we need search engines on the Internet?
7. What is the point of thematic and keyword search engines?
8. Describe the method of keyword searching, and its possibilities.
9. What operators, expressions would you use when searching by keywords?
Topic 18: Communication on the Internet: web threats and protection
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. What is a spam? How can you set up spam filter in your e-mail program?
2. What is phishing? How can you defend your PC against it?
3. What is a hoax? How can you recognize it and what can be done about it?
4. What kind of data can be collected from us by using certain services?
5. What other Internet frauds can you name? How can you protect yourself and your
devices against these attacks?
Topic 19: The library
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. Define the concept of libraries and describe its types (based on users and
accessibility).
2. Describe the storage system, orientation and catalogs of libraries.
3. How can stored documents be identified? What are the point of Universal Decimal
Classification and the Cutter number? What is the ISBN number?
4. Describe the novelty of electronic libraries.
Topic 20: Document types
Describe the given topic according to the following questions:
1. List a few types of traditional documents.
2. Present the features of these different document types.
3. What parts, formal properties and identification data pieces do books have?
4. Types of electronic documents. What file formats are suitable for e-book storage?
Compare their advantages and disadvantages.
5. Obtain the electronic version of John von Neumann’s book “The computer and the
brain” from an online source.