Unit A: Understanding Essential Computer Concepts
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. Which of the following is a personal computer?
a. Desktop
c. Terminal
b. Mainframe
d. All of the above
2. Which of the following is NOT a personal computer?
a. Desktop
c. Notebook
b. Laptop
d. Mainframe
3. The physical components of a computer are referred to as ____.
a. software
c. configurations
b. hardware
d. specifications
4. The computer needs additional components, called ____, to accomplish its input, output, and storage
functions.
a. mice
c. architecture
b. specifications
d. peripheral devices
ANS: D
PTS: 1
5. Processing tasks occur on the ____.
a. motherboard
b. keyboard
REF: Concepts 4
c. control panel
d. operating system
6. Another name for the CPU pictured above is ____.
a. microprocessor
c. clock speed
b. RAM cache
d. megahertz
7. Megahertz is a measurement of ____.
a. the amount of memory
b. the amount of RAM
c. the speed of the microprocessor
d. cache memory
8. The devices shown in the figure above are all ____ devices.
a. input
c. storage
b. pointing
d. All of the above
9. Which of the following is NOT shown in the figure above?
a. Keyboard
c. Trackpad
b. Mouse
d. Trackball
10. An example of an output device is a ____.
a. keyboard
b. monitor
c. mouse
d. touch pad
11. Resolution is the ____.
a. number of pixels a monitor displays
b. distance between pixels in a graphics display
c. number of rectangles in a character-based display grid
d. dot pitch in a graphics display
12. Which of the following dot pitches gives you the sharpest picture?
a. .26
c. .38
b. .32
d. .45
13. The speed of a laser printer is measured in ____.
a. pages per minute
c. characters per minute
b. pages per second
d. characters per second
14. A hard copy of a file you created on your computer would be ____.
a. saved on a floppy disk
c. backed up on a tape drive
b. printed on a printer
d. sent as an e-mail
15. Personal computers commonly use the ____ code system to represent character data.
a. KB
c. ASCII
b. LAN
d. COBOL
16. Which of the following is the largest unit of measurement?
a. Terabyte
c. Megabyte
b. Gigabyte
d. Kilobyte
17. A file that tells a computer how to perform a specific task is called a(n) ____ file.
a. executable
c. data
b. instruction
d. configuration
18. Special high-speed memory reserved for the microprocessor’s use is called ____.
a. ROM
c. virtual memory
b. storage
d. cache memory
19. Where is program and data that is being used temporarily stored by your computer?
a. Cache
c. ROM
b. RAM
d. CMOS
20. You are running two programs at once that require 8 megabytes each on a computer that only has 12
megabytes of RAM. What makes this possible?
a. Virtual memory
c. Cache
b. ROM
d. CMOS
21. CMOS is often referred to as ____ memory.
a. permanent
b. semipermanent
c. volatile
d. None of the above
MODIFIED TRUE/FALSE
1. Technical details about components on a computer are called architecture.
_________________________
ANS: F, specifications
2. If you type a paper for a class and save it on the hard drive, it is called an executable file.
_________________________
ANS: F, a data file
COMPLETION
1. Modifying data is referred to as ____________________.
ANS: processing
2. ____________________ instruct the computer on how to process data.
ANS: Commands
3. The integrated circuit, or chip, in the figure above is known as a(n) ____________________ and is
responsible for executing instructions to process data.
ANS:
microprocessor
processor
central processing unit
CPU
central processing unit (CPU)
CPU (central processing unit)
4. Special high-speed memory built into the microprocessor for the microprocessor’s use is called
____________________.
ANS:
cache
RAM cache
cache memory
CPU cache
5. ____________________ memory is created and used by most computers when the amount of RAM
needed exceeds the RAM available.
ANS: Virtual
MATCHING
Match each term below with the statement that best defines it.
a. I/O
c. SCSI
d. ROM
e. hardware
1.
3.
4.
5.
The permanent storage location for a set of instructions the computer uses when turned on.
The flow of data from the microprocessor to memory to peripherals and back again.
The physical components of a computer.
Small computer system interface.
1.
3.
4.
5.
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
D
A
E
C
PTS:
PTS:
PTS:
PTS:
1
1
1
1
REF:
REF:
REF:
REF:
Concepts 12
Concepts 22
Concepts 4
Concepts 16
CASE
Mary Ann Costello is a wedding planner in Austin, Texas. She decided to create a list of all the
resources she uses – halls, florists, bands, etc. – when planning a wedding. She needs to purchase
software to help her accomplish this. She also needs to track the total expenses for each wedding, and
needs software to help her do this as well.
3. Because the spot where the computer will be located is somewhat cramped, what is the best type of
monitor to purchase?
ANS:
Flat panel
4. You want the computer to be able to perform quickly. What is the easiest way to make the computer
run faster?
ANS:
Add more RAM