Technology In Action
Midterm Exam Study Guide
 The Exam
 Sample Exam Questions
 Review
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Lab Exercises 3 and 4
Technology in Focuses 3 and 4
Sound-bytes 6 to 10
Chapters 6 to 10
The Midterm Exam
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When
 Thursday, April 3, 2008
 5:30 – 6:45pm
 MSB 115
15 % of your final grade
Covers
 Chapters 6 to 10
 Sound-bytes 6 to 10
 Technology in Focus 3 and 4
 Lab exercises 3 and 4
This is an open-notes exam. All in-class hand-outs are allowed.
Writing on your notes is ok!
You may not use a textbook, a computer, or any electronic
device.
Sample Exam Questions 1
Multiple-choice Question
 ____________ storage refers to
storage that loses its data when the
power is turned off.
A. Permanent
B. Volatile
C. Virtual
D. Nonvolatile
Answer: B
Reference: Chapter 6 - Evaluating RAM
Sample Exam Questions 2
True/false Question
Laptop computers are also
known as tablet computers
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Answer: False (notebook computers)
Reference: Chapter 8 - Notebooks
Sample Exam Questions 3
Matching Question
 Match the following acronyms to their descriptions :
A. SATA
B. ALU
C. VRAM
D. IrDA
E. DIMM
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
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_____
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_____
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type of memory module
memory generally used for graphics display
port for wireless data transmission
type of hard disk drive interface
CPU component that performs mathematical operations
 Answer: E, C, D, A, B
 Reference: Chapter 6
Lab Exercises
 Lab exercise 3
1. Creating a basic web page
2. Investigating HTML
3. Terms related to the Internet and HTML
 Lab exercise 4
1. Using a word processing software (Microsoft
Word)
2. Investigating how file compression works
3. Terms related to mass storage devices and
memory
Technology in Focuses
 Technology in Focus 3: Computing
Alternatives
 Open-source software
 Application software alternatives –
OpenOffice
 Operating alternatives – Linux
 Hardware alternatives – MAC, DIY
Technology in Focuses
 Technology in Focus 4: Protecting
Your Computer and Backing up Your
Data
 Physically protecting your computer
 Keeping cell phones and PDAs safe
 Protecting your computer from
unauthorized access
 Access privileges and password protection
 Updating your software
 Backing up your data
Sound-bytes
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Hard Disk Anatomy Interactive
Installing a Home Network
Tablet and Notebook Tour
Memory Hierarchy Interactive
Programming for End Users: Macros
Technology In Action
Chapter 6
Evaluating Your System:
Understanding and Assessing Hardware
Chapter Topics
 To buy or upgrade?
 Evaluating your system:
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CPU
RAM
Storage devices
Video output
Sound systems
Computer ports
 System reliability
Chapter 6 Summary Questions
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How can I determine whether I should upgrade my existing
computer or buy a new one?
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You need to conduct a system evaluation by look at
computer’s subsystems
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CPU
Memory
The storage subsystem
The video subsystem
The audio subsystem
Your computer’s ports
Then, determine if it’s economically practical to upgrade or buy a new
one
Chapter 6 Summary Questions
 What does the CPU do and how can I evaluate its
performance?
 Processes instructions, performs calculations,
manages the flow of information through a computer
system
 To evaluate its performance
 Look at the clock speed
 The ability to process multimedia instructions and
handle audio and video processing commands
 The power consumption
 Mulitcore capability option
 Usually a newer generation CPU have a lot of
improvement over the previous generation
Chapter 6 Summary Questions
 How does memory work and how can I
evaluate how much memory I need?
 Random access memory (RAM) is your
computer’s temporary storage space
 A short-term memory--it remembers everything
that the computer needs to process the data
into information, such as inputted data and
software instructions, but only while the
computer is on
 To determine how much RAM is needed you
must look at the memory requirements of each
program you’ll run and add them up
Chapter 6 Summary Questions
 What are the computer’s main
storage devices and how can I
evaluate whether they match my
needs?
 Hard disks (nonvolatile storage) are
devices for permanent storage of
instructions and data when the computer
is powered off
 The hard disk should have enough space
for all installed programs ,data, and
virtual memory
Chapter 6 Summary Questions
 What components affect the output of
video and how can I evaluate whether
they are meeting my needs?
 How video is displayed depends on two
components
 Video card and monitor
 A more powerful card is required if you plan to
use your computer for graphics-intense games
and multimedia.
 The monitor size, resolution, refresh rate, and
color reproduction are all affect how well the
monitor performs.
Chapter 6 Summary Questions
 What components affect the quality of
sound and how can I evaluate
whether they are meeting my needs?
 Your computer’s sound depends on your
speakers and a sound card
 An upgrade sound card enables the
computer to produce 3-D or surround
sound and additional ports for audio
equipments
Chapter 6 Summary Questions
 What are the ports available on
desktop computers and how can I
determine what ports I need?
 A port is an interface through which
peripheral devices are connected to
your computer
 There are many kinds of ports available
such as serial, parallel, USB, Firewire,
Ethernet, S-Video, DVI, Bluetooth,
IrDA, MIDI, HDMI, and eSATA
Chapter 6 Summary Questions
 How can I ensure the reliability of my
system?
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There are several procedures you can follow to ensure your
system performs reliably
 Clean out your Startup folder
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Make sure you delete only programs you know for sure are
unnecessary
 Clear out unnecessary files to free-up hard drive space
 Run an antispyware/antivirus program as well as an
anti-adware program
 Run the Disk Defragmenter utility once in a while to
compact your hard drive
Technology In Action
Chapter 7
Networking and Security:
Connecting Computers and Keeping
Them Safe from Hackers and Viruses
Chapter Topics
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Networking fundamentals
Network architecture
Network components
Peer-to-peer networks
Computer threats
Computer safeguards
Computer viruses
Chapter 7 Summary Questions
 What is a network and what are the
advantages of setting one up?
 A computer network is simply two or more
computers connected together via software and
hardware so they can communicate
 The main functions for most networks
 to facilitate information sharing
 allow users to share peripherals and Internet
connectivity
Chapter 7 Summary Questions
 What is the difference between a
client/server network and a peer-to-peer
network?
 Network architectures are classified according to the
way in which they are controlled and the distance
between their nodes
 There are two main ways a network can be controlled
 A peer-to-peer network is the most common example
of a locally controlled network
 The most common type of centrally controlled network
is a client/server network
Chapter 7 Summary Questions
 What are the main components of every
network?
 In order to move data from one computer to
another, four components are required
 Transmission media
 Network adapters that translate the computer’s
signal to a network message
 Navigation devices that decide how data traffic
comes and goes
 Network software that allows the software to
run
Chapter 7 Summary Questions
 What are the most common home
networks?
 Ethernet and wireless network
 The major difference in these networks is
the transmission media by which the
nodes are connected
Chapter 7 Summary Questions
 What are power-line networks?
 Power-line networks use the existing
electrical wiring in your home to connect the
nodes in the network
 Any electrical outlet provides a network
connection
 The original power line networks had a
maximum data transfer rate of 14 Mbps
 New standards provide for data transfer rates
approaching 200 Mbps
Chapter 7 Summary Questions
 What are phoneline networks?
 Phoneline networks move data
through the network using conventional
phone lines rather than power lines
 Any phone jack in a house provides a
network connection
 Phoneline networks have a maximum
data transfer rate of 10 Mbps
Chapter 7 Summary Questions
 What are Ethernet networks?
 Ethernet networks use the Ethernet protocol
as the means by which the nodes on the
network communicate
 Requires that you install an adapter to each
computer or peripheral you want to connect to
the network
 Most computers come with Ethernet adapters
preinstalled as network interface cards (NICs)
Chapter 7 Summary Questions
 What are wireless networks?
 A wireless network uses radio waves
instead of wires or cables as its
transmission media
 Each node on a wireless network
requires a wireless network adapter
 These adapters are either built-in or
inserted an added-on card into an
expansion slot or an open USB port
Chapter 7 Summary Questions
 How can hackers attack a network and
what harm can they cause?
 A hacker is defined as anyone who breaks into
a computer system (whether an individual
computer or a network) unlawfully
 A hacker can use software to break into a
computer connected to the Internet
 Once gaining access to the computer, the hacker
can steal, damage or destroy information, or use
the computer to attack other computers
Chapter 7 Summary Questions
 How are home wireless networks
vulnerable?
 Wireless network range doesn’t stop at
the property line
 A hacker can intercept and decode
information from your transmissions that may
allow him to bypass your firewall
 Others may steal your bandwidth and crimes
can be committed through your network
Chapter 7 Summary Questions
 What is a firewall and how does it keep my
computer safe from hackers?
 Firewalls are software programs or hardware
devices designed to keep computers safe from
hackers
 By using a firewall, you can close off open
logical ports to invaders and potentially make
your computer invisible to other computers on
the Internet
Chapter 7 Summary Questions
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From which types of viruses do I need to
protect my computer?
 Boot-sector viruses
 Logic bombs
 Time bombs
 Worms
 Script viruses
 Macro viruses
 E-mail viruses
 Encryption viruses
 Trojan Horses
Chapter 7 Summary Questions
 What can I do to protect my
computer from viruses?
 Use your common sense
 Install antivirus software
Technology In Action
Chapter 8
Mobile Computing:
Keeping Your Data on Hand
Topics
 Advantages and limitations of mobile
computing
 Mobile computing devices
 Pagers, cell phones, PDAs, and portable media
players
 Synchronizing mobile devices with
computers
 Tablet PCs
 Notebooks
Chapter 8 Summary Questions
 What are the advantages and limitations of
mobile computing?
 Advantages
 Convenience
 Boost productivity
 Communicate with others anywhere
 Access to electronic information
 Limitations
 Expensive
 Short battery life
 Small screen display
 Slow Internet speed
Chapter 8 Summary Questions
What are the various mobile
computing devices?
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Paging devices
Cell phones
MP3 players
Personal digital assistants (PDAs)
Tablet PCs
Laptops
Chapter 8 Summary Questions
 What can pagers do?
 A paging device (pager) is a small wireless
device that allows you to receive and
sometimes send numeric (and sometimes text)
messages on a small display screen
Chapter 8 Summary Questions
 How do cell phone components resemble a
traditional computer and how do cell
phones work?
 Cell phones have the same components as a
computer: a processor, memory, and input and output
devices
 When you speak to the phone
 Sound enters as a sound wave
 Analog sound waves, then, are converted to
digital signals
 The compressed digital signals are transmitted
to the cellular network then to the phone
Chapter 8 Summary Questions
 What can I carry in a portable media
player and how does it store data?
 Portable media players (PMPs) are
small portable devices (such as an iPod)
that enable playing of MP3 files
anywhere
 Some devices can play video files
 Some MP3 players allow you to add additional
removable flash memory cards
Chapter 8 Summary Questions
 For what can I use a PDA and what internal
components and features does it have?
 A personal digital assistant (PDA) is a small device
that allows you to carry digital information
 Often called palm computers or handhelds
 PDAs are about the size of your hand
 Most PDAs come with a standard collection of software
such as a to-do list, contacts manager, calendar, and
software applications
Chapter 8 Summary Questions
 How can I synchronize my mobile
devices with my desktop computer?
 PDA files can be transferred to a
desktop using
 Flash card readers
 Cradles
 Wireless transfers:
 IrDA
 Bluetooth
Chapter 8 Summary Questions
 What is a tablet PC?
 A tablet PC is a portable computer that is lightweight,
features advanced handwriting recognition, and can be
rotated into a clipboard style
 Its monitor can be used either in a traditional laptop
mode or in “tablet mode,” much like an electronic
clipboard
 Tablet PCs also can be connected to a full-size
keyboard and monitor
Chapter 8 Summary Questions
 How powerful are notebooks and how
do they compare to desktop
computers?
 The most powerful mobile computing solution
is a notebook computer
 Comparing to desktop computers, notebooks
are usually less powerful than the desktops
Technology in Action
Chapter 9
Behind the Scenes:
A Closer Look at System Hardware
Chapter Topics
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Computer switches
Binary number system
Inside the CPU
Cache memory
Types of RAM
Computer buses
Creating faster CPUs
Chapter 9 Summary Questions
 What is a switch and how does it work in a
computer?
 Electronic switches are devices inside the
computer that can be flipped between these two
states: 1 or 0, on or off
 Modern computers understand only two states of
existence: on and off
 Computers represent these two possibilities (or
states) using the digits 1 and 0
Chapter 9 Summary Questions
 What is the binary number system and
what role does it play in computer system?
 Computers describe a number as powers of 2
because each switch can be in one of two
positions: on or off
 This numbering system is referred to as the
binary number system
 To process data into information, computers
need to work in binary language
Chapter 9 Summary Questions
 What is inside the CPU and how do these
components operate?
 The entire CPU fits on a tiny chip, called the
microprocessor, which contains all of the hardware
responsible for processing information, including
millions of transistors
 The control unit of the CPU manages the
switches inside the CPU
 The arithmetic logic unit (ALU) is the part of
the CPU designed to perform mathematical and
comparison operations
 Cache memory consists of small blocks of
memory located directly on and next to the CPU
chip
Chapter 9 Summary Questions
 How does a CPU process data and instructions?
 Any program you run on your computer is actually a
long series of binary code, 1s and 0s, describing a
specific set of commands the CPU must perform
 To perform its tasks, CPUs must perform a series of
similar general steps or machine cycle (or
processing cycle
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Fetch
Decode
Execute
Store
Chapter 9 Summary Questions
 What is cache memory?
 Cache memory consists of small blocks of
memory located directly on and next to the CPU
chip
 These memory blocks are holding places for
recently or frequently used instructions or data
that the CPU needs the most
 When these instructions or data are stored in
cache memory, the CPU can more quickly
retrieve them than if it had to access the
instructions or data in RAM
Chapter 9 Summary Questions
 What types of RAM are there?
 A variety of types of DRAM are on the market, each
with different performance levels and prices
 Synchronous DRAM (SDRAM) is much faster than
traditional DRAM
 The current standard of DRAM in home systems is
double data rate synchronous DRAM (DDR SDRAM)
 DDR SDRAM is faster than regular SDRAM but not as
fast as DDR2 SDRAM or DDR3 SDRAM, which is the
most recent entry on the market
 Each of these types of DRAM increases the speed
with which the CPU can access data, but also
increases the cost of the memory modules
Chapter 9 Summary Questions
 What is a bus and how does it function in a computer
system?
 A bus is an electrical wire in the computer’s circuitry—the
highway that data (or bits) travels on between the computer’s
various components
 Computers have two different kinds of buses
 Local buses are on the motherboard and run between the CPU
and the main system memory
 Expansion bus allows a range of different expansion cards
(such as video cards and sound cards) to communicate with the
motherboard
Chapter 9 Summary Questions
 How do manufacturers make CPUs so
that they run faster?
 These are some method to make faster
CPUs
 One method found to speed up a CPU is
called pipelining
 Use dual/quad processors
 Increase clock speed or cache size
Technology in Action
Chapter 10
Behind the Scenes: Software
Programming
Chapter Topics
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System development life cycle
Life cycle of a program
Problem statement
Algorithms
Moving from algorithm to code
Moving from code to machine language
Testing programs
Completing a program
Selecting the right programming language
Most popular programming languages
Chapter 10 Summary Questions
 What is a system development life cycle and what are
the phases in the cycle?
 System development life cycle (SDLC)
 An organized process (or set of steps) used to develop
systems in an orderly fashion
 There are six steps in the SDLC
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Problem/Opportunity Identification
Analysis
Design
Development and Documentation
Testing
Maintenance and Evaluation
Chapter 10 Summary Questions
 What is the life cycle of a program?
 Programming is the process of translating a task into
a series of commands a computer will use to perform
that task
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Identifying which parts of a task a computer can perform
Describing those tasks in a very specific and complete manner
Translating this description into the language spoken by the
computer’s CPU.
 There are five steps in the PDLC.
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Describing the Problem
Developing an Algorithm
Coding
Debugging
Finishing the Project
Chapter 10 Summary Questions
 What role does a problem statement play in
programming?
 The problem statement is the starting point of
programming work
 It is a very clear description of what tasks the computer
program must accomplish and how the program will
execute these tasks and respond to unusual situations
 Programmers develop problem statements so that they
can better understand the goals of their programming
efforts
Chapter 10 Summary Questions
 How do programmers create algorithms?
 They begin developing a detailed algorithm or a set
of specific, sequential steps that describe in natural
language exactly what the computer program must
do to complete its task
 Complex algorithms include decision
points/control structure at which the program
must choose from different actions based on the
value of its current inputs
 Yes/No (binary)
 Loop (iterative)
Chapter 10 Summary Questions
 How do programmers move from algorithm
to code?
 Select the best programming language for the
problem
 Translate or code the algorithm into that
language
 Computer programming languages use special
words and strict rules to enable programmers to
control the CPU without having to know all of its
hardware details
Chapter 10 Summary Questions
 How does a programmer move from
programming code to the 1s and 0s
that the CPU can understand?
 Compilation is the process by which
code is converted into machine language
 Compiler
 Interpreter
Chapter 10 Summary Questions
 How is a program tested?
 The process of running the program over
and over to find errors and to make sure
the program behaves in the way it
should is debugging
Chapter 10 Summary Questions
 What steps are involved in completing
the program?
 At this point, technical writers are
responsible for creating documentation
for the program, including user manuals
and user training
Chapter 10 Summary Questions
 How do programmers select the right
programming language for a specific
task?
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Space available
Speed required
Resources available
Target application