iannuttall

CPU Crossword Puzzle

Complete the crossword, then click on “Check” to check your answer. If you are stuck, you can click on “Hint” to get a free letter. Click on a number in the grid to see the clue or clues for that number. Further Readings: Central processing unit

Binary Logic Gap Fill

Fill in all the gaps, then press “Check” to check your answers. Use the “Hint” button to get a free letter if an answer is giving you trouble. Note that you will lose points if you ask for hints! Further Readings: Binary logic

Testing

Candidates should be able to: describe syntax errors and logic errors which may occur while developing a program understand and identify syntax and logic errors select and justify test data for a program, stating the expected outcome of each test. What are syntax errors? Syntax errors are errors that occur when instructions do not follow …

Read more

Handling Data in Algorithms

Candidates should be able to: define the terms variable and constant as used in an imperative language use variables and constants describe the data types integer, real, Boolean, character and string select and justify appropriate data types for a given program perform common operations on numeric and Boolean data use one-dimensional arrays. What are constants …

Read more

Control Flow in Imperative Languages

Candidates should be able to: understand and use sequence in an algorithmunderstand and use selection in an algorithm (IF and CASE statements)understand and use iteration in an algorithm (FOR, WHILE and REPEAT loops). What is sequence in an algorithm? Sequence is a control structure where the computer executes the instructions in the order they are …

Read more

Programming Languages – High-Level Code & Machine Code

Candidates should be able to: explain the difference between high level code and machine code explain the need for translators to convert high level code to machine code describe the characteristics of an assembler, a compiler and an interpreter describe common tools and facilities available in an integrated development environment (IDE): editors, error diagnostics, run-time …

Read more

Computer Algorithms

Candidates should be able to: understand algorithms (written in pseudocode or as flow diagrams), explain what they do, and correct or complete them produce algorithms in pseudocode or flow diagrams to solve problems. What is an algorithm and how can algorithms be represented? A computer algorithm is a sequence of statements (instructions) that can be …

Read more

The Internet

Candidates should be able to: describe the nature of the Internet as a worldwide collection of computer networks describe the hardware needed to connect to the Internet including modems, routers etc explain the need for IP addressing of resources on the Internet and how this can be facilitated by the role of DNS servers explain …

Read more

What is a Relational Database?

Candidates should be able to: understand the relationship between entities and tables understand the components of a relational database, such as tables, forms, queries, reports and modules understand the use of logical operators in framing database queries explain the use of key fields to connect tables and avoid data redundancy describe methods of validating data …

Read more

The DBMS

Candidates should be able to: describe how a DBMS allows the separation of data from applications and why this is desirable describe the principal features of a DBMS and how they can be used to create customised data handling applications. What is a DBMS? A Database Management System (DBMS) is used to manage a database. …

Read more

The Database Concept

Candidates should be able to: describe a database as a persistent organised store of data explain the use of data handling software to create, maintain and interrogate a database. What is a database? A database is a persistent, organised store of related data. A database is persistent because the data and structures are stored in …

Read more

Instructions

Candidates should be able to: explain how instructions are coded as bit patterns explain how the computer distinguishes between instructions and data. How are program instructions coded? Machine code instructions are binary numbers and are coded as bit patterns, for example, a 16-bit machine code instruction could be coded as 001010101101001011. In machine code, the …

Read more

Sound – Quality, Size & Storing Solutions

Candidates should be able to: How can sound be sampled and stored in digital form? A microphone converts sound waves into voltage changes. If a microphone is plugged into a sound card then the voltage can be sampled at regular intervals (the sample rate) and each value converted into a binary number. This digitising of …

Read more

Images

Candidates should be able to: explain the representation of an image as a series of pixels represented in binary explain the need for metadata to be included in the file such as height, width and colour depth discuss the effect of colour depth and resolution on the size of an image file. How can an …

Read more

Characters

Candidates should be able to: explain the use of binary codes to represent characters explain the term character set describe with examples (for example ASCII and Unicode) the relationship between the number of bits per character in a character set and the number of characters which can be represented. How are binary codes used to …

Read more

Numbers

Candidates should be able to: convert positive denary whole numbers (0-255) into 8-bit binary numbers and vice versa add two 8-bit binary integers and explain overflow errors which may occur convert positive denary whole numbers (0-255) into 2-digit hexadecimal numbers and vice versa convert between binary and hexadecimal equivalents of the same number explain the …

Read more