Chapter 1 - Computers and Digital Basics

Integrated circuit (IC)

A super-thin Alice of semiconducting material packed with microscopic circuit elements, such as wires, transistors, capacitors, logic gates, and resistors

Digital divide

A term that refers to the gap between people who have access to technology and those who do not

Memory

An area of a computer that temporarily holds data waiting to be processed, stored, or output

Digital revolution

An ongoing process of social, political, and economic change brought about by digital technology, such as computers and the Internet

Sniffing

Another technique for guessing a password, intercepts information sent out over computer networks

Client

Any software or digital device, such as a computer, that requests data from a server is referred to as a ______.

Data Processing

Based on an input processing-output cycle. Data goes into a computer, it is processed, and then it is output.

Open source

Bucking protectionist trends are __________ projects that promote copying, free distribution, peer review, and user modification.

Globalization

Can be defined as the worldwide economic interdependence of countries that occurs as cross-border commerce increases and as money flows more freely among countries

Personal computing

Characterized by small, standalone computers powered by local software.

Social media

Cloud-based applications designed for social interaction and consumer-generates content. They include social networking services, wikis, blogging services, photo sharing services, and microblogging sites

Instruction set

Collection of preprogrammed activities

Programming language

Computer programmers create programs that control digital devices. These programs are usually written in a high-level _______, such as C, BASIC, COBOL, or Java

Numeric data

Consists of numbers that can be used in arithmetic operations

Compiler

Converts all the statements in a program in a single batch and the resulting collection of instructions, object core, is placed in a new file

Operating system (OS)

Essentially the master controller for all the activities that take place within a computer

Binary number aystem

Has only two digits: 0 and 1

Dictionary attack

Helps hackers guess your password by stepping through a dictionary containing thousand of the most commonly used passwords

System board

Houses all essential chips and provides connecting circuitry between them

Central processing unit (CPU)

In a computer, most processing takes place in a component called the _______.

Phishing

In which a hacker poses as a legitimate representative of an official organization such as your ISP, your bank, or an online payment service in order to persuade you to disclose highly confidential information

Gigabyte (GB or Gbyte)

Is 1 billion bytes. Typically used to refer to storage capacity

Kilobyte (KB or Kbyte)

Is 1,024 bytes. Often used when referring to the size of small computer files

Megabyte (MB or Mbyte)

Is 1,048,576 bytes. Often used when referring to the size of medium to large computer files

Input

Is whatever is typed, submitted, or transmitted to a computer system. Can be supplied by a person, by the environment, or by another computer

Cloud computing

Provides access to information, applications, communications, and storage over the Internet

Local software

Refers to any software that is installed on a computers hard drive.

Data representation

Refers to the form in which data is stored, processed, and transmitted

Intellectual property

Refers to the ownership of certain types of information, ideas, or representations. It includes patented, trademarked, and copyrighted material, such as music, photos, software, books, and films. In the past, such works were difficult and expensive to copy.

Instruction cycle

Refers to the process in which a computer executes a single instruction

Upload

Refers to the process of copying files from your client computer to a server

Download

Refers to the process or copying a file from a server to your own client computer

Data

Refers to the symbols that represent facts, objects, and ideas

Analog data

Represented using an infinite scale of values

Object code

Resulting collection of instructions from compiler

Authentication protocol

Security experts use the term _____ to refer to any method that confirms a person's identity using something the person knows, something the person possesses, or something the person is.

Apps

Software applications are sometimes referred to as ____, especially in the context of handheld devices

Keylogger

Software that secretly records a user's keystrokes and sends the information to a hacker. A ___ is a form of malicious code called a Trojan horse, or Trojan

Videogame console

Such as Nintendo's Wii, Sony's PlayStation, or Microsoft's Xbox, is not generally referred to as a personal computer because of its history as a dedicated game device

Digital data

Text, numbers, graphics, sound, and video that have been converted into discrete digits such as 0s and 1s

Microprocessor

The CPU of most modern computers is a ________, which is an electronic component that can be programmed to perform tasks based on data it receives

Storage

The area where data can be left on a permanent basis when it is not immediately needed for processing

Convergence

The expansion of cloud computing is due in part to _____, a process by which several technologies with distinct functionalities evolve to form a single product

Source code

The human-readable version of a program created in a high-level language by a programmer

Machine language

The list of codes for a microprocessor's instruction set

Arithmetic logic unit (ALU)

The part of the microprocessor that performs arithmetic operations, such as addition and subtraction. It also performs logical operations, such as comparing two numbers to see if they are the same

System software

The primary purpose of ____________ is to help the computer system monitor itself in order to function efficiently

Digitization

The process of converting text, numbers, sound, photos, and video into data that can be processed by digital devices

Server

The purpose of a _____ is to serve computers on a network

Output

The result produced by a computer

Computer program

The series of instructions that tells a computer how to arty out processing tasks

Software

These programs form the _______ that sets up a computer to do a specific task. When a computer "runs" ______, it performs the instructions to carry out a task

Brute force attack

Uses password-cracking software, but it's range is much more extensive than the dictionary attack

Identity theft

When someone gains unauthorized access to your personal data and uses it illegally

Biometrics

A person can be identified by ______, such as a fingerprint, facial features (photo), or a retinal pattern

User ID

A series of characters - letters and possibly numbers or special symbols - that becomes a person's unique identifier

Application software

A set of computer programs that helps a person carry out a task

Machine code

A set of machine language instructions for a program

Web

(Short for World Wide Web) is a collection of linked documents, graphics, and sounds that can be accessed over the Internet

Workstation

1. It can simply refer to an ordinary personal computer that is connected to a network. 2. Refers to powerful desktop computers used for high-performance tasks, such and medical imaging and computer-aides design, that require a lot of processing speed

Supercomputer

A computer falls into the ______ category if it is, at the time of construction, one of the fastest computers in the world

Internet

A global computer network originally developed as a military project, and was then handed over to the National Science Foundation for research and academic use

Computer network

A group of computers linked together to share data and resources

Byte

A group of eight bits is called a ____ and is usually abbreviated as an uppercase B

Handheld computer

A handheld device that allows you to install applications can be classified as a _________ to distinguish it from the dedicated handheld devices that do not offer apps

Mainframe computer

A large and expensive computer capable of simultaneously processing data for hundreds or thousands of users

Personal computer

A microprocessor based computing device designed to meet the computing needs of an individual

Computer

A multipurpose device that accepts input, processes data, stores data, and produces output, all according to a series of stored instructions

File

A named collection of data that exists on a storage medium, such as a hard disk, CD, DVD, or flash drive