Intro to Information Technology- Milestone 1

What is the function of a hard disk?

A hard disk is a stack of disks contained inside of a rigid metal case that stores long-term data when the computer is turned off, and is where data is retrieved from when the computer is turned on. The other statements describe the function of the CPU, motherboard, and RAM.

Which of the following is an example of a device that could be both an input and output device?

A touchscreen monitor- A device that provides input and output capabilities must be able to input data into the computer, as well as receive data back from the computer to provide to the user. A touchscreen monitor both allows a user to input information into the computer via "clicking" or typing, as well as receive information back by seeing information displayed on the monitor. For example, a printer that has a scanner is both an input and an output device.

Which of the following is NOT an example of hardware?

A web browser- A web browser is a piece of software that runs within the computer to send instructions to the hardware.

Abel is a salesman who travels daily throughout the U.S. Select the best computer option for his needs.

Abel is a salesman who travels daily throughout the U.S; therefore, he needs a laptop, which is easily portable.

Brittany is analyzing financial transactions on a computer, Craig is writing a set of instructions that will tell the computer what to do, and Giselle is installing a second monitor to use with her computer. What component of an information system is Giselle working with?

Giselle is installing a second monitor to use with her computer. This second monitor is hardware.

__________ represent(s) the tangible components of a computer.

Hardware- Hardware represents all the elements of a computer that can be physically touched, such as a mouse, a hard disk, or a monitor.

__________ is the numbering system that is based on sixteen digits and is used for tasks like defining color.

Hexadecimal- With hex meaning 6 and decimal meaning 10, hexadecimal is a numbering system based on 16 digits. It is commonly used for defining color values, among other tasks. A numbering system based on 16 digits; includes the digits zero through nine and A through F.

If you were interested in designing and building a video game, which of the following would you prioritize when looking for a computer?

High processing power and a large screen- High processing power is key for graphics-intensive or data-intensive programs, producing multimedia content, or gaming. A large screen would also be important for the design aspect of the game.

__________, also known as working memory, is the short-term memory used for tasks like processing applications that are currently running.

Random-access memory (RAM) is the short-term memory used while the computer is on and running.

Which of the following statements about hardware and software is true?

Software provides a set of commands for hardware to execute. -Hardware is the collection of physical elements of the computer, while software is a set of intangible instructions that inform the hardware what actions to take.

__________ is a set of instructions that gives commands to the hardware to carry out activities. An example of this would be a(n) __________.

Software, operating system. Software is a set of instructions that gives commands to the hardware to carry out activities. An example of this would be an operating system.

__________ represent(s) the set of instructions to be executed by __________.

Software; hardware- Software and hardware cannot run without each other. Software sends lists of instructions to the hardware on what actions to take, and hardware executes those commands.

Which of the following statements accurately describes the relationship between computer hardware and software?

The operating system of a computer enables the hardware to perform useful tasks. It is true that the operating system makes the hardware useful. The other statements are false; software controls the hardware, which cannot be used without software, and software is intangible, unlike hardware.

__________ makes the hardware usable, while __________ commands it to perform specific tasks.

The operating system; the application software- Operating systems are crucial for making a computer and its associated hardware usable. Application software is then what instructs the hardware to perform certain tasks based on the type of application software being used.

What is the purpose of a computer network?

To communicate and share information between computers- Computer networks are groups of connected computers. This allows computers to share data and resources between them, which facilitates communication.

Which of the following was a major motivation for the creation of early computers?

To manage data more efficiently- Initially, computers were built to store and handle data that was tedious to manage by hand. Users could store data and perform mathematical computations much more efficiently with the use of computers.

A "smart house" can connect home appliances to __________ to allow remote activation.

both a smartphone and tablet- The smart house is an integrated computer system that can connect to other devices like both smartphones and tablets.

A __________ is a combination of parts that function collectively to achieve a desired outcome.

computing system- A computing system brings together many individual components to work in harmony to achieve a goal. Computers are systems with multiple components all designed to work in concert for the purpose of data manipulation.

Tony has a collection of nearly 500 feature length, HD (High Definition) movies on an external hard drive. What is the minimum amount of storage space necessary to store Tony's collection?

~1 Terabyte: The amount of storage size Tony would use for storing 500 movies is measured in terabytes. The other units of measurements are too small.

The decimal numbering system contains digits __________, while the octal numbering system contains digits __________.

0-9, 0-7: Since the decimal system is based on 10 digits, it would include the numbers 0 through 9. The octal numbering system is based on 8 digits, so it would include the numbers 0 through 7.

Which of the following correctly orders the storage capacities from largest to smallest?

1TB, 1GB, 1MB, 1KB, 1B- When the numerical values are all equivalent at 1, you can consider just the units themselves. A terabyte (TB) is the largest unit of measurement in this list, followed by a gigabyte (GB), then a megabyte (MB), then a kilobyte (KB), and finally a byte (B) being the smallest.

Which of the following storage sizes is largest?

4TB- When comparing storage sizes, consider both the numerical value and the units. If you put all these values into a common measurement, they become easier to compare.First, convert 4TB to bytes:Now, compare all values together:4TB = 4,000,000,000,000B (largest)2,000,000MB = 2,000,000,000,000B 300GB = 300,000,000,000B50KB = 50,000B (smallest)

Audrey is trying to figure out which files on her computer take up the most space, and which take up the least. Select the option that correctly orders the file sizes on Audrey's computer from smallest to largest. Remember to consider the number of units as well as the units themselves.

7 MB, 8000 KB, 2 TB, 4000 GB. 7 MB = 7 x 1,000,000 bytes = 7,000,000 bytes 8,000 KB = 8,000 x 1,000 bytes = 8,000,000 bytes 2TB = 2 x 1,000,000,000,000 bytes = 2,000,000,000,000 bytes 4,000 GB = 4,000 x 1,000,000,000 bytes = 4,000,000,000,000 bytes. Therefore, 7 MB < 8,000 KB < 2 TB < 4,000 GB.

Jacob has a computer with a clamshell design that he typically brings with him when he's going to work. What type of computer does Jacob have?

A laptop is a type of portable computer with a clamshell design. Since Jacob has a computer with a clamshell design that he can bring with him to work, he likely has a laptop.

A __________ is an output device usually connected to a computer via cable (HDMI or similar) that displays images, videos, or text files.

A monitor is an output device that is used to display visual media to the user from the computer, such as images, videos, and text.

What is the function of a computer's mouse?

A mouse is a device that is moved along a flat surface to direct the on-screen pointer. The other statements describe a touchpad, a monitor, and a printer.

Talia needs a device to output data from her computer to share with her team. Which of the following components would be considered an output device that Talia could use?

A printer is output hardware. The GPU is a data processing component, the hard drive is a data storage component, and the pointing device is an input component.

A __________ is a device usually connected to a computer via USB that is used to input documents as an image or text file.

A scanner is an input device that transfers physical documents like images or text into the computer.

A __________ is a device operated by finger that performs the same function as a mouse.

A touchpad is an input device that allows a user to use their finger to navigate and interact with a computer, much like a mouse.

Input and output devices are ways for the computer to interact with which of the following?

All of the answer choices are correct (Users, Systems, Hardware). Input and output devices are artifacts through which computers communicate and interact with their environments, which includes users, systems, and hardware.

Which statement describes a computer's vent?

An opening that dissipates internally generated heat

The ability to perform which of the following tasks was the primary advantage of early computers?

Both storing information and performing calculations- Computers were invented to both store data and perform mathematical computations much more efficiently. Many complex calculations require enormous amounts of data, so it's important to consider these tasks are related.

The "brain" of the computer, which performs commands and returns results, is known as the __________.

CPU- The Central Processing Unit (CPU) is the piece of hardware known as the "brain" of the computer, responsible for executing commands sent to it by the software and returning results.

Select the true statement about RAM.

It is volatile- RAM is volatile, meaning once it stops receiving power, any data stored in RAM is lost. This is why RAM is used as the working memory, but not for long-term data storage.

Which of the following is NOT contained in the hexadecimal numbering system?

K- Hexadecimal A numbering system based on 16 digits; includes the digits zero through nine and A through F.

Which of the following is an example of utility software?

McAfee Antivirus- Utility software is a subset of Application software that allows the user to fix, modify, or maintain their computer in some way. Antivirus software like McAfee Antivirus would allow the user to maintain the health and safety of their computer against viruses, so it would be considered utility software.

A __________ is equal to 1 billion bytes.

One gigabyte equals 1 billion bytes. 1 gigabyte = 1 thousand megabytes = 1 million kilobytes = 1 billion bytes

Which of the following is NOT a type of application software?

Operating system software- Application software and operating system software are the two major categories of software. Operating System software is therefore not a sub-category of Application software.

If your job requires you to work with a lot of large data files and compute new balances quickly, which of the following would you prioritize when selecting a computer?

Processing speed- The greater your computer's processing speed, the more instructions can be processed per second. For someone who needs to work with large data files and make quick computations, the processing speed would be the most important consideration of these answers.

Which of the following is an example of productivity software?

Productivity software is a subset of Application software that allows users to complete their daily work. For example, employee invoices could be maintained easily with spreadsheet software such as Microsoft Excel.

What technological breakthrough accompanied the invention of the mainframe computer?

The ability to organize and store large amounts of data. The mainframe computer allowed the user to organize and store large amounts of data. It did not enable the other technological breakthroughs.

Jim wants to be able to transport a small amount of data from one computer to another using something he can carry in his pocket. The best storage device for Jim would be a __________.

The best storage device for Jim would be a flash drive. Considering the small amount of data, a hard drive, a solid state drive, or an optical disk are not appropriate. A mobile phone is not used to transport data.

The __________ is considered to be the brain of the computer.

The central processing unit (CPU) performs computations and logic operations sent to it by application software and returns results to be acted upon. It is considered the "brain" of the computer.

Which statement describes a motherboard?

The device containing the main circuits of the computer. The motherboard is the device containing the main circuits. The other statements describe the CPU, the ROM (Read Only Memory), and the RAM (Random-Access Memory).

A(n) __________ is a(n) __________ that stores up to approximately 22 terabytes of data long-term, even while the computer is off.

hard disk; secondary storage device- The hard disk is a data storage component and would be considered the secondary storage device of a computer. It is able to store up to 22TB of data long-term, even when the computer is off.

A device that makes use of cloud computing can access documents online without using a(n) __________.

local hard disk- Cloud computing does not require hardware for its data storage, so a hard disk would not be needed for the device to function.

On hard drives, data is stored __________ with polarities of 0 and 1, which are read as binary digits.

magnetically- All data stored on a hard disk is done magnetically. If the computer needs to read data from the hard disk, it reads magnetic polarities from the hard disk, which can be represented by the binary digits 0 (off) and 1 (on).

The __________ was a major technological breakthrough that was able to perform all of a computer's functions, which was a significant improvement over using a single __________ for each function.

microprocessor; integrated circuit- Integrated circuits require large amounts of space since, as the name suggests, a single circuit would need physical connections in order to perform all of a computer's functions. The microprocessor is able to perform all of a computers functions like the integrated circuit without the large physical connectors, making it much smaller and lighter weight.

The CPU, RAM, hard disk, graphics card, and sound card all connect to the __________, which provides the majority of the electrical connections in a computer.

motherboard- The motherboard is the main circuit board of the computer. It is a piece of hardware that connects the CPU, memory, and storage.

Marco is using Microsoft Windows to organize the files and folders on his desktop. Marco is using __________ software.

operating system: Microsoft Windows is an operating system, so that is what Marco is using.

Vince's job requires him to edit and transform a lot of images, so he primarily uses a mouse to make edits. Beth's job requires her to analyze financial data for her organization. She prefers to view the information on her monitor, but she occasionally uses her printer to look at the data. The channel that Beth is using to deliver the results of the process is known as __________. Vince, who is entering information into the computer, is using the channel known as __________.

output, input. The channel that Beth is using to deliver the results of the process is known as output; while Vince, who is entering information into the computer, is using the channel known as input.

For a person who travels often, the main consideration in purchasing a computer would be __________.

portability- For someone who travels often or would need to transport their computer between multiple locations, like home and work, portability is the key factor.

Data can be accessed on any storage device only after the __________ locations have been determined.

read/write- If a computer needs to read or write data to a storage device, it first must determine where to read from (file location) or where to write to. Only after a read/write location is obtained can the storage device take the appropriate action.

A tablet computer's primary input is the __________.

touch screen- A tablet's primary input is its touch screen. Tablet computers typically don't have peripheral input devices like a mouse or keyboard.

Using an input device on which she slides her finger along the area below the keyboard of her laptop, Monica selects the "save" icon to make sure her computer saves the most recent edits to her document. This describes the interaction between the __________ and the __________.

touchpad, hard disk. This describes the interaction between the touchpad and the hard drive.

A __________ is a group of letters preceding a unit of measurement.

unit prefix- A unit prefix precedes a unit of measurement to represent the scale of the measurement. Common prefixes that can be used in front of units like meter or byte are kilo, mega, giga, and tera.