Chapter 1 - Introduction to Computer Science 1010
Magnetic Core Memory
(H) - 2nd Generation
Magnetic Disc
(H) - 2nd Generation
Transistor
(H) - 2nd Generation
Circuit Boards
(H) - 3rd Generation
Networking
(H) - 4th Generation
Define the word abstraction and relate it to the drawing in Figure 1.2
Abstraction is a mental model that removes complex details. When we are dealing with a computer on one layer, we don't need to be thinking about the details of the other layers. For example, as in Figure 1.2, we don't need to know how a car works to drive one to the store. That is, we don't need to know how the engine works in details. We just need to know some basics about how to interact with the car: how the pedals, knobs, and steering wheel works
Distinguish between machine language and assembly language.
Both are 1st generation software tools. The first programs were written using machine language, programmers using machine language had to be very good with numbers, it's time-consuming and prone to errors. Assembly language are tools to help with the programming process using artificial programming languages - mnemonic codes to represent each machine language instruction. Assembly languages developers created software translators to translate assembly language into machine code. An assembler reads the programs instructions in mnemonic code
Distinguish between assembly language and high-level languages.
High-level languages are introduced in 2nd generation software to allow programmers to write instructions in more English-like statements. Examples include FORTRAN, COBOL, and Lisp. These languages provide vehicles for running the same program on more than one computer. FORTRAN and COBOL can be translated and run on any machine using a compiler. These are all advances from the artificial programming languages that used mnemonic codes called assembly languages
Is computing a mathematical discipline, a scientific discipline, or an engineering discipline? Explain.
It is a combination of all three. The mathematical component uses theorems of Turing, Boolean algebra, and numerical analysis. The scientific component utilizes natural sciences to build and tests models of natural phenomena. The engineering component is in techniques used for designing and building larger computing systems.
How was the program SPSS different from the programs that came before it?
The 3rd generation SPSS is a general-purpose application program written in FORTRAN. It has a special language that allows users to write instructions in that language as input to that program. This language allowed the user that was often not a programmer to describe some data and the statistics to be computed on that data (Dale 21).
Discuss the browser wars.
The browser wars surrounded Netscape Navigator (Mosaic derived) and Microsoft's Internet Explorer competing for market dominance. When Microsoft bundled IE eith its Windows OS, this made it a winner. This bundling led to a 2001 lawsuit against Microsoft by the US government requiring Microsoft to be more open to its competitors. Netscape is purchased by American Online in 1997. By 2007, AOL stopped supporting Netscape - but along the way, Mozilla Firefox absorbed features of Netscape in November 2004. By 2014, Mozilla Firefox captured 25% of the browser market. (Dale 24).
Of the predictions listed in this chapter on page 25, what do you consider the biggest error in judgment? Explain.
This 1982 IBM assessment is the biggest error in judgment: $100 million is way too much to pay for Microsoft. Microsoft is now worth about 63 billion according to Forbes. Also, Microsoft outcompetes Netscape and is so competitive that the U.S. Government sues them. These are indicators of how valuable Microsoft has become since IBM's early 4th generation comment.
Define the word protocol and explain how it is used in computing.
a. An agreed-upon format for transmitting data between two devices. The protocol determines the following:the type of error checking to be used data compression method, if anyhow the sending device will indicate that it has finished sending a message how the receiving device will indicate that it has received a message. There are a variety of standard protocols from which programmers can choose. Each has particular advantages and disadvantages; for example, some are simpler than others, some are more reliable, and some are faster.From a user's point of view, the only interesting aspect about protocols is that your computer or device must support the right ones if you want to communicate with other computers. The protocol can be implemented either in hardware or in software
Card input/output
(H) - 1st Generation
Magnetic Drum
(H) - 1st Generation
Magnetic Tape Drives
(H) - 1st Generation
Vacuum tube
(H) - 1st Generation
Integrated Circuits
(H) - 3rd Generation
Large scale integration
(H) - 4th Generation
Parallel Computing
(H) - 4th Generation
Personal Computer
(H) - 4th Generation
Assemblers
(S) - 1st Generation
FORTRAN
(S) - 2nd Generation
Lisp
(S) - 2nd Generation
Loaders
(S) - 2nd Generation
Loaders/Linkers Bundled Into Operating System
(S) - 3rd Generation
Operating Systems
(S) - 3rd Generation
SPSS
(S) - 3rd Generation
Time Sharing
(S) - 3rd Generation
C++
(S) - 4th Generation
PC-DOS
(S) - 4th Generation
Spreadsheets
(S) - 4th Generation
Structured Programming
(S) - 4th Generation
Word processors
(S) - 4th Generation
HTML (for Web)
(S) - 5th Generation
Java
(S) - 5th Generation
Name the four areas in which the practitioner must be skilled.
- Algorithmic thinking - Representation - Programming - Design
Distinguish between a systems programmer and an applications programmer.
A 2nd generation systems programmer wrote tools like assemblers and compilers; applications programmers used these tools to write programs.
Describe how the Web changed after 2002.
Around 2002, the Web changed as social networking sites and online blogging are introduced. These user-generated and -edited content examples include Facebook, Twitter, and Wikipedia (Dale 24).
Distinguish between computing as a tool and computing as a discipline.
Everyone uses the computer as a tool - toolmakers use computing as a discipline. Users have evolved from the 1st generation systems/applications programmers to practitioners and everyday users.
Why was Mosaic important?
Mosaic was important because it was the first graphics-capable browser
Distinguish between systems areas and applications areas in computing as a discipline.
Systems produces better general tools while applications produces better tools for the domain-specific applications
Distinguish between an assembler and a compiler.
The 1st generation assembler was a program that read each of a program's instructions in mnemonic form and translate it into the machine-language equivalent - these abbreviations were easier to read that the strings of binary digits. The 2nd generation compiler was a translating program that could translate programs written in FORTRAN or COBOL so that they could run on any machine. ----- An assembler translates assembly-language programs into machine code. A compiler translates programs in a high-level language into either assembly-language programs or machine-language programs.
FORTRAN and COBOL were two high-level languages defined during the second generation of computer software. Compare and contrast these languages in terms of their history and their purpose.
The 2nd generation software FORTRAN is a language designed for numerical applications while COBOL is a language designed for business applications. COBOL was designed first then implemented while FORTRAN started out as a simply language and grew additional features over time
What was the rationale behind the development of operating systems?
The 4th generation saw the advent of structured programming housing languages like Pascal, Modula-2, C, C++, and upgrades to BASIC,. The development of the operating systems such as UNIX by AT&T, PC-DOS for IBM PC, MS-DOS, and Macintosh were made to change computer-user interaction on personal computers.
What do we mean by the statement that 'the 1980s and 1990s must be characterized by the changing profile of the user'?
The changing profile of the user represents a transition from capacity of computer tools. The users of the pre-80s 1st, 2nd, and 3rd generations were solely mathematicians, engineers, systems/applications programmers. With the advent of structured programming and large-scale integration, software and hardware improved creating a broader user audience. Examples of tools used by these users include: spreadsheets, word processing, and data-base management systems.
Compare Tables 1.1 and 1.2. Which trends do you see?
Trends that I see from the Topic Areas of the Computing Discipline 1989 to the 2001 include expanded topic areas (such as Algorithms and Data structures to Programming Fundamentals), consolidation of overlapping areas (such as Databases and Information Retrieval to Information Management), and new topics (such as Discrete Structures and Algorithms & Complexity).
What constitutes systems software?
Utility programs such as loaders and linkers, operating systems, and language translators are systems software.
Pascal
What French mathematician built and sold the first gear-driven mechanical machine that did addition and subtraction?
Leibniz
Who built the first mechanical machine that did addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division?
Babbage
Who designed the first mechanical machine that included memory?
Jacquard
Who developed the concept of punched holes used in weaving cloth?
Lovelace
Who edited Babbage's work?
Hollerith
Who is associated with IBM?
Hollerith
Who proposed that a punched card be used for counting the census?
Byron
Who was Ada Lovelace's father?
Lovelace
Who was considered the first programmer?
Turing
Who would have been mentioned in the book the Code Breakers?
What do the following pieces of software do? a. Loader: b. Linker: c. Editor:
a. Loader : A 3rd Generation loader puts a program's instructions into memory where they can be executed. b. Linker: A 3rd Generation linker is a program that puts pieces of a large program together so that it can be put into memory where it can be executed. c. Editor: A 4th Generation editor is a word processing program that allows the user to enter and edit text.
