Computer Science Keywords - Week 1

Protocol

A set of rules that allows two devices to communicate.

Firewall

Hardware and/or software used within a network to prevent unauthorized users from gaining access to a computer system.

Algorithm

A sequence of steps designed to perform a particular task.

Variable

A location in memory that stores a value that can change as the program runs.

MOD/Modulo operator

A standard operator used to carry out integer division. Outputs the remainder left over (eg 10 MOD 3 = 1).

Binary shift

Allows you to easily divide and multiply base-2 binary numbers. A left shift multiplies by 2, while a right shift divides by 2.

Sampling rate

The number of samples of an analogue wave taken in a second, measured in Hz or kHz. Common sample rate is 44.1 kHz - 44100 samples per second = CD quality.

Compression

The process of reducing the size of a file.

Database

A structured set of data stored in one or more tables that are easy to search and update.

Primary key

A field that uniquely identifies a record in a table.