CS100: Digital & Computing Foundations (Weeks 1–3)

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering the core computing fundamentals, software systems, and network concepts taught in CS100 Module A (Weeks 1 to 3).

Information System

A combination of six essential components that work together to process data into information: people, procedures, software, hardware, data, and connectivity (the Internet).

People (in Information Systems)

The most important component of any information system; contact can be direct (such as typing a document) or indirect (such as a banking system processing a payment card).

Procedures

The rules and guidelines for how people use software, hardware, and data correctly and consistently, typically documented in manuals written by computer specialists.

Data

Raw, unprocessed facts—such as numbers, text, or ratings—that have not yet been given context or converted into meaningful form.

Information

Data that has been processed and structured into a meaningful form that humans can interpret and use to make decisions.

Four-Step Computer Loop

The core operational cycle run by every computer system: input (data and instructions enter), processing (the processor acts on them), output (results emerge in human-understandable form), and storage (results are kept for later).

File Extension

A suffix located at the end of a file name (e.g., .docx, .xlsx, .pptx, .pdf) that identifies the file format and tells the operating system which application can open it.

Supercomputers

The most powerful, high-capacity category of computers with the fastest processing capabilities, typically used by large research organizations for tasks like weather forecasting and AI model training.

Mainframe Computers

High-speed computers with vast data storage capacity, less powerful than supercomputers, commonly used by large corporations like commercial banks.

Midrange Computers (Servers)

Computers more powerful than personal computers but less powerful than mainframes, dedicated to serving data and applications to multiple users simultaneously and serving as the building blocks of cloud infrastructure.

Personal Computers (PCs)

The least powerful, most widely used, and fastest-growing category of computers, including desktop computers, laptops (notebooks), tablets, and handheld devices like smartphones.

RAM (Random Access Memory)

High-speed, volatile temporary memory that acts like a 'desk,' holding the programs and data currently in active use, which are completely lost when power is shut off.

Secondary Storage

Non-volatile, persistent storage acting like a 'filing cabinet' (such as SSDs, hard disks, USB drives, or memory cards) that preserves software and files for the long term even when the computer is turned off.

Bit and Byte

A bit is the smallest binary unit (0 or 1, representing an off or on switch); eight bits combine to form one byte, which can represent $256$ distinct values (such as the letter 'A', encoded as decimal $65$).

Predictive AI

An artificial intelligence category that analyzes existing data to predict outcomes, classify inputs, or generate rankings, yielding outputs such as labels, risk scores, or travel-time estimates.

Generative AI

An artificial intelligence category that produces entirely new content—such as drafted text, synthetic images, synthesized audio, or software code—based on a user prompt.

AI Hallucination

A phenomenon wherein a generative AI model generates an answer that sounds confident and grammatically fluent, but is factually inaccurate or fabricated.

Week 5 Verification Gate

A course milestone in CS100 where students must complete a verification workshop and sign an AI-use disclosure before any AI-assisted coursework or submissions will be credited.

System Software

Software that works directly for the computer behind the scenes to manage hardware resources, maintain stability, and provide a platform for application software; includes the OS, utilities, drivers, and language translators.

Application Software

End-user software designed to help users perform specific productive, creative, educational, or entertainment tasks, running on top of the operating system.

Operating System (OS)

The vital system software program that performs three fundamental jobs: managing hardware and storage resources, providing the user interface (GUI), and running applications via multitasking.

Multitasking

An operating system capability that allows a user to run multiple applications concurrently, keeping the actively used application in the foreground while others continue processing in the background.

Booting

The execution sequence of starting or restarting a computer system, during which the operating system is loaded from storage into memory (RAM).

Embedded Operating System

An operating system stored completely within the dedicated internal hardware of a specialized device, such as smartphones (Android, iOS), smartwatches, cars, and smart TVs.

Network Operating System (NOS)

An operating system deployed on network servers to coordinate data traffic, access controls, and communication across multiple linked computers (e.g., Windows Server, Linux, Unix).

Stand-alone Operating System

A desktop operating system installed on a personal computer or laptop that manages all the device's resources for an individual user (e.g., Windows 11, macOS).

Virtualization

A software technology that enables a single physical computer to host multiple operating systems simultaneously by running separate, isolated virtual machines.

Host OS vs. Guest OS

The Host OS is the primary operating system installed directly on the physical computer hardware, while the Guest OS is an operating system running independently inside a virtual machine window.

Device Driver

A specialized system software program loaded at startup that translates instructions between the operating system and a specific hardware peripheral, such as a printer, mouse, or graphics card.

Language Translators

System software programs—such as compilers and interpreters—that convert human-written programming source code into machine language that the processor can execute.

Bitmap (Raster) Graphics

Digital images constructed from a grid of thousands of tiny individual colored squares called pixels (such as phone camera photos in .jpg or .png format) that pixelate or blur when enlarged.

Vector Graphics

Digital graphics created by connecting lines, curves, and shapes defined by mathematical equations (such as logos in .svg, .ai, or .eps format) that remain perfectly sharp at any scale.

Software Suite

A collection of individual application programs packaged and sold together as a group, categorized into office/productivity suites, cloud suites, and specialized suites.

The Internet

The global, physical communication network consisting of interconnected cables, fiber optics, satellites, and routers communicating through standardized protocols, originally launched in 1969 as ARPANET.

The World Wide Web

A multimedia interface consisting of interlinked web pages, hyperlinks, documents, and videos built on top of the physical Internet, introduced in 1991 by a research consortium in Switzerland.

URL (Uniform Resource Locator)

The global web address specifying the location of an Internet resource, comprising a protocol (e.g., https://), a domain name, and an optional path to a specific file.

Top-Level Domain (TLD)

The suffix of a domain name (also known as the web suffix) that identifies the general type or organizational jurisdiction of a website, such as .com (commercial), .edu (educational), or .gov (government).

HTML (Hypertext Markup Language)

The foundational markup language that provides the structural codes and formatting instructions that web browsers interpret to display web pages.

CSS (Cascading Style Sheets)

Style sheet files referenced alongside HTML to specify layout, colors, typography, and presentation, ensuring a consistent visual appearance across web pages.

JavaScript vs. PHP

JavaScript is a client-side programming language that executes inside the user's browser to handle interactive features, whereas PHP is a server-side language that executes on the hosting web server.

Web Spiders (Crawlers)

Specialized automated software programs operated by search services that continuously crawl the World Wide Web to discover new content and update search engine databases.

Email Address Structure

A standard electronic messaging address composed of two primary parts separated by an '@' symbol: a user name and a domain name containing a top-level domain.

ISP (Internet Service Provider)

A commercial or telecommunications entity already wired to the Internet that sells connectivity access to end-users via DSL, cable, fiber-optic lines, or mobile cellular networks.

Cloud Computing

A model that shifts software execution, processing, and data storage from a local computer to remote Internet-connected servers, involving three core components: clients, the Internet, and service providers.

B2C E-Commerce

Business-to-Consumer electronic commerce, where commercial businesses sell products or services directly to individual consumers over the web (e.g., Amazon, online retail).

C2C E-Commerce

Consumer-to-Consumer electronic commerce, where private individuals transact directly with one another through an online platform or marketplace (e.g., eBay, OLX).

B2B E-Commerce

Business-to-Business electronic commerce, involving commercial transactions, supply procurement, and service exchanges between two or more corporate enterprises.

Digital Identity

The cumulative body of online data generated by an individual across multiple services, including user profiles, photos, posts, browsing records, purchase histories, and location data.

Phishing

A fraudulent cyber attack that utilizes deceptive emails or spoofed websites masquerading as legitimate entities to trick individuals into disclosing account passwords or financial credentials.

Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)

A security defense requiring users to provide two separate verification factors to confirm their identity before accessing an account, preventing unauthorized access in the event of a compromised password.