INSY 2303 Exam 1

Digital Revolution

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

Convergence:

process by which several technologies with distinct functionalities evolve to form a single product

The Web

a collection of linked documents, graphics, and audio that can be accessed over the Internet.

Cloud Computing

provided access to information, applications, communications, and storage over the Interne

Bits vs. Bytes

the word bit is an abbreviation for binary digit, it can be further abbreviated, usually as a lowercase b. A group of eight bits is called a byte and is usually abbreviated as an uppercase B

Digital vs. Analog Data

Digital data is text, numbers, graphics, sound, and video that have been converted into discrete digits such as 0s and 1s. In contrast, analog data is represented using an infinite scale of values.

Digitization

The process of converting information, such as text, numbers, photos, or music, into digital data

Lossy Compression

throws away some of the original data during the compression process.

Lossless Compression

provides a way to compress data and reconstitute it into its original state.

Image Resolution vs. Aspect Ratio

the proportional relation between the width and height of an image or video frame. Video resolutions can be expressed as width × height,

Pixel Interpolation

A process that is used by graphics software to average the color of adjacent pixels in an image, usually when the image is enlarged.

Audio Sampling Rate

refers to the number of times per second that a sound is measured during the recording process

Data vs. Information

data is used by machines, such as computers; information is used by humans.

Bitmap vs. Vector Graphics

consists of a set of instructions for creating a picture

File Size

Vector graphics usually require less storage space than bitmaps.

Easy of Editing

It is easier to edit an object in a vector graphic than an object in a bitmap graphic.

Resizing

Vector graphics resize better than bitmaps

Realism

• Vector graphics are not usually as realistic as bitmap images.

3-D Graphics

are based on vectors stored as a set of instructions describing the coordinates for lines and shapes in a three-dimensional space.

Vectors

The vectors form a wireframe that acts in much the same way as the framework of a pop-up tent.

Rending

The process of covering a wireframe with surface color and texture

Ray Tracing

The technique for adding light and shadows to a 3-D image

Instruction Set

The collection of instructions that a CPU is designed to process.

Software

sets up a computer to do a specific task.

Application

Computer programs that help users perform a specific task such as word processing. Also called application programs, applications, or programs.

Operating

The software that controls the computer's use of its hardware resources, such as memory and disk storage space. Also, called an OS.

Form

The configuration of a computer's system unit; examples include tower, mini-tower, and cube.

Mainframe

A large, fast, and expensive computer generally used by businesses or government agencies to provide centralized storage, processing, and management for large amounts of data.

Supercomputer

The fastest and most expensive type of computer, capable of processing trillions of instructions per second.

Server

A computer or software on a network that supplies the network with data and storage.

CPU

The main processing circuitry, or "chip," within a computer that contains the ALU, control unit, and registers

ALU

(Arithmetic Logic Unit) The part of the CPU that performs arithmetic and logical operations on the numbers stored in its registers.

Control Unit

The part of the microprocessor that directs and coordinates processing.

Clock Speed

indicates the speed of the microprocessor clock—a timing device that sets the pace for executing instructions.

RAM

(random access memory) Computer memory circuitry that holds data, program instructions, and the operating system while the computer is on.

ROM

Refers to one or more integrated circuits that contain permanent instructions that the computer uses during the boot process.

Virtual Memory

A computer's use of hard disk storage to simulate RAM.

Multi-Core Processor

A microprocessor that contains circuitry for more than one processing unit.

Magnetic

A technology for recording data onto disks or tape by magnetizing particles of an oxide-based surface coating.

Optical

• A technology that records data as light and dark spots on a CD, DVD, or other optical media.

Solid State

A technology that records data and stores it in a microscopic grid of cells on a nonvolatile, erasable, low-power chip.

Cloud

A storage area that is located on a remote server, usually on the Internet, rather than on a local storage device

Volatile vs. Nonvolatile

Any electronic component that does not require a constant supply of power to hold data.

Serial

one instruction at a time the processor must complete all steps in the instruction cycle before it begins to execute the next instruction.

Pipelining

When a processor begins to execute an instruction before it completes the previous instruction

Parallel Processing

executes more than one instruction at a time.

Communications Network

A collection of devices used to originate, send, route, and receive data transmissions.

Communications Channel Any

Any pathway between the sender and receiver; channel may refer to a physical medium or a frequency.

Wired vs. Wireless

Wired channels transport data through wires and cables. Wireless channels transport data from one device to another without the use of cables or wires.

Network Topology

The physical structure of a network including its devices and connections.

Network Node

In a network, a connection point; in a hierarchical database, a segment or record type.

Modem

A device that modulates and demodulates a signal; typically used to send data from a computer to the Internet over telephone, cable television, or satellite networks.

TCP/IP

Internet Protocol) One of the main protocols of TCP/IP; responsible for addressing packets so that they can be routed to their destinations; IPv4 offers 32-bit addresses whereas IPv6 offers 128-bit addresses.

Private IP Address

An IP address that cannot be routed over the Internet

Public IP Address

IP addresses that can be routed over the Internet

DNS

A large database of unique IP addresses that correspond to domain names.

Symmetric Connection

Any connection to the Internet in which the upstream speed is the same as the downstream speed.

Asymmetric Connection

A network connection in which the download capacity is different from (usually faster than) the upload capacity.

LAN

Local area networks are often referred to as LANs. They are designed to provide connectivity for devices within a limited area, typically within the premises of a home, office building, business, or school.

NIC

network interface controller

Circuitry, often on an expansion card mounted inside a computer, that transmits and receives data on a local area network. Also called a NIC, network card, or network adapter.

Ethernet

A popular network technology in which network nodes are connected by coaxial cable or twisted-pair wire.

Communications Protocols

A set of rules that ensures the orderly and accurate transmission and reception of data.

Physical

Specify cable and signal standards for the channels that carry data

Transport

Make sure data gets to its destination by establishing standards for dividing data into chunks, assigning addresses, and correcting errors

Arrival

Convert data into standard formats that can be used by applications, such as email, Web browsers, and Skype

ARPANET

(Advanced Research Projects Agency Network) One of the first packet switching computer networks using TCP/IP, and the prototype for the Internet.

IXP

IXPs) Nodes on the Internet where data from one service provider is transferred to a different service provider.

Latency

The elapsed time it takes for a packet of data to arrive at its destination.

Packet

A small unit of data transmitted over a network.

Circuit Switching

The method used by the telephone network to temporarily connect one telephone with another for the duration of a call.

Packet Switching

A technology used by data communications networks, such as the Internet, where a message is divided into smaller units called packets for transmission.

Jitter Loss

Deviations in the timing of a digital signal that can interfere with communications, especially voice over IP

Packet Loss

A situation in which data bits are lost in transit, requiring them to be resent, which significantly increases the time required for an intact message to arrive at its destination.

Internet Connection (FIXED)

Any Internet access service designed to be used from a fixed, non-portable location (for example, dial-up, DSL, and cable Internet service).

Portable

• Any type of Internet service, such as portable satellite, that can be moved from one place to another.

Mobile

Any service that allows subscribers to access the Internet while on the go.

Dial-Up

A connection that uses a phone line to establish a temporary Internet connection.

Cable

A type of Internet connection offered to subscribers by cable television companies.

DSL

(digital subscriber line) A high-speed Internet connection that uses existing telephone lines, requiring proximity to a switching station

Satellite

A high-speed Internet service that uses a geosynchronous or low-earth orbit satellite to send data directly to satellite dishes owned by individuals.

FTTH

(fiber-to-the-home) A communication link that connects subscribers' homes using fiber-optic cable.

Backbone

The major communications links that form the core of the Internet.

ISP

(Internet service providers_ Companies that provide Internet access to businesses, organizations, and individuals.

The Web

An Internet-based collection of linked HTML documents identified by URLs and accessed using browsers and the HTTP protocol.

Web Server

A computer that listens for queries from Web browsers and transmits HTML documents over the Internet.

Web Site A group of Web pages

Web Site

A group of Web pages accessible at a specific Web address that holds a collection of information identified by a common domain name, such as www.cnn.com.

Web Page

Information displayed by a Web browser that's produced from an HTML document or generated on the fly from data in a database.

Hypertext/Hypertext Links Also referred to

Hypertext/Hypertext Links

Also referred to simply as links; words, phrases, or images on a Web page that, when clicked, take you to designated URLs.

URL

Uniform Resource Locator) The address of a Web page.

Web Browser

A program that communicates with a Web server and displays Web pages

Browser Cache

The collection of HTML pages and images that is stored locally by a browser and used to quickly load pages that have been previously viewed without waiting for them to be downloaded again.

Plugin

A software module that adds a specific feature to a system. In the context of browsers, a plugin adds the ability to display or play various additional file formats.

Extension

A module of computer code that adds capabilities to a browser, such as the ability to block ads on Web pages.

HTTP

Hypertext Transfer Protocol) The communications protocol used to transmit Web pages. HTTP:// is an identifier that appears at the beginning of Web URLs (for example, http://www.fooyong.com).

HTTPS

(Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure) The protocol used to create secure connections for ecommerce by adding a layer of encryption.

Cookies

A message sent from a Web server to a browser and stored on a user's hard disk, usually containing information about the user.

Dynamic

A way of displaying data from a database as customized Web pages, which are generated as the page is sent to the browser.

Static Web Page

A Web page that does not change once it is displayed on the screen by a browser.

Client-Side

Program code that is executed by a client's browser, as opposed to being executed by the server.

Markup Language

A language that provides text and graphics formatting through the use of tags. Examples of markup languages include HTML, XML, and SGML.