Computer Programming 12 (Java) Term 1 Exam Reviewer

Flashcards covering key computer programming concepts including Flowcharts, DFDs, UML, ERDs, SQL, JDBC, MVC, and Normalization.

What is a flowchart?

A diagram that visually represents the sequence of steps in a process or algorithm.

What do the primary flowchart shapes represent?

An oval represents the Start / End point, a diamond (rhombus) represents a decision point (yes/no branch), a rectangle represents a process or action step, and arrows show the direction/order of flow.

What is the main functional difference between a Data Flow Diagram (DFD) and a flowchart?

A DFD focuses on the movement of data through a system, while a flowchart shows the logical, step-by-step sequence of a program.

What are the four standard symbols used in a Data Flow Diagram (DFD)?

A rounded rectangle represents a Process, a rectangle (external symbol) represents an External Entity, an open-ended rectangle represents a Data Store, and an arrow represents Data Flow.

What is another name for a Level 0 DFD and what does it display?

It is also called a Context Level Diagram, and it shows the system as a single process with its external entities.

According to the lesson (citing IBM), have DFDs been replaced by UML?

No, DFDs are still used today as complementary tools alongside UML, providing high-level system overviews during software development.

What is UML and what are its two main diagram categories?

Unified Modeling Language (UML) is a general-purpose modeling language for software design. Its main categories are structural diagrams (visualize static components like class diagrams) and behavioral diagrams (represent interactions like sequence diagrams).

How does UML differ from an ERD?

UML is a general-purpose language used for many kinds of diagrams, while an ERD is one specific diagram type focused only on database modeling.

How are entities, attributes, and relationships defined in an Entity Relationship Diagram (ERD)?

An entity is a definable thing or concept (essentially a Table), an attribute is a property or characteristic (becomes a column), and a relationship describes how entities connect to one another ('the verbs of the database').

What happens when a Foreign Key is placed in a database table?

An ID from one entity (such as EmpID) appears inside another entity's table (such as Question) as a foreign key referencing that entity.

What is the distinction between data and information?

Data consists of raw facts that have not yet been processed, whereas information is processed/organized data.

What are the three components of the MVC software design pattern?

The Model (manages application's data and business logic), the View (displays data passively to the user), and the Controller (intermediary that handles user input and updates both).

What is JDBC and what is the required first step to use it with MySQL?

JDBC (Java Database Connectivity) is the API that lets Java programs connect to and interact with a database. The first step is to make sure MySQL is installed and running, and obtain the MySQL JDBC driver.

Why is PreparedStatement recommended over Statement in JDBC?

PreparedStatement is recommended because it helps prevent SQL injection.

What is try-with-resources in Java database programming?

It is a Java technique that automatically closes a database connection without an explicit connection.close() call.

What are the two main categories of SQL commands?

Data Definition Commands (DDL) and Data Manipulation Commands (DML).

What SQL statement is used to add a new column to an existing table?

ALTER TABLE table_name ADD column_name datatype;

What is the difference between the CHAR and VARCHAR SQL data types?

CHAR is a fixed-length string holding 0–255 characters, while VARCHAR is a variable-length string holding up to 65,535 characters.

What specific combination of constraints forms a PRIMARY KEY in SQL?

A combination of NOT NULL + UNIQUE.

What is database normalization and how does it handle larger tables?

Normalization is the process of structuring a relational database according to normal forms to reduce data redundancy and improve data integrity. It divides larger tables into smaller tables and links them using relationships.