Chapter 11

Absolute and relative file paths are used in the content layer when creating a web page.

(i) Explain the differences between an absolute file path and a relative file path

• Absolute file paths contain a complete URL/full file path with file name

• Contents of the URL include protocol, the website's domain name, specific file, subfolder, page name – 1 mark awarded for at least two named

• Relative file paths only include a specific file or page

• This is relative to the current path//starts from the same folder as the web page.

(ii) Explain why absolute file paths should not be used for hyperlinks to locally-saved web pages.

• If the web pages have moved then the references refer to an old/previous file path

• Hyperlinks will not work

Anchors and hyperlinks are both used in HTML. Compare an anchor with a hyperlink. Your answer must include similarities and differences.

Similarities

• Both are links (in a web page)

• Both can be attached to icons/text/graphics

• Both are html tags used on web pages

• Both are used for navigation

• Both are coded as html tags starting with

Differences

• An anchor allows the user to move from one part of a web page to another part.

• An anchor is a label that identifies a specific position in a document//An anchor is within a hyperlink

• An anchor needs a point set in the document and a link//A hyperlink only needs the link and a web address

• The code within an anchor will either be "name.." or "id.."

• An anchor determines a fixed point on a web page that is used as a bookmark

• An anchor can be placed at any point on a web page

• A hyperlink allows the user to move from one web page to another web page/website

• The code within a hyperlink can be "href..", "rel..”, “target..”

• A hyperlink can be attached to a block of text or image

• A hyperlink can be clicked on to cause another web page or part of the same web page to be displayed

• A hyperlink can redirect a user to an anchor by including its name

• A hyperlink is clickable

The newsletter is to be saved as a PDF and sent as an email attachment to parents. Describe two benefits of saving the newsletter as a PDF

1 Retains the format of the original newsletter

2 Takes up less storage space

—> Independent of hardware and software

rtf and pdf are file types.

(a) Describe what is meant by an rtf and a pdf file type.

rtf- Text file with formatting/generic text files

pdf- Standard/generic image file

(b) Explain the differences between the two file types.

• pdf their layout and formatting stay the same, regardless of which device/operating system/application being used whereas rtf formatting can change

• pdf take up less memory for the same size of document

• pdf files are compressed

• pdf the formatting can be more complex whereas rtf has basic formatting

• pdf are harder to edit

• pdf generic image format

• rtf can be read by most word processing editors

• rtf is a generic text format

A cricket club secretary saves a list of players as a PDF file.

(a) Describe two disadvantages of saving the list of players as a PDF file

• More difficult to edit the PDF

• PDF sometimes render incorrectly

• Need PDF editor software to edit//Need PDF viewer

Susan is creating a database about cars and needs to save it in the shared area (S:) on the school network. It will be stored in the folder ICT which is contained in the IGCSE folder. She needs to save the file with a file name that is different from file names used by other students in the group.

(a) Write down a suitable file name for the file so that the teacher can easily find Susan’s work and identify its contents. The file name should not contain spaces.

Example: Susan_car_database

(b) Write down the file path which Susan would use to store the file in the correct folder.

\IGCSE\ICT\

(c) Susan plans to work on her database at home. However, the database is very large so her teacher has told her that it needs to be reduced in size. She will then be able to attach it to an email so she can send it home.

Explain why the file size would need to be reduced

• The larger it is the longer to transmit the email

• Some email companies set a limit on attachment file size

• The time to upload/download would increase with a large file