Chapter 1- Data Types and Structures

Question 1

32-bit computer system

Answer 1

32-bit computer system a computer system with 32 bits of memory addresses

Question 2

64-bit computer system

Answer 2

64-bit computer system a computer system with 64 bits of memory addresses

Question 3

Array

Answer 3

array a list of elements indexed by position. In most programming languages the first element has index zero.

Question 4

Associative Array

Answer 4

associative array similar to an array; information is stored in key-value pairs

Question 5

Binary File

Answer 5

binary file a computer-readable file, such as executable programs, images and sound

Question 6

Boolean

Answer 6

boolean a data type with one of two possible values, 0 and 1, usually referred to as False and True, respectively

Question 7

Camel Case

Answer 7

camel case a naming convention in programming where each word or abbreviation after the first in a phrase begins with a capital letter; there are no spaces or punctuation

Question 8

Case Sensitive

Answer 8

case-sensitive a program’s ability to distinguish between upper-case and lower-case letters

Question 9

Character

Answer 9

character a data type representing any single meaningful unit, such as a letter, a number, a punctuation mark, a symbol, or even a space

Question 10

Character Encoding

Answer 10

character encoding a code that allows a computer program to interpret binary digits (0s and 1s) into meaningful units representing characters and numbers. For example, ASCII, UTF and Unicode are types of character encoding.

Question 11

Child

Answer 11

child element any sub-element of a parent element in an XML file

Question 12

Class

Answer 12

class a program code template for creating objects in object-oriented programming languages

Question 13

Collision

Answer 13

collision when two di4erent input values to a hashing function output the same hash value

Question 14

Constraint

Answer 14

constraint a restriction on what can and cannot occur in the creation of a software solution, external to the solution itself

Question 15

CSV

Answer 15

CSV a comma-separated value file, which is a delimited file, separated by commas

Question 16

Data Dictionary

Answer 16

data dictionary a set of information that describes elements within software, such as external to the solution itself

Question 17

Data Structure

Answer 17

data structure a method of organising data to allow particular operations to be performed on them efficiently

Question 18

Data Type

Answer 18

data type a method of classifying a variable to determine the data that variable can contain, as well as how that variable can be manipulated

Question 19

Delimited File

Answer 19

delimited file a text file where data values are separated by a programmer-selected character

Question 20

Delimiter

Answer 20

delimiter the character used to separate data values in a delimited file

Question 21

De-Queue

Answer 21

dequeue removing and returning a value from the start of a queue

Question 22

Dictionary

Answer 22

dictionary an associative array, also referred to as a map or symbol table

Question 23

Enqure

Answer 23

enqueue inserting a value at the end of a queue

Question 24

Field

Answer 24

field a single data item in a record, e.g. FamilyName

Question 25

FIFO

Answer 25

first in first out (FIFO) the first element in a queue is the first element out of the queue

Question 26

Floating Point

Answer 26

floating point computer representation of real numbers, with decimal places

Question 27

Hard Coding

Answer 27

hard-coding to include fixed data in a program that cannot be changed during run-time and can only be changed by modifying the program source code

Question 28

Hash Function

Answer 28

hash function a function that takes a key value and returns another, related, value that is normally smaller than the original value

Question 29

Hash Table

Answer 29

hash table a data structure that uses a hash function to map keys to values by computing an index that is related to, but smaller than, the initial key

Question 30

Header

Answer 30

header comment a set of meaningful comments at the top of a source code file, outlining information such as the name of the file, its purpose, the author’s name and the date of creation

Question 31

Hungarian Notation

Answer 31

Hungarian notation a naming convention in computer programming where the name of the variable or function determines its purpose and its data type or structure

Question 32

Imperfect Hash

Answer 32

imperfect hash a hash function where two or more keys can be computed to have the same hash index

Question 33

Inheritance

Answer 33

inheritance a method of basing an object or class on another object or class, taking on its attributes and methods and potentially extending upon them

Question 34

Instantation

Answer 34

instantiation in object oriented programming, the process by which an object is created from a class

Question 35

Integer

Answer 35

integer a data type representing whole positive and negative numbers

Question 36

Integer Overflow

Answer 36

integer overflow a condition occurring as a result of a mathematical operation where the output exceeds the maximum or minimum integer value that can be stored on that computer system

Question 37

Interface

Answer 37

interface within software, the place where people control the program, enter data and receive output

Question 38

Internal Documentation

Answer 38

internal documentation notes and code comments contained within source code that describe the code

Question 39

LIFO

Answer 39

last in first out (LIFO) the last element in a stack is the first element out of the stack

Question 40

Linked List

Answer 40

linked list a data structure containing an ordered set of elements in which each element is connected to the next element in the list

Question 41

Mock up

Answer 41

mock-up a sketch showing how a screen or printout will look, used to aid in the design of an interface

Question 42

Naming Convention

Answer 42

naming convention an agreed set of rules by which to name source code elements such as variables, functions, classes, methods and objects

Question 43

Node

Answer 43

node a basic unit of a data structure that may contain data and/or link to other nodes

Question 44

Non-technical Constraints

Answer 44

non-technical constraints limitations relating to areas other than hardware and software: social, legal and usability

Question 45

Numeric

Answer 45

numeric a data type consisting of whole numbers, referred to as integers, and decimal numbers, referred to as floating points

Question 46

Object

Answer 46

object any instantiated class that a program can inspect and/or change, in terms of appearance, behaviour or data

Question 47

Object Description

Answer 47

object description a way of describing all of the relevant properties, methods and events of an object

Question 48

Parent Element

Answer 48

parent element any element in an XML file that contains at least one sub-element

Question 49

Perfect Hash

Answer 49

perfect hash a hash function where no two keys can be computed to have the same hash index

Question 50

Plain Text

Answer 50

plain text file a structured file that contains characters of readable data

Question 51

Pointer

Answer 51

pointer a programming language element that stores the memory address of another data value located in memory; the pointer ‘points’ to that memory space

Question 52

Stack

Answer 52

pop an element of data removed from the top of a stack, moving all remaining stack elements up one place

Question 53

Prolog

Answer 53

prolog the information in an XML file that appears before the start of the document’s contents, including information such as the XML version and character encoding that is being used

Question 54

Pseudocode

Answer 54

pseudocode code that designs algorithms in a clear, human-readable, language-independent format

Question 55

Stack

Answer 55

push an element of data inserted at the top of a stack, moving all current stack elements down one place

Question 56

Queue

Answer 56

queue a ‘first in first out’ data structure storing elements to be processed in order

Question 57

RAM

Answer 57

RAM random access memory; a type of computer memory that can be accessed randomly; it is most often volatile memory that is lost if power is removed

Question 58

Record

Answer 58

record a complete set of fields relating to an entity, such as a person

Question 59

Root Element

Answer 59

root element a parent element to all other elements in an XML file

Question 60

Scope

Answer 60

scope the boundaries or parameters of the solution – what it will do and what it will not do

Question 61

Snake Case

Answer 61

snake case a naming convention in programming where each word or abbreviation in the middle of a phrase is joined using an underscore

Question 62

Solution requirements

Answer 62

solution requirements what the client needs from the solution in relation to its features

Question 63

Technical constraints

Answer 63

technical constraints constraints related to the hardware and software available for the project

Question 64

Text File

Answer 64

text file a structured file containing sequences of characters that are not encrypted, such as a plain text file or CSV file

Question 65

Tree

Answer 65

tree the structure of an XML file that contains a root element and all of its sub-elements

Question 66

Variable

Answer 66

variable a method of storing and labelling data to be referenced and manipulated in a computer program

Question 67

Version Control

Answer 67

version control system a software product that manages the revisions, changes and parallel editing of source code and its related documentation

Question 68

XML

Answer 68

XML eXtensible Markup Language, a metalanguage that allows for user-defined tags and rules for encoding documents in a format that is readable by humans and machines

Question 69

Stack

Answer 69

stack a ‘last in first out’ data structure

Question 70

String

Answer 70

string a data type representing a set or sequence of character data types

Question 71

Struct

Answer 71

struct record used in database systems and programming languages