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Information Technology > IT is Gr8! 1.1. Hardware > Flashcards

IT is Gr8! 1.1. Hardware Flashcards

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1
Q

factors influencing performance of a computer

A

CPU
Memory capacity
Cache
Storage speed
Network speed
Graphics processing ability
Bus performance

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2
Q

examples of mobile technologies

A

laptop and netbook
smartphone
tablet
e-reader

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3
Q

how can you connect a laptop to the network if there is no WiFi

A

attach 3G modem - work anywhere

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4
Q

what happened to netbooks?

A

never performed satisfactorily
pretty much vanished

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5
Q

advantages of laptops

A

powerful CPU
full-scale OS
expandable - use any range of existing computer peripherals

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6
Q

disadvantages of using a laptop

A

size - too large to be carried around all the time like mobile
battery life - too short to be useful as mobile
not always ‘on’ - sleep
no built-in cellular data - not always connected

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7
Q

advantages of using a smartphone

A

always ‘on’
always connected - built-in cellular data
convergence device
small size
built-in sensors
longer battery life

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8
Q

disadvantages of using a smartphone

A

mobile OS - not same full-scale productivity
input can be difficult
not easily expandable with peripherals

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9
Q

advantages of using a tablet

A

larger screens + bigger keyboards
longer battery life than laptops

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10
Q

disadvantages of using a tablet

A

mobile OS - same physical disadvantages as smartphone: not full-functioning, less capable, limited by capabilities of OS
full desktop OS - same physical disadvantages of laptop - battery, not always on

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11
Q

Two categories of e-readers

A

Single-purpose design
Tablet-based design

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12
Q

Single-purpose design

A

Kindle
Display text
Low powered
No other software

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13
Q

Tablet-based design

A

Kindle Fire
Full, colour, multimedia
Other software - not much developed

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14
Q

Advantages of dedicated (single-purpose) e-reader devices

A

Cheaper than other mobile tech
Smaller and lighter than tablet
Longer battery life
Easy to read in sunlight

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15
Q

Disadvantages of dedicated (single-purpose) e-readers

A

Single-purpose device
Extra item to carry

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16
Q

Is a laptop a mobile device

A

No, but it is portable

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17
Q

Advantages of mobility

A

Convenience
- combine functions (carry fewer)
- not time/location restricted
- achieves/produces more in less time

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18
Q

Future of computer trending towards

A

Always on
Always connected
Powerful
Convergent
Mobile (or even wearable)

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19
Q

What is always on?

A

Mobile technology - display off to save power
Fast + responsive

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20
Q

Ways to stay always connected

A

WiFi/cellular data (3G,4G,LTE) to INTERNET - access more than what on device storage

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21
Q

How does mobile tech compare to computers in terms of power?

A

Have mulit-core, 64 bit CPUs
Not as good

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22
Q

convergence

A

trend whereby separate technologies and functions from multiple devices are combined into a single multi-purpose device

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23
Q

Effect of convergence

A

Miniaturisation - mobile tech

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24
Q

Mobile means

A

Something that does not need to remain in one place or attached to wired connections such as power or communication cables

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25
Examples of wearable technologies
Google Glass Apple Watch Smartwatches Dont need to remember to bring - always on you
26
Constraints of mobile tech
Battery life Speed and availability of communication Size
27
What is the biggest limiting factor in mobile tech?
Battery life
28
Why is battery life shorter?
more powerful device - greater need for electricity - bigger battery/device More powerful CPU - uses more electricity
29
Name one thing that uses a lot of power
Connection to network - uses radio-based communication tech Also sensors, GPS, etc.
30
What does limited battery life mean for a device?
Access to chargers / spare batteries Run out of power during day Choose how to use device to limit use to conserve power Trade-off of computing power and power consumption
31
How does speed and availability of communication limit mobile tech?
poor cellphone reception
32
How does size limit the capabilities of mobile tech?
- small/light/easy to carry - powerful - lasting batteries Batteries and computing components take up physical space
33
How to understand performance of computer
How each part affects and relates
34
General rule
Faster - latest tech - more expensive
35
Factors that affect the performance of a computer
CPU Memory Cache Storage Network Graphics processing ability Bus performance
36
Aspects of CPU that affects computer performance
Speed Cores
37
What is speed measured in
GHz
38
How does speed of CPU affect performance?
Higher speed - process more instructions in given amount of time
39
How many CPUs in 4 core units?
4
40
What does multi-core processing allow for?
Separate programs simultaneously Better performance Multiple clients simultaneously
41
Cheapest and simplest way to improve computer performance
Memory
42
Speed of memory
Faster than storage Keeping in memory faster than retrieving to/from storage
43
core
a single complete working CPU circuit - relevant because modern chips are 'multi-core' and contain more than one 'core' in a single physical CPU 'chip'
44
e-book
electronic version of a book, read by using an e-reader or other e-book software
45
e-reader
single-purpose device designed to allow you to read e-books (and have a portable library of e-books)
46
laptop
a complete computer in a case that includes a screen, keyboard, pointing device, WiFi and a battery to power the device when away from a fixed power source
47
netbook
a low-power, low-spec version of a laptop (i.e. with small screen, and less RAM, storage and processing power) designed for very basic computer tasks such as web browsing and e-mail (hence the name netbook). Largely discontinued, replaced by tablets
48
power users
users who need highend computer specifications for their job or special interest. They may also need specific hardware related to the task, and will typically use most of the advanced functions of the software they use
49
smartphone
basically a mobile phone/computer with an OS, but only as large as an 'ordinary' cellphone. It can run apps (programs) and has sensors built into the hardware (e.g. GPS, accelerometers, camera) to extend its usefulness as a multi-purpose device
50
smartwatch
a watch that offers additional computing power / sensors as well and can interface with your smartphone / tablet / computer
51
SOHO
an acronym for Small Office Home Office, used to describe smaller business organisations and to differentiate them from large corporations
52
tablet
a larger (7" and up) version of a smartphone; runs the same OS and has all the same technologies (except the ability to be used as a phone); with the added advantage of a larger screen area for greater productivity
53
Memory
where computer stores data or instructions it is working on
54
What is a cache?
Use of a limited amount of faster media to speed up access to data and instructions stored on a slower media
55
When is cache used?
Temporarily stores recent/frequent accessed data
56
Where is cache typically stored?
CPU or hard drive
57
How does storage affect performance?
Lower access time better - average time it takes to read or write data
58
Very effective way to improve computer performance
Replace HDD with SSD
59
SSDs characteristics
Very expensive Smaller
60
What to do if you can’t afford an SSD for your whole computer?
Hybrid - SSD for OS and data on HDD
61
How is network speed measured
Megabits/Gigabits per second (G/Mps)
62
Higher network speed means
More data transferred in same amount of time
63
How to improve graphics processing ability
Better graphics card - speed and no. of processing cores on GPU - speed and amount of memory - speed of coms with motherboard
64
What is graphics processing ability specifically useful for?
Graphics-intensive tasks - image editing, 3D, gaming
65
What does bus performance refer to?
Speed at which data is moved between the CPU and other parts of the computer system (esp. memory, GPU, storage)
66
Speed of bus performance measured in
Mhz/Ghz Number of lanes
67
Least significant factor in computer performance
Bus performance
68
How to increase bus performance
New motherboard Need faster other stuff to make use of
69
Recommendations for hardware based on
Use
70
Different computer uses
Home/personal SOHO Entertainment Power users
71
SOHO uses
Accounting/billing DB Admin Workstation
72
Power users
Gamers Architects Engineers Video editing professionals Scientists HIGH END COMPUTER SPECIFICATIONS - hardware and advanced functions of software
73
Most NB system unit specifications
CPU Memory Storage
74
What is most commonly what needed to be upgraded
Memory - for all
75
Storage specs based on usage
Home/personal : never fill Entertainment : large Power : series of hard drives
76
Series of hard drives acting as one unit
RAID : redundant array of inexpensive disks
77
SSDs provide
- faster boot up - better system performance
78
DVD drive
Optical drive that can play, read and write CD and DVD discs
79

Information Technology (7 decks)

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