B4-7 Flashcards
The basic differences between a file-oriented system and a database management system (DBMS) include the following.
I.
The file-oriented system focuses on individual applications, each with its own set of files and with each file physically separate from the other files.
II.
In the database management system, the focus is on data rather than a particular application. This leads to data independence, data standardization, one-time data entry, data security, and shared data ownership.
a.
Only I.
b.
Neither I nor II.
c.
Only II.
d.
Both I and II.
Choice “d” is correct. Both I and II are correct.
Intranets are distinguished from the Internet by what feature?
a.
Intranets provide read only information that is not downloadable.
b.
The Internet allows general access while intranets allow only private access specified by the intranet sponsor.
c.
Only Internet users can “surf” for information.
d.
Intranets do not allow access to the Internet.
Choice “b” is correct. The Internet is a public information highway while an intranet is a privately sponsored form of electronic communication normally used for organizational communications.
Choice “d” is incorrect. Intranets frequently allow for access to the Internet. Security measures are often provided to ensure that Internet users cannot access the sponsoring organization’s intranet.
Choice “a” is incorrect. Intranets can provide information that can be downloaded or otherwise be handled as interactively as the data retrieved from the Internet.
Choice “c” is incorrect. Intranets have many of the same surfing and data collection features common to the Internet.
A value-added network (VAN) is a privately owned network that performs which of the following functions?
a.
Provide services to send marketing data to customers.
b.
Provide additional accuracy for data transmissions.
c.
Route data within a company’s multiple networks.
d.
Route data transactions between trading partners.
Choice “d” is correct. VANs are often used to route data transactions between trading partners.
Choice “c” is incorrect. Routing data “within” a company’s multiple networks would normally not require a VAN. Routing data “outside” the company’s multiple networks would sometimes use a VAN.
Choice “b” is incorrect. A VAN can possibly provide additional accuracy for data transmissions because a VAN may provide additional (transmission) error correction. However, data transmission has become much more dependable these days and this additional error correction has become less important.
Choice “a” is incorrect. A VAN would seldom be used to send marketing data to customers. VANs are expensive, and a cheaper means (e.g., the Internet) would most likely be used for marketing data.
Which of the following statements is (are) correct for computer hardware?
I.
Virtual memory is memory where portions of a program that are not being executed are stored, but it is not real memory.
II.
Virtual memory is that portion of real memory where portions of a program that are not being executed are stored.
III.
RAID is disk storage where multiple inexpensive disk drives are combined into an array.
a.
II and III only are correct.
b.
I and III only are correct.
c.
III only is correct.
d.
I and II only are correct.
Choice “b” is correct.
Statement I is a correct statement. Virtual memory is memory where portions of a program that are not being executed are stored, but it is not real memory. It is actually a part of disk storage. When the part of the program that is being stored in virtual memory is to be executed, that part of the program is retrieved and stored in real memory.
Statement III is a correct statement. RAID is disk storage where multiple inexpensive disk drives are combined into an array of disk drives to obtain performance, capacity, and reliability that exceed that of a single large disk drive.
Statement II is an incorrect statement. Virtual memory is NOT real memory.
Which of the following statements is true regarding extranets:
a.
Are an area of an organization’s intranet that may be accessed by anyone from the Internet.
b.
Are software programs used to monitor an organization’s intranet activity.
c.
Are extra intranets that that are used as backup intranets in emergency situations.
d.
Allow individuals from outside of an organization to enter certain areas of a private intranet.
Choice “d” is correct. Extranets are networks that directly link certain intranets of an organization with other organizations or individuals with which the organization may have a relationship. Extranets can enable customers, vendors, suppliers, consultants, subcontractors, and others to gain access to certain areas of a private intranet.
Choice “a” is incorrect. Extranets cannot be accessed by just any person on the Internet. In order to gain access to an extranet, permission and a password are generally needed.
Choice “c” is incorrect. Extranets are not backup intranets.
Choice “b” is incorrect. Extranets are a specific area of an intranet; extranets are not software.
A local area network (LAN) is best described as a(n):
a.
Computer network that connects computers of all sizes, workstations, terminals, and other devices within a limited proximity.
b.
System to allow computer users to meet and share ideas and information.
c.
Electronic library containing millions of items of data that can be reviewed, retrieved, and analyzed.
d.
Method to offer specialized software, hardware, and data handling techniques that improve effectiveness and reduce costs.
Choice “a” is correct. A local area network (LAN) is a computer network that connects computers of all sizes, workstations, terminals, and other devices within a limited proximity.
Choices “b” and “c” are incorrect. The Internet allows computer users to meet and share ideas and information as well as allowing access to electronic libraries.
Choice “d” is incorrect. LANs typically use standard hardware and software and allow shared access.
Which of the following statements concerning intranets is incorrect?
a.
A firewall is needed to ensure that unauthorized Internet users cannot access an organization’s intranet.
b.
An intranet web browser is different from an Internet web browser.
c.
In order to gain access to an intranet, a user generally must enter a password.
d.
An intranet connects geographically separate LANs within an organization.
Choice “b” is correct. The same web browser can be used for both intranets and the Internet making choice “b” an incorrect statement.
Choice “d” is incorrect because this statement is correct.
Choice “a” is incorrect because this statement is correct.
Choice “c” is incorrect because this statement is correct.
All of the following statements are correct for processors and processing power, except:
a.
When multiple processors or computers process the same program, there is an efficiency loss to provide the control of the overall processing. This factor is called the multiprocessing (MP) factor.
b.
Processing power is often measured in terms of MIPS, which is millions of instructions per minute.
c.
Multiprocessing is the coordinated processing of programs by more than one processor.
d.
In addition to processing power, there are many other factors, such as the speed of the input and output devices, that determine the overall processing power of a computer system.
Choice “b” is correct. It is an incorrect statement.
Processing power is often measured in terms of MIPS, which is millions of instructions per second, not per minute.
Choices “d”, “a”, and “c” are incorrect because these three statements are correct.
Most client/server applications operate on a three-tiered architecture consisting of which of the following layers?
a.
Desktop server, software, and hardware.
b.
Desktop client, software, and hardware.
c.
Desktop server, application, and database.
d.
Desktop client, application, and database.
Choice “d” is correct. A three-tier architecture is desktop client, application, and database.
Choice “b” is incorrect. Client/server architecture does not include hardware in the architecture. That eliminates both choices “b” and “a”.
Choice “c” is incorrect. The desktop is a client, not a server.
Choice “a” is incorrect. Client/server architecture does not include hardware in the architecture. That eliminates both choices “b” and “a”.
B Corporation needs to share very important financial information with many regional offices around the world. It must make sure that the information will be secure at all times. The best type of network to use is a/an:
a.
Wide Area Network (WAN).
b.
Local Area Network (LAN).
c.
Value Added Network (VAN).
d.
Internet-based Network.
Choice “c” is correct. Value added networks are privately owned communications networks that provide additional services beyond standard data transmission. VANs provide good security because they are private networks.
Choice “d” is incorrect. Internet-based networks are not privately owned communications networks; instead, they are public networks. Therefore, Internet-based networks do not provide the same level of security as VANs.
Choice “b” is incorrect. LANs are not normally suited for international transmissions.
Choice “a” is incorrect. WANs allow national and international communications. They usually employ non-dedicated public communications channels (fiber optic, terrestrial microwave, or satellite) as their communications media. WAN communication services may be provided by value added networks or by Internet-based networks. If a WAN is provided by an Internet-based network, it will not be as secure as a VAN.
Aldridge Company manufactures and distributes basketballs at various factories in Texas. It controls its manufacturing, distribution, and accounting functions using a combination of Unix and Linux processors. Which of the following statements is correct with respect to its processors and Unix and Linux?
a.
Unix was originally designed to run batch jobs and to take market share away from IBM mainframes.
b.
Linux was originally developed to run on Unix processors. It was then converted to run on PCs.
c.
The Unix operating system is divided into two pieces: the kernel and the shell. The shell handles tasks of memory allocation, process allocation, and security.
d.
The majority of Linux is written in the C programming language.
Choice “d” is correct. The majority of Linux is written in the C programming language.
Choice “a” is incorrect. Unix was designed to run interactive, time-sharing, online applications with considerable user interface, not batch jobs. It was definitely not designed to take market share away from IBM mainframes, although it did that in the end for certain applications, but not batch applications. IBM mainframes were optimized to process large amounts of input and output.
Choice “c” is incorrect. The Unix operating system is divided into two pieces: the kernel and the shell. The kernel handles tasks of memory allocation, device input/output, process allocation, security, and user access. The shell handles the user’s input and invokes other programs to run commands. Unix shells may be the Bourne shell, the Bourne-again shell (not a joke although Unix people sometimes have a strange sense of humor), the C shell (same comment again), the Korn shell and many others.
As another example of humor, a “zombie” process is a process (a running instance of a program) that has completed execution but that still has an entry in the process table (so that the operating system thinks it is still running, sort of dead and alive at the same time like a zombie). A daemon (pronounced demon) is any process that runs continually in the background. Since Unix is a multi-tasking operating system, processes can run in the foreground and background at the same time, somewhat like the early versions of MVS for mainframes.
Choice “b” is incorrect. Linux was originally designed to run on PCs, not Unix processors. It now has been converted to run on almost anything.
Which of the following is the primary advantage of using a value-added network (VAN)?
a.
It enables the company to obtain trend information on data transmissions.
b.
It is more cost effective for the company than transmitting data over the Internet.
c.
It provides increased security for data transmissions.
d.
It provides confidentiality for data transmitted over the Internet.
Choice “c” is correct. Value Added Networks (VANs) are often used for electronic data interchange called EDI due to their increased security for data transmissions.
Choice “d” is incorrect. VANs are private networks while the Internet is a public network.
Choice “b” is incorrect. VANs normally charge a fixed fee plus a fee per transaction and can be prohibitively expensive for smaller companies. The Internet is a less secure but far cheaper option.
Choice “a” is incorrect. Trend information on data transmissions is likely available from value-added networks or most any data system that transmits information. The ability to obtain trend information is not unique and certainly not as advantageous as the security features associated with VANs.
Which of the following is a critical success factor in data mining a large data store?
a.
Accurate universal resource locater (URL).
b.
Pattern recognition.
c.
Image processing systems.
d.
Effective search engines.
Choice “b” is correct. Data mining can be defined as the extraction of implicit, previously unknown, and potentially useful information from data. It is usually associated with an organization’s need to identify trends. Data mining involves the process of analyzing the data to show patterns or relationships in that data. Thus, pattern recognition, or the ability of the data mining software to recognize the patterns (or trends), is the critical success factor for data mining (at least in the opinion of the Examiners).
Choice “d” is incorrect. An effective search engine is necessary when one is searching for specific known information or wants to answer a particular question. Data mining is the process of identifying unknown or unrecognized relationships in a very large set of data (data warehouse). A search engine would not be a critical success factor in this process.
Choice “c” is incorrect. An image processing system is not a critical success factor in data mining. Image processing systems are more oriented towards the gathering of data from images, and not towards the mining or interpretation of that data.
Choice “a” is incorrect. An accurate universal resource locator (URL) is not a critical success factor in data mining. A URL is a string of characters conforming to a standardized format which refers to a resource on the Internet. Data for data mining purposes is seldom, if ever, on the Internet. That would be way too slow.
Stonehenge Corporation utilizes several database management systems in its various application systems running at data center just north of London, England. Which of the following statements is/are correct for these databases?
I.
In a relational database, the data are stored in two-dimensional tables that are implemented by indexes and linked lists.
II.
Normalization is the process of separating data into logical tables.
III.
Object-oriented databases can be used to store comments, drawings, images, voice, and video that do not normally fit into more structured databases. Object-oriented databases are normally faster than relational databases.
a.
III only is correct.
b.
II and III only are correct.
c.
II only is correct.
d.
I, II, and III are correct.
Choice “c” is correct. II only is correct.
Statement I is incorrect. In a relational database, the data are stored in two-dimensional tables that are related to each other by keys, not implemented by indexes and linked lists. Indexes and linked lists were normally used in the earlier hierarchical and tree-structured databases.
Statement II is correct. Normalization is the process of separating data into logical tables. Data normalization is required before a relational database can be designed.
Statement III is incorrect. Object-oriented databases can be used to store comments, drawings, images, voice, and video that do not normally fit into more structured databases. However, object-oriented databases are normally slower than, not faster than, relational databases.
Choices “d”, “a”, and “b” are incorrect, per the above explanation.
Which of the following statements best describes a data warehouse?
a.
Corporation B extracts all human resource data, sales data, purchasing data and data from many other departments for the Year 1 and stores this information in a separate database.
b.
Corporation C owns a large storage building and stores only computers that contain data backup in this building.
c.
Corporation D owns a large supercomputer that stores the entire data backup for the whole organization.
d.
Corporation A extracts all payroll data for the Year 1 and stores this information in a separate database.
Choice “a” is correct. A data warehouse is an enterprise-wide database that stores data that has been extracted from various operational and external databases from within the organization. The data in these data warehouses has been gathered and combined from several sources into this main, central location.
Choice “d” is incorrect. Statement A describes the beginning stages of a data warehouse, but gathering data from just one department does not yet create a data warehouse.
Choice “b” is incorrect. A data warehouse has nothing to do with a storage building.
Choice “c” is incorrect. A data warehouse is not a computer; it is an enterprise-wide database that stores data that has been extracted from various operational and external databases from within the organization.
