Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

CS Alevel > SLR 3 > Flashcards

SLR 3 Flashcards

1
Q

Define drive

A

The device that reads and writes data from secondary storage

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

Define media

A

What the data is actually stored on

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

Define optical storage

A

Data is stored in the reflectivity (pits and lands) of a surface and is read and written to by a laser

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

Pros of optical storage

A

Cheap
Lightweight
Portable

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

Cons of optical storage

A

Slow access times
Prone to scratches

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

Define solid state/ flash drive

A

A solid state technology that stores data on a collection of memory chips. No moving parts as data is accessed by software

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

Pros of solid state/ flash drive

A

Durable
Fast access times

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

Cons of solid state/ flash drive

A

Cost
Limited read/ writes

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

Define magnetic storage

A

Relies on the polarisation of magnetic particles to store bits on a magnetic material which is typically moved mechanically. A high capacity and low cost means of storage

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

Pros of magnetic storage

A

Cheap
Large capacity

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

Cons of magnetic storage

A

Slow access times
Fragile

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

Examples of optical storage

A

CD-R/RW, DVDR/RW, Blu-ray

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

Examples of solid state

A

SSD, memory sticks, flash memory cards

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

Examples of magnetic

A

Hard disk drive, tape

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

ROM characteristic

A

Small pieces of read only memory located on the motherboard
Non-volatile
Contains very first instructions for the computer (bootstrap)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

RAM characteristics

A

Temporary storage of instructions and data
Holds information being executed by the processor
Volatile
Much faster than the hard disk

17
Q

How are RAM and ROM involved in computer system turning on

A

When a computer system first receives power, there are no instructions in the CPU.
The system needs to load the operating system so it can start functioning.
ROM contains the bootstrap, a set of initial startup instructions placed in the ROM during manufacturing.
The first initial instruction performs a power on self test (POST)
The POST sends signals to all connected components, wakes them up and makes the CPU aware of their existence.
As the computer is now aware of the hard drive, it can load the operating system into RAM. The process of booting up your operating system can now begin

18
Q

What is virtual storage

A

The concept of storing and retrieving data over the internet in the cloud instead of a local storage device

19
Q

Advantage of virtual storage

A

Data can be accessed at any time… from any device… as long as there is internet access
Data can be easily stored without the need for removable media transfer
Easy to collaborate
Storage considered to be limitless from the users point of view

20
Q

Disadvantage of virtual storage

A

Can become expensive
If connectivity is poor, access times can be slow
No internet connection means no access to your files

21
Q

Where is the data stored? (Virtual memory)

A

All of the data actually stays on physical, permanent storage media in a remote location

22
Q

Example of virtual storage

A

On a computer you see a single storage area neatly structured and organised under a single drive- logical abstraction.
The physical implementation could have the folders, files and associated data stored across different media (magnetic hard disk, solid state disks, network file servers, cloud storage)

23
Q

Define input device

A

Any device that allows you to pass information from the outside world into a computer system

24
Q

Define output device

A

Any device that can take data stored in digital form and convert it into another format that humans can process such as sound, images or vibration

25
Q

Define storage device

A

Any device used for either temporary or permanent storage of data- can be internal or external

26
Q

Input device example

A

Mouse
Keyboard
Microphone
Sensor
Touchpad
Remote control
Scanner
Camera/ webcam
Touchscreen
Barcode reader
Magnetic strip reader
Chip and pin
Joystick
Optical character recognition

27
Q

Output device examples

A

Monitor,
Printer
Speaker
Headphone
Digital/ data projector
Plotter
Actuator
Touchscreen

28
Q

Storage device examples

A

CD
DVD
Blu-ray
USB / flash drive
SD card
Portable solid state drive
Internal solid state drive
Magnetic hard drive
Mass storage tape
External hard drive
Cloud storage

CS Alevel (10 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2025 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions