INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY REVIEW SHEET
Word Processing:
A word processor is like a typewriter in that you press keys to implement words and create documents but a word
processor is much more advanced in that it can:
● Save work to a disk, which can be loaded into the computer again to be edited
● Mistakes can be easily corrected and some word processors have the ability to replace recurring words
with another.
● Documents can be cut, copied and pasted to allow for easy reorganization
● Multiple copies can be created.
● Different styles of text exist.
● Etc.
Nb: Wordwrap is a feature that automatically moves a word that is too long to fit on a line to the beginning of
the next line.
Examples of word processors: Microsoft Word, Libre Office, WPS Office, Google Docs, etc.
Commonly mistaken terms
Open New
Opens a previously created document when you load Creates a new document when you load into the word
into the word processor processor
Shortcut is typically: ctrl+O Shortcut is typically: ctrl+N
Save Save as
When you use the Save command it saves the new When you use the Save as command it gives you the
document and replaces the old one without warning. option to specify the file type and the location for
Shortcut is typically ctrl+S where you want to save it, it also allows you to edit
the filename. Nb: you still have access to both old and
new files if used
Shortcut is typically ctrl+A
KEY FEATURES
EDITING TEXT
There are three main ways of editing text:
● Deleting and retyping
● Moving and copying
● Search and replace
Mail Merge
(word processing is work in progress :D)
SPREADSHEETS
Spreadsheets are a good choice of software if you want to display data in different ways. Spreadsheets are widely
used in finance-related tasks like budgeting and payroll.
Examples of Spreadsheets: Microsoft Excel, Lotus 1-2-3, Corel Quattro Pro, etc.
A spreadsheet is a grid of cells organised in rows and columns. Each column is given a letter and each row is
given a number. Each cell has a unique reference identified by the column letter and row number. For example,
B4 is in column B and in row 4. You can select a singular cell or a range of cells with the cursor.
One of the most versatile features of spreadsheets is their ability to enter formulas into cells. A formula is an
equation that tells the spreadsheet what actions/calculations you want to do to any spreadsheet data. Formula is
entered by typing the equal sign “=” then the relation between two cells, for example: to add the values of A1
and A2 you would type “=A1+A2”
Nb: the location of your answer is where you type the formula.
FUNCTIONS
Functions: Built in formulas in excel, typically used for business and personal use.
The structure of a function is “=” then function name then (the one or more arguments)
Arguments can be cell references, a range of cells, or constants, they vary depending on the function.
FUNCTION MEANING EXAMPLE
AVERAGE Calculates the average of a range =AVERAGE(B1:B3)
of cells
COUNT Counts the number of cells that =COUNT (C1:C30)
contain numbers Used to count a range of cells in a
short span of time, Count will
display the amount of cells when
used.
COUNTIF Counts the number of cells that =COUNTIF (D1:D30,”=A”)
meet the given criteria In this example, cells D1 to D30
have exam grades. To find out how
many students got grade A, you
could use the COUNTIF function
IF Runs a logical test and returns a =IF(C2>= 60, ”Pass”, ”Fail”)
value based on the result. In this example, cell C2 contains a
formula showing how much you
need to pass. If your grade is
greater than or equal to 60, “Pass”
is displayed and if your grade is
less than 60 “Fail” is displayed.
PMT Calculates the payment to be =PMT(rate, #payments, -Principal)
made on a loan based on constant
payments at a constant interest NOTE: If you are given a yearly
rate. interest rate divide rate by 12. Put
- in front of the Principal or else
it’ll show a weird accounting value.
SUM Adds all the numbers in a range of =SUM (B1:B7) If you wanted to add
cells. together the numbers in the range
of cells from B1 to B7, the SUM
function would shorten the time to
add them rather than manually
doing it yourself.
VLOOKUP Searches the first column in a =VLOOKUP (B3, MARKS, 2)
table for a value. If the value is Suppose B3 contained the number
found, any other value in that row 87, and MARKS was 10 rows of
can be selected, The V in data containing marks and a letter
VLOOKUP represents vertical grade. The lookup function would
search the first column of marks
for the number 87, and if found it
would go to the second column (
the 2 in the function), and return
the grade corresponding to that
number.
NUMBNUTS
DATABASES
A database is an organized collection of related information. A database management system (DBMS) is a
program that controls the storage, modification and retrieval of data in a database.
Examples of DBMS: Microsoft Access, Lotus Approach, Corel Paradox, FilemakerPro
Parts of a database:
● Object: Any file in the database(reports, tables, queries)
● Table: A file in a database containing related records. Also called a relation. Has rows and columns.
● Record/Tuple: A row of data containing related fields.
● Field/Attribute: A column with a data type used to store the attributes of records.
ADVANTAGES OF DATABASES
Field Data Types
FIELD TYPE DESCRIPTION
TEXT Letters, numbers and special characters
MEMO Lengthy text entries
NUMBER Numbers, for example 12345
DATE Date- month, day and year information (for example
26/08/1992) including time information (for example
9:32)
CURRENCY Dollars and cents amounts
AUTONUMBER A number that increases automatically as each record
is added.
OLE OBJECT Files imported from another program
YES/NO (also known as a boolean or logical field) Yes/No, True/False, On/Off
LOOKUP WIZARD Stores a lookup column that you can use as a lookup
HYPERLINK Web addresses that links to a web page
Objectives for Database Management:
1. Explain the terms Database management system and database
2. Define terms associated with a database (table, entity, tuple, attribute, primary key,
secondary key, composite key, candidate key, alternate key, foreign key)
3. Distinguish among terminologies associated with files and databases (Row,
column, key)4. List at least four advantages and disadvantages of using a
computerized database
5. Outline at least four steps that can be taken to design a database.
Before the widespread use of computers, student information was kept on index cards in boxes or filing cabinets.
If you and a small group of friends each put your personal details such as name, addresses and date of birth, on a
record card, then it might not take too long to find those of you whose birthday is in April. However, if everyone
in your school filled out a card, then it would take very much longer! Furthermore, changing information, such as
addresses, could also take a long time. Other common “paper databases” include telephone books, dictionaries,
recipe cards and television guides. Nowadays, computerized databases are in widespread use, as they help
people quickly to find information that they want. They also vary in size and use depending on what is required.
Small databases, such as one that keeps information about a CD collection, can be run on a personal computer at
home. Larger databases now play an important part in how our society works. Industrial, commercial and public
organizations use databases to maintain their businesses and services.
Other computerized databases include flight information systems and database systems in public libraries.
Examples of how we use these large databases included:
· Booking holidays and airline tickets
· Using directory enquiries to search a database of millions of customers for a telephone
number in a few seconds
· Accessing a police computer database, with requests from a police officers who want
information about criminal suspects or stolen cars.
What is a Database Management System (DBMS)?
A DBMS is the term for programs that handle the storage, modification and retrieval of data, as well as
controlling who has access to the information. E.g. Microsoft Access, Lotus Approach, FileMaker Pro and Corel
Paradox.
Functions of a DBMS:
● Data storage, retrieval and updates . The DBMS must allow its users to store, retrieve and update data.
● Backup and recovery. The DBMS should allow you to recover the most recent contents of the database in
the event of system failure.
● Security. The DBMS must handle password allocation and checking, and allow access to the data that a
user is authorized to use.
● Managing facilities for sharing a database. The DBMS has to ensure that no two users can access the
same record at the time in order to modify it.
What is a Database?
A database is a part of a DBMS that is used for organizing and storing data in a useful and efficient manner on
the computer.
Terms Associated with a Database:
Table (File or relation): Collection of records that belong together
Field (Column or attribute): the smallest piece of data that can be stored.
Record (row or tuple): a row of data in a table that contains information about a particular individual item or
entity.
Entity: anything or person that has characteristics.
e.g. A ball may be big, red and soft; A car has a make , model, colour and number of doors; A student has
a Christian name, surname, gender and date of birth. Ball, Car and student are examples of an entity.
Attribute: Characteristic of an entity.
e.g. Make, sale price, colour are all examples of attributes.
Primary key: A field whose values are unique so can be used be used to access each record individually.
Candidate key: A field that is considered a possibility for becoming the primary key. However, only one field must
be chosen as the primary key. Candidate keys are entirely optional, so a table may contain none, one, or several
of them.
Alternate key: Any candidate field that was not used as the primary key.
Foreign key: a field in one table, but it is a primary key in another table. (Appears in a table where it doesn’t
really belong but it enables two tables to be linked.)
Composite key: a primary key that is made up of two or more fields.
Advantages and disadvantages of a computerized database
Planning and designing a database
Planning a database is one of the most important steps in database management. It is critical that you plan
before creating the files in which data will be stored.
Each database should be set up for a specific purpose. Ask yourself the following questions when designing a
database:
● What data do you want to store and what should it do?
● What questions will you ask of the data?
● What reports will you need to produce?
● How should the data be sorted and grouped?
All of the information of an entity should be closely related. For example, in a videotape rental system, you
might have one table for the name of tape, type of tape and its rating, one for customers which stores the
customer name, address and telephone number, and another which stores data about the rentals. In this example
there are three entities: the tape entity, the customer entity and the rental entity
PROBLEM SOLVING
Steps to Problem solving
On a new line after declare type the variable name followed by AS DATATYPE
Different data types go on different lines, but variables of the same data type can go on the same line comma
separated.
• Problem Definition & Problem Analysis
• Propose and Evaluate Possible Solutions
• Determine the most effective solution
• Develop the Most Appropriate Algorithm
• Test and Validate the Algorithm
• Implement the Algorithm (Write the Program)
• Test and Debug the Program
• Document and Maintain the Program
Pseudocode
“Source Code Pro is the best monospace font”
-Sun Tzu; The Art of War
Pseudocode is used as a medium for programmers to solve problems using algorithms (basically pretend coding).
It uses text to represent each step in the algorithm.
It has keywords which are words that mean something special to pseudocode so you can’t use it for anything else
like naming variables or something and for standardization, all keywords I type in the doc will be in
CAPS.
The algorithm must always start with the BEGIN or START keywords on line 1 and END or STOP on the
last line
Input/Output
To output something to the user use the PRINT keyword followed by text in quotes.
To input something from the user use READ but not with quotes, you’ll mainly be using read with a variable
Variables
Variables are containers for storing data. They have different types for different purposes
Data Types
● Boolean - Stores True or False Values
● Char - Stores a single character. Eg. ‘E’
● String - Stores a sequence of characters(a sentence, phrase, word etc.) Eg. ‘Hello World’
● Integer - Stores positive or negative whole numbers. Eg. 6, -30, 5.
● Real -Stores fractional numbers, containing one or more decimals. Eg. -12.01, 2.5
How to use variables:
To use a variable in pseudocode, we must create it first at the start of the pseudocode using the declare keyword
All variables must be created here and before anything else and
To give a variable a value we use variablename <- value
Arrays are used to store multiple values in a single variable, instead of declaring separate variables for each
value. To declare an array, specify the name of the array followed by square brackets and specify the number of
elements it should store, then define the variable type.
When accessing an array it is important to know how indexing works. Even though there are 4 things in the array
in pseudocode, elements in an array start with 0.
The first element in the array is 420 and the third element is 69 ( 0 = first , 1 = second , 2 = third etc..)
Operators
Operators are used to perform functions on variables and data.
We can categorize them by type
Arithmetic Operators
Operator Name Description Example
+ Addition Adds together two num1 + num2
values
- Subtraction Subtracts one value num2 - num1
from another
* Multiplication Multiplies two values num1 * num2
/ Division Divides one value by num2 / num1
another
% Modulus Returns the division num2 % num1
remainder
Relational
Operator Name Example
= Equal to num1 = num2
!= or <> Not equal to num1 != num2
< Lesser than num1 < num2
> Greater than num1 > num2
<= Lesser than or equal to num1 <= num2
>= Greater than or equal to num1 >= num2
Logical
Operator Description Example
AND Returns true when both WHILE Customers > 0 AND Products > 0 DO
conditions are true
OR Returns true when at IF Age < 18 OR Age > 60 THEN
least one value is true.
NOT Returns false when the WHILE NOT (Gender = “male” OR Gender = “female”) DO
condition is true PRINT “attack helicopter”
NB: When you have multiple conditions put them in brackets
EG: IF (a>b) and (b<c) THEN
If statement
Tests a condition once. If the condition is true it executes a statement.
IF condition THEN
statement
Else/Else if statement
If IF returns False, it goes straight to the next ELSE statement. ELSE IF is like ELSE but takes a condition like
IF. You can have as many ELSE IFs as you want but there can only be one ELSE.
ELSE IF and ELSE are not required because your IF will still work without them but highly recommended.
IF condition THEN
statement
ELSE IF condition THEN
statement
ELSE
statement
ENDIF
Loops
A loop is a statement that executes an instruction while the condition is false.
There are several types for different use cases.
While loop
It takes one condition and repeats until the condition is false.
WHILE condition DO
statement
ENDWHILE
For Loop
Use for loop when you know exactly how many times you want to loop
FOR increment DO
statement
ENDFOR
Repeat Until Do
This loop unlike the others will execute a loop off the bat but will stop when a condition is true then execute the
statement under DO.
REPEAT
statement
UNTIL condition
DO
statement
Switch Case
Chooses a block of code to execute using a shared condition.
Unlike If and Else If, switch case you don’t have to wait for the previous conditions to be false because it jumps
straight to a case once the condition for that one is true.
DOCASE
CASE condition
statement
CASE condition
statement
CASE condition
statement
ENDCASE
Nested Loops/If
Sometimes you need to check something after you check something and use some elaborate logic mumbo
jumbo. You can place if statements inside loops and loops inside if statements and everything in between.
IF condition THEN
FOR increment DO
statement
ENDFOR
ELSE IF condition THEN
IF condition THEN
WHILE condition DO
statement
ENDWHILE
ENDIF
ENDIF
Linear Search
A Linear search is a pseudocode algorithm that cycles through the elements in an array until it
finds a value that was input. It’s “Linear” because the algorithm goes through each element of
the array, compares it to a searched value and then checks to see if the element matches.
Things needed for a linear search:
● Array: This is what you’re searching through
● A “Found” Boolean: So you can turn exit the search after finding the value
● A variable with the size of the array (“Max” value): So the computer knows when to stop
searching given that it doesn’t find the thing you’re searching for.
● An “Index” value: Acts similar to a “counter”, used to show the position in the array the
search is currently at and can be used for showing the result.
Construct of a Linear Search
Found 🡨 False
Max 🡨5
Index 🡨 1
PRINT “Please enter the item to search for”
READ searchval
WHILE (Found = False) AND (Index <= max) DO
IF searchval = arrayname[index] THEN
Found 🡨 True
ELSE
Index 🡨 index + 1
ENDIF
ENDWHILE
IF Found = True THEN
PRINT “Results”
ELSE
PRINT “Item was not found”
ENDIF
Example of a Linear Search for a 20 element array:
Found 🡨 False
Max 🡨 20
Index 🡨 1
PRINT “Please enter the ID for the student”
READ searchval
WHILE (Found = False) AND (Index <= max) DO
IF searchval = ID[index] THEN
Found 🡨 True
ELSE
Index 🡨 index + 1
ENDIF
ENDWHILE
Practice exercise:
Dark Orange means code
Gray means comments
BEGIN
DECLARE
input, i AS INTEGER
Creating an array with 12 elements to store the times table
table[12] AS INTEGER
You can’t declare arrays in the same line as regular variables
PRINT "Enter a number"
READ input
WHILE input <= 0 DO
PRINT "Re-enter a number"
READ input
ENDWHILE
FOR i is 0 to 11 DO
This line below is where the magic happens
I used i + 1 because the array index starts at 0 and you don’t want
to multiply input by 0 at the start cuz that’s not how times tables
are written
table[i] <- input * (i + 1)
PRINT input, "times ", i + 1, " equals" , table[i]
ENDFOR
END
What I did for the practice exercise. It’s more or less correct. Try to make a better one IF YOU
CAN.
