Deck 9: The Computer Industry: History, Careers, and Ethics

Question 1

Every company that uses computers is part of the IT industry.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

The Harvard Mark I successfully broke the codes created by Enigma and gave the Allies a major advantage during World War II.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

The key technology that characterizes fourth-generation computers is the integrated circuit.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

The Harvard Mark I, with its electronic vacuum tubes and binary representation, was a much closer prototype than the ABC of the generations of computers to come.

Question 5

Assembly language was machine-specific and required programmers to learn a different set of instructions for each computer.

Question 6

Second-generation computers used vacuum tubes instead of transistors.

Question 7

Before the first generation of computers ended, programmers had devised rudimentary compilers that allowed them to write instructions using assembly language op codes, such as LDA and JNZ.

Question 8

Offshoring is defined as the use of components or labor from outside suppliers.

Question 9

At 14.5 feet long, 7.5 feet high, and 9 feet wide, UNIVAC was physically smaller than ENIAC, but more powerful.

Question 10

Mail order is often the best shopping option for buyers who are likely to need assistance after their purchases, such as beginning computer users or those with plans for complex computer networks.

Question 11

Early computers, such as the Harvard Mark I, ENIAC, and UNIVAC, used technology that did not require much space or electrical power.

Question 12

A computer programmer designs, codes, and tests computer programs.

Question 13

Like the automotive industry, the IT industry is on an annual cycle.

Question 14

Integrated circuit technology made it possible to pack the equivalent of thousands of vacuum tubes or transistors onto a single miniature chip.

Question 15

In the early 1970s, many hobbyists used microprocessors to create their own computer systems.

Question 16

The Fair Labor Standards Act essentially defines a computer professional as any person whose primary occupation involves the design, configuration, analysis, development, modification, testing, or security of computer hardware or software.

Question 17

Slide rules remained in use as an essential tool for students, engineers, and scientists through the 1960s.

Question 18

Familiarity with tools such as XML, JavaScript, and ActiveX is becoming more important for Web site designers, as is a knowledge of computer programming and database management.

Question 19

First-tier companies are the smallest companies in the industry, and perhaps more likely to go out of business, leaving their customers without technical support.

Question 20

A computer operator typically works with minicomputers, mainframes, and supercomputers.

Question 21

High-level languages, such as COBOL (Common Business-Oriented Language) and FORTRAN (Formula Translator), were available for use on third -generation computers.

Question 22

A(n) manual calculator is a device that assists in the process of numeric calculations, but requires the human operator to keep track of the algorithm.

Question 23

A computer analyst monitors computer performance, installs software patches and upgrades, performs backup, and restores data as necessary.

Question 24

An online job bank maintains a database that contains thousands of job openings posted by employers.

Question 25

Industry share refers to a company's share, or percentage, of the total market "pie."

Question 26

Charles Babbage designed the Analytical Engine , a general-purpose calculating device that embodies many of the concepts that define the modern computer.

Question 27

Herman Hollerith's Analytical Engine won the competition of the U.S. Census Bureau for finding a way to calculate the 1890 census.

Question 28

Certificates of completion are offered to students who successfully complete one or more courses on a specific topic.

Question 29

The first phase of testing, called a(n) beta test, is carried out by the software publisher's in-house testing team.

Question 30

A(n) contract is a set of guidelines designed to help professionals thread their way through a sometimes tangled web of ethical on-the-job decisions.

Question 31

The radiation from most digital gadgets is considered harmless.

Question 32

A(n) completion exam is an objective test that verifies your level of knowledge about a particular technology or subject.

Question 33

A(n) arithmometer consists of beads mounted on sticks within a rectangular frame; each bead on the frame represents a quantity.

Question 34

Among certification options in the IT industry, network certification may be the most useful.

Question 35

Some products, referred to as dreamware , are announced but never produced.

Question 36

For computer hardware, Microsoft pioneered Web-based direct sales to individual customers.

Question 37

A Web portrait is a hypertext version of your resume, which might contain links to relevant Web sites.

Question 38

Surveillance of employees is always done with employee knowledge and consent.

Question 39

Hollerith's company became UNIVAC .

Question 40

For resumes that become part of a computer-searchable database, experts recommend that you focus on verbs rather than nouns.

Question 41

Computer historians generally agree that computers have evolved through ____ distinct generations, and in each generation, computers become smaller, faster, more dependable, and less expensive to operate.

A) three
B) four
C) six
D) seven

Question 42

Introduced in 1978, the ____ computer featured color graphics, expansion slots, a disk drive, a 1.07 MHz 6502 processor, and 16KB of RAM for $1,195.

A) IBM PC 5150
B) IBM PC XT
C) Apple II
D) ENIAC

Question 43

Which of the following is a chipmaker?

A) Hewlett-Packard
B) Cisco
C) Texas Instruments
D) Microsoft

Question 44

____ is the term for relocating business processes to lower-cost locations in other countries.

A) Sellout
B) Outsourcing
C) Offshoring
D) Tax dodging

Question 45

The items pictured in the figure above are ____.

A) transistors
B) capacitors
C) resistors
D) vacuum tubes

Question 46

Which of the following is a software publisher?

A) Computer Associates
B) Intel
C) Cabletron
D) Hewlett-Packard

Question 47

To use an abacus, you must learn the ____ for manipulating the beads.

A) logarithm
B) algorithm
C) calculation
D) representation

Question 48

As shown in the figure above, a manual calculator called a(n) ____ first appeared around 1200 in China, and then in Japan around 1600.

A) slide rule
B) Napier's Bones
C) Arithmometer
D) abacus

Question 49

By 2000, the ____ was one of the few remaining devices that could be classified as a minicomputer.

A) Mark-8
B) MITS Altair
C) IBM AS/400
D) VisiCalc

Question 50

____ was the first mass-produced calculator.

A) Schickard's Calculator
B) The Pascaline
C) The Leibniz Calculator
D) deColmar's Arithmometer

Question 51

____-generation computers used transistors instead of vacuum tubes.

A) First
B) Second
C) Third
D) Fourth

Question 52

Which of the following is a service company?

A) Microsoft
B) IBM
C) AOL
D) Texas Instruments

Question 53

____ was the first to use vacuum tubes instead of mechanical switches.

A) The Z3
B) The ABC
C) COLOSSUS
D) ENIAC

Question 54

One of the main reasons behind the success of the Apple II computer was the commercial software program called ____.

A) Microsoft PowerPoint
B) VisiCalc
C) Lotus 1-2-3
D) Microsoft Word

Question 55

The item shown in the figure above is a ____.

A) miniprocessor
B) microprocessor
C) transistor
D) vacuum tube

Question 56

The ____ became the computer of choice for graphical applications such as desktop publishing.

A) RCA Spectra
B) Xerox Alto
C) Apple Lisa
D) Apple Macintosh

Question 57

Howard Aiken combined 73 IBM Automatic Accounting Machines into a single unit called the ____.

A) Enigma
B) ENIAC
C) UNIVAC
D) Harvard Mark I

Question 58

The 1990s spawned a group of Internet-based companies that came to be called ____.

A) dot coms
B) cyber coms
C) intercoms
D) net coms

Question 59

____-generation computers can be characterized by their use of vacuum tubes to store individual bits of data.

A) First
B) Second
C) Third
D) Fourth

Question 60

A ____ calculator implements algorithms autonomously.

A) master
B) sliding
C) manual
D) mechanical

Question 61

A(n) ____ technician participates in the fabrication of computer chips, circuit boards, system units, or peripheral devices.

A) system
B) computer
C) engineering
D) manufacturing

Question 62

Approximately how many computer-related certification exams are offered?

A) 100
B) 250
C) 300
D) 650

Question 63

Consumers who want a scarce product must pay a relatively high ____ price.

A) list
B) street
C) common
D) announced

Question 64

When a product's price decreases because of discounting by retailers rather than a change to the manufacturer's list price, this discounted price is usually referred to as the ____ price.

A) common
B) relisted
C) street
D) success

Question 65

A computer ____ designs and tests new hardware products, such as computer chips, circuit boards, computers, and peripheral devices.

A) programmer
B) operator
C) specialist
D) engineer

Question 66

Manufacturer ____ refers to hardware manufacturers that sell their products to consumers without a middleman, such as a retail store.

A) JIT
B) order
C) channeling
D) direct

Question 67

The life cycle of a new computer model typically includes ____ stages.

A) three
B) four
C) five
D) seven

Question 68

A job search ____ is an automated program that searches one or more databases and notifies you when it finds any leads that match your specified criteria.

A) agent
B) meta
C) tool
D) bank

Question 69

Industry analysts classify the hundreds of companies that produce personal computers into market ____.

A) segments
B) tiers
C) clusters
D) sectors

Question 70

____ takes a disciplined approach to developing software that is reliable, efficient, affordable, user-friendly, and scalable.

A) Computer science
B) Software engineering
C) Information technology
D) Computer engineering

Question 71

A ____ writer creates documentation for large programming projects and writes the online or printed user manuals that accompany computers, peripheral devices, and software.

A) QA
B) computer
C) database
D) technical

Question 72

A(n) ____ combines commercially available products with specialty hardware or software to create a computer system designed to meet the needs of a specific industry.

A) channel
B) VAR
C) FCC
D) reseller

Question 73

A contract worker is typically hired as a ____.

A) full-time employee
B) part-time employee
C) volunteer
D) consultant

Question 74

A database ____ analyzes a company's data to determine the most effective way to collect and store it.

A) specialist
B) programmer
C) analyst
D) administrator

Question 75

Using available technology to work from home or an off-site location is called ____.

A) teleworking
B) telecommuting
C) telejob
D) televocation

Question 76

Computer hardware and software are sold through marketing outlets called marketing ____.

A) indices
B) channels
C) distribution centers
D) VARs

Question 77

What is the key advantage of an online job search agent?

A) You do not have to be online while it works.
B) You configure it with keywords that describe the type of job you want.
C) It searches one or more databases and notifies you when it finds any leads that match your specified criteria.
D) It is available from job banks.

Question 78

A computer ____ is any person whose primary occupation involves the design, configuration, analysis, development, modification, testing, or security of computer hardware or software.

A) professional
B) operator
C) programmer
D) engineer

Question 79

A degree in computer ____ focuses on the design of computer hardware and peripheral devices, often at the chip level.

A) engineering
B) manufacture
C) science
D) technology

Question 80

The ____ tier in any segment of the computer industry includes newer companies with sales volume just below the cutoff level for identifiable market share.

A) first
B) second
C) third
D) fourth