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Information processing Revision

Objectives Content Content/Notes/Responses Explanatory notes

points/questions

Distinguish - What is data? Data is all the raw facts and figures that a Data/information is collected for:
between data - What is computer processes While information is Culture, Leisure, Work, Research,
and information? data with meaning or processed data. Planning and Decision making.
information.
Sources of information:
Ways in which data can be processed to Measurement (Sales, cash receipt and
become information: productivity output)
Informal communication (word of
mouth, meetings)
⚫ Carry out calculations in a
Publications (Hurricane preparedness
spreadsheet. tips, Trends in chronic diseases)
⚫ Printing a document or image Questionnaires (Opinion polls, market
research)
⚫ Searching a document or database
for a particular item of data. What makes information useful? It
must be:
⚫ Updating data in a file.
- Relevant
⚫ Displaying an image on the screen. - Accurate
- Timely
⚫ Sorting data into alphabetical order. - Complete
- Cost-effective
- In an appropriate medium

Define the term - What is Information processing refers to Examples of Manual IS:
information information computer-based systems that take in data
⚫ Address books
processing and processing? and generate information.
information - What are ⚫ Dictionaries
systems information An Information system (IS) is a
systems? record-keeping system in which data is ⚫ Telephone directories
collected, processed and displayed in order
⚫ School timetables.
to provide useful information.

Examples of Electronic IS:

● Insurances databases
● School databases (e.g.
Renweb)

Give - List at least two Adv: DisAdv:

advantages and advantages and - Data and information can be shared with - Some staff must be trained or
disadvantages two other computers retrained
of information disadvantages - Overall security can be increased due to - Face-to-face interaction between staff
processing. of information less human intervention may be reduced.
processing. - Automation can be introduced. That is, - It may need high initial investment in
tasks can be completed with little equipment and training.
human intervention
- Efficiency and productivity can be raised.
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- Running cost becomes lower over time - Some jobs may be lost as a result of
computerization, which may lower
the morale of staff members

Objectives Content Content/Notes/Responses Explanatory notes

points/questions

Explain the What are the Forms of information processing: Control systems are systems that use
characteristics forms of computers to control machinery.
and functions information - Automation: e.g. household appliances
of information processing? (washing machine, microwaves etc.) Examples of control systems:
processing.
- Process control: used in manufacturing, Automation and process control.
alarm systems, AC systems.
An Automation system is a
- Commercial: used in supermarkets, banks straightforward type of control system
etc. in which tasks are carried out
- Industrial: used in factories automatically. E.g. Washing machine

- Scientific: used in scientific research, Process control systems are a type of

health care and weather forecasting control system often used in
manufacturing in which actions are
changed depending on feedback from
sensors. E.g. Alarm system

Identify the - What are A source document is one that contains On a multiple-choice sheet,
sources of data source data that is going to be input into a information such as candidate number,
in specified documents, computer system. (E.g. data on an subject and school code is printed on
application turnaround application form) the answer sheet by the computer. The
areas. documents, student takes the test and fills in the
machine and A human –readable document is any answer grid by making marks in the
human document that needs to be read by humans. appropriate boxes using a pencil or
readable (E.g. a form) ballpoint pen. The form is then
documents? returned to the examination council to
Machine-readable document is one on be fed into a special reader.
which the data can be ‘read’ by an input
device, such as a scanner or mark reader. OCR and OMR can be used to read
(E.g. Barcodes on a book, Multiple choice turnaround documents
answer sheets)
Turnaround documents allow cheap,
A turnaround document is a fast input of information into a
machine-readable document that has some computer system. Data can also be
information printed on it by a computer but printed on turnaround documents in
has more information added to it by a barcode format.
human. It is then fed back into a computer
to transfer this newly added information. Handheld devices are used as
(E.g. Multiple choice sheets, Utility bills, alternatives to turnaround documents.
such as water bills, with perforated section
that is completed by the customer and then Data logging is a method of automatic
used as input) data capture where a reading from a
sensor is input at regular intervals. This
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data can then be processed to provide

analysis of the environment.

Objectives Content Content/Notes/Responses Explanatory notes

points/questions

Describe - What is the Data validation is the computerized Data Errors: data that may be
methods of difference checking of input data for errors before it is unreasonable or incomplete.
validation and between processed while Data verification is the
verification of validation and checking for mistakes such as transcription Typographical/transposition error-
data verification? errors when data is copied from one These errors occur at data entry. E.g.
- Describe medium or device to another. the number 32 may be entered as 23.
methods of
validation (Validation checks for the reasonableness ● Accidental errors occur
- Describe and completeness of data while verification unintentionally: data is entered or
methods of checks on the accuracy of data moved from a command is issued by mistake, in
verification medium to the next) good faith but in error.
● Deliberate: If errors are made
Methods of validation: deliberately then the user probably
knows enough to get round any
● Presence check – This type of check validation checks. Examples
ensures that the data is actually entered include a disgruntled employee
and can be used on any field in a entering fictitious data into a
database. For example, everyone in a company’s database.
particular database must be given a job
title. Therefore a presence check could be
carried out on the form field in each Software and hardware errors
employee’s record to ensure that a job
title is entered in the form. Software might malfunction, erasing
● Data type check – This is also known as or corrupting previously entered data.
character or alphanumeric check. This Hardware may develop a fault that
will check the data entered in a particular corrupts data; examples of such faults
field in a database to determine if it is of are bad sectors on hard disk or bad
the correct type. E.g. Text data cannot be memory, or a power surge. The
entered in a NUMBER data type field. application may appear to accept data
● Consistency check – This check compares correctly but when that data is
the contents of two or more fields to retrieved it is corrupt.
make sure that they make sense. There
are occasions when some data fields are Transmission errors
related. This check compares new data
with previous data. Transmission errors occur when data
● Range check – Range check ensures that is sent from one computer to another.
the data entered is within a certain range. The data received by one system is
For example, when you enter a number the not the same as that by the
corresponding to a month of the year, the sender.
range of acceptable numbers is 1 to 12.
● Parity checks – All data is transmitted as
a sequence of 1s and 0s. A common type
of error that occurs during data
transmission is that a bit is swapped from
a 0 to a 1 or a 1 to a 0 by electrical
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interference. Parity checks detect this

type of error, by adding an extra digit to
data to make the total number of 1s (or
0s) either odd or even. (Parity checks are
not very good at detecting errors where
more than one bit in a byte is changed.
Note too that a parity check can also be
considered a verification check rather
than a validation check since the parity
check ensures that data is correctly
transferred from one location to another.)
● Check digit – This is an extra digit added
to the end of a code. It is used to detect
errors arising from transcription and also
to ensure that codes originally produced
by a computer are re-entered into
another computer correctly. It is
calculated from the other digits in the
number. Check digits are included in
barcode numbers.
● Reasonableness check - identifies data
that are questionable, but not necessarily
wrong. E.g. A student who is age 20
enrolled in a high school sixth form
program.

Methods of Verification:

❖ Double entry - is where the same data is

entered twice, sometimes by different
people.

❖ Visual check - use on-screen prompts.

After a set of data is entered, it is
redisplayed on the screen. The user is
prompted to read it and confirm that it
has been entered correctly. If the user
has entered any data incorrectly, it is
re-entered.

❖ Conformation instructions – messages

are displayed on the screen to confirm an
action. For example, if you try to delete
files the computer may ask ‘Are you sure
[y/n]?’ or it may display a summary of
input data and ask for verification of its
validity before the data is stored.
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Objectives Content Content/Notes/Responses Explanatory notes

points/questions

Describe What is file File organization and access relates to the A file has three important
various organization and use of records, fields and files. characteristics:
methods of file access?
organization - Whether it is a permanent or a
and access Differentiate A master file is a permanent file which is temporary file.
among the terms kept-up-to-date and stores the main
Master file, information, summary data and key fields in - The way in which the records of the
transaction file the data. (The master file before update is file are organized on the secondary
and transaction called the old master file or grandfather file) storage device. This is called file
organization.
log.
A transaction file is a temporary file which is
- The way in which records are
Describe file used to update the master file after a
accessed (or located).
organization and certain time (at the end of each day or
access methods. week, for example). The master file contains two types of
data:
A transaction log (change file), keeps a ● permanent data, such as employee
record of changes to the transaction file. personal data, payroll data employee
status and job title
Characteristic of each file:
● Less permanent data, which is
updated on a regular basis, such as
❖ Master file – Permanent hours worked and taxes deducted.
❖ Transaction File – Temporary
The records in the transaction file
❖ Transaction log – Permanent are used to perform three important
operations:
❖ Grandfather file – Temporary
● Add: put a new record into the
master file.
● Update: change the contents of a
record or a field that already exists.
● Delete: remove a record from the
master file.

-
File organization (How files are stored): Type of ordering (Ordered, unordered
or both):
Sequential file ordering – this is where
records are stored in a logical order.
✔ Sequential – ordered
(Example payroll information and customer
records can be arranged in ascending order
by surname). ✔ Serial – unordered

Serial File ordering – this is where files are

stored one after the other as they are ✔ Random/direct – unordered
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added. This is done in no particular order,

similar to new items added to a to-do list.
✔ Index sequential – both
(E.g. capturing transactions during the
course of the day) ordered and unordered

Random file ordering, also known as direct

access file ordering is where files are stored
in any order.
Using methods of ordering and
Index sequential file ordering uses an access
indexed file to store records. That is,
records are stored in this file in Examples:
sequential order and a set of indices are
used to refer to each item stored in the A bank stores data about its daily
file. This file ordering is a combination of transactions using magnetic tape,
sequential and random file ordering and which stores data using sequential
is used when records need to be sorted file ordering. Therefore sequential
in sequence but individual records must access is used to access those
be quickly accessible. records.

File access (How files are retrieved): A school will have a record for
each student, stored on a file.
Each student's record must be
Sequential access refers to accessing
accessible to review or update
records one by one in the order they
information, but all records must
were stored until the right one is be printed out at the end of each
reached. school year to allocate students to
new classes. This type of setup
Serial access works in the same way as would benefit from direct and
sequential access, the records are read one
sequential file ordering, so index
by one in the order they were stored until
sequential file ordering and access
the desired record is found.
is probably the best system to use.
Random access or direct access,
allows you to access the record you
want without having to go through any
others. The computer locates the data
item using the indices.

Index sequential file ordering uses

both types of access to search for
records. Sequential access is used to
go through each record, and direct
access is used to find a specific record.
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