ESSENTIALS OF

COMPUTER SCIENCE
FORM 1

T. Kambondeni, L. Manyeruke and J. Musimwa

© 2021 Palm Publications (Pvt)Ltd

0242 752 788
Cell: 0773593700, 0772261594, 0176061399, 0716577303
Email: [email protected]

PALM
PUBLICATIONS
P R I VAT E L I M I T E D
 ESSENTIALS OF
COMPUTER SCIENCE
FORM 1

ISBN: 978-1-77920-812-5

© 2021 Palm Publications (Pvt)Ltd

Published By
Palm Publications (Pvt)Ltd
0242 752 788
Cell: 0773593700, 0772261594, 0176061399, 0716577303
Email: [email protected]

PALM
PUBLICATIONS
P R I V AT E L I M I T E D
 Contents
CHAPTER ONE
HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE .............................................................................. 1
Introduction .............................................................................................................................................. 2
Overview of a computer system.............................................................................................................. 2
Hardware ............................................................................................................................................................................ 2
So ware ............................................................................................................................................................................... 2
Hardware Components of a Computer System .............................................................................................................. 2
Input Devices............................................................................................................................................. 2
Keyboard ............................................................................................................................................................................. 2
Mouse ................................................................................................................................................................................... 4
Scanner................................................................................................................................................................................. 5
Digital Camera ................................................................................................................................................................... 6
Touch Screen ...................................................................................................................................................................... 7
Joystick ................................................................................................................................................................................. 7
Biometric Scanner .............................................................................................................................................................. 7
Webcam ............................................................................................................................................................................... 8
Sensors ................................................................................................................................................................................. 8
Data loggers ......................................................................................................................................................................... 9
Barcode Reader ................................................................................................................................................................... 9
Stylus ................................................................................................................................................................................. 10
Touchpad ........................................................................................................................................................................... 10
Magnetic Stripe Readers ..................................................................................................................................................11
Tracker ball ........................................................................................................................................................................ 12
Light pen ............................................................................................................................................................................ 13
Graphics tablet .................................................................................................................................................................. 13
Document Readers ...........................................................................................................................................................14
Optical Character Recognition (OCR) ......................................................................................................................... 14
Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR) ............................................................................................................ 15
Processing Device .................................................................................................................................. 16
Arithmetic Logic Unit (LU) .................................................................................................................. 17
Control Unit (CU) .................................................................................................................................. 17
Output Devices........................................................................................................................................ 18
Printer ...............................................................................................................................................................................18
Dot Matrix printer ............................................................................................................................................................ 19
Daisy wheel printer .......................................................................................................................................................... 19
Laser Printers .................................................................................................................................................................... 19
Inkjet printers.................................................................................................................................................................... 20
ermal Printers ............................................................................................................................................................... 20
Line printers ...................................................................................................................................................................... 20
Page printers ...................................................................................................................................................................... 20
Monitor/Screen ................................................................................................................................................................21
LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) ......................................................................................................................................... 22
Plasma Display Panels: .................................................................................................................................................... 22
in Film Transistor (TFT) monitors ............................................................................................................................ 22
Graph Plotter ........................................................................................................................................... 22
Data projector ................................................................................................................................................................... 22
Speakers ............................................................................................................................................................................. 23
Braille Printer .................................................................................................................................................................... 23
 Actuators ............................................................................................................................................................................ 23
Storage Devices ....................................................................................................................................... 23
Primary Storage ............................................................................................................................................................... 23
RAM (Random Access Memory): ....................................................................................................... 23
ROM (Read Only Memory) .................................................................................................................. 24
Types of ROM ................................................................................................................................................................... 25
Secondary Storage Media....................................................................................................................... 25
Magnetic Storage Media ..................................................................................................................................................25
Hard Disk........................................................................................................................................................................... 26
Diskette (Floppy Disk) .................................................................................................................................................... 27
Zip Drives ..........................................................................................................................................................................28
Solid State Storage Media....................................................................................................................... 28
Optical Storage Media ............................................................................................................................ 30
2. DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) ............................................................................................................ 32
Methods of Accessing Data ................................................................................................................... 33
Storage Capacity...................................................................................................................................... 33
So ware.................................................................................................................................................... 34
Systems So ware: ............................................................................................................................................................. 34
Operating System: ...........................................................................................................................................................34
Types of Operating Systems ............................................................................................................................................ 35
Glossary of Terms ................................................................................................................................... 39
Revision Exercises .................................................................................................................................. 40
Structured Questions.............................................................................................................................. 43

CHAPTER TWO
APPLICATIONS OF COMPUTER SCIENCE ........................................................ 46
Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 47
Computers in agriculture ....................................................................................................................... 47
Controlling farm equipment ........................................................................................................................................... 48
Control systems and computer-controlled devices (automated systems) ................................................................. 48
Research and development .............................................................................................................................................. 49
Security..................................................................................................................................................... 49
Computers in banking ........................................................................................................................... 49
Electronic banking (e-banking) ............................................................................................................ 52
Mobile banking ................................................................................................................................................................. 53
Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) .................................................................................................................................... 53
Computers in education ........................................................................................................................ 54
Security..................................................................................................................................................... 55
Collaborative learning ............................................................................................................................ 55
On-line education ................................................................................................................................... 56
Computer Aided Learning (CAL) ........................................................................................................ 56
Computer Based Training (CBT) ......................................................................................................... 57
Virtual laboratory ................................................................................................................................... 58
Computers in social networking ........................................................................................................... 59
Signing up and logging in for di erent social network accounts is di erent. ............................... 60
Computer applications in research and development ....................................................................... 63
 Computer Aided Design (CAD) ........................................................................................................... 65
Interesting facts ....................................................................................................................................... 66
Glossary of Terms ................................................................................................................................... 67
Structured Questions.............................................................................................................................. 71

CHAPTER THREE .................................................................................................. 73

DATA REPRESENTATION ..................................................................................... 73
Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 74
Binary number system ........................................................................................................................... 74
Representing data using electrical circuits .................................................................................................................... 74
Binary numbers as symbols on devices ......................................................................................................................... 75
Light diagrams .................................................................................................................................................................. 76
Binary number system ........................................................................................................................... 76
Computer memory sizes ....................................................................................................................... 77
Data representation using binary ......................................................................................................... 78
Binary coded decimal (BCD) ................................................................................................................ 79
Representing Text Data .......................................................................................................................... 80
ASCII Code ............................................................................................................................................. 80
Representing Image data ........................................................................................................................ 81
Representing Audio data........................................................................................................................ 82
Interesting facts ....................................................................................................................................... 83
Glossary of terms .................................................................................................................................. 84
Summary ........................................................................................................................................... 84
Revision Exercise .................................................................................................................................... 85
Structured questions............................................................................................................................... 87

CHAPTER FOUR
COMMUNICATION NETWORKS AND INTERNET TECHNOLOGIES ........... 88
Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 89
What is a Computer Network?.............................................................................................................. 89
Networking concepts.............................................................................................................................. 89
1. Local Area Network (LAN) ......................................................................................................................................... 91
2. Wide Area Network (WAN) ....................................................................................................................................... 93
3. MAN (Metropolitan Area Network).......................................................................................................................... 93
4. PAN (Personal Area Network) ................................................................................................................................... 94
Network Topologies ............................................................................................................................... 94
1. Ring Network (token ring) .......................................................................................................................................... 94
2. Star Network: ............................................................................................................................................................... 95
3. Mesh Network .............................................................................................................................................................. 96
4. Bus (Linear/Multi-drop) Network: ........................................................................................................................... 97
5. Hybrid Network Topology .......................................................................................................................................... 98
Peer-peer network................................................................................................................................... 99
e Internet ........................................................................................................................................... 100
Internet Service Providers (ISP) ...................................................................................................................................100
Internet Services .............................................................................................................................................................100
Electronic Mail (E-Mail) ...............................................................................................................................................100
 E-commerce .................................................................................................................................................................... 102
E-learning .......................................................................................................................................................................103
Social Media .................................................................................................................................................................... 104
WWW (World Wide Web)............................................................................................................................................ 105
File transfer ......................................................................................................................................................................106
Telnet ................................................................................................................................................................................106
Newsgroups .....................................................................................................................................................................106
Video conferencing ........................................................................................................................................................106
Advertising ......................................................................................................................................................................107
E-banking ........................................................................................................................................................................107
Internet and data security..............................................................................................................................................108
Hacking ............................................................................................................................................................................108
Computer Viruses ................................................................................................................................. 108
Hardware Faults .................................................................................................................................... 108
So ware Faults ...................................................................................................................................... 109
Phishing ..........................................................................................................................................................................109
Pharming ........................................................................................................................................................................109
Interesting Facts .................................................................................................................................... 110
Summary .......................................................................................................................................... 110
Glossary of terms .................................................................................................................................. 110
Revision Exercises................................................................................................................................. 111
Structured questions............................................................................................................................. 113

CHAPTER FIVE
SECURITY AND ETHICS .................................................................................... 116
Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 117
Cyber wellness ....................................................................................................................................... 117
Cyber wellness principals ..............................................................................................................................................117
Cyber and the social media ...........................................................................................................................................118
Cyber use ......................................................................................................................................................................... 119
Cyber culture ..................................................................................................................................................................120
Safe and Unsafe Websites ..................................................................................................................... 123
When is a website safe? ..................................................................................................................................................123
Blocking websites............................................................................................................................................................124
Online relationships .......................................................................................................................................................125
Social networking relationships ....................................................................................................................................125
Online gaming ................................................................................................................................................................126
Business relationships ....................................................................................................................................................127
Copyrights ............................................................................................................................................. 129
Copyright Laws in Zimbabwe ....................................................................................................................................... 129
Facts about copyrights ...................................................................................................................................................130
Plagiarism Sharing Buttons ................................................................................................................. 131
Cases of plagiarism in Zimbabwe ....................................................................................................... 132
Plagiarism in learning institutions ...............................................................................................................................132
Digital piracy ......................................................................................................................................... 133
So ware piracy................................................................................................................................................................133
Impact of piracy .................................................................................................................................... 133
Piracy in Zimbabwe........................................................................................................................................................134
 Summary ................................................................................................................................................ 136
Glossary of terms .................................................................................................................................. 137
Revision Test .......................................................................................................................................... 138
Structured Questions............................................................................................................................ 140

CHAPTER SIX
SYSTEM ANALYSIS AND DESIGN ..................................................................... 142
Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 143
System development life cycle (SDLC) .............................................................................................. 143
Systems analyst ...................................................................................................................................... 143
System development life cycle Stages ................................................................................................ 146
Problem identi cation ................................................................................................................................................... 147
Data collection techniques ............................................................................................................................................ 148
Interesting Facts .................................................................................................................................... 151
Summary ................................................................................................................................................ 152
Glossary of Terms ................................................................................................................................. 152
Multiple Choice questions ................................................................................................................... 153
Structured Questions............................................................................................................................ 154

CHAPTER SEVEN
ALGORITHM DESIGN AND PROBLEM SOLVING .......................................... 156
Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 157
What is an Algorithm? ......................................................................................................................... 157
Purpose of an algorithm ................................................................................................................................................157
Control structures/Flow control/Programming Constructs ...........................................................158
Sequence/Linear Structure .................................................................................................................. 158
Algorithm Tools .................................................................................................................................... 159
Description ........................................................................................................................................... 159
Pseudocode ........................................................................................................................................... 160
Flowcharts .............................................................................................................................................. 161
Structure Diagram ................................................................................................................................ 163
Interpreting and testing algorithms.................................................................................................... 164
Types of Test Data ................................................................................................................................. 165
Interesting Facts .................................................................................................................................... 166
Summary ................................................................................................................................................ 166
Glossary of terms .................................................................................................................................. 166
Revision Exercises................................................................................................................................. 167
Structured Questions............................................................................................................................ 170

CHAPTER EIGHT
MICROSOFT VISUAL BASIC 2010 PROGRAMMING ...................................... 172
Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 173
Programming using Microso Visual Basic 2010 ...........................................................................173
 Programming concepts ........................................................................................................................ 173
Program ...........................................................................................................................................................................173
Programming ..................................................................................................................................................................173
Variable ............................................................................................................................................................................173
Constant ...........................................................................................................................................................................173
Operators ............................................................................................................................................... 173
Assignment operators ....................................................................................................................................................174
Arithmetic operators ...................................................................................................................................................... 174
Logical Operators ...........................................................................................................................................................175
Comparison/relational/Boolean operators .................................................................................................................175
Loading VB.Net (on Windows 7 platform) ....................................................................................... 175
Creating a Visual Basic Project ...........................................................................................................178
Interface design ..................................................................................................................................... 179
Assigning code ...................................................................................................................................... 183
Debugging and running the project ................................................................................................... 184
e Structure of a VB.Net Program ................................................................................................... 184
Semantics (logic) of a Language ......................................................................................................... 187
Data Types ............................................................................................................................................. 187
Variables ................................................................................................................................................. 189
Global variables............................................................................................................................................................... 190
Declaring Variables ........................................................................................................................................................190
Constants ............................................................................................................................................... 191
Interesting Facts .................................................................................................................................... 191
Summary ................................................................................................................................................ 192
Glossary of Terms ................................................................................................................................. 192
Revision Exercises ................................................................................................................................ 193
Structured Questions............................................................................................................................ 195

CHAPTER NINE
DATABASES ......................................................................................................... 197
Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 198
Overview of database ........................................................................................................................... 198
Databases hierarchy ..............................................................................................................................199
Databases Management Systems (DBMS)......................................................................................... 202
Databases Administrator (DBA)......................................................................................................... 202
Database dictionary/Directory ...........................................................................................................203
Field Name ............................................................................................................................................. 211
Setting eld properties ................................................................................................................................................... 212
Field Size ..........................................................................................................................................................................212
Format .................................................................................................................................................... 214
Date formats .................................................................................................................................................................... 215
Validation rule and validation text ..................................................................................................... 217
Input mask ............................................................................................................................................. 219
Creating an input mask..................................................................................................................................................219
Working with tables ..............................................................................................................................221
Deleting records .................................................................................................................................... 221
 Renaming a column ..............................................................................................................................224
Replacing data in a table ...................................................................................................................... 227
Filters ...................................................................................................................................................... 229
Filter by Selection ...........................................................................................................................................................229
Filter by Form..................................................................................................................................................................230
Table relationships ................................................................................................................................ 232
Queries ................................................................................................................................................... 234
Forms ...................................................................................................................................................... 240
Creating a form ............................................................................................................................................................... 240
Split form ......................................................................................................................................................................... 241
Form design view............................................................................................................................................................245
Adding controls to a form ................................................................................................................... 246
Reports ................................................................................................................................................... 248
Creating report using the Wizard.................................................................................................................................248
Report design ..................................................................................................................................................................249
Interesting facts ..................................................................................................................................... 251
Glossary of Terms ................................................................................................................................. 252
Summary ......................................................................................................................................... 252
Multiple Choice questions ................................................................................................................... 253
Structured Questions............................................................................................................................ 255

CHAPTER TEN
WEB DESIGN ....................................................................................................... 257
Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 258
Web page ................................................................................................................................................ 258
Static web page ................................................................................................................................................................259
Dynamic webpages .........................................................................................................................................................259
Elements of a web page ........................................................................................................................ 260
Creating a web page ..............................................................................................................................261
Webpage templates .........................................................................................................................................................262
Web content development .................................................................................................................. 263
Web content .................................................................................................................................................................... 263
Writing web content ............................................................................................................................. 265
Interesting items.................................................................................................................................... 266
Glossary of terms .................................................................................................................................. 266
Multiple choice test ............................................................................................................................... 267
Revision Exercises ................................................................................................................................ 269

CHAPTER ELEVEN
TECHNO-PRENEURSHIP ................................................................................... 270
Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 271
Elements of Intellectual Capital .......................................................................................................... 271
Human Capital ................................................................................................................................................................271
Social or Relational Capital ...........................................................................................................................................271
Structural or Organizational capital............................................................................................................................. 272
Business Ethics ...................................................................................................................................... 273
 Ethics (Unhu, Ubuntu Vumunhu) ...............................................................................................................................273
Business Ethics ............................................................................................................................................................... 273
Basic Principals of Business Ethics ...............................................................................................................................273
Unethical Business Practices ........................................................................................................................................274
Ethical Challenges in Information Technology (IT)..................................................................................................275
Marketing and Business Strategies ..................................................................................................... 276
Marketing strategy .......................................................................................................................................................... 276
E-commerce........................................................................................................................................... 278
E-Commerce (electronic Commerce) ......................................................................................................................... 278
Applications of e-commerce .........................................................................................................................................279
Classi cation of E-Commerce Services .......................................................................................................................280
Consumer to Consumer (C2C) ....................................................................................................................................280
Multiple Choice Questions .................................................................................................................. 283
Structured Questions............................................................................................................................ 285
Interesting facts ..................................................................................................................................... 286
Summary ................................................................................................................................................ 286
Glossary of terms .................................................................................................................................. 286

Test 1....................................................................................................................................................... 293

Test 2 chapters 5-7 ..............................................................................................................................296
Test 3....................................................................................................................................................... 304
Paper 2 .................................................................................................................................................... 310
 CHAPTER ONE

HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE

Objectives
Learners should be able to:
• Identify hardware
• Explain how hardware devices work
• Connect hardware devices together
• Troubleshoot hardware
• Identify types of so ware

1
Introduction
is chapter seeks to equip learners with basic skills of identifying di erent hardware use in di erent
situations and to explain how they work in their application areas. It starts by de ning key computer
terms and then gives a general overview of a computer system. From there, the chapter will explore
the input, output, processing and storage devices of a computer. e chapter will end by looking at the
classi cation of so ware.

Overview of a computer system

A computer is an electronic device that works under the control of stored programs to accept, store
and process data into useful information. A computer consists of hardware and so ware.

Hardware
Hardware refers to the physical (tangible) components of a computer system, for example keyboard,
mouse, monitor, etc. Computer hardware may develop faults with time and need replacement or
repairing. Any hardware component connected to the processor and which a computer may work
without, is called a peripheral, for example printer, keyboard, mouse, joystick, etc.

So ware
So ware refers to various programs used on a computer, e.g. word-processor, spreadsheet, games,
operating systems, etc.

Hardware Components of a Computer System

e basic hardware components of a computer are classi ed into input devices, output devices, storage
devices and the processing device. e following block diagram illustrates the general overview and
linkages between these components.

Input Data Information

Devices Processing Device Output Devices

Data Data

Storage Devices

Fig 1.1 Main Components of a computer system

Input Devices
ese are parts of a computer that are used to enter (or feed) data into a computer system for processing.
e following are some of the input devices of a computer:

Keyboard

2
 A keyboard is a manual input device, used to enter data and instructions into the computer by
typing. It has keys similar to the traditional typewriter.

Fig 1.2 Keyboard

It is used to enter alphabetic, numeric and other special characters into the computer by pressing
keys on it. A character is any symbol, digit or letter that can be entered into the computer, e.g. $, %, 5,
h, space, etc. Control characters can also be entered into the computer using the keyboard. Control
characters are non-printable characters that can be used when sending signals to peripherals, e.g.
CTRL+P, etc. e keyboard also has function keys like F1, F2, .. Used for entering frequently
needed tasks. Keyboards can be concept keyboards, Braille keyboards, numeric keyboards or
standard (QWERTY) keyboards.

Concept keyboard
is is a specialised keyboard with keys that are written full words or containing a picture relating
to the task that must be performed. ey can be used in supermarkets or bars and have keys with
words like CHANGE, TOTAL, etc. us they have phrases instead of standard letter. ey are
mostly used where the task should be performed very fast. It has limited options that only t the
business of the organisation.
• ey are fast to make menu choices
• ey are waterproof
• ey are tamperproof

However,
• ey have limited options for the user to select
• ey cannot be used for text selection

Braille keyboard: ese are keyboards that are suitable for the blind.

Standard keyboard: this is the normal, also called QWERTY keyboard. ey have mostly keys with
individual letters on them and thus are used to enter text data

3
 Advantages of standard keyboards
• Most people nd them easy to use
• Enable fast entry of text data

Disadvantages of standard keyboards

• ey are manual and therefore slower than most automatic entry methods
• Errors are very common using keyboards.
• Can be di cult to use for others.
• Take up valuable desk space as they are large.

Numeric keypads
Mostly used to enter numbers only. Used on ATMs, to enter PIN and amount to be withdrawn. Also
found on cell and telephones, Chip and pin devices, and on Electronic Point of Sale terminals (EPOS).
ey are faster in entering numeric data as compared to standard keyboards, very easy to carry around
if found on cell phones. However, they have very small keys which can be di cult to use. It is di cult
to use them for entering text data.

Advantages of keyboards:
• Most people nd them easy to use for typing and connecting
• ey are one of the cheapest input devices available
• ey are readily available in Zimbabwean shops
• Can also be used for cursor control and for gaming

Disadvantages of keyboards
• ey are manual and therefore are a slower method of entering data into the computer.
• Data entry errors are very common using keyboards.
• Take up valuable desk space as they are large.
• Continuous usage without adequate rest can cause Repetitive Strain injury (RSI)

Mouse
is is a mouse-shaped pointing device used to enter data and instructions into the computer by
clicking. e user holds and moves the mouse on a at surface, thereby moving the mouse pointer to a
desired position on the screen. When the mouse pointer reaches the intended option, the user presses
the mouse button to select theoption. A mouse may have the following, le button, right button and
the scroll disc.

Fig 1.3 Mouse

4
A mouse can be connected to a computer using a cable or through wireless technology like infrared or
Bluetooth. A mouse is also used to:
• Choose options from menus
• Placing the cursor at the correct position when editing text/typing
• For drawing and editing diagrams
• Selecting icons/text to be formatted, deleted or edited.
• Controlling movement of pointer on the screen.

Advantages of using a mouse

• It is a faster method of selecting options as compared to the keyboard.
• Very easy to use for beginners.
• It takes up very small space on the desk
• Very fast to switch between programs.

Disadvantages of a mouse
• It needs a at surface on which to operate
• Can be easily stolen since it can t in a pocket
• Can be easily vandalised
• Some people who are physically challenged nd it very di cult to use

Scanner
is is an input device used to convert hard copy documents into so copy, mostly images and text
documents. Some scanners have an OCR feature that convert a scanned document into an editable
document e.g. into a word processed document, or into portable document format (pdf). Scanners
can be atbed or handheld scanners, e.g. some Barcode scanners

Fig 1.4 Flatbed Scanner

5
 Advantages of using a scanner
• A faster method of entering data into the computer as compared to keyboards
• Gives the user scanning options, like scanning as word document, spreadsheet, pdf or as
picture.
• ey can produce high quality images
• ey are accurate in entering data, especially pictures
• Easy to handle (portable)

Disadvantages of using a scanner

• ey are expensive to buy for ordinary citizens
• e OCR in most scanners is less e ective especially if the document being scanned
contains tables or are handwritten

Digital Camera
is is a device used to take photographs and videos for entry into the computer where they can be
saved or edited.

Fig 1.5 Digital Camera

Advantages of digital camera

• Economic to use as users no longer need to buy traditional lms now and again
• It is possible to delete unwanted images straight away and reuse the same memory
• Store large volumes of data on a small memory device in them.
• Its memory can be expanded by using memory cards
• Images taken are in digital form which make them easy to save on the computer
• Produce better quality images than the traditional cameras
• ey record video and sound at the same time
• Can be used to crop images easily.
• Easy to use for novices

Disadvantages
• e images and videos need to be compressed to occupy less disk storage space
• ey are expensive to buy

6
Touch Screen
A screen display on which one could enter data by pointing/tapping with a nger on intended option.
It is used on ATMs, cell phones, computers in shops, etc. A touch screen is an input/output device.
Most mobile phones now use touch screens, as a substitute to keypad.

Fig 1.6 Touch Screen

Advantages of touch screens
• ey are used as both input and output devices
• ey make it easy to choose options by just tapping with a nger.
• Menu selections can be done faster
• Less training is needed for novices to start using them.

Disadvantages of Touch Screens

• ey are not suitable for entering large volumes of data
• ey are easily damaged especially in mobile phones.
• Very expensive to replace once damaged
• It is expensive to purchase devices with touch screen technology

Joystick
is is a pointing device popularly used for playing games and in in simulations. Some use it as an
alternative to a mouse.

Fig 1.7 Joystick

Biometric Scanner
Biometrics involves the identi cation of a person by use of their biological features, such as gure
prints, face, palm, voice, retina, etc. is is mostly used in security systems with highly sensitive and
con dential data. Entrance into some specialized rooms can be authorized through biometric systems,
e.g. entrance into banks, safe rooms for gold, jewelry, diamonds, etc. Compared to a password system,

7
biometric systems are more robust and hard to crack. Some of the biometric input devices include:
• Finger print scanner
• Facial scanner
• Palm scanner
• Voice scanner
• Retina or iris scanner

Webcam
It is a digital video camera used to take videos and transmit them over the internet instantly or send
them to the computer. Webcams do not have own memory. Laptops have their own webcam. Webcams
can be placed inside buildings for video conferencing purposes with users seeing each other in real-
time mode while in di erent locations. Webcams can also be used for taking personal images and in
security rooms like shops for CCTV.

Fig 1.8 Web Cam

Sensors
ese are input devices that automatically record physical data from the environment, e.g. light sensor,
temperature sensor, etc. ey collect data in analogue form. Sensors are used mostly in monitoring
and control systems.

Fig 1.9 Sensor

Advantages of sensors
• ey are very fast methods of entering data into the computer
• Data entry is very accurate and reliable
• ey are an automatic data entry method and so can be used 24/7

8
Data loggers
ese are devices that use sensors for automatic data collection from the environment for use at a later
stage. ey are used in monitoring and control systems. Data logger have their own storage. Some have
permanent connection to the processor while others have temporary connection to the computer.

Fig 1.10 Data Logger

Barcode Reader

Fig 1.11 Barcode Reader

ese are devices that uses a light beam to read barcodes on products for automatic data entry into
the computer. ey are used at Electronic Point of Sale terminals (EPOS) in supermarkets, library
systems, luggage handling systems at airports, etc.
Barcodes are numbered vertical lines and spaces of varying size on products. ey provide data for a
product.

Information found on barcodes includes, product name, check digit, product number, country of
origin, manufacturer’s number, weight.
e PRICE of an item is NOT FOUND on the barcode. e item price and item quantity displayed on
the screen are stored in the database.
If the barcode reader fails to read the barcodes, data is entered manually through the keyboard by
entering the numbers below the barcodes.

9
 Fig 1.12 Bar code

Advantages:
• ey are cheap to use as costs of writing barcodes on paper labels are low.
• ey are very easy to use.
• ey are very accurate in entering data.
• ey are a very fast means of entering data since they are an automatic data entry
method. Customers can be served quickly
• ey give detailed information about a product.
• Automatic stock taking is possible.
• Supermarket workers no longer need to memorise prices of goods in shops

Disadvantages
• ey may fail to detect the barcode on the product.

Stylus
is is an input device used to write on sensitive pads or screens for data entry into the computer. It
is mostly purchased with touch screens. May also be used for making menu selections on tablets and
mobile phones.

Fig 1.13 Stylus

Touchpad
A touchpad is a pointing device found on laptops, where one moves a nger to control the pointer on
the screen. eir uses are similar to those of mouse. ey aid portability since they are attached to the
whole computer system. However, they can be di cult to use, e.g. when doing drag and drop and so
most people prefer to use the mouse.

10
 Fig 1.14 Touch pad

Magnetic Stripe Readers

ese are input devices used to read information on the magnetic stripes found on credit and debit
cards. Stripe readers are found on ATMs and EFTPOS terminals. ey can also be used to read security
cards for entry into buildings, hotel rooms, etc.

Fig 1.15 Magnetic strip readers

Advantages of Magnetic Stripe Readers

• ey are a very fast method of entering data into the computer.
• Information on magnetic stripe is more secure since no human can read it.
• ey ensure accurate data entry since no typing is involved.
• ey can be used to prevent access to restricted areas, especially in nuclear plants and
hotels.
• Systems are secured by passwords

Disadvantages of Magnetic Stripe Readers

• If the magnetic stripe is damaged, all data is lost.
• If one forgets the password, you cannot get the required service on the system

11
Tracker ball
It is an input device with a small ball that can be moved by passing the palm of your hand over it. is
will move an arrow on the screen and therefore can replace a mouse. It is used to draw diagrams (like
in CADS systems) and for menu selections. One can use it as an alternative to the mouse.

Fig 1.16 Tracker ball

Advantages of tracker ball
• Less likely to get damaged than mouse
• Less tiring as less movement is needed
• Can be useful on laptops

Disadvantages of tracker ball

• Can be di cult to control than using mouse
• Not supplied as standard device, so extra cost is incurred
• Muscles can be strained due to repeated movement

Microphone: It is a device that is used to input sound into the computer. It recognises human voice
for data entry. Microphones are used to input sound. In computing, they can be used with voice
recognition systems and a word processing application to enter text. ey can also be used in music
recording.

Fig 1.17 Microphones

A microphone is used in voice recognition systems. ese are computerised systems that
allow users to communicate with the computer by talking (voice input). Such systems have the
following advantages:
• e systems are over 90% accurate.

12
 • ey are appropriate for the handicapped, especially those without hands.
• ey are very fast in entering data and in giving instructions to the computer.
• ey are speaker independent.
• ey can recognise natural language.

Disadvantages:
• Older systems are speaker dependent.
• ey allow the user to speak slowly, using speci c words that were programmed for it to
understand.

NB: Multimedia speakers, sound cards, a microphone and voice recognition so ware are needed in
voice recognition systems.

Light pen

Fig 1.18 Light pen

is is a pen shaped device used to enter data into the computer by writing on an ink pad or directly
on the screen. It is also used to make alterations on the screen to the drawings, to write directly on the
screen and to select commands. In Zimbabwe, they are used at Registry o ce to write signatures when
applying for a new National Identity card. ey are also used in CAD systems.

Graphics tablet

Fig 1.19: Graphics tablet

is is an input device used for drawing or tracing images, maps and some animations with the help of
a stylus or a light pen. e tablet has a connection to the computer, while a stylus is connected to the
tablet. is can replace a mouse for making sketches and drawings. When a user writes or draws on
the tablet, the text or diagram does not appear on the tablet but on the computer screen.

13
Document Readers
ese are devices used for entering data automatically into the computer by reading through
documents. ese include:

Optical Mark Recognition (OMR)

Fig 1.20 OMR Form

e Optical Mark Recognition systems use a beam of light to detect pencil marks on paper for
automatic data entry into the computer. Light is re ected from the document onto the Optical Mark
Reader which records the output. OMR is mostly used in marking multiple choice exams, reading
pupils’ registers, playing lotto, etc. An Optical Mark Reader is the device that is used for automatic
data entry in OMR systems.

Advantages of OMR systems

• OMR is fast in entering data
• It is also accurate and reliable in entering data.
• Has a better recognition rate than OCR
• Can be prepared where data originates, without machines.
• Errors can be detected easily

Disadvantages of OMR systems

• Mark readers are relatively slow
• Veri cation of data is di cult
• Document may be di cult to design and to ll in
• Forms must be completed clearly for data to be recorded accurately
• Papers need to be clean
• e document reader has to be reprogrammed for each new document.

Optical Character Recognition (OCR)

It is the use of light sensitive devices to recognise alphabetic characters and numbers on a sheet of
paper for automatic data entry into the computer. It reads pre-printed characters on paper and converts
them into so copy. Mostly used by insurance companies and in billing systems. An Optical Character

14
Reader is the device that is used for automatic data entry in OCR systems. It recognises printed or
even handwritten test for input into the computer

Advantages of OCR
• Can convert large amount of text into digital form at once
• Less tiresome since it is an automatic data entry method
• Faster in entering text into the computer
• Accurate in data entry

Disadvantages of OCR
• A lot of data entry errors can be found
• May not work well with tables and diagrams
• Do not work well with handwritten text

Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR)

A method of automatically entering data into the computer by reading characters on documents past a
magnetised eld with iron oxide, e.g. reading numbers on the bottom of a cheque, like bank sort code,
serial number and bank account number. A Magnetic Ink Character Reader is the device that is used
for automatic data entry in MICR systems.

Fig 1.21 Cheque

Advantages of using magnetic ink on cheques include:

• Bundles of cheques can be processed very quickly.
• It is very di cult to forge a cheque.
• e ink can be read by the reader even if the cheque gets marked or dirty.
• MICR provides high level of security to data
• Automatic and therefore faster data entry
• Document can still be readable even if folded

15
 Disadvantages of using magnetic ink on cheques include:
• Readers and printers are relatively expensive
• e system can only accept limited characters
• Very expensive data entry method

Activity 1.1 Practical

1. Learners, with the help of the teacher, install and connect a scanner on at least two di erent
computers
2. Learners scan pictures and documents as images and save them in di erent formats.
3. Learners scan documents as pdf or as word processed documents

Activity 1.2 Educational tour.

1. Learners to visit areas where biometric systems are used
2. Learners identify areas in the school, where biometric systems can be used and describe
how the system (s) can be setup
3. Give 2 advantages of using biometric scanners other than password method for gaining
access to specialized rooms with highly sensitive and con dential data

Activity 1.3 Practical on Taking videos and editing photographs

1. Learners record a video of a lesson presentation of their choice and copy the lesson into the
computer and play it
2. In groups of about 5, learners do the following using a digital camera
a. Take at least 20 photographs of a particular theme. Delete any 3 photographs of their choice
b. Crop at least 5 of the photographs
c. Print at least 2 photographs
d. Perform a photo slideshow
e. Save the slideshow as screen saver on the computer

Activity 1.4 Demonstration

Demonstration on the use of magnetic stripe readers and barcode readers by resource persons

Processing Device
Microprocessor
A chip found in microcomputers that is used for data manipulation. It is also called the Central
Processing Unit (CPU). It contains the Control Unit, Arithmetic and Logic Unit, Registers and the
clock.

is component is used to manipulate data as per user requirement. e Central Processing Unit
(CPU), also called the processor, converts data into information. It is also termed the ‘brain’ of the
computer. Processing involves sorting of data, updating records, searching records, adding a sequence
of numbers, and others. Processor speed is measured in hertz. Hertz equates to the number of
instructions executed per second.
e processor performs the following duties:
• It processes the data and instructions held in main memory.

16
 • It controls the transmission of data from input devices to memory.
• It controls the transmission of information from main memory to output devices.
• Controls the sequence of execution of instructions.
• Gives commands to all peripherals.
• Fetches instructions to be executed
• Decodes instructions and executes them
• Performs arithmetic and logical operations

e processor comprises of: Arithmetic Logic Unit (ALU), the Control Unit (CU), clock and Registers

Processor (CPU)

Control Unit
Input
Output
Devices
Registers Devices

ALU

Backing Main
Storage Memory

Fig 1.22 Processor component and their interconnections

Arithmetic Logic Unit (LU)

is component is responsible for mathematical computations and logical operations. It is divided into
the Arithmetic Unit and the Logic Unit. e Arithmetic unit performs all arithmetic operations like
addition, subtraction, division, etc. on data stored in the computer system. e Logic Unit performs
logical operations on data stored in the computer system, for example, comparisons like AND, OR, >,
<, >=,..etc.

Control Unit (CU)

• is component coordinates and controls all operations of the processor.
• It interpreters instructions
• It carries out the Fetch-Execute Cycle.
• It is responsible for determining the order in which instructions are executed
• It gives out control signals to various components of the computer, such as input devices and
output devices

Registers: High-speed storage area in the CPU used to temporarily hold small units of program
instructions and data immediately before, during and a er execution by the CPU, e.g. the accumulator
register.
System clock: is is a very fast, electronic timer found in the CPU and is responsible for timing system
operations. It synchronises system operations thereby determining whether the correct operation is
17
carried out at the right time.

Activity 1.5 Troubleshooting Practical

1. Open the CPU system casing of a desktop computer
2. Identify the components inside and discuss their functions
3. Disconnect some of the components and reconnect them
4. Troubleshoot if any problems are encountered
5. Identify the processor name, type and speed.
6. Identify the RAM size of your computer and explain its use

Output Devices
ese are devices used to display or show data and information held inside the computer system, for
example: printer, monitor, speakers, actuator and plotter. Output from the computer can be so copy,
hardcopy or audio.

Printer
A printer is a peripheral device used to produce hard copies of data held in the computer. Hardcopy is
a document printed on paper, e.g. a printed school report, a printed letter, etc. Output from the printer
appears as displayed on the computer screen, thus What You See Is What You Get (WYSIWYG).

Types of Printers
Printers can be classi ed in two ways, which are:
• Whether or not there is contact with paper during printing
• eir mode of printing

Classi cation on whether or not there is contact with paper during printing
Using this classi cation method, we get the following types of printers:
• impact printers
• Non-impact printers

1. Impact Printers: these are printers whose print heads (hammer) hit ink ribbon against paper
during printing, e.g. dot matrix printer, chain printer, daisy wheel printer, drum printer,
etc. us, there is contact between the paper and the print heads during the printing stage.
Impact printers have the following

Advantages:
• ey are very cheap to buy.
• ey are cheap to repair and to maintain.
• ey can use continuous paper.
• ey are economic in terms of ink usage.
• ey are robust.
• ey do not necessarily require special paper

18
 However, Impact printers have the following disadvantages:
ey produce a lot of noise during printing as the pint heads hit the ribbon and paper
ey are very slow in printing since most are line printers or character printers
ey produce poor quality printout.

Dot Matrix printer

• Produces NLQ (Near Letter Quality) output, in form of small dots.

Advantages of Dot matrix Printers

• ey are robust
• Less likely to be a ected by dust
• Can print on multi-part stationery
• Purchasing and running costs are very low

Disadvantages of Dot matrix Printers

• ey have low resolution
• ey are very noisy during printing
• Slow printing speed: this is because they can be character based or line based printers.

Daisy wheel printer

• Uses a print wheel to produce characters
• Can print about 100 characters per second

b. Non-Impact Printers: ese are printers that do not produce contact between paper, print
heads and ink cartridge during printing. Non-impact printers include: inkjet printer, laser
printer, thermal printer, etc.

Laser Printers
Most of the printers use light and are therefore called laser printers.

e advantages of laser printers are as follows:

• ey print at very high speeds since they are page printers.
• ey produce high quality printout of text and graphics.
• ey can be made to perform many functions, e.g. scanning, printing, photocopying,
faxing, etc.
• ey produce less noise than dot-matrix printers (they are quiet in their operation).
• Have paper trays both for input and output and therefore need no supervision once setup.

e disadvantages of laser printers are as follows:

• they are very expensive to buy and maintain,
• they are large and therefore take up a lot of desk space,
• they are quite complex and therefore repair bills can be very high,
• Cannot be used with continuous stationery since they are page printers.

19
 • Toner is toxic and therefore should be disposed of carefully a er use.
• Requires special paper for them to work.

Inkjet printers
ese use the print head to propel droplets of ink on a sheet of paper, thereby producing the required
character.

Advantages:
• ey are high resolution printers, thereby output is of good quality
• ey are cheap to buy
• Usually small size therefore do not take up large desk space

Disadvantages
• ey have a slow printing speed than LaserJet printers
• Have a water soluble ink which may be spilt
• Running costs are expensive, especially the ink

ermal Printers
ese produce characters by heating thermal paper when it passes over thermal print head. e paper
turns black when heated, thereby producing an image.

Advantages
• Excellent print quality for text and graphics
• ey are quiet in operation
• Easy handling as these is no need for ink/ribbon
• ey o er high printing speed
• ey have lower maintenance costs

Disadvantages
• Classi cation according to mode of printing
• Using this method, printers can be classi ed as:
• Character printers

ese are printers that print one character at a time until the end of the document.
• ey are also called serial printers.
• ey are very slow in printing

Line printers
• ese are printers that print one line at a time until the end of the document, e.g. chain
printers.
• ough they are faster than character printers, they still very slow.

Page printers
• ese print the whole page at a time and therefore are fast in printing, e.g. LaserJet

20
Revision Exercises
Multiple Choice questions

1. Which of the following can cause a hard disk error?

A. Wrong CMOS settings
B. RAM not installed
C. A very slow processor
D. No CD or DVD ROM installed

2. e location from which the rst computer instructions are obtained on boot-up is_____
A. Hard disk of the computer
B. ROM BIOS
C. RAM
D. DVD ROM

3. A hard disk is divided into tracks, which are further divided into___________
A. Vectors
B. Clusters
C. Sectors
D. R/W heads

4. Which of the following statements is true?

A. ROM is volatile
B. RAM can be topped up
C. Compact disk stores data of up to 4GB
D. A sensor is an output device

5. Volatile memory describes memory that______________

A. Losses its contents when power is turned o , e.g. ROM
B. Losses its contents when power is turned o , e.g. RAM
C. Retains contents when power is turned o , e.g. RAM
D. Retains its contents when power is turned o , e.g. ROM

6. Which of the following is out of place?

A. Light pen
B. Barcode reader
C. Graph plotter
D. Sensor

7. Which of the following is NOT an example of an operating system?

A. Windows 10
B. Ubuntu
C. Android
D. Lotus 1-2-3

40
8. A system in which transactions are processed individually and results produced instantly is
called ____________
A. Batch processing
B. Real-time processing
C. Time sharing
D. Individualised Processing

9. e retrieval of information stored in the computer is known as _____________

A. Booting
B. Output
C. Data collection
D. Remote Job entry

10. e brain of the computer is ___________

A. Main memory
B. CPU
C. RAM
D. Hard disk

11. Which of the following devices is used to monitor computer processing by a user?
A. Console
B. CPU
C. Printer
D. RAM

12. e following is a device used to produce hard copy _____

A. Screen
B. O ceJet printer
C. Barcode reader
D. Scanner

13. A byte is a group of _______

A. 8 bytes
B. 8 binary digits
C. 1024 bits
D. 1024 binary digits

14. Which of the following best describes a computer register?

A. Set of capacitors used to register input instructions in a digital computer
B. A book where student information is recorded by the class teacher
C. It is temporary storage inside the CPU
D. It is the auxiliary memory of a computer

41
15. So ware refers to _________
A. e tangible parts of a computer
B. Instructions that drive computer hardware
C. Output devices of a computer
D. Storage devices of a computer

42
Structured Questions

1. Identify each of the following devices [12]

2.
a. Draw a well labelled block diagram of a computer system. [6]
b. Describe the use of each component shown on the diagram above, giving examples in each
case. [8]
3. A computer is made up of hardware and so ware
a. Using examples, explain the above underlined words. [4]
b. Explain why the CPU is referred to as the ‘brain of the computer’? [2]
c. De ne the term peripheral. Give an example. [2]

4. Sailthru (Pvt) Ltd is a local company that uses a generic package to keep records of their clients
in a computer system. ey also produce calendars which they give to every client that purchases
goods worth over $100. e supervisor produces a report on daily basis that gives a summary of
all the activities that took place at the work place for submission to the general manager.
a. State the most appropriate type of application so ware that they might be using for:
i. Keeping records of their clients
ii. Producing calendars
iii. Producing a detailed report to the general manager [3]
b. Give two reasons why the company might have chosen to use a generic package and not a
tailor-made package. [2]
c. Some pictures are needed when creating the calendar. State 3 devices that can be used to
enter pictures into the computer [3]

5. Explain the following terms, giving examples where appropriate:

a. Microprocessor
b. Barcode
c. Biometrics
d. So ware
e. Peripheral
f. OMR
g. RSI

43
 f. Time slice
g. Round robin
h. Batch processing [20]

6. a. De ne an operating system [2]

b. State 5 functions of operating systems [5]
c. State and explain the use of any 3 utility programs that can be installed on a desktop
computer. [6]
d. Explain the di erence between systems so ware and application so ware. [2]

7. Classify the following into hardware or so ware

Mouse word processor sensor light pen
Printer driver RAM DVD spreadsheet [8]

8. Munyikwa High school has decided to introduce e-learning at the school. Information is stored
on a DVD ROM, where learners have to access the information from.
a. Suggest 5 reasons why the school authorities might have chosen to use this e-learning
method than using the internet [5]
b. Give 3 disadvantages of this e-learning method as compared to the internet [3]
c. Suggest a reason why they chose to use DVD ROMs other than CD ROMs [1]

9. Given the following

Hard disk, memory stick, CD, DVD, RAM, Floppy disk
Arrange the above in descending order according to:
a. Storage capacity [6]
b. Access speed [6]

10. Explain the following terms, stating their application areas

a. MICR
b. OMR
c. OCR [9]

11. a. State 2 examples of automatic data entry devices, and give their application areas. [4]
b. Give 2 reasons why automatic data entry devices a gaining popularity these days. [2]

12. a. De ne the term Automated Teller Machine (ATM) [2]

b. State any two input devices that can be found on the ATM and explain their use [4]
c. State any 2 output devices found on the ATM and describe their use [2]

13. a. Draw a well-labelled block diagram of a computer systems, showing processor components
and their interconnections. [7]
b. State 3 components of a processor and explain their use [3]
c. State any 4 functions of a processor [4]
d. Explain why the processor is called the ‘brain’ of the computer system. [2]

44
 e. Explain why the computer may freeze and suggest a solution to the problem [2]

14. a. State any 3 examples of operating systems used on mobile phones [3]
b. State 3 other operating systems used on desktop computers excluding the Windows family
Operating systems [3]
c. Give 4 features of operating systems [4]
d. Explain the di erence between multi-programming and multi-processing [2]

45
 CHAPTER TWO

APPLICATIONS OF COMPUTER
SCIENCE

Objectives
• Learners should be able to:
• Describe how computers are used in agriculture, education, banking system,
research and development and social networks..
• Give advantages and disadvantages of using computers in the name application
areas.
• Use the internet to carry out research.

46
Introduction
Computers have become an essential part of modern human life. Owing to the widespread use of
computers in every sphere, life in today’s world would be unimaginable without computers. ey
have made human lives better and happier. ere are many computer uses in di erent elds of
work. Farmers, architects, educators, learners, miners and lmmakers all use computers in their
elds. Educators, writers, and most o ce workers use computers for record keeping, research, word
processing and communication.

Computers in agriculture

Record keeping
Computers are used for keeping records such as customers’ and suppliers’ information,
budgetting, farm equipment inventories and animal health forms.

Internet research
Farmers get a lot of information through internet forums and online knowledge bases on latest
seed variety and new methods of farming. ey share know-how with other farmers and experts.
Farmers even get recent weather live updates on farming matters on their smart phones.

On-line trading
Farmers can connect to foreign customers which can help to improve their product and increase
their production capacity. Many farmers can market their products from their own home or
business.

Communication
Farmers use e-mails for communication with others farmers. Social networking sites such as
WhatsApp and Facebook help farmers communicate important farming information quickly e.g.
spread of an animal disease.

Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

Geographic Information Systems (GISs) are used to assess land and provide information on a
variety of factors such as soil conditions, drainage and slope conditions. Global Positioning
System (GPS) along with livestock-tracking programs are used to monitor and track the
movement of animals in the farm and alert the owner if they are astray.

Fig 2.1 GPS receivers

47
 Fig 2.2 Cow ear with ear tag for monitoring movement

Controlling farm equipment

Farm equipment such as tractors, water sprinklers and fertilizers sprayers have computers that farmers
can program to automatically adjust the amount of fertilizers according to the requirements of soil and
crops.

Bene ts
• is is a better way to reduce water and fertilizer costs.
• It ensures that the crop receives optimum water and fertilizer nutrients.
• Has reduced human labour and animal e ort.
• Increased the speed and quality of production.

Control systems and computer-controlled devices (automated systems)

Automatic milking systems that milk the dairy cattle without human labour. is allows the farmer to
have more time to do other duties like farm supervision.
Greenhouse automation systems are also designed to help farmers maximise crop yields, help with
water and fertilizer conservation. e computer controlled greenhouse has temperature and humidity
sensors linked to a computer. e computer has a control program storing details of the correct
temperature and humidity settings. e greenhouse is with a heater, sprinkler and window motor.

Fig 2.3 A computer controlled greenhouse

48
 Bene ts of control and automated systems
• It is cheaper since few workers can be employed to do the monitoring
• Computers will give accurate results
• e computers work very long periods without getting tired or getting a break

Research and development

Research and development on new seed varieties that can be planted in di erent farming regions has
been improved by the use of computers.

Security
Closed Circuit Television Cameras (CCTV) are used to monitor farm premises and capture images of
anyone entering the farm.

Advantages of the use of computers in agriculture

• Food production is boosted and thereby raising the standard of living.
• Allow the research of new methods of farming to increase output
• Famers, agricultural researchers, buyers and suppliers can exchange information faster
using the internet.
• Computers help farmers to monitor soil temperature, wind speed, humidity etc.
• Computers increase the amount information farmers can process, form simple details on
day-to-day operations to the latest research on new chemicals and seeds.
• e internet can also be used to monitor prices and create new global markets by farmers.

Challenges faced in the uses of computers in agriculture

• Lack of suitable hardware and so ware.
• Lack of training and skills in the use of the available so ware and computer controlled
machinery.
• Inadequacy research in the area of agriculture to fully utilise computers.
• Poor networking and communication facilities hindering e ective internet use by
farmers.

Activity 2.1
Learners to make an educational tour to a farm and identify how computers are used.

Activity 2.2
Research on the challenges faced by Zimbabwean farmers in the use of computers in their
farming practices.

Computers in banking

Record keeping
Computers are used for keeping nancial information and processing transactions. Customers
accounting details are kept in the computers. Bank tellers can search for customers’ details quickly in

49
the computer. Banks also use computers to track customer information such as name, address, phone
number, date of birth and place of employment.

Decision making
Banks will perform analyses on customers data held on their computers in order to make decisions
about a customer’s suitability for other products o ered by the bank, for example, whether a customer
quali es for a bank loan may depend on a customer’s ability to manage their current account, overdra ,
credit-cards and loans.

Management
Banks use computers to monitor nancial performance, and produce analyses and reports which
support the strategic development of the bank. e bank’s employee payroll, and operational expenses
are also monitored using computers.

Communication
Bank management can communicate new banking services and promotions with their clients on-
line using e-mails. With the use of mobile smart phones, these e-mails can be received and opened
anywhere and anytime.

Cheque processing and clearance

e use of Magnetic Ink Character Readers (MICR) in banks has made the processing of cheques
faster. Fraudulent checks can also be detected easily by the MICR.

Security
Closed Circuit Television Cameras (CCTV) are used to monitor all activities that will be happening in
the bank. In case of robberies it will be easy to track robbers as the video can be viewed later.

Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)

Banks can use computers to exchange bank documents in a standard electronic format with other
banks or customers, for example, Real Time Gross Payment System (RTGS) documents can be
transmitted to the customers electronically.

Automated Teller Machines (ATMs)

An ATM is a computerised machine found outside the bank that allows customers to withdraw money
from their bank accounts anytime of the day. To access money from the ATM, the bank customer must
have a valid credit card or debit card and a Personal Identi cation Number (PIN).

50
rooms, away from the clients computers. Servers can be
1. File server
2. Print server
3. E-mail server
4. Web server
5. Application server

Terminal
A terminal is a device on a network, which can be used to send or receive data. A terminal can either
be:
1. Dump terminal: A device on the network which relies on another machine on the network for
it to work. is terminal does not have or has limited storage and processing capabilities, for
example, a VDU at a POS in supermarket.
2. Intelligent terminal: is is a device that has processing and storage capabilities of its own
and can work without control from other devices on the network.

Node
is refers to any active device that is connected to a network, for example, a switch, modem, printer,
server, and others. Nodes are there to receive, store, forward or to send data on the network.

Client
is refers to a computer system that is connected to a server and can send requests and receive
responses. A client can access data or so ware on a server. Processing can either be done on the server
side or on the client side depending on the network setup.

Network Operating system

ese are system programs that allows computer on the network to share data, e.g. Windows NT
Server.

World Wide Web (www)

is is a large collection of data, information and sites available on the internet. is information can
be audio, text, and video and so on.

Online
A state of a node being actively connected to the network. An online device can send and receive
signal from other devices on the network. For example, a swiping machine at a POS in supermarket
should be online to a client’s bank server for one to purchase goods using a swiping card. us it must
be actively linked or connected to the host computer.

O ine
A node is said to be o ine if it is not actively connected to a host computer. It implies that this node
cannot communicated with any other device no the network.

90
Firewall
is refers to hardware or so ware that is used to ensure privacy of a private network. Firewalls are
used protect computer systems from intrusion by outsiders who may want to steal, delete, modify
or corrupt data of an organisation. us a rewall is used a protective measure for an organisation’s
private and sensitive data. It lters incoming and outgoing information and block those packets that
are not supposed to enter or leave the private network.

Token
A token is a signal, in the form of a packet/frame, which gives a node the chance to send data in a ring
network. Only the node with the token can transmit data. e node with the token appends data and
the destination to the token before sending it to the next node. e node that receives the message
examines it and removes the data. It then sends an acknowledgement to the sender.

Search Engine
A search engine is a program used to look for data, information and website from the internet on
behalf of the user, e.g. Google, Yahoo, etc. e user just type what needs to be searched and the search
engine does the job. It will search the content from various servers and other computers connected to
the internet and display the search results on the user’s workstation.

Web browser
It is a computer program used to open web pages on the internet, e.g. Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox,
Internet Explorer, Safari, Microso Edge, CU browser, etc.

Activity 4.1: Group activity Identifying web browsers on computers and setting Windows
rewall
1. Check your computers and identify all web browsers installed on them
2. Learners turn on and O Windows Firewall and write down the stages followed in
doing this task

Types of Networks
e main types of computer networks are:
• Local Area Network (LAN) and
• Wide Area Network (WAN).

However we also have the following types of networks:

• Metropolitan Area Networks (MAN)
• Personal Area Networks (PAN)

1. Local Area Network (LAN)

is is the connection of computers over a very small geographical area, like in a single room. A LAN
can also be designed to link di erent departments within an organisation’s complex at one site e.g.
linking the Sales, Accounts, Warehousing, Human Resources and IT Department, for information
sharing within the organisation. It is usually owned by one organisation. A LAN can be on di erent
oors within the same building, can be connecting computers in di erent rooms but still on the same

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site or can be within a single room. A LAN is privately owned by an organisation. A school network
is usually a LAN. However, di erent LANS can be connected together or can be connected to a WAN,
for example, a school LAN can be connected to the internet.

An organisation may opt use internet technologies within its restricted private network for the bene ts
of the organisation. Such a network is called an Intranet. is network is only restricted to internal
sta of the organisation and not to outsiders. On an intranet, unwanted sites can be blocked and
users can access it through passwords, where only information bene cial to the organisation can be
accessed and nothing else.
An extranet can also be used by organisations. An extranet is an extension of the intranet giving a few
privileged and authorised outsiders to have controlled access to the intranet.

Requirements for a LAN Connection

Hardware Requirements
Host computer / Server
is is used to control and manage other computers on the network. is is however optional.

Workstations/Terminals
ese are computers that are linked to each other on the network.

Network cables
ese are wires that act as pathway for data from one computer to another. Cables can be coaxial,
bre optics, twisted pair, etc. Wireless communication media can also be used.

Hub or a Switch:
A switch or a hub can be used as a connection point for devices and computers on a Local Area
Network. However, most organisations use a switch, which is more intelligent than a hub.

Network cards
Each node on the network needs a network interface card. It is a device that identi es computers
to the network, where network cables are plugged on the node. Each node must have its own
network card.

A bridge
is is a device used to link a LAN to another LAN network. It is also an optional requirement.

So ware Requirements for a LAN

• Network operating system like Windows NT
• Networking Protocol So ware like TCP/IP

e diagram below shows the structure of a LAN that can be connected to another network.

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 Fig 4.1 A LAN Network at Can be connected to another Network

2. Wide Area Network (WAN)

is is the connection of computers over a large geographical area, e.g. covering the whole district,
province or di erent countries. Internet is also part of WAN. WANs can also be wireless. A
WAN can be built by connecting together di erent LANS and eventually forming the internet.
Withdrawing money on the ATM usually involves use of the WAN.

Hardware Requirements for a WAN

Modem (Modulator Demodulator)

is is a networking device that converts analogue data from the telephone line to digital data that
can be understood by the computer and vice versa. A modem is o en needed when connecting to
the internet using a telephone line. A modem cam also be used as gateway for connecting LAN to
a WAN.

Communication link
is refers to the transmission media for data, e.g. telephone line, satellite transmission, etc. A
WAN needs media that has high bandwidth, low error rates and less attenuation.

Network cards for each computer:-

ese are devices that identi es computers to the network, where network cables are plugged on
the computer.

3. MAN (Metropolitan Area Network)

A network similar to a LAN, but usually extends to a larger geographical area, usually the whole
city and is owned by a group of users. e network is only accessed by a group of users as de ned

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 by the organisation, e.g. students of a certain university. It enables users to do researches, share
les, libraries, local email and video conferencing.

4. PAN (Personal Area Network)

is is a very much limited network, usually used by one person. is can also be Wireless Personal
Area Network (WPAN), for example connection through Bluetooth. Bluetooth connects di erent
devices, usually over a short distance.

A PAN enables user to transfer les from a laptop to a PDA, camera or Personal Computer.

Activity 4.2
Group Activity-Compare WAN and LAN Networks
1.Draw well labelled diagrams that show di erences between a LAN and a WAN connection,
labelling the form of communication media appropriate for each type of network

Network Topologies
Network topology refers to the shape formed when the nodes are connected together, usually on a
LAN. e most common physical network topologies are ring, bus, star and mesh.

1. Ring Network (token ring)

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 Fig 4.2. Ring network

• Computers are connected together to form a circle

• Computers use a token when transferring data.
• Data/information travels in one direction only.
• Information moves around the ring in sequence from its source to its destination.
• As data passes from one computer to another in the ring, each computer removes any
data relevant to itself and adds any data it wishes to send.

Advantages of Ring Network

• Has very high data transfer rates.
• Uses a token to avoid data collision or loss
• it is possible to create large networks using this topology
• If one computer breaks down, others will remain working as standalone computers
• Performs better than star network when tra c is very heavy.

Disadvantages of Ring Network

• If one computer breaks down, the whole network is disrupted.
• a faulty connection between two stations (e.g. cable problem) can cause failure of the
whole network
• Its requirements are expensive, that is buying several computers with processors and
storage facilities.
• Di cult to add another computer without disrupting the networking.
• Only the computer with the token is allowed to send data at a given time. One may not
send data when another node (computer) is still sending its own data.
• System is less secure as token together with data has to pass through other nodes that do
not concern it.

2. Star Network:
Computers form a star shape with host computer at the centre. All the workstations are connected to
a central device which can be a server, switch or hub and therefore the workstations act as clients. e

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Server (host computer) manages all the workstations or terminals on the network. is network is as
shown below:

Fig 4.3. Star network

Advantages of Star Network

• If one workstation breaks down, the network is not disrupted.
• It is very easy to install.
• Management of data is easier as this is done centrally.
• Easier to add new workstation without disrupting the network.
• No problem of collision of data since each terminal has its own cable to the host
computer.
• Gives consistent performance even when the network is heavily utilised.
• More secure than other network topologies as data is send directly to the receiver by the
central computer.
• it is easier to identify faults using this type of topology
• It is easy to expand this type of network

Disadvantages of a Star Network

• If the host computer breaks down, the whole network will be disrupted.
• It requires a lot of cabling, which might be expensive.

3. Mesh Network
• A network in which each computer serves as a relay point for directly sending information
to any other computer on the network.
• No central device oversees a mesh network, and no set route is used to pass data back and

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 forth between computers.
• us, if any one computer is damaged or temporarily unavailable, information is dynamically
rerouted through other computers a process known as self-healing

Fig 4.4. Mesh network

Advantages of Mesh Network

• If one computer breaks down, the network is not disturbed.
• Computers have their own storage and processing capabilities.
• Can handle large volumes of data transfers
• Faster to transfer data as workstations can transfer data directly to the receiver.

Disadvantages of Mesh Network

• Expensive to buy computers with their storage and processing facilities.
• Too much cabling is involved, which may be expensive.
• It is very di cult to maintain this type of network
• It is di cult to backup data as les can be distributed around the network
• It is less secure

4. Bus (Linear/Multi-drop) Network:

It is a network of computers that are connected together through one main cable (backbone/
bus). e network uses CSMA/CD or CSMA/CA

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 Fig 4.5. Bus network
Bus/Backbone: the dedicated and main cable that connects all workstations and other computer
devices like printers.
Terminator: device that prevent data in the bus from bouncing back, causing noise and prevents data
from getting lost.
e le server can be optional.

Advantages of Bus network

• If one workstation breaks down, the network remains functional.
• It uses less cabling and therefore it is cheap to install.
• It is easy to add workstation without disrupting the network.
• It is very e cient especially when the network is small

Disadvantages of Bus Network

• Computers cannot send data at the same time nor while there is data being transferred in
the bus.
• Can cause collision of data during transmission.
• It is slow in transferring data.
• It is not suitable for large networks as it slows down as node are increased.
• e system will be down if the main cable (bus) is disrupted at any point.
• It is very di cult to troubleshoot network problems

5. Hybrid Network Topology

is is network topology that is a combination of two or more network topologies. It combines
any from a star, ring, bus or linear, any into one network. For example, connecting a star network
in one department with a ring network in another department at an organisation will give us
a hybrid network. is topology is applicable both on a LAN and on WAN, where several net-
works can be connected together.

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 Fig 4.6. Hybrid network
Advantages of hybrid Network
• It is very easy to nd fault in the network by separating the network segments
• It is very easy to expand the network without disrupting the existing network setup
• Bene ts of di erent network topologies are combined

Disadvantages of hybrid Network

• It is a very complex network topology which might be di cult to design and setup
• It is expensive to setup since a lot of cabling and other infrastructure are needed
• It may be di cult to link networks with di erent features like ring and star

It can be noticed that the network topologies discussed above may have or may not have server. Server
based network have a server on them, which manages all other devices on the network. We also have
peer-to-peer networks. ese are networks which do not have a server. In peer-peer networks, all
computers on the network have the same status and there is no any computer which controls others.
A peer to peer network can be found in any network topology. e following are some of the features
of a peer-peer network

Peer-peer network
• A peer-to-peer network is the one which does not have a server.
• All the computers on the network have equal status.
• Users can share data on the network directly without using a server
• Data is stored in di erent computers around the network
• Each computer on the network may have its own operating system and storage facilities
• Because data is distributed around the network, it may be di cult to make backups of the
system
• e network is di cult to manage since data is scattered around the network
• is is mostly suitable for small businesses
• e system is di cult to secure

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 Activity 4.3
Group Activity-Designing a Network Topology of a school
Design a network topology suitable for your school environment connecting all departments
with the school, including the administration o ces and the sta room(s). Clearly label all
devices and that will be needed for this network setup. Discuss the strengths and limitations of
your design.

e Internet
Internet is a world-wide connection of computers for information sharing. Internet stands for
international network, which implies that it spans throughout the whole world. e internet is
therefore comprised of servers, workstations and other devices connected together from di erent parts
of the word. Data and information are stored on the servers scattered across the globe. e internet is
available to everyone. However, each country may regulate internet usage in its own territory.

Hardware Requirements for an Internet Connection

• Modem (MOdulator DEModulator):- it is a device that converts analogue data to digital
form and vice versa, for internet connection using a telephone line.
• Communication link: Acts as a transmission media for data, e.g. telephone line, satellite
transmission, etc.
• Network cards for each computer:- network cards are devices that identify computers on the
network.
• Router: is is used for network identi cation and for routing packets.

Internet Service Providers (ISP)

ese are companies that connect users to the internet, e.g. TelOne, Africaonline, ZOL, Mweb, etc.
A user is given an account by the ISP for him or her to access the internet. An internet account is a
unique personal account given by the ISP. is account is paid as per agreement between the user and
the ISP.

Internet Services
e following are some of the services that are found on the internet:

Electronic Mail (E-Mail)

is is a form of communication in which typed messages are send electronically over internet. For
one to send an email, one needs to have an email address and to know the recipient’s email address.
e following are also requirements for one to send an email
1. An internet connection
2. An E-mail Address for both the sender and receiver:
• An e-mail address is a unique identi er of the storage location of a person’s mailbox
folder on the internet. e following is an example of an email address:
• [email protected]
• From the e-mail address above; muterot is the username. It is used to identify the name
of the person or organisation that has the mailbox. e username should be di erent
between users, especially if they are using the same email server.

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 • e second part (gmail), is the domain name and is used to identify the server where the
person has a mailbox.
• e other part (the one a er the dot (.) indicates the domain type e. g
• . com – commercial organisation
• . edu – educational organisation
• . org – non-pro t making organisation, etc.
• A user’s email address should be known by our friends so that they will know the address
where to send the emails. A password is used to protect the mailbox from illegal
access and should remain con dential.
• When signing up for an e-mail address, one is requested to enter the password twice so as
to verify if it is the intended one.

How to send an e-mail

• Connect to the internet and logs on to email address.
• Click on compose
• Type the message, recipient’s email address and then attach any le, if any.
• Click on the send button.
• Wait for con rmation message on whether sending was successful or not

e following happens when the send button is clicked:

• e message is transmitted to the sender’s Internet Service Provider’s mail server.
• e message is stored on a central host computer of the sender.
• e e-mail server examines the address of the message
• e message is transmitted to the recipient’s ISP mail server
• e message is stored in the recipient’s electronic mail box.
• e recipient logs in to a local computer and receives the mail

Advantages of e-mails as compared to ordinary mails

• It is very fast method of sending messages. E-mails can be delivered immediately while
ordinary mails can take days to reach their destination.
• It is very cheap to send e-mails since there is no need for envelopes, stamps, paper and
pen, which are needed in conventional mail.
• ey are reliable to use since e-mails rarely get lost.
• E-mails are time independent as they can be send any time of the day other than
conventional mails which can be send during the normal working hours.
• E-mails allow multiple addressing, that is, one e-mail message can be send to several
recipients simultaneously without having to retype it.
• E-mails can be saved for future use or reference.
• E-mails are more convenient to use as there is no need to travel to the post o ce or to
shops to buy stamps and envelopes.
• In e-mails, attachments in form of reports, scanned documents, pictures and curriculum
vitae can easily be attached to the e-mail.
• e e-mail system can translate messages from one language to another

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 Disadvantages of e-mail
• Some spam or junk mail can be send to a user’s inbox. is will waste time for going
through emails that are useless advertisements
• E-mails can be intercepted by hackers, which means they are not 100% secure.
• One needs to check the inbox regularly in order to view incoming messages
• Equipment used to send and receive e-mails is very expensive as compared to traditional
methods, for example modems, mobile phones, modems, and other

E-commerce
Electronic commerce refers to the use of the internet to buy or sell goods and services. Users do not
need to visit shops in order to buy goods. All transactions are done electronically without involvement
of notes and coins. Electronic commerce is also called internet buying, electronic business or online
shopping. Payment for goods and services is done using credit cards. Using e-commerce, companies
create websites through which users from all over the world can access their services and purchase
goods online.

Advantages to customers for buying using the internet

• Customers can make purchases any time of the day. us it provides a 24 hour service to
clients.
• Search engines are used to nd cheapest products on behalf of the customer, which is
more convenient.
• Customers have more time to choose to choose items they want in the comfort of their
home.
• A variety of products is available, from all parts of the world.
• It is very convenient to use as customers do not leave their homes for shopping.
• It cuts travelling costs that can be involved in travelling to the shops.
• Goods and services usually cheaper on the internet due to global competition.
• It saves travelling time since customers do not travel to the shops.

Disadvantages to customers for buying from the internet

• Goods purchased over the internet take a long time to reach the customers, about a
month in some cases.
• ere are rogue (non-existent or fake) companies on the internet who can steal money
from prospective customers.
• Customers may never receive the goods a er paying for them.
• Customers and business owners lack direct personal interaction
• Customers lack exercising since they spend most of their time on computers.
• Customers can lose their money through credit card fraud and hacking.
• Some of the products may have defects that they will only see on arrival.
• Very few people have credit cards that are needed for internet shopping.

Advantages to business owners for using e-commerce

• Goods can be bought any time of the day since it provides a 24 hour shopping service.
• Huge sales are realised since there is greater number of customers from all over the world.

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 • Ensures huge saving on overheads like rent, warehousing, employee facilities and others
as very few employees are needed.
• Advertising costs are reduced since there are no pamphlets used in advertising.
• Business owner reduce costs of building many shops on the streets.
• Organisations can employ fewer workers thereby cutting labour costs.
• Owners do not need to travel to the shop as business can be run from home.

Disadvantages to business owners for using e-commerce

• Increase in cases of industrial espionage. is involves selling of company secrets by
employees to rival companies
• Business servers can be attacked by hackers
• Viruses can attack and delete data stored on servers
• High costs are involved in creating, maintaining and managing the computer system

E-learning
Electronic learning is the use of any electronic technology to aid in the acquisition and development
of knowledge, even outside the traditional classroom. It involves using the computer or computer
related equipment to deliver lessons in schools and colleges, e.g. cell phones, data projectors during
presentations, etc.
rough e-learning, learners can access information and do some researches on the internet even
when the teacher is not around. Besides the internet, students can also use pre-developed e-learning
so ware that can be installed on computers.
In some cases, it involves completing a course on the internet without visiting the college or university
o ering the course. Lessons and examinations can be o ered through the internet. E-Learning can
take the form of Computer Aided Instruction (CAI) or Computer Aided Learning (CAL), Computer
Based Instruction (CBI).

e Advantages of eLearning training includes:

• By using laptops, tablets and phones, learning can be done while travelling, that is on the
train, in buses, etc.
• Learning can be done any other time of the day, even on public holidays and thus saves
time.
• Concepts can be presented using multimedia systems which helps learners to understand
concepts better. at is, a concept can be shown in pictures, videos, text and then audio
narration, other than just talking.
• E-Learning tends to be the much cheaper once the necessary equipment has been setup.
ese is no need for many classrooms, no need of travelling for students, etc.
• ere is ease of access to huge amounts of information installed on computers and from
the internet.
• It is a very convenient form of learning, no need for specialized rooms and making
appointment with teachers and more there are no hustles in travelling for lessons.
• Learning can be done at the pace of the student’s understanding. It even allows the learner
to repeat concepts now and again until concept has been understood.
• Enhances collaboration among students during the learning process.

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 • Allows lessons to be conducted on-line, saving transport and accommodation expenses
• Promotes active, and independent learning

Disadvantages of e-learning
• Learners will abuse the service if it is not well monitored and well protected, for examples
watching pornography
• Learner lack direct contact with their teachers, which is very important
• Time management can be di cult since learners can learning at their own convenient
time
• Learners tend to cheat by plagiarising and downloading other learners’ assignments
posted on the internet
• Requirements are expensive. Most learners and schools cannot a ord them other than
simple desktop programs with limited information.
• Maybe di cult to conduct practical lessons on the internet other than just simulations

Social Media
Also commonly known as social networking. ese are services that allow users to interact with each
other and for dating on the internet. ey allow people to share pictures, photos, videos and any
material to social interaction. Discussion groups can also be held on certain topical issues a ecting
the society. Social networks include Facebook, Whatsapp, and Viber and so on. Dating sites are also
available on the internet where users can search for love and friendship, even with those far away from
Zimbabwe.

Advantages
• Allows people to get connected with people from di erent parts of the world easily. One
can make new friends or even meet old friends, classmates and other easily through
social networks.
• It allows real-time sharing of pictures, information in groups, news, videos on social
platforms
• Can be used for advertising, for example on Facebook. Information on social media
becomes viral as soon as it is posted on groups on the social media platform.
• Promotes e-learning through some education groups that can be created on the social
media
• Can be a very e ective tool of promoting awareness of any issue since information
spreads rapidly.
• Allows instant or speedy communication become people in di erent areas, like through
Whatsapp platform
• It is a very cheap means of communication and is therefore a ordable
• Communication can be done any time of the day
• It makes it very easy to nd people with common interest

Disadvantages of social media

• Decreases face to face communication between users
• It promotes a gap between family members. It does not help in bringing closeness among

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 the family.
• Increases criminal o enses like cyber bullying
• ere is a lot of identity the and fraud on social media. For example, there are many fake
accounts on Facebook.
• Personal data can be hacked and thus invasion of privacy
• Can cause some people to be addicted to social media, like Whatsapp, thereby neglecting
families and other important duties in life.
• Can cause viral spread of fake news and stories about individuals, thereby destroying their
reputation
• People tend to have more time for chatting and forget to exercise, leading to obese
populations, which is a health risk
• Cheating in relationships is spreading rapidly through social media

WWW (World Wide Web)

is refers to the large volumes of data and information on the internet. e www is used for research
purposes since there is a vast repository of information over the internet. Students in schools, colleges
and universities carry out researches, analysing data stored on the internet in order to come up with
new ideas and developments. Students also research on their assignments over the www. us the
internet has become the main source of information for students. Search Engines are available to nd
information from the internet. :

Advantages of the Internet as a Source of Information

• Students can access information from anywhere, as long as there is an internet
connection.
• e internet provides up-to-date and more current information
• Information can be viewed in a variety of forms: text, videos, pictures, etc, which helps
students in understanding concepts easier as multimedia is used.
• A lot of information is obtained from the internet, e.g. magazines, encyclopaedia,
dictionaries, newspapers, textbooks, scienti c researches, etc.
• Search engines are available to search information on behalf of the users faster.
• Many experts from any part of the world can be easily contacted using emails.

Disadvantages of the Internet as a Source of Information

• Users download and copy information without authorisation, thus breaching copyright
laws.
• Students may access sites with hate literature or expose to pornographic material.
• Computers can be attacked by viruses downloaded from internet sites
• e devices needed for internet connection are very expensive for ordinary
Zimbabweans, e.g. computers, modems, ISDN adapters, routers, and others.
• May leads to loss of privacy due to hacking, phishing and pharming.
• Some people become addicted and tend to interact more with computers more than with
human beings.
• Cultural erosion and replacement of local culture by a global culture

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File transfer
is is a service that allows users to transfer data from one computer to another on the internet. It
allows users to download data, so ware like games and other onto their workstations.

Telnet
is is a service that allows users to use so ware store on other computers whilst on their workstations.
It allows users, for instance to play games stored on a server in Kenya whilst in Mutare, without
installing the on your computer.

Newsgroups
ese are blogs that allows di erent users to share information through groups on the internet. News
are also obtained from the newspapers that are hosted on the internet.

Video conferencing
is is the process of conducting meetings with several people in di erent locations and seeing
each other on the screen on networked computers. Video images and sound are viewed and
heard in real time on large monitors and through speakers. Members do not need to leave
their homes or work places or conference rooms. In order to conduct video conferencing, the
following are required:
• Internet connection with high bandwidth. is will be used to transmit data at high speed
it video conferencing should take place in real-time. e internet connection could be
through an Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) line that has a high bandwidth to
transmit video data at fast speed or through optic bre
• A webcam or video camera to take videos
• A computer with a codec. A codec is so ware that is used to convert and compress
analogue data into digital data so that it can be send over digital lines.
• A microphone. is is where the users would speak through.
• Some speakers. ese will produce sound so that the voices of the member could be
heard.
• Large and high resolution monitor: used to display images or the members taking part in
the electronic conference.
• Sound card: Links to speakers so as to produce sound
• Video card: Links to monitors so that it will produce videos
• Echo cancellation so ware: this is used to avoid echoing back during conversations.

Advantages of video conferencing

• It cuts transport cost incurred in travelling to the venue of the meeting since the delegates
do not leave their homes or work places.
• It reduces costs involved in paying hotel bills and meals since members do not leave their
homes.
• Saves time that could have been wasted in travelling to the venue of the meeting.
• It becomes safer for employees as no travelling reduces occurrences of accidents, and
deaths due to terrorist activities.
• Employees are not stressed out due to too much travelling arrangement.

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 • Less travelling means less environmental pollution
• More convenient and economical as it possible to hold short notice meetings

Disadvantages of video-conferencing
• Communication expenses are very high, especially where the telephone line is used.
• Hardware and so ware requirements are expensive for ordinary Zimbabweans.
• People will lack personal contact and will socialise more on the internet than personal
contact.
• ere is no direct eye contact, which plays a large crucial role in communication.
• e quality of video or audio may be low, depending on the bandwidth and strength of
the signal.
• ere may be interruptions due to breakdowns in transmission which may make
communication impossible
• Power cuts may prevent the conference from continuing, especially if there is no plan in
place in such a case.

Advertising
e internet in now one of the leading tools used for advertising products, services and tourist
destinations. Adverts through the internet reach a wider audience globally. us companies that
advertise on the internet tend to bene t more than those that do not have the means to do so.

E-banking
is stands for electronic banking. It involves accessing individual bank accounts using a computer
of mobile phone without visiting the banking halls. Account holders are provided with a self service,
whereby they can make balance enquiries or transfer money between di erent bank accounts
electronically using a computer or mobile phone. Customers can even pay school fees, electricity bills
and settle any debt without handling hard cash. is gives rise to a cashless society. e following
e-banking services promote a cashless society:

• EDI (Electronic Data Interchange)- is an electronic communication system that provides

standards for exchanging data via any electronic means, e.g. purchase orders, invoices, ship-
ping notices, etc.
• Mobile banking
• Mobile money transfers-Ecocash, Telecash, OneWallet, etc.
• Internet banking
• Electronic commerce/internet buying
• EFTPOS-Electronic Funds Transfer at Point of Sale.
• Credits cards/debit cards, coupons, etc

Bene ts of A cashless society

• More convenient to pay bills, mortgage loans, gas, phone and electricity bills since these are
paid automatically.
• Customers no longer need to carry large sums of money thereby reducing cases of robbery.
• Customers no longer need to queue on banks to get cash.

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E ects of E-Commerce and E-banking To the Community
• City centres become deserted as people search for services on the internet
• Shops and banks will close down as very few people visit them
• Loss of jobs as shops and banks close down.
• ere is less personal interaction in the society as people tend to interact more using com-
puters
• is leads to less activity on customer, leading to an obese population.
• e gap between the rich and the poor is widened as the rich become richer while the poor
becomes poorer.
• It leads to less pollution due to less travelling of people.

Entertainment
e internet provides a variety of entertainment for users in form of listening to music, newspapers,
radio stations, and downloading of movies and others. User can also watch live streaming of television
stations on the internet. Users can also play or download games like Need for Speed and others.

Internet and data security

Security is concerned with protection of data from unauthorised access and from deliberate or
accidental loss. Some of the threats to data stored on the internet include hacking, viruses, pharming,
phishing, hardware faults, so ware faults, etc

Hacking
is involves obtaining unauthorised access to protected and secure computer systems or network,
usually using intelligent methods like cracking the password. Such people who perform the activity
are called hackers. Hacking can be prevented by:
• Installing a rewall on networked computers, especially those on internet
• Locking the computer room to prevent access to the computers (if not on network)
• Encryption of data to prevent hackers from reading the information once illegal access has
been successful
• Using strong usernames and passwords may also help

Computer Viruses
A virus is a malicious program that replicates itself and a ects the normal operations of a computer
to the extent of deleting data stored in the computers. Viruses can be prevented by:
• Installing the latest updatable antivirus program, e.g. AVG, Avast, Eset Nod32, etc. e user
should regularly scan the computer using the antivirus
• Installing a rewall
• Not opening emails from unknown and suspicious sources, etc.

Hardware Faults
is can be crushing of the storage media like hard disk. Loss to data by this method can be minimised
through:
• Keeping backup les of the system
• Use of grandfather-father-son method of updating

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 • Running parallel computer systems

So ware Faults
e programs can crush causing loss of data stored in the computer system. e solution is to backup
data, keep le generations and running of parallel computer systems.

Phishing
It is a way attack by tricking someone into handing over their username and password or bank detail
using an email. e phisher sends an email that looks as if it comes from the recipient’s bank and
contains a link to a website controlled by the phisher. It can be prevented by not clicking on the link
and instead going to the bank’s website directly.

Pharming
is is an attack by hijacking the URL of a genuine website and instead transferring to a rogue website.
It intercepts a browser request and redirects it to another website on which the attacker attempts
to steal authentication credentials or debit or credit card details, as in a phishing attack. It can be
discouraged by changing the password on a router (especially a wireless router) so that the hacker
cannot redirect the DNS information.

Activity 4.4 Demonstration of how to sign up for an email account and sending of emails
Demonstrate how to create a new email account and how to send emails with an attachments
le

Activity 4.5 academic tour to companies that provide internet services

Conduct an educational tour to selected ICT organisations where learners can be exposed to
internet services and determine how such services operate. Produce a report of what have been
learnt during the educational tour

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Interesting Facts
1. e World Wide Web (www) was developed by imothy Berners Lee in 1990
2. e internet was developed by the United States army as a way of ensuring that communica-
tion between the US army will not be completely destroyed in the event of a Russian
missile attack

Summary
• A network is a connection of computers for information sharing
• Networks can be LAN or WAN
• LAN is connection of computers over a very small area, like in a single room
• WAN is a connection of computers over a very large area, like the whole country
• Network topologies can be ring, bus, mesh, hybrid and star
• e internet connect computers over the whole world.
• Some of the services provided by the internet includes e-mail, e-commerce, social media,
researching and entertainment

Glossary of terms

Anti-Virus ese are programs that detect and remove (clean) computer viruses and reduce the risk
of computers being attacked by viruses, e.g. Norton Antivirus, MacAfee, Avira, Avast, AVG, etc.
Data Encryption data encryption is the scrambling of data before sending, for security reasons, so
that it is not readable unless it is decrypted using. However, some government do not allow encryption
in their countries for security reasons against terrorism.
Back-up le A duplicate (copy) of the original le that is created and stored at di erent location with
the original le, for security reason.
Grandfather Father-Son les: Also called le generations: these are three versions of les that are kept
at an organisation and are created as a result of sequential le updating and are used for data recovery
when the current master le is lost.
Parallel systems Refers to the running of two di erent systems but doing the same job in the same
organisation. Each system will have its own les.
Password A password is a secret group of alphanumeric characters used to protect a document or le
from unauthorised access
Firewall Hardware and associated so ware used to protect networked private computer systems from
unauthorised access by preventing outside data/users from entering/accessing the system while at the
same time preventing internal data from leaving the system.
Attenuation Loss of signal strength as it propagates through a transmission channel
Bandwidth e volume of data that a transmission channel can carry at given period of time, usually
measured in bits per second.

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Revision exercises
Multiple choice

1. Which of the following is an example of a web browser?

A. Google
B. Opera Mini
C. Yahoo
D. Microso

2. e following are examples of network topologies EXCEPT…………….

A. Multi-drop
B. Token Ring
C. Star
D. Peer-to-Peer

3. Which of the following is needed to connect a LAN to the internet?

A. Modem
B. coaxial cable
C. Keyboard
D. Switch

4. Which of the following transmission media is appropriate for WAN connection?

A. Coaxial cable
B. Optical bre
C. Twisted Pair
D. UTP

5. A…….is an optional component for a star topology.

A. Transmission media
B. Server
C. Central device
D. Node

6. Which one of the following is the correct format of gmail email address?
A. [email protected]
B. [email protected]
C. @tinayek.gmail.com
D. gmail.com@tinayek

7. So ware used to open webpages from the internet is called………………

A. Website
B. Google
C. Search engine
D. Browser

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8. ___________ refers to any active device on a network.
A. Node
B. Client
C. Computer
D. Server

9. Which of the following is an advantage of a Star network?

A. It has less cabling than a ring and therefore cheaper to install
B. It uses tokens to transmit data and therefore eliminates collision of data
C. It has a terminator which prevents data from bouncing back
D. It is easier to add a node without disrupting the network

10. Which of the following internet services is NOT appropriate for learners to use at school?
A. Email
B. Social networks
C. E-learning
D. Researching

11. A computer system allows a user can verify her email password during sign-up process by:
A. Entering it twice
B. Hiding the characters when typing the password
C. Forcing a user to enter a password with at least 8 characters
D. Keeping the password secret

12. Which of the following is less likely to be shared by users logged on to a network at the same
time but in di erent locations?
A. Printer
B. Data stored on a server
C. Mouse
D. So ware on a server

13. Which of the following is the odd one?

A. Search engine
B. Web browser
C. Driver
D. Switch

14. A peer-to-peer network is……

O. A network without a server
P. A network without a client
Q. A network without a node
R. A network without a modem

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15. A private organisation’s network restricted to sta members while using internet technologies is
called _______________
A. Local Area network
B. A Wide Area network
C. An intranet
D. An extranet

Structured questions
1. Explain the following terms, giving examples where appropriate:
a. Modem
b. Internet
c. Intranet
d. Extranet
e. Network
f. LAN
g. Hacking
h. Data encryption
i. Email
j. E-learning [20]

2. Nyorai Pvt (LTD) uses e-mail facility to communicate with its o cers in di erent parts of the
country using WAN as well as o cers in the same building using a LAN.
a. What does WAN and LAN stand for? [2]
b. State two communication media which can be used on a WAN [2]
c. Outline two advantages to the organisation of using e-mail over conventional postal system.
[2]
d. Explain the use of a mail box in an e-mail system [2]
e. Explain why is a password is necessary in e-mail communication [2]
f. In order to access the email system, a modem is needed. Explain the use of the modem in
this situation [2]

3. Mrs Muswere wants to buy a car from Japan through the internet.
a. State any one service that is provided by the internet that will allow her to buy the car from
japan without leaving Zimbabwe [1]
b. Give three reasons why Mrs Muswere chose to use this service other than travelling to Japan.
[3]
c. State 2 risks that she might encounter when using this service [2]
d. State one item of so ware she would use to nd the car she want to buy from the internet.[1]
e. State one item of so ware that she needs to open web pages on the internet [1]

4. Mutambwi High School has a Local Area Network (LAN) which is used by its learners. Learners
login on a workstation and use so ware such as word processors and Spreadsheets. ey can also
receive and send electronic mail via an Internet Service Provider. e LAN is a star network
a. Explain terms LAN and workstation [4]

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 b. Using an example, explain the term internet Service provider [2]
c. Draw a labelled diagram of the star network. [4]
d. Give one advantage and one disadvantage of a star network over a ring network. [2]

5. a. Computer devices can be connected together to form networks. Give two advantages a net
work has over stand-alone computers [2]
b. LAN and WAN are two di erent types of networks. What does LAN and WAN stand for?
[2]
c. Give the main di erence between a LAN and a WAN [2]
d. Networks create security concerns because of the increased number of users sharing the
system. Give three ways of making a network more secure. [3]
e. Name one item of hardware that is required to connect a computer to a LAN [1]
f. Name one item of so ware and one item of so ware that are required to connect a computer
to a WAN [2]

6. Munyikwa High School has received a donation of computers which they later connected to the
Local Area Network. e school authorities are intending to connect the computers to the inter-
net. e internet would be used by learners for researches, communication and for e-learning
purposes
a. Suggest any two hardware items that they school should buy in order to connect their LAN
to the internet and explain their use. [4]
b. Suggest any two forms of communication that will be available form learners on the internet
[2]
c. State any 2 dangers that the learners would be exposed to while they are using the internet.
[2]
d. Suggest how the school would be able to protect the learners from each of these dangers, be
sides constant supervision [2]
e. e computers on the network can also be attacked by viruses. State any two precautions
against viruses at this school. [2]
f. Give 3 advantages of using the internet as a source of information for the learners.[3]

7. a. Explain any three uses of the internet [3]

b. e IT manager o en changes her password to log onto the internet.
c. Give one reason why the teacher should change her password regularly. [1]
d. When changing the password, the IT manager is required to type it in twice before the
computer accepts the new password. State the reason why she has to type the new password
twice [1]
e. e system also asks her type the current password rst. State why the system would ask her
the current password before changing it. [1]
f. State any 3 examples of social media that are available on the internet [3]

8. E-learning is becoming very popular in most schools.

a. Explain the term e-learning [2]
b. State 4 advantages of e-learning to the learners [4]

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 c. Give 2 disadvantages of e-learning for the learners [2]

9. a. Explain the term e-commerce. [2]

b. State 3 bene ts that business owners may realise by adopting e-commerce [3]
c. Give 2 disadvantages of e-commerce to business owners [2]
d. Outline 3 e ects of e-commerce to the society [3]

10. Explain the following terms:

a. Computer fraud
b. Hacking
c. Phishing
d. Pharming
e. Spam
f. Virus

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 CHAPTER FIVE

SECURITY AND ETHICS

Objectives
Learners should be able to:
• Outline the characteristics of cyber culture and its impact
• Describe the characteristics of safe and unsafe sites
• Suggest e ects of online content and behavior
• explain the importance of copyrights
• Describe consequences of plagiarism and piracy

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Introduction
In this chapter we look at the importance of safe and responsible use of the internet. Leaners are
also empowered with knowledge and skills in handling online content. e chapter also focuses on
the importance of copyrights in protecting authors’ works, and the copyright laws of Zimbabwe. e
chapter closes with a discussion on the concept of plagiarism and its e ects to the society.

Cyber wellness
Refers to the positive wellbeing of internet users. It involves an understanding of the risks and dangers
associated with online behavior both to self and the community around. Cyber wellness is focused to
help users to be responsible internet users. It helps users to respect self and others. In schools cyber
wellness is taught with an aim to encourage students to harness the power of ICT for positive purposes
and to make students safe and responsible users of the internet. e use of the internet is faced with
many threats such as summarized in the diagram below.

Cyber-Bullying

Daners of Game
Online Addiction
Socialisation Cyber
Wellness

Internet Invasion of
Viruses Privacy

Fig 1 : Cyber wellness threats

Cyber wellness principals

To be a responsible user of the internet means following some of the basic principles of cyber wellness
which are:
• Respect for self and others
• Exercise self-dignity when online, through sharing good content and participating in accept-
able online activities and respect other online users
• Safe and responsible use
• Being knowledgeable of the harmful and illegal activities, take steps to protect self.
• Positive peer in uence
• Being a positive role model online. Encourage and in uence other users to practice positive
online habits

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 Fig 2: Cyber Wellness Principals

Cyber and the social media

e need for cyber wellness awareness is on the rise. is has been necessitated by the fast
development in social media and communication technologies, such as mobile technology and web
based applications. is has prompted a rise in the creation of social platforms. On these platforms
individuals and organisations share, develop and modify information. Cyber wellness becomes a very
important subject in such a hyper connected society. e rise in new internet crimes such as cyber
bullying, the and piracy have made users especially youth very vulnerable. Social networks connect
a user’s pro le to other users allowing sharing of resources and allowing abuse through harassment,
threats and any other forms of media bullying. Examples of social media include:
Facebook: It allows users to create their pro les and share photos, videos, and text with other
users.
Twitter: Allows uses to post “tweets” for their followers to see updates in real time.
LinkedIn: Provides a platform for business community. Users create pro les, post C.Vs and
communicate with other job seekers.
WhatsApp: Users create accounts and interact using the internet. ey can make voice calls,
send text messages, documents, images, videos and audio les
Skype: users create pro les and communicate through video and voice calls it also allows video
conferencing

118
 Fig 3: Social Media
Advantages of social media
• Connectivity: people from di erent locations and backgrounds can connect in just a click
allowing uses to learn and share ideas
• Education: helpful to leaners and educators through access to information from experts
and educational sites
• Help: provides a platform for those who need online help for example xing a car or
assembling devices
• Information update: current information is always available and ready for the use
• Advertisement: business people can advertise their businesses online and to the whole
world
• Charity work: social platforms and sites makes available sites and information on charity
seekers and donors

Disadvantages of social media

• Cyber bullying: this is when the media is used to harass, threaten or embarrass other
users
• Hacking: the media can also be used to gain access to unauthorized information.
• Addiction: this is when users spent so much time on the internet and are eventually cut
o the society. Most of their time is spent away from the social world.
• Fraud: use of the social media to steal or unlawfully swindle money or any other
resources from an organisation or individual.
• Destruction of reputation: publishing of false stories on the media can result in some
peoples’ names and reputation destroyed.

Cyber use
Expresses how computer users interact on the cyber space. Cyber use which in other words refers to the
use of the internet could be through activities, games, social media or any other base of applications.
e behavior of the user on the internet is of great importance .It determines if one is a good or bad
user, safe or unsafe user. e internet has been termed by some “a lawless jungle “due to the rise of
dangers it poses to its users. e internet provides resources for research, online games for leisure and
entertainment, chartrooms for making new friends on cyber space. e more users spent time on the
internet the more they are exposed to cyber dangers such as addiction. It is very important to teach

119
users how to make good online decisions and learn to surf the internet safely and moderately. Use of
the internet can leave the user enslaved or empowered. Fig 4 show some of the activities which can be
done on the internet.

Instant
Messaging
Uploading Chat
Videos Rooms

Sharing Social
Files Online Networks

Gaming Internet
Surfing
Mobile
Phones

Fig 4:Online Activities

Cyber culture
Also called computer culture is described as a way of doing things on a computer and the internet for
communication, entertainment and business. e forms of communication include online gaming,
social media, mobile apps, texting and others. e Internet in uences what and how its users learn,
the vocabulary employed in daily conversation, the way people coordinate their schedules and work
habits, and perceptions of distance and time. e fact that the internet hides user identity has allowed
a culture of mischief in which individuals may indulge in social behaviors online that are unacceptable
in the ordinary world, perhaps even illegal such as:
• Creating and distributing of pornographic materials
• Cyber terrorism which includes cracking ,hacking,blackmailing,or destroying data for an
organization, business or individual
• Cyberbullying or cyber stalking ,this is when the internet is used to harass other users for
example using pictures or videos to make fun of another user, posting abusive posts on a
user’s wall and posting negative comments on pictures.
• Creating malware writing or distributing malware for example viruses
• spying on a person or business
• using the computer to commit fraudulent activities such as manipulating details of a client’s
bank account

Handling online content and behavior

e internet is a great place, full of wonderful information, but it is also full of many dangers. A very
large part of our lives is probably spend sur ng the net . e increasingly social networking sites,
instant messaging programs, and chat rooms are just a few potentially dangerous applications we use

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 • Questions are very simple to answer.
• It saves time as questionnaires can be distributes and then collected later.
• Respondents can ll questionnaires at their own pace.
• Give guarantees con dential of information, thereby encouraging respondents to give
accurate information.
• ey are cheap to use as travel expense can be low

Disadvantages
• Questions must be well thought out and precise.
• Some questions are le blank.
• Some questionnaires may not be returned. Biased information can be collected.
• Respondents usually do not ll the correct information.
• It is di cult to analyse information collect using questionnaires.
• ey are expensive to use if the postal system is used.
• Abusive information can be lled by respondents.

Observation
To get a better understanding of a user in their current work environment, the analyst may observe
the user themselves or view the actual system in operation. User observation is helpful in assisting the
analyst by getting a full grasp of how the user interacts with the system. Observation can be passive
or active. In passive observation, the analysts does not interact with the user while they are working.
ey simply observe and take notes. While in active observation, the consultant will ask the user
questions during the session.

Advantages
• First-hand information is collected.
• May identify problems that the users did not see
• Accurate and reliable information can be obtained.
• Only areas of interest can be observed.
• e researcher can take part in operating the system thereby getting insight on how the
system operates.

Disadvantages
• Inaccurate information can be collected as people may pretend when they are being
observed. Some sers may become nervous, and not perform as they normally would.
• e researcher may not understand some of the activities being observed.
• It is time consuming to collect the required information.
• e researcher may interrupt some of the activities being done.
• More expensive than other methods
• It may still be di cult to capture enough information in one session. ere is need to for
many
• sessions to verify information.
• Analysts may be biased in what they expected to see, and what they actually observed.

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Activity 6.4
1. Learners in groups, design and produce at least two data collection tools for the area
selected in activity
2. Learners collect data using one of the data collection tools they produced.
3. Learners have a class discussion on how e ective the data collection tools were in nding
data from the users.

Activity 6.5
Suppose in a bank all customers loan application forms are processed manually. e bank
is having many new customers every year. So, the number of customers in the bank has in-
creased. Manual processing of loan application forms is becoming very di cult. e man-
agement is considering the option of computerising the loan processing system. e systems
analyst would need to investigate the existing system.
Find the limitations of the manual loan application system.
How would computerisation of the loan application help the bank?

Interesting Facts
1. ere are many System Development Life Cycle Models such as Waterfall model, V shaped
model, Evolutionary Prototyping model and Spiral Method that can be used to develop new
systems.
2. Large systems may take several months or even years to complete.

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Summary
• Computerised systems may be introduced for a number of reasons such as improved service,
better performance, competition, reduced costs and changes in technology.
• e systems analyst is a very important person in the development of new systems.
• e stages of the systems development life cycle are problem identi cation, feasibility study,
system analysis, system design, system development and testing, implementation and evalua-
tion and maintenance.
• Information to develop a new system may come from users, top management, government `
regulations etc.
• Major activities under the problem identi cation stage are understanding the problem,
understanding he project scope and constraints, carry out fact nding and estimate project
development time and the costs.
• e methods of data collection are interview, questionnaire, record sampling and observa-
tion,

Glossary of Terms
System :A collection of parts that work together to achieve a certain goal.
System Development Life Cycle:System Development Life Cycle refers to the stages in their order
that can be taken to develop a system from start to nish.
Systems analyst: A system analysts is a person who helps in identifying problems of existing systems,
designs and develops solutions to problems of theexisting system.

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Multiple Choice questions

1. e following are stages of the systems development life cycle except ______
A. maintenance and evaluation
B. feasibility study
C. system analysis
D. system scope and constraints

2. Which of the following is a job carried out by a systems analyst?

A. producing a program speci cation
B. carries out feasibility study
C. writing the program code
D. testing the program

3. A system is a collection of components that work together to accomplish a _____

A. goal
B. stage
C. process
D. project

4. e sources of system projects may come from di erent areas except_______

A. system users
B. system programmers
C. system management
D. system competitors

5. e preliminary investigation is also referred to as _______

A. feasibility phase
B. planning phase
C. design phase
D. analysis phase

6. Most system users are unhappy about using manual systems. One reason is______
A. More information is produced
B. ere is improved service delivery
C. ere is lack of system security
D. e system has better performance

7. e following is an advantage of carrying out an interview:

A. It is expensive since it involves travelling
B. e respondent may give biased information
C. Di cult to remain anonymous
D. First-hand information is collected

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8. Which of the following is NOT involved in identifying system problems?
A. system programmers
B. system users
C. system management
D. ksystem management

9. To get a better understanding of a user in their current work environment, the systems analyst
uses _________
A. interview
B. record sampling
C. observation
D. questionnaire

10. A er the preliminary investigation, the system analyst may recommend the following except
____
A. leave the system as it is
B. hire new system management
C. improve the current system
D. develop a new system

Structured Questions

1. De ne the following terms:

i. system
ii. system development life cycle. [2]
iii. List in order the stages of the system development life cycle. [7]

2. a. State and explain any three reasons that will motivate an organisation to develop a new com-
puterised system. [6]
b. You have been promoted to the position of a systems analyst in a local insurance company.
Outline your ve principal duties in the insurance company [5]

3. a. Give one reason why the systems analyst must correctly identify the problems
b. of the current system. [1]
c. State any two activities performed under problem identi cation. [2]
d. Name any three groups of people who are involved in identifying the problems in the system.
[3]
e. Give two reasons why system users are important in the development of the system. [2]

4. a. Give any two names that refers to preliminary investigation. [2]

b. A er the preliminary investigation is carried out, the systems analyst will give three
recommendations to the management. One of the recommendation is to improve. e
existing system. Give the other two possible recommendations. [2]

154
5. Give two advantages and two disadvantages of the following data collection methods:
a. Interview
b. Questionnaire
c. Record sampling
d. Observation [8]

155
 CHAPTER SEVEN

ALGORITHM DESIGN AND

PROBLEM SOLVING

Objectives
Learners should be able to:
• De ne an algorithm
• Give examples of algorithms
• Explain the purpose of algorithms
• Explain the sequence control structure
• Apply the sequence control structure
• Interpret sequence control structure
• Solve problems using a sequence control structure
• Dry run algorithms that employ sequence control structure

156
Introduction
In our daily activities we nd problems that needs to be solved and tasks that need to be performed.
What is important is how we solve the problem and the steps that we follow when performing such
task. We normally sit down and plan on how to perform tasks at hand. Computer based problems
also need planning and need clearly laid down steps to be followed. is chapter shall look at basic
algorithm tools that are used to solve computer based problems. Learners will be presented with
problems and they should be able to design the step followed in solving the problems at hand. is
chapter should be a foundation for those who would want to take programming as a career.

What is an Algorithm?
It is a sequence of well-de ned steps that are followed when solving a particular problem, for example
nding the shortest route between Bulawayo and Mutare. It is a step by step procedure of solving a
speci ed problem. An algorithm can be created to sort a list of student names in alphabetic order. A
good algorithm should be:
• Well-ordered and thus easy to follow
• Should have a nite number of statements
• It should not tolerate any form of ambiguity (statements with more than one meaning)

A recipe is a very good example of an algorithm. Before writing an algorithm, one must rst of all
understand the problem that needs to be solved, otherwise you solution might not solve the problem
at hand and you will not get payment if you are a hired programmer.

Activity 7.1
Group work –Writing algorithm to prepare a favourite dish or food
In groups, write an algorithm to prepare your favourite food, e.g. sadza, and present to the class for
discussion.

Algorithms are not necessarily written in any programming language but can be in form of Descriptions,
pseudocode, owcharts, structure diagrams or even the actual program code.

Purpose of an algorithm
Algorithms are used to express the structure of a program before it is coded. It is used to make a dra
of a program and to present the logic of a program before coding. Algorithms can be run using a trace
table/dry run table in order to determine the logic of a program.

Characteristics of an algorithm
• Finiteness – the algorithm should stop at a certain point when the instructions are executed.
• Input –It should also have a nite number of inputs, if they exist.
• Output – the algorithm should produce some form of output.
• Should be precise on what is supposed to be done and thus no ambiguity. Statements in it must
only have one meaning.
• Should have a termination point

157
 Advantages of algorithms
• It is independent of any programming language thereby exible to write
• easy to convert to a program code or owchart
• easy to determine logic errors
• has nite steps which lead to a solution

Disadvantages
• time consuming to design, for example, rst converting to owchart, then to program code
• most people nd them di cult to learn

Control structures/Flow control/Programming Constructs

Each computer program is made up of several instructions which are executed individually by the
computer. Control structures, also called programming constructs, de ne the order in which these
instructions are executed. e basic control structures are:
• Sequence,
• Selection and
• Iteration (looping/repetition).
is chapter will concentrate on the sequence structure only.

Sequence/Linear Structure
is is a control structure in which instructions are executed one a er the other in the order given,
without skipping or repeating any one of them.
e general form of a linear structure is as shown below:

Fig. 7.1 Sequence Structure

Statement 1 will be executed, followed, by statement 2 and lastly statement 3. Each instruction is run
only once.
For example, the following program accepts 2 numbers entered through the keyboard, adds them
and display the total on the screen

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 1. Total = 0
2. Enter rst number, rst
3. Enter second number, second
4. Total = rst + second
5. Display Total
6. End

When running the above program, the computer will rst execute instruction 1, followed by instruction
2, then instruction 3, instruction 4 and lastly instruction 5, in the order given in the program. Like
what have been said earlier, no instruction is skipped or repeated. Each instruction is executed once
and only once.
It can be realised that the program above has 4 main sections; namely
• Initialisation stage: Line 1: Total =0
• Initialising involves giving starting values to variables. is is done to clear memory of the
computer so that correct values will be calculated.
• NB: Only those variables whose values are to be calculated are initialised.
• Input of values: Line 2 and Line 3
• is is whereby data is entered in the computer through the keyboard
• Processing: Line 4: Total = rst + second
• is is whereby calculations are performed on data entered.
• Output: Line 5: is involves displaying of calculated values on the screen
• A program should have most if not all of the above sections.

Advantages of linear structure

• is structure is very simple to follow
• It does not have any confusion.
• It is not complicated and therefore ideal for very short programs.
However, real-life programs do not always follow a linear structure.

Algorithm Tools
e basic tools that are used in writing algorithms are:
• Descriptions
• Pseudocodes
• Flowcharts
• Structure diagrams

Description
ese are general statements that are followed in order to complete a speci c task. ey are not
governed by any programming language. An example:
Using description, write a program that accept student marks entered through the keyboard for the
following subjects, Shona, Ndebele, Computers and English. e program then calculates the average
mark and displays the average mark on the screen.
e result will be as follows:
Enter student marks, for Shona, Ndebele, Computers and English

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 Calculate the Average of the marks
Print the Average Mark
End the program.

Pseudocode
A pseudocode is a set of English-like statements, closer to programming language that indicates
steps followed in performing a speci c task. Pseudocodes are however independent of any
programming language. For example:
Using pseudocode, write a program that accept student marks entered through the keyboard for
the following subjects, Shona, Ndebele, Computers and English. e program then calculates the
average mark and displays the average mark on the screen.

e answer will be as follows:

SUM, AVERAGE = 0 (SUM and AVERAGE have values 0. is can also be written in separate
lines)
INPUT Student Mark obtained in Shona, S
INPUT Student Mark obtained in Ndebele, N
INPUT Student Mark obtained in Computers, C
INPUT Student Mark obtained in English, E
SUM = S + N +C + E
AVERAGE = SUM/4
PRINT AVERAGE
End

From the program above, INPUT tells us that the user must enter a value required in that statement.
INPUT can also be replaced by ENTER.
On the other hand, S, N, C, E, AVERAGE and SUM are called variables. A variable is a named memory
location that will store a value when the program is running. In this instance, S will store the Shona
mark, N will store the Ndebele mark, C will store the Computers mark and E will store the English
mark.

Valid variables should:

• Be one word
• Start with an alphabetic character
• Should be meaningful

More on variables will be covered in the next chapter.

e statement SUM = S + N +C + E means that, SUM is a memory location which will store that value
obtained a er adding values in memory locations S, N, C and E. e computer will search the stated
memory locations and take the values stored there for computations.
Likewise, AVERAGE = SUM/4, means that the computer will take the value stored in memory location
SUM and then divide it by 4. e answer will be stored in memory location called AVERAGE.

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 is implies that one needs to specify memory locations for values and use those memory locations
when carrying out computations.
PRINT (or DISPLAY) allows a value or data to be displayed on the screen. So, the statement, PRINT
AVERAGE, means that the computer will look for the value in memory location AVERAGE and
display it on the screen.
If the value of AVERAGE = 20 then:
PRINT AVERAGE will display 20 on the screen.
However, PRINT “AVERAGE”, in quotes, will display the word AVERAGE on the screen. is is so
because everything in quotes is displayed as it is in the quotes, even if it has wrong spellings.
e END statement tells the computer that the program should stop running.

Because this is a pseudocode, no one is penalised for any grammar used, as long as it is easy and clear
what needs to be done by each statement.

Advantages of pseudocode
• ey are not written in any programming language and therefore easy to understand.
• It is easier to develop a program from pseudocode than a owchart
• It is very easy to convert a pseudocode into any programming language
• Pseudocodes are usually very short in their codes

Disadvantages of pseudocodes
• ey waste programming time since they need to be converted to an actual program code
later on.
• One needs to be good in writing pseudocodes so that actual programming becomes easy.

Activity 7.2 Designing Pseudocodes; pair work

Write a pseudocode of a program that accepts 3 temperatures of a patient and calculate and
display the average temperature

Flowcharts
A owchart is a diagram used to show the sequence in which instructions are executed in a program.
Flowcharts are drawn using speci c symbols, each with its own meaning, as given below:

Shape Symbol Name Explanation

Terminal is is oval in shape. It indicates where the program
(Start/Stop) starts or stops. One can also write either Start/Begin/
Stop/End as alternative words inside the symbol.
Flow lines An arrow that shows directional ow, or the next
instructions to be executed from a given point. Arrows
are used

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 Input /output is is a parallelogram shaped symbol, indicating
where data is being entered into the computer or
output from the computer, either as a screen display or
printout.
Process Symbol is is a rectangular shape which indicates where
some form of processing occur, for example where
there is a formula to be applied, like addition,
subtraction, etc.
Decision/ is represents where selection is to be done. It is
Condition used where a condition is, especially in repetition and
selection structures. Mostly used where comparisons
are done and it should evaluate to either true or false.
Pre-de ned Indicates a module/subprogram/procedure inside a
process main program. is subprogram may also have its own
separate owchart.
Connector Circular in shape. is denotes the start or end of a
subroutine/module/procedure. Nothing should be
written inside it.

Table 7.1 Flowcharts Symbols and their Meaning

Example
Write a owchart of a program that accept student marks entered through the keyboard for the
following subjects, Shona, Ndebele, Computers and English. e program then calculates the average
mark and displays the average mark on the screen.
e result will be as follows:
SUM= 0 ( is an assignment statement so it use a process symbol)
AVERAGE = 0 (Process symbol)
INPUT Student Mark obtained in Shona, S (input statement so we use Input/output symbol)
INPUT Student Mark obtained in Ndebele, N (Input/output symbol)
INPUT Student Mark obtained in Computers, C (Input/output symbol)
INPUT Student Mark obtained in English, E (Input/output symbol)
SUM = S + N +C + E (processing statement so we use process symbol)
AVERAGE = SUM/4 (processing statement so we use process symbol)
PRINT AVERAGE (output statement so we use Input/output symbol)
End (terminal symbol)

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 e resultant owchart will be as follows:
Start

SUM = 0

AVERAGE = 0

Input Shona Mark, S

Input Ndebele Mark, N

Input Computers Mark, C

Input English Mark, E

Sum = S+N+C+E

Average = Sum / 4

Print Average

Fig 7.2: Flowchart Stop

Activity 7.3 Designing Flowchart in pairs

Design a owchart of a program that accepts temperature in degrees Fahrenheit and converts it to
degrees Celsius and display the result. Use the formula:
Degree Celsius = (Degree Fahrenheit – 32)*5/9

Structure Diagram
It is a diagram that show relationships between di erent modules in a hierarchical order as given
below.

Fig 7.3: Structure Diagram

e structure diagram above indicates ve sub-programs (modules/procedures) found in the program

called Addition Program. e sub-programs are Initialise, Enter Values, Add Values, Display Result
and Exit Program.

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Can you write pseudocode for the diagram above?

Interpreting and testing algorithms

An algorithm must be tested to determine if it gives expected results before coding on the computer.
is is done by dry running the algorithm on a piece of paper.
Dry running (desk checking) is a process of manually testing the logic of a program on paper before
coding on the computer. Dry running is done to determine the logic of a program (to check if it gives
intended results.)
If the algorithm does not give expected results, debugging is then carried out. Debugging is a process
of nding and correcting errors in a program. Errors in a program are called bugs. Programs used to
nd and remove of errors in a program are called debuggers.

Dry running is done using a trace table (dry run table). Dry running is carried out as follows:
• Study the algorithm carefully and understand its task
• Identify all variables in the algorithm
• On paper, draw a table with each variable representing its own column
• Go through each instruction in turn, entering values in the rows below the corresponding
variable. Each change in value must be recorded. A set of all possible test data must be used
• Trace each instruction, even loops until the end of the program, recording each change.
• e last row in each column is the nal value of that variable.

Example of a dry run Question

Using a trace table, dry run the following program using the values 45, 78, 23, 89, 94
1. SUM=0
2. AVERAGE = 0
3. INPUT Student Mark obtained in Shona, S
4. INPUT Student Mark obtained in Ndebele, N
5. INPUT Student Mark obtained in Computers, C
6. INPUT Student Mark obtained in English, E
7. SUM = S + N +C + E
8. AVERAGE = SUM/4
9. PRINT AVERAGE
10. End

Analysis of the algorithm and data to be used

e program has 6 variables, namely: S, N, C, E, SUM and AVERAGE. Each will have its own
column. A seventh column for output may be optional. We are not sure of the number of rows.
S N C E SUM AVERAGE OUTPUT
0 0
45 78 23 89 235 58.75 58.75
Table 7.2 Trace table

Read each statement line by line, inputting values in the table above under the correct column. us:

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Line 1: SUM is assigned the value 0, so we write 0 under SUM
Line 2: AVERAGE is also assigned to 0, so we write 0 under AVERAGE.
Line 3: Requires one to input the mark for Shona. 45 is the rst values in our data so it automatically
becomes the mark for Shona and it will be stored in memory location S. So we write 45 under column
S.
Line 4: 78 becomes the mark for Ndebele, stored in memory location N. We write it under N.
Line 5: 23 becomes the mark for Computers and will be stored in memory location C. We write it
under C
Line 6: 89 becomes the mark for English and will be stored in memory location E. We therefore write
it under E.
ere is no more any other input statement, therefore 94 will not be entered in this program. ere is
nowhere to write it so it is le out.
Line 7: SUM is obtained by adding data in memory locations S, N, C and E, that is 45 + 78 + 23 + 89
= 235. So we write 235 under SUM
Line 8: AVERAGE is obtained by dividing SUM by 4, this becomes
235/4=58.75. So we write 58.75 under AVERAGE
Line 9: e average is printed on the screen. us the computer displays 58.75, the output
Line 10: Ends or stops the program

Types of Test Data

Test data are all possible values that can used to test the correctness of data that will be used when
program development has been completed. For example, if a program is to capture all student marks
a er tests written (which will be out of 100), then we need to test if it will only accept values from 0
to 100. An algorithm can be tested with di erent types of test data, which are extreme data, standard
data and abnormal data.

i. Extreme Data (boundary data/border line data)

is refers to the minimum or the maximum acceptable values in a given range. For example,
student marks to be entered on a school report can range from 0 to 100 inclusive. In this case, 0
and 100 are extreme data and the computer must accept these.
ii. Standard Data:
is refers to data that lies within (in-between) extreme data in a given range. In our example
above, the values from 1 to 99 are standard data and must be accepted by the computer.

iii. Abnormal Data: is refers to data outside a given range. e values -1, -50 and all values
from 101 and above are abnormal data. e computer system must generate an error message and
reject abnormal data if it is entered.

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Interesting Facts
1. e rst computer programmer was a woman, Ada Lovelace of Britain.
2. Most programmer started programming games as teenagers, e.g. Steve Jobs
3. Most people have a phobia of programming, but they get much better with practice

Summary
• An algorithm is a step-by-step way of performing a task, like cooking sadza
• Algorithms are independent of any programming language
• Algorithms can be presented using pseudocode, structure diagrams, descriptions and ow-
charts
• A program can be tested using the following test data: standard, extreme and abnormal data
• Dry running involves manually testing output of the program on paper. It is used to test the
logic of the program

Glossary of terms

Algorithm: A step-by-step procedure of solving a given problem. e steps are not governed by any
programming language rules
Dry running: Testing output of a program by running it manually on paper, writing done the results.
Flowchart: A diagram with shapes that are connected with arrows illustrating the step for solving a
given problem
Logic errors: ese are errors that cause a program to output wrong or unexpected results, normal
due to wrong formulas or wrong sequencing of instructions.
Problem: A challenge presented to programmers for them to solve.
Program: A set of detailed and nite instructions, written in computer language, that tell a computer
what do
Programmer: A person who is skilled in designing, coding and testing computer programs.
Programming language: Formal codes, commands and rules that are used when writing computer
programs, e.g. Visual Basic 2010.
Pseudocode: An algorithmic tool that express a solution to a problem using simple English like
statements that are closer to programming language. Variable: A name given to a memory location
that will store values which many change during the running of a program.

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Revision Exercises
Multiple Choice Questions
1. An error in a program is called_______________
A. Bug
B. Debugger
C. Virus
D. Dry run

2. A table which shows the results of manually executed program instructions is ____________
A. Results table
B. Trace table
C. Instructions Table
D. Formulated table

3. A error which causes cause a program to perform unintended operations is called__________

A. Syntax error
B. Logic Errors
C. Runtime Error
D. Type mismatch error

4. A diamond shaped symbol in owcharts indicates a _________

A. Decision
B. Process
C. Input / Output
D. Terminal

5. Data which is used to test each feature of a program for correctness is called__________
A. Taste Data
B. Standard Data
C. Test Data
D. Input Data

6. __________ refers to an algorithm structure in which instructions are executed only once and
strictly in their order given.
A. Repetition
B. Selection
C. Recursion
D. Sequence

7. Which of the following is out of place?

A. Standard Data
B. Abnormal Data
C. Extreme Data
D. Processed Data

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8. When owchart direction are not clear, the programmer can use_________
A. Vertical Lines
B. Arrows
C. Lines
D. Horizontal Lines

9. Which of the following is NOT a method of ow control?

A. Selection
B. Iteration
C. Sequence
D. Decision

10. Which of the following best describes an algorithm?

A. So ware used for analysing data
B. Programs that are used for analysing data
C. Step-by-step procedure of performing a task
D. Hardware used to store data

11. What is a variable?

A. Data stored in the computer and that can be changed
B. Names that can be changed when the program is running
C. Memory locations that store data that can change during program execution
D. Name of procedures and their functions

12. Which owchart symbol represents a formula?

A. Rectangle
B. Diamond
C. Oval
D. Circle

13. State the output of the following algorithm using the following data: 4 and 2.
Input First Number, First
Input Second Number, Second
Product=First * Second
Print “Product”
End
A. 6
B. 8
C. 2
D. Product

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 14. Which control structure is represented by the following diagram?

A. Linear
B. Selection
C. Iteration
D. Recursion

14. Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A. Variables cannot be used in algorithms
B. Programmers do not need to learn any programming language
C. Algorithms do not include pseudocodes
D. Flowchart is an example of an algorithmic tool

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Structured Questions
1. Explain the following terms, giving examples where appropriate:
a. Program
b. Algorithm
c. Pseudocode
d. Flowchart
e. Extreme data
f. Variable
g. Dry running [14]

2. Study the following algorithm carefully and answer the questions that follow:
Result = 0
First=20
Second = 2
Result = First ^ Second
Display “ e answer is ”, Result

a. Result is initialised to zero. State the reason for this? [1]

b. What is the Output of this program [3]
c. State the variables found in this program [3]

3. a. Write a program using pseudocode, that will accept 3 integers and then multiply them, then
add them and display the results on the screen [7]
b. Write a corresponding owchart for the above program [7]

4. Write a program that calculates the area of any given rectangle. [5]

5. Write a program that calculates the area and perimeter of a triangle [7]

6. a. De ne the term algorithm. [2]

b. State and explain any 3 forms in which algorithms can be expressed [6]
c. Outline any 3 characteristics of a good algorithm [3]

7. A student at Muchekayaora High School designed a program that captures the ages of students at
the school. e program only accepts ages from 15 to 18 years. He then decides to test the pro-
gram using some test data.
Using examples from this situation, state and explain the types of test data that he can use to
make sure that the program accepts correct ages. [9]

8. Using a trace table, dry run the following algorithm using the following data:

Toyota Camry, $1 500.00, 0.8

VatAmount, FinalPrice = 0
Input “Product Name”, ProdName

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 Database DATABASE
A database is a collection of related les, for
example, College database, church database FILE
etc.
RECORD

FIELD

BYTE

BIT

Fig 9.1 Database hierarchy

Flat le database
A at le database is a database that contains only one table. All the data is stored in one table. A at
le has disadvantage of e ciency, space required, and maintenance time.

Fig 9.2 A at le database

A relational database
A relational database is a database that contains two or more related tables. e information is divided
into many tables and each information will appear just once in its own table. e advantage is that data
maintenance becomes easier and the information occupies little space.
e table in g 9.2 has been split into two tables as shown in g 9.3 and g 9.4 below

200
 Fig 9.3 PatientsDetails table

Fig 9.4 WardDetails table

Relational databases Flat les

Less duplication of data as data does not Too much duplication of data since every
need to be in every table table repeats data
O er greater data integrity as there is No data integrity is guaranteed due to too
little chance of getting duplicate of data much duplication of data
Allows le sharing among users since Data not available everywhere as there is no
data is available to all users of the sys- sharing of les
tem as there are no problems of so ware
incompatibility.
Creates di erent user views within the No di erent user views are created
DBMS
Easy to access data from di erent table Di cult to access data from di erent les as
due to relationships between the tables the les are not linked

201
 Retrieval of records from di erent les is Retrieval of records from di erent les is
faster slower
Better security of records is enhanced Less security of data from unauthorised
access
ere is centralised management of data No central data management, di cult to
which is more e cient manage and less security

Table 9.1 Comparison between Flat les and relational databases

Databases Management Systems (DBMS)

Databases may be stored on a computer and retrieved using a program. ese programs are called
database management systems (DBMS).
DBMS is so ware used to create and maintain the database. Examples of DBMS are Microso Access,
MySQL, Oracle, Database IV. Lotus Approach etc.
e DBMS maintains the database by adding new records, deleting unwanted records or amending
records.

Other functions of the DBMS are as follows:

• It allocates storage of data.
• It provides interface between the database and the application programs.
• It provides security to the databases using usernames and passwords.
• It allows a number of users to access the database concurrently.
• Allows a method for recovering the database in the event that the database is damaged.
• Allows users the ability to store, retrieve and update data in the database.
• Allows the creation of the data dictionary in which descriptions of data items are stored.
• Allows a mechanism to ensure that both the data in the database and changes to the data
follow certain rules.

Activity 9.2
Research on the internet and write three examples and three functions of a DBMS.

Databases Administrator (DBA)

e DBA is a very important person who has the following duties:
• Designs and creates the database.
• Monitors the performance of the database for any problem e.g. a particular report taking
an unacceptably long time to produce.
• Informs the database users of changes in the database structure that will a ect them, for
example, additional elds added.
• Ensures that the database meets the needs of the organisation.
• Maintains the data dictionary for the database, and responsibility for establishing rules for
naming tables etc.
• Implements access rights for all users of the database; that is, specifying which items can

202
 be accessed and / or changed by each user.
• Allocates usernames and passwords to database users.
• Provides training to users on how to access and use the database.
• Maintain data consistency and security
• Provides back-up and recovery procedures in case the database fails.

Activity 9.3
Carry out a research on the internet on the required minimum quali cations and attributes of
a database administrator.

Database dictionary/Directory
e data dictionary contains the names and descriptions of every data element in the database. It also
contains descriptions of how data elements in the database relate to each other. e data dictionary
also ensures that data is stored in a uniform and consistent manner thereby eliminating redundancy.

Entity
A physical object like person, patient or event on which information or data is being collected.

Attribute
An individual data item within an entity e.g. date of birth, surname, rstname etc. It is a eld in a table.

Database creation
Electronic databases can be created using di erent application programs such as Oracle, Lotus
Approach, MySQL, Microso Access etc. Each electronic database that is created is stored as a
database le. A er the creation of the database le, tables with records and elds to hold data are
created. Queries, forms, reports, and other database elements can also be created. For the purpose of
illustrations Microso Access 2007 will be used

Database objects
A database is made up of the following important objects:
• Table
• Queries
• Forms
• Reports

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 Fig 9.5 Database objects

Creating a database le
Follow these steps to create a database.
1. Launch your Microso Access database so ware.
• Click on Blank Database icon.
• Under File name, enter the database name e.g. Students.
• Click Create button to create the database le.

Fig 9.6 Creating a database le

2. A new database is created. e database name, Students will appear on the title bar of the database
window.

204
 Fig 9.7 A newly created database le
Now you are ready to create a table to hold your data.

Introduction to tables
Tables are the foundation of any Microso Access database. Microso Access stores data in tables. A
table is a grid made up of a set of columns and rows that store information in a database. Each column
is called a eld. e number of attributes in a table is called degree.
e row is called a record. e number of rows/turples in a table is called cardinality. Within a table,
each eld must be given a name and no two elds can have the same name.
For example, a table may have elds ID Number, Lastname, FirstName, Sex, Form, City, DOB, Club,
YearEnrolled and Units as shown in Fig 9.8 below.
Table name

Record 1

Record 4

Field Field
FirstName DOB Field

Fig 9.8 Table structure

All of the data in a table should refer to the same subject. For example, all of the data in the

205
LearnersDetails table should refer to learners and the data in the Courses. erefore. Microso Access
database can be viewed as a collection of related tables.

Creating tables
Microso Access provides three ways to create a table for which there are icons in the Database
Window.

1
3

Fig 9.9 Database window

1. In the Database Window, click on the Create tab to create a table
2. Create a new blank table using datasheet view by clicking on Table. You can de ne the elds
directly in the new table

Fig 9.10 Database view

206
 3. Create a table using a table template by clicking on Table Templates. Access includes tem-
plates for common subjects, such as contacts, issues and tasks.

Fig 9.11 Contacts table templates

4. Creating a table using table design view by clicking on Table Design. You can add elds, de-
ne the elds data types and formats before adding data to the datasheet. e window is divided
into two parts: a top pane for entering the eld name, data type, and an option description of the
eld and a bottom pane for specifying eld properties.

Fig 9.12 Table design view with de ned eld names and data types

Tip: You can switch between Datasheet view and Design view by clicking the View button
beneath the O ce Button.

Create a table in datasheet view

A er you have created your database, the Database Window by default opens in Datasheet View as
shown in Fig 9.13 below.

207
 3
2

1
Fig 9.13 Datasheet view

To add eld to the table

1. Right-click the Add New Field column label. A menu appears.
2. Click Rename Column.
3. Type the eld name.
4. Press Enter. Access creates the eld.
5. Continue until you have created all of the elds in your table.

Tip: Use the Rename option at any time to rename any column. For example, you can
rename the ID column ID Number.

Activity 5
Find out another method of adding a eld to the table.

Naming and saving a table

A er creating a table, it must be saved.

208
 1
3

2
3
Fig 9.14 Saving a table

1. Click the Save button on the Quick Access toolbar. e Save As dialog box appears.
2. Type the name you want to give your table.
3. Click OK. Access names your table.

Tip: You can also click the O ce button and click Save As to save the table for the rst name
or to give it a new name.

Activity 6
Find out another method of saving a table in Access.

Create a table in design view

1
2

Fig 9.15 Activating table design

209
1. Click on Create tab.
2. Click Table Design in the Tables group. Access changes to Design view and the Table
Tools become available.

12
2
6

3 5 7

Fig 9.16 Table design

3. Type the rst eld name in the Field Name eld.

4. Press the Tab key.
5. Click the down-arrow that appears when you click in the Data Type eld and then select a
data type.
6. Click Primary Key if the column you created is a primary key. A small key appears next to
the eld name.
7. Press the Tab key.
8. Type a description. e description is optional.
9. Press the Tab key. Access moves to the Field Name eld.
10. Repeat steps 3 through 10 until you have created all of your elds.
11. Save your table.
12. Click on View button to switch to Datasheet view and see the newly created table. If you
want to make changes or corrections to the table, click the View button again to return to
Design view.
13. A primary key is a eld in a table that di erentiate a record from every other record in the
table. A national identity number is an example of a primary key whose value will only
appear once in the table. No two records can have the same primary key.

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Field Name
is is the name of the eld that should represent the contents of the eld such as “LastName”.

Data type
is is the type of data that can be entered in the elds.
Text- Text type allows any combination of letters and numbers up to a maximum of 255 charac-
ters per record.
• Memo- A text type that can store up to 65, 535 characters
• Number-Numeric data such as 20
• Date/Time-Stores a date or time
• Currency-Monetary values that include dollar sign ($), correct decimal and comma posi-
tions.
• AutoNumber- A unique integer created by Access automatically when a new record is creat-
ed. It can be useful if you want to know the number of records entered in the table.
• Yes/No-Used for True/False, Yes/No, On/O , or other values that must be only one of two.
Yes/No elds are displayed as check boxes by default on the datasheet.
• OLE Object- OLE stands for Object Linking and Embedding). An OLE is an image, docu-
ment (word document or Excel spreadsheet), graph, sound and other objects from O ce and
Windows-based programs.
• Hyperlink-You can store links to Web sites, les on an intranet or Local Area Network
(LAN), and sites or les on your computer. It can also link to another location in the data-
base.
• Attachment- is is new in Access 2007. You can attach images, spreadsheet les, documents,
charts, and other types of supported les to the records in your database, much like you at-
tach les to e-mail messages. You can also view and edit attached les.
• Lookup Wizard- is choice is not actually a data type but can be used to create lookup
elds. For example, you can have a Sex eld where instead of typing Female or Male on every
record, you can simply select Female or Male form a list. Indeed, this saves time and data
entry errors.

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Setting eld properties
Properties of each eld are set from the bottom pane of the Design view window.

2 2

Fig 9.17 Setting eld sizes

1. Click the eld for which you want to set the eld properties.
2. Activate the General tab in the Field Properties area.
3. Set the properties you want to set.
4. Repeat steps 1 through 3 until you have set all the properties for all elds.

Tip: A er you nish the task, you must save the table by clicking the Save button on the
Quick Access toolbar.

Field Size
Is used to set the number of characters and type of numbers to enter in the eld. For example, if
the eld can have a maximum of three characters, set the led size to 3 to save disk storage space or

212
prevent data entry errors by limiting the number of characters to be entered. e eld size is set in
exact characters for Text type.

ere are options for numbers

• Byte- Positive integers between 1 and 255
• Integer- Positive and negative integers between -32,768 and +32,767
• Long integer (Default)- Large positive and negative integers between -2,147,483,648 and
2,147,483,647
• Single-Single precision oating number from -3.4 x 1038 to +3.4 x 1038 and up to 7 signi -
cant digits
• Double-Double precision oating number from -1.797 x 10308 to +1.797 x 10308 and up to
15 signi cant digits.
• Decimal- a de ned decimal precision that can contain values from -1028 to +1028. e de-
fault precision is 0.

Fig 9.18 Number eld size properties

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Format
Displays the layout for the eld when data is entered into the datasheet. You can select a prede ned
format or enter a custom format.

Text and memo formats

Symbol Explanation Format Datasheet Display

Entry
@ Either a charac- @@@-@@@ 456789 456-789
ter or a space is
required.
& Either a charac- @@@- 45678 456-78
ter or a space is @@@&
not required.
< Converts char- < ZIMBA- zimbabwe
acters to lower- BWE
case
> Converts char- > zimbabwe ZIMBA-
acters to upper- BWE
case
\ Adds characters @\! Hello Hello!
to the end
Table 9.2 Text and memo formats
8/8/Number formats
Select the prede ned formats from the drop down menu or custom format using symbols

Fig 9.19 Prede ned number formats

Symbol Explanation
. (period) Decimal separator
, (comma) ousand separators
0 Digit placeholder. Displays a digit or zero

214
 # Digit placeholder. Displays a digit or nothing
$ Displays the literal character “$”
% Multiplies the value by 100 and adds a percentage sign
Table 9.3 Custom number formats

Format Datasheet Entry Display

###,##0.00 456789.55 456,789.55
$###,##0.00 0 $0.00
###.00% .789 78.9%
Table 9.4 Examples of custom number formats

Activity 9.19
Use Microso Access Help or the internet to nd out how positive or negative numbers are
displayed using (+) for positive numbers and parentheses () and (-) for negative numbers.

Currency formats
e currency format consists of four sections separated by semicolons and uses a di erent
format for each section: Format for positive numbers; Format for negative numbers; Format for
zero values; Format for Null values.

For example, $##0.00;($##0.00)[Red]; $0.00; “None”.

Positive values will be normal currency format, negative numbers will be red in parentheses, and
“None” will be written for Null values.

Date formats
Prede ned formats for the Date/Time data type are shown in Fig 9.20 below.

Fig 9.20 Prede ned formats.

215
e following symbols can be used to create custom dates and custom time.

Symbol Explanation
/ Date separator
: (colon) Time separator
D Day of the month in one or two numeric digits (1 to 31)
Ddd First three letters of the weekday (Sun to Sat)
Dddd Full name of the weekday (Sunday to Saturday)
Ddddd Same as the Sort Date prede ned format
Dddddd Same as the Long date prede ned format
W Day of the week (1 to 7)
Ww Week of the year (1 to 53)
M Month of the year in one or two numeric digits (1 to 12)
Mm Month of the year in two numeric digits (01 to 12)
Mmm First three letters of the month (Jan t0 Dec)
Mmmm Full name of the month (January to December)
Y Number of the day of the year (1 to 366)
Yy Last two digits of the year (01 to 99)
Yyyy Full year (0100 to 9999)
H Hour in one or two digits (0 to 23)
Hh Hour in two digits (00 to 23)
N Minute in one or two digits (0 to 59)
Nn Minute in two digits (00 to 59)
S Second in one or two digits (0 to 59)
Ss Second in two digits (00 to 59)
AM/PM Twelve-hour clock with the uppercase letters “AM” or “PM”
am/pm Twelve-hour clock with the lowercase letters “am” or “pm”
Table 9.5 Prede ned formats for custom dates and custom time.

Format Display
dddd”,”mmmm d”,”yyyy Tuesday, February 15, 2001
ddd”,”mmm”.” d”,”yy Mon, Jan. 1, ‘01
“Tomorrow is” dddd Tomorrow is ursday
h:n:s: AM/PM 12:00:00 AM
“ is is week number”ww is is week number 34
Table 9.6 Examples of Prede ned formats for custom dates and custom time.

216
Validation rule and validation text
An expression that limits the values that can be entered in the eld. Validation rules prevent wrong
data being entered in the table. Validation text is the error message that is displayed when a prohibited
value is by the validation rule is entered.
• Field validation rules are validation rules use to check the value that you enter in a eld
when you leave the eld. For example, suppose you have a Date eld, and you enter
>=#01/01/2017# in the Val idation rule property of that eld. If you enter a date earlier
than 2017and then try to place the focus on another eld, Access prevents you from leaving
the current eld until you x the problem.
• Record validation rules are validation rules to control when you can save a record (a row
in a table). A record validation rule refers to other elds in the same table. You create record
validation rules when you need to check the values in one eld against the values in another.

Steps to create a eld validation rule

Fig 9.21 Creating validation rules and validation text.

1. Open the table in Design View and ick the led to be validated.
2. In the lower section of the table designer, on the General tab, select the Validation Rule prop-
erty box, and then enter your validation rule e.g. >= 4 And <=36 to allow only units from 4
to 36.
3. Select the Validation Text property box and enter a validation message e.g. “Enter value from
4 t0 36”. is will be the message that will be displayed if you enter a value less than 4 and a

217
 value greater than 36.
4. Save your work.

Validation text message

Fig 9.22 Validation message displayed when a prohibited value (45) is entered.

Validation rules examples

Validation rule Validation text

<> 0 Value must not be a 0
>= 5 Value must be greater or equal to 5
0 OR > 100 Value must be 0 or greater than 100
>#31/12/2017# Date must be a er 2017
>=#01/01/2017# AND <=#31/12/2017# Date must be in 2017
Male or Female Enter Male or Female
NOT 0 Value must not be a 0
BETWEEN 0 AND 100 Values from 0 to 100
??? Allow data strings with three characters in
length e.g. Sue, Kim and Pil
<Date() Birth cannot be in the future
>5 AND <1000 Value must be greater than 5 and less than
1000
Table 9.7 Validation rules examples.

218
Activity 9.4
In pairs, practice creating a validation rule using the Expression Builder by clicking the
Expression Builder button (…) in the Validation Rule property box

1. Click the Expression Builder button (…) to start the Expression Builder

Fig 9.23 Expression Builder

Input mask
A pattern for all data to be entered in the eld. It controls what you can and cannot enter in a eld.
ey are similar to the Format property, but instead display the format on the datasheet before the
data is entered. For example, an ID Number eld can be formatted with an input mask to accept three
characters that starts with two digits followed by any letter e.g. 77N. e input mask will be like 00?

Creating an input mask

1
q

2
q
3
q
Fig 9.24 Creating an input mask

219
 1. In Design view, place the cursor in the eld that the input mask will be applied to.
2. Click the blank space following Input Mask under the General tab.
3. Click the (…) button to use the wizard or enter the mask, 00? or 99L.
4. Save your work.
5. Switch to datasheet view to enter your data.

e following symbols can be used to create an input mask from scratch.

Symbol Explanation
A Letter or digit. You must enter a letter or digit in this position
A Letter or digit. Letter or digit in this position is optional
0 A digit 0 through 9 without a + or – sign and with blanks displayed as
zeros
9 A digit 0 through 9 without a + or – sign and with blanks displayed as
spaces
# Digit, space, + or – sign with blanks displayed as spaces
? Letter. Single letter is optional
L Letter. You must enter a single letter in this position.
& Character or space. You must enter a single character or space
C Character or space. Single character or space is optional
< Convert letters to lower case
> Convert letters to upper case
Password Creates a password entry box. Asterisks (*) are displayed
Table 9.8 Input mask symbols

Activity 9.5
Discussion on examples of input masks that can be used on
i. text or memo eld
ii. number eld

Caption: e label for the eld when used on a form. If you do not enter a caption, the eld name is
used as the caption.

Default value: A value that is automatically entered in the eld for new records. It is useful in cases
where the value of a eld will usually be the same for all records. is helps to avoid typing the same
data many times.
Required:Set it to Yes if you require data in the eld, otherwise set it to No.
Text Align :Alignment of text in the eld. e options are General, Le , Right, Center, Distribute. e
default alignment is General that aligns text to the le and numbers to the right.

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 Fig 3:Webpage structure

Activity 10.3 (Design based leaning)

Your school wishes to develop an online enrolment system for form ve next year. Design a
web page to capture the relevant details. e design should include school features such as
logos, school colors etc. Use elements of a web page in the design. Use html or any other web
application to develop the page.

Elements of a web page

ese are components of a webpage which interact with the user. ese are in forms of text, videos,
images and audio les. e list of elements of a webpage is endless as many new developments are
coming up. Below listed are the common elements of a webpage.
1. Images and Videos
ey draw the eye and help direct readers to speci c parts of the page. ey also decorate
the page.
2. Headlines
Titles and subtitles are the rst to catch the attention of the user or visitor they are written
using good font size color and type.
3. Body Content
e texts that make up the majority of the webpage. is gives out why you created the web-
page. Good style should be used e.g. paragraphing, image insertion, should be grouped to
come no with a good body.
4. Navigation
Web pages have no xed page length so a navigation system to move around the page is
needed which includes the use of pull-down menus and scroll bars to give easy access to con-

260
 tents of the web page to users.
5. Credits
ese are informational elements of a web page that are not content. ey provide informa-
tion about the page which include publication dates, copyright, privacy, and information
about the writer.
6. Hyperlinks
Used to connect to other content or open other pages.
e image bellow by Dr Madhusudhan gives a summary of the elements of a web page

Fig 4 : Elements of a web page

Creating a web page

When creating a web page it is important to ensure that it conforms to the World Wide Web design
standards for HTML, CSS, XML and others. Text editors such as Notepad or specialized HTML
editors are used when writing the code. Other ways of creating a web page through downloading
or purchasing specialized so ware like CMS which allow easy creation of a web page and web site.
Design of a web page is dependent upon an individual or may use a template to guide the design.
e image bellow shows a design of a webpage

261
 Fig5 :Webpage structures

Webpage templates
is is a structured webpage where users can edit the content and customize it using web publishing
tools such as Tripod and Word press which o ers free web page creation and hosting. Webpage
templates are used to allow web designers and developers to generate a standard web page .It allows
the use of static elements of a webpage. ey also give a basic structure and appearance of a webpage.
Once a template is downloaded or purchased the user will replace the information on the template
with personal information. Templates are designed for di erent content and use. Below are some
examples of templates.
• Templates which displays information about an organization
• A template to display personal information
• Showing family structure or history
• Showing a gallery of photos

Webpage templates can be downloaded and modi ed using for example Adobe Dreamweaver and any
other HTML editors. Below is an example of a web page template ready for editing.

Fig 6 : Web page template

262
 Advantages of using templates
• You already know how the page will look like.

What can I do on a web page?

• Read information on the web page
• Can follow hyperlinks for further information on a web page
• Perform a task
• Listen to music
• Watch videos
• Do some shopping
• Communicate

Activity 10.4
Download a static web page template from the internet, sites such as Dream Template, Site 123
can be used. Fill in the content and upload the page.

Activity 10.5
e leaners Download a dynamic web page template with a photo gallery theme . ey ll in
the content and upload the page.

Activity 10.6
Invite a web content developer to demonstrate on how to develop professional webpages and
how to upload the pages.

Web content development

is is the process of searching, gathering, and organizing, editing and writing information for
publication on a web site. e person responsible for this is the web content developer or the web
master. Some of his responsibilities are;
• Creating original content on web pages
• Writing news letters
• Producing press releases
• Managing blogs
• Handling articles and advertisements
• Publishing marketing materials
• Updating web content

Web content
ese are text les, images, videos, audio les and expressions that users get into conduct with on
web pages and web sites.

Developing webpage content

When you wish to come up with a webpage there is need to come up with a plan of action. Below are
things to consider before creating a webpage and adding content.

263
 1. Have a clear de nition of your requirements. ese can be expressed by answering the ques-
tions.
• What information do I need to publicize?
• What must be and not be on the web page?
• Am I going to use text, videos, and audio les?
• What should dominate graphics or text?
2. Identify your users
• Know the audience for your page, the class of people who are likely to visit your page.
is will help in the way information can be presented and the type of information to
publish.
3. Navigation
• Expresses how the visitors will go round the page accessing information. is involves the
use of search, dropdown menus, scroll bars and many other tools.
4. Loading speed
• e nature of content on the web page a ect the loading speed of the web page .Too many
large videos and images may a ect the loading speed of a web page, so there is need to
balance the content and time.
5. Fonts and color
• Choose a good font type and font size for the page with a bias to the type of audience .A
good color combination on the background and objects will make the web page attractive.
6. Headlines
• Proper headlines to be used. A headline which attract the attention of visitors. A headline
is the rst thing that attracts the visitors to the page so it has to be properly structured.
7. Further information
• Gives visitors ways to nd more information, there should be links to allow further
explation of concepts also information on the writers such as conduct information and
alternative links.

e image bellow expresses how content should be writen on a webpage

Fig8: Webpage content

264
Writing web content
Writing web content is not the same as writing for print document. e use of keywords and appealing
information is important in web content development. Below are tips on how to write simple and
e ective content.
Title –should be short and precise
Headings –main headings should be H1 and subheading to follow the H2, H3,…, H6.
Content-should be rich where possible use examples.
Articles-should be well researched, write substantial information.
Quality –should be high so that we can gain competitive advantage
Optimization - content to be optimized so that it can be visible on the page.
Focus – content to meet the user needs
Proofreading –work to be checked and edited before publishing.
Links - to add links both internal and external to help users
Webpage templates can be downloaded free or bought online and start adding content. Sites like”
Site 123” allows users to download add content and upload webpages. Below are examples of images
of templates that can be used to add content.

Fig 9: Webpage templates

265
Activity 10.7
Tour to so ware development companies with an objective to learn how web sites are devel-
oped and hosted.

Activity 10.8 (group project)

In groups of three leaners develop a web page for the school tuck shop. Groups choose tem-
plates of their own choice.

Activity 10.9 (Research and presentation)

In groups of not more than ve leaners research on how to link related webpages .Develop a
model and do a presentation before a department panel.

Interesting items
• e rst web page was created at by Tim Berners Lee in 1991
• e longest web page takes about 2 hours to scroll down. Using keyboard down arrow key it
will take more than 15 minutes
• Most world worst webpages are educational

Glossary of terms

HTML Hyper Text Markup Language

URL Uniform Recourse locator also known as the web address
CSS Cascading Style Sheets describes how HTML elements are to be displayed
PHP Hypertext Preprocessor so ware for web development.
XML Extensible markup Language it a web based language
CMC content Management System
H1, H2.H3,…, H6-di erent heading levels in HTML

Summary
• A web page is created using HTML or other web based applications and can be opened by a
web browser.
• A webpage can be dynamic or static.
• Webpage elements are the basic items which make up a web page such as links, images head-
ings, content, and others.
• A webpage can be easily made using templates
• ey are many advantages in using a web page template.
• Special facts to be considered before developing content for a webpage.

266
Multiple choice test

1. A common element which describes a web page is

A. heading
B. paragraph
C. list
D. HTML

2. A webpage is a document which

A. is opened by a computer
B. is opened by a so ware
C. is opened by Firefox
D. is opened by Microso word

3. A webserver can be made up of

A. one website
B. webpages
C. more than one website
D. web browsers

4. A static webpage
A. is not easy to develop
B. is expensive to host
C. is dynamic
D. is cheaper to develop than dynamic

5. Which one of these is not an element of a webpage?

A. Image
B. Headlines
C. Web template
D. Pull down menu

6. Web templates are the easiest way to develop your own webpage. Which of these is not an advan-
tage of using web templates
A. You will already know how the webpage may look
B. Produces a static page
C. Choice of templates is wide
D. You don’t need to be a web designer to use the templates

7. You can do many things on a webpage except

A. Listening to music
B. Write text
C. Read instruction
D. Load a browser

267
8. A web designer has many responsibilities and duties in an organization. Which one will be more
relevant when developing a webpage?
A. Update web content
B. Producing web releases
C. Creating original content
D. Publishing marketing material

9. When developing webpage it is important to take note of the requirements. is can be ex-
pressed by
A. the information I need to publicize
B. the cost of a template
C. things I should not add to the page
D. where to use videos and images

10. Which of the elements below would a ect the speed of a webpage?
A. Long text document
B. Large images
C. Large videos
D. e processor speed

11. Which of the following has to do with navigation of a webpage?

A. Fly out menus
B. Title
C. Paragraphs
D. Images

12. An about us menu is important because it

A. gives the visitors further information about the page
B. is one of the key elements of a webpage
C. is always at the end of the page
D. has an address and email address

13. A title on a webpage should be

A. long enough to attract user
B. colorful and bright
C. appropriate and short
D. in HTML

14. Optimizing webpage content helps to

A. create enough space for images
B. put many things
C. make content visible
D. set the page ready for uploading

268
15. Which one is not a good tip for writing e ective web content?
A. Use of links
B. Proofreading
C. Adding visuals
D. Use of webservers

End of chapter test

1. a. Name any four elements found on a webpage [4]

b. Explain how each one of them work [4]
c. Outline how an html document can be opened to view the page content [2]
d. What does html stand for [2]
e. State the di erence between a dynamic and a static webpage [4]
f. Images and videos are elements of a webpage. Explain how images and videos can also be a
problem to a webpage [4]
g. Explain how the following can a ect the appearance of a webpage
Headlines
Navigation tools
Credits [9]

2. a. Outline the term webpage template. [2]

b. State 3 advantages and three disadvantages of using templates [6]
c. Your school wishes to publish photos online and you have been tasked to design a webpage
for them. Describe the elements for the template you can use [5]
d. Outline any 3 activities you can do on a webpage [6]

3. a. Describe the term web content development [3]

b. State any ve duties of a web content developer [5]
c. State the di erence between a webpage and a website [4]
d. When creating content for a webpage you need to de ne your requirements. Explain what
the requirements may consist of ? [5]
e. How does a webpage content designed for youths di er from that designed for senior
citizens, explain using examples [6]
f. How does writing a story for a hard copy newspaper di er from writing the same story for an
online news page? [3]
g. You have been requested to design an online enrolment form for a private school. Design an
interface to show the following elements. Title, logo, headings, scroll bar, footers, buttons,
content area [8]
h. Explain the importance of the following in content development
quality
Optimization
Focus
Visuals
links [10]

269
 CHAPTER ELEVEN

TECHNO-PRENEURSHIP

Objectives
• Describe the elements of intellectual capital
• Explain the attributes of business ethics
• Identify the elements of marketing and business strategies
• Explain the elements of marketing and business strategies

270
Introduction
e topic opens up with explaining the elements of intellectual capital and their importance to
business. It further explains the concept of business ethics and its importance in setting up and
running a business. In closing the chapter further looks and explore the role of marketing strategies
and e-commerce in a business.
Intellectual Capital
It’s the value attached to the Intangible assets of an organization which include skills and knowledge
that a company has developed to make its goods and services competitive. It includes employee
knowledge, business training, interaction with markets and customers, stakeholders and any other
piece of information that gives the company competitive advantage. Intellectual capital is made up of
three basic elements.

Elements of Intellectual Capital

Intellectual capital is made up of three elements namely
• Human capital
• Structural or organizational capital
• Social or Relational Capital

Human Capital
is is an expression of knowledge experiences skills and competencies which are found in an employee
which are bene cial to the organization. Most of these are unique to an individual and the employee
go away with them when they leave, examples are innovativeness, creativity, previous experiences,
exibility, tolerance, loyalty, training and education. In summary it entails the following attributes
from the employee.
• Know – how
• Education
• Vocational quali cation
• Work related knowledge
• Occupational assessments
• Work – related competencies
• Innovativeness

Social or Relational Capital

It de nes (capital or assets) resources linked to External relationships with parties such as suppliers,
partners, clients, investors, creditors, customers. e perceptions they have about the company.
In summary it involves the following
• Brands
• Customers
• Customer loyalty
• Company names
• Back log orders
• Business collaboration
• Licensing agreements
• Franchising agreements

271
Structural or Organizational capital
It is de ned as the intangible assets which stay within the rm when all has been withdrawn. It
includes data bases, trademarks, organizational image, so ware, copyrights, systems, cultures for
example organizational exibility, knowledge center, use of information technologies. ey may be
summarized as follows
• patents
• copyrights
• design rights
• trademarks
• service marks

e table below shows an overview of intellectual capital

Fig 1: Intellectual Capital

Activity 11.1 Guest

Invite a human resource manager from any organization of your choice as a guest to explain
the importance of intellectual capital in his organization.

Activity 11.2 case study

Your school is an organization with all elements of Intellectual capital available study the
distribution of intellectual capital elements in your school. Outline challenges that could have
been caused by the distribution, suggest ways of improving the situation.

Activity 11.3 interview

Carry out an interview on two workers at your school to determine their human capital
contribution to the school. Use the attributes of human capital to determine how valuable the
workers are to the school.

272
Business Ethics
Ethics (Unhu, Ubuntu Vumunhu)
A group of moral principles, rules of conduct which de ne what is right or wrong in a speci c
community. It’s about standards of behavior the society accepts. ose things which conscience tell
you it’s right or wrong. Give examples of things that are considered wrong at a work place or your
school which are not acceptable?

Business Ethics
It de nes the framework of behavior of both the company and individuals that business may choose
to follow to gain public acceptance. ese aspects of behavior may be written or not. e aim of
Business Ethics is to determine aspects of human behavior which are wrong or right. Basically it is
knowing what is right and wrong and choosing to do what is right. It is the duty of the organization
to set the standards for right and wrong. Business ethics ensures that a level of trust exists between
consumers and business. In the gure below we see the major sources of ethics.

Fig 2: Sources of Ethics

Basic Principals of Business Ethics

• Honesty – Truthful in all dealings, not to deceive others.
• Integrity – Principled, honorable and upright.
• Promise – keeping and Trustworthiness – committed to do as agreed
• Loyalty – demonstrates delity and loyalty.
• Fairness – just in all dealings.
• Respect for others – Courteous treat others with respect and dignity
• Law abiding – abide to rules and laws of business
• Commitment to Excellency – Always work to produce the best.
• Reputation and moral – Building the company reputation.
• Accountability – Ready to answer for all actions.

273
 Fig 3: Aspects of business ethics
Bene ts for Ethical Standards
• High moral within employees.
• Attract new customers.
• Build high customer loyalty.
• Reduces the risk of negative publicity.
• Makes good and positive information on the community.
• Builds a good name for the company.

Examples of good Ethics

Good ethics show the following attributes
• gladly takes additional responsibility
• self-motivated
• requires little supervision
• eager to continue learning and improving
• represents the company well
• polite and helpful

Unethical Business Practices

is is when a business organization engage in unacceptable ways of doing business. Listed below
are some of the practices
a. Worker exploitation, it involves abuse of the workers’ rights such as
b. Paying low wages
c. Forced labor for children
d. Work for unpaid over times
e. Firing workers when complain or express their rights
f. Nonpayment of wages
g. Avoid paying Tax to Government
h. Over billing customers where a Billing system is used
i. Dumping toxins or violation of environmental rules

274
 Example of unethical practices in Zimbabwe
e article below was published by the public media in Zimbabwe
(Zimbabwe diamond mining companies continue dumping toxic waste
africabusiness.com 20/4/04/03/Zimbabwe -3)

Ethical Challenges in Information Technology (IT)

Cybercrime has become so common that some have turned it into business e.g. Information about
respectable people is sold to public media and rms for huge sums of money and some information
is used for ransom. Copyrighted music and videos are shared for free at le sharing sites.
Information Technology has made it so easy to exercise unethical activities.
Information technology personnel handle a lot of private and con dential data, most of them have
no ethics training. is puts company and individual data and information at risk.

e following are some of the areas where Information Technology professionals face ethical
challenges
a. Privacy
b. Security of information
c. Copyright infringement
d. Increasing computer crime
e. Untrustworthy employees using technology

Examples of ethical challenges include

• Reading private e-mails of workmates or users since you can and you are monitoring the
security of the company information and need to see if company information is not being
shared or stolen.
• Monitoring the websites visited by your network users including the management
• Using key loggers to trap what suspected workers are doing.
• Checking on user- les and graphical les in the saver since you have access.
• As a network administrator you have access and rights to user data and information.

What would you do when:

a. You discover documents with company secrets
b. You notice evidence of stealing from the organization
c. You come across videos and les that compromise the personality of the manager.

Ethics plays an important role to IT professionals ethical practices should be exercised from gath-
ering of data, storing, use and transmission. Ethics should stand in where Information Technology
laws are not yet established.

275
 Activity 11.4 (Research )
Research on the role of Religion, law and culture in the formation of Business Ethics.

Activity 11.5 (Debate)

Damping toxins in rivers is the major cause of water borne diseases in Zimbabwe. Group
learners and debate over this premise.

Activity 11.6 (Guest)

Invite guest from Environment Management Agency (EMA) to deliberate on illegal damping
by companies in Zimbabwe,

Marketing and Business Strategies

Marketing strategy
It is business or organization’s plan of action which shows the tactics or strategies the company uses to
win customers and perform better than its competitors. Its main goal is to increase sales and to gain
competitive advantage. It should be drawn from market research and a good product mix. Most small
business owners spend so much time building websites, sending, advertising and so on. ey take less
time working on strategic decisions that will improve the performance of their companies. ings to
consider when making a marketing and business strategies:

1. e target customers who are they?

2. For which group is the business?
3. What is your advantage in that business?
4. Who is your competitor?
5. How are you di erent to your competitor?

Marketing strategy de nes the following

1. Your business and its products and services.
2. Explains the role of your product in the market.
3. Tells out the marketing tactics you will use.

Fig 3: Marketing strategy

276
A marketing strategy sets the overall direction and goals for your marketing. A good marketing
strategy helps you to target your products and services to the people most likely to buy them. e
following are elements which help in the development of marketing strategies

1. Identify your business goals

• List your goals for example increase advertisement of your product. Opening new market
etc.
• Goals should be SMART
S – Speci c – should clearly say what you want to achieve
M – Measurable – should be realistic
A – Achievable -should be within your reach and budget
R – Relevant – should be aligned to your business
T – Time bound – achievable over a period of time.

2. Research on the target Market

• Find information about your market such as the size, growth, population size, age, gender,
family type etc.

3. Pro le your potential customers

Keep a record of the customers you are targeting, list their needs, what they buy, how they buy.

4. Competition
To decide on the nature and area of competition e.g. the strategy may be to compete on quality,
price, services or other areas.

5. Product
Describe the product, how does it relate to the market. Also work on the pricing ,positioning and
branding .Should establish the price for the product and the Brand to be used.
6. Pro le your competitors
Keep a record of your competitors. Identify their products, who they supply, price of products,
how they supply, their strengths and weaknesses.

7. Include the 7 Ps in your strategies.

ese are product, price, promotion, place, people, process and physical evidence.

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 Fig 4: e 7Ps
8. Develop strategies to support your goals
Draw up a set of strategies for your targeted market.eg strategies like,
• To increase awareness of your product and company through social Media by posting regular
updates and ads on Facebook, Tweeter.
• To develop and run a website for the company

9. Test your Ideas

Do some online research check if some of the strategies you have listed work on your online cus-
tomers, check for the response. Need to test a number of strategies so you can decide on which to
implement rst.

Fig 5: Aspects of marketing strategy

E-commerce
E-Commerce (electronic Commerce)
It refers to the buying and selling of goods and services using the electronic media which is mostly the
internet. E-commerce is also referred to as e-business and is conducted using a variety of applications
such as email, online catalogues and shopping carts. e beginning of e-commerce is dated as far as the
1960s. It was then mostly used for just business data les and documents sharing. Today e-commerce
is used for a variety of services such as the ones listed below as applications of e-commerce.

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 Fig 6: e- commerce
Applications of e-commerce

Online shopping and Marketing

• Online market places are created by sellers and buyers browse and purchase by just
clicking the mouse. Examples of such applications are the Amazon.com, In Zimbabwe we
have sites like Zimall.com, store front.co.zw, hammerandtongue.com to mention but a
few.

Fig 7: example of an online shop

Electronics Payments
• is includes payment of services through electronic fund transfers or any other
e-payment systems e.g. the use of Eco Cash system in Zimbabwe to pay for services and
goods.

Online Auctions:
• is is when bidders buy and sell items on the internet using Auction sites such as e-bay,
shop Good will example in Zimbabwe myauction.co.zw

Internet Banking
• Accessing banking services using internet services and technologies. is includes
mobile banking electronic fund transfer money from the bank account to an electronic
wallet (e-wallet) or deposit into another account using a mobile phone. You don’t need to
physically visit your bank to do a transaction.

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Online Ticketing or booking
• Purchase and Booking of Services online e.g. Air tickets, movie tickets, Bus tickets, sporting
events tickets. It removes the labor of queuing.
Below is a diagram showing the process of online shopping

Fig 8: Online shopping process

Classi cation of E-Commerce Services

1. Business to Business (B2B)
e two transacting parties are businesses e.g. manufacture selling to wholesaler.
2. Business to Consumer (B2C)
3. A consumer buys from an established Business through online shopping sites e.g. shopping
cart so ware.

Fig 9: business to consumer

Consumer to Consumer (C2C)
is is when a consumer transact with another consumer, this mostly happens on Auction sites and
online market places where individuals buy and sell goods.
Below is a table showing a summary of the e- commerce classi cations

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 D. mesh

13. 29. A document send together with an e-mail is called ____

A. attachment
B. le
C. carbon copy
D. blind copy

14. Which of the following is an example of a social networking site______?

A. Twitter
B. Yahoo
C. Ask
D. Bing

15. WAN stands for __________

A. Wireless Access Network
B. WiFi Actual Network
C. Wide Area Network
D. Wide Advanced Network

16. When a new password is changed, the system usually asks the user to key in the password twice.
is is to ________
A. ensure that the computer remember the password
B. ensure that the password remains correct
C. ensure that the user identi es him/herself to the computer
D. ensure that the password is keyed correctly

17. e following are examples of anti-plagiarism so ware except ______

A. Bing
B. Turn-it-in
C. Viper
D. See Sowles

18. Why is it a good idea to change your e-mail password regularly?

A. to avoid e-mails getting lost
B. to avoid people guessing your password
C. to avoid people sending you unwanted e-mails
D. to avoid duplicate e-mails getting into your mail box

19. A network were all computers are of equal importance is called ______
A. a ring network
B. a mesh topology
C. a hybrid topology
D. a peer-to-peer network

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20. A series of English-like statements that describes an algorithm is called _______
A. owchart
B. code
C. pseudocode
D. program

21. A so ware site-license allows _______

A. one to install so ware on a given number of computers
B. one to install so ware on one computer
C. one to install so ware onto computers on one location
D. one to install so ware on one computer on one location

22. Which of the following is NOT an example of cyber-crime ________?

A. internet intrusion
B. transmitting viruses
C. computer vandalism
D. so ware programming

23. A computer on a local area network that stores programs and data is called _____
A. le server
B. print server
C. e-mail server
D. network server

24. A er carrying out problem identi cation the systems analyst produces the following documents
except:
A. a detailed statement of the problem of the manual system
B. a detailed statement of the scope of the project
C. a detailed statement of the objectives of the new system
D. a feasibility report with the expenses and costs of the new system

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1. De ne the following terms as used in computer science, giving examples were necessary:
a. network [2]
b. so ware piracy [2]
c. algorithm [2]
d. e-commerce [2]
e. systems analyst [2]
f. cyber wellness [2]
g. program [2]

2. Draw well labelled diagrams to show the following network topologies:

i. Bus [3]
ii. Ring [3]
iii. Star [3]
iv. Mesh [3]

3. Give two advantages and two disadvantages of a star network topology. [4]

4. Arrange in order, the following stages of the system analysis and development cycle (SDLC). Sys-
tem implementation, System analysis, System development and testing, Problem identi cation,
System design, Feasibility study, System evaluation and maintenance [7]

5. a. Give any ve roles performed by a system analyst. [5]

b. Name two data collection methods besides the questionnaire. [2]
c. Give two advantages and two disadvantages of using a questionnaire for collecting data.
[4]

6. a. Name two tools that can be used to make an algorithm. [2]

b. Write an algorithm to nd the perimeter and area of a rectangle. [8]

7. Write the following in full: [5]

a. LAN
b. URL
c. HTTP
d. WAN
e. INTERNET

8. a. De ne the term cyber wellness. [2]

b. State any two characteristics of a safe website. [2]
c. Suggest any two positive e ects of using the internet for research to a learner. [2]
d. Describe any two e ects of so ware piracy. [2]
e. Name any two anti-plagiarism so ware. [2]

9. Zimbabwe High School has decided to have a Local Area Network connected to the internet for

302
 use by the learners and teachers.
a. Give three advantages and three disadvantages of having a network to the school. [6]
b. Name any three hardware devices besides the computer that the school has to buy to setup a
Local Area Network. [3]
c. e school headmaster prefers to communicate with the parents using e-mail.

iv. What is an e-mail? [2]

v. Give three advantages and three disadvantages of using e-mail for
vi. communication. [6]

g. Besides using e-mail, the headmaster can use social media for communication with the parents.
Name any two social networking websites that the headmaster can use. [2]
h. Besides e-mail and social networking state four services o ered on the internet. [4]

10. Study the algorithm below and answer the question that follow;
Begin
Input number1
Input number2
Sum = number1+number2
Average = (number1+number2)/2
Print Sum, Average
Stop

Using the trace table, dry run the algorithm using the following sets of data
6,4 10,15 4, 16 0,50 [4]

Number1 Number2 Sum Average

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Test 3
is test has been compiled from chapters 8, 9, 10 and 11

Paper 1
Multiple Choice

1. Which one of the following is not an example of a Visual Basic.NeT IDE?

A. Solution Explorer
B. Start Menu
C. Code Window
D. Toolbox

2. Which one of the following is accomplished by the code editor?

A. Adding controls to the form
B. Adding forms to the project
C. Adding event procedures
D. Dry running the algorithm

3. Which of the following statements is true?

A. ere exists no relationships between objects and classes
B. One object can be used to create many classes
C. A class can have many objects
D. Objects are classes

4. Which of the following is a valid identi er?

A. 2359
B. MySurname
C. Student Name
D. First-Name

5. e maximum size of valid variables is __________ characters.

A. 255
B. 150
C. 8
D. Less than 255

6. A variable declared inside a function or procedure is called___________

A. Global variable
B. DIM
C. Local Variable
D. User De ned

7. Which of the following is a valid statements in VB.NET?

A. B/C=A

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 B. A=B\C
C. BC=A
D. A=BC

8. A variable whose value does not change is called_______

A. Dynamic variable
B. Constant
C. Identi er
D. Local Variable

9. Which of the following variable declaration in VB.NET is incorrect?

A. DIM Average As Double
B. Public Average As Single
C. Private Surname As Text
D. Const Pi As Single=3.14

10. Which of the following is NOT a valid data type in VB.NET?

A. Boolean
B. Variant
C. Long
D. Text

11. Which one of the following is not an integer data type?

A. Byte
B. Long
C. Single
D. Short

12. VB.NET variable_______

A. Can be reserved words
B. Can begin with an underscore
C. Can begin with a digit
D. Are always of the same data type

13. If X=True, Y = False, which of the following statements evaluates to True?

A. X AND Y
B. Y AND X
C. X OR Y
D. Y AND Y

14. Which of the following assignment statements is NOT valid?

A. txtResult.Text = A+B
B. B + C = txtResult.Text
C. First = Val(txtFirst.Text)

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 D. Surname = txtSurname.Text

15. Which one of the following is NOT one of the types of the main programming errors?
A. Logic Error
B. Declaration Error
C. Run time Error
D. Syntax Error

16. e declaration statement for a class level variable should be placed

A. Inside the general procedure
B. Inside an event procedure
C. Above the public class name
D. Anywhere in the program except inside a procedure

17. Which one of the following best describes keywords in Visual Basic.Net?
A. ey are used to name all controls like textboxes and command buttons
B. ey are used in naming variables
C. ey have special meaning and therefore are not used in naming variables
D. ey can be used as identi ers for variables and procedure names

18. Which one of the following declaration statements is Correct?

A. DIM Num 1 As Integer
B. DIM Num-1 As Integer
C. DIM _Num1 As Integer
D. DIM –Num1 As Integer

19. Which of the following is NOT part of the Visual Basic IDE?
A. Code Window
B. Form Designer
C. Toolbox
D. Variables

20. Visual Basic.NET is best described as_________

A. A low level programming language
B. A high Level Programming language
C. Object Oriented programming language
D. An Assembly language

21. A teacher gave her learners a computer science test which was out of 50. Which one of the fol-
lowing is a valid validation rule using Microso Access that the teacher can use
A. Between 0 and 50
B. From 0 to 50
C. Greater than 0 and less than 50
D. Greater or equal to 0 and less or equal to 50

306
22. Which of the following is not part of the Access objects and views?
A. Reports
B. Queries
C. Forms
D. Fields

23. Which of the following dates uses the date format dd/mm/yyyy?
A. 06/27/2017
B. 06/27/17
C. 27/06/2017
D. 27/06/17

24. Which of the following Fields is NOT valid using Miscroso Access
A. Date Of Birth
B. DOB
C. D.O.B
D. DateOfBirth

25. A valid StudentNumber should start with 7 digits followed by an uppercase alphabetic character,
for example 0948810P. e correct input mask for the StudentNumber is___.
A. >9999999L
B. <9999999L
C. >9???????
D. <9???????

26. A cell phone number starts with a zero, followed by any other 9 digits, for example 0715117608.
What is the most appropriate data type for the cell phone number?
A. Integer
B. Number
C. Text
D. Boolean

27. A student name has the length 5. What will be the output if the name Hamunyari is entered?
A. Hamun
B. Hamunyari
C. Hamu
D. Hamunya

28. Which of the following is used as a container for data stored in databases?
A. Form
B. Query
C. Report
D. Table

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29. Which of the following is not a valid type of query?
A. Delete Query
B. Select query
C. Table query
D. Select query

30. Microso Access is an example of_____

A. Hierarchical database management system
B. Network Database management system
C. Relational Database management system
D. Oracle database management system

31. In a database table, a category of information is called

A. Record
B. Tuple
C. Field
D. Byte

32. A eld which uniquely identi es a record is called ___________

A. Primary key
B. Secondary key
C. Alternate key
D. Composite key

33. What type of a language is HTML?

A. Markup
B. Programming
C. High Level
D. Low level

34. HTML stands for __________

A. Hypertext Markup Language
B. Hypermedia Markup Language
C. Hypertext Media Language
D. Hypermedia Text Language

35. e correct HTML tag for the largest heading is__________

A. <H6>
B. <head>
C. <h1>
D. <heading>

36. Web pages start with which of the following tags

A. <Body>

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 B. <Title>
C. <HTML>
D. <h1>

37. Which of the following is NOT an advantage of e-commerce?

A. Customers fork out a lot of money to use it
B. It cut transport cost for customers
C. It saves time since not travelling is involved
D. Goods are delivered at the customer’s doorstep

38. Which of the following is NOT an element of intellectual capital?

A. Human capital
B. Intellectual capital
C. Social capital
D. Principal Capital

39. Social capital involves___

A. Patents
B. Copyrights
C. Brands
D. Know-how

40. Business ethics involves the following except_________

A. Honesty
B. Integrity
C. Overbilling customers
D. Fairness

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Paper 2
1. Explain the following terms, giving examples where appropriate:
a. Database [2]
b. Web page [2]
c. HTML [2]
d. Ethics [2]
e. Constant [2]
f. Global variable [2]
g. Boolean data [2]
h. Query [2]

2. a. Explain the term IDE as applied in Visual basic.net programming [2]

b. State and explain the use of any 3 components of the VB.Net IDE [6]

3. a. Explain the di erence between a constant and a variable. [2]

b. State any 4 rules of naming variables in Visual Basic 2010. [4]
c. Using examples, explain the di erence between global and local variables [4]
d. Using Visual Basic.Net code, declare the following variables
Surname of a student [2]
TotalMark, which is the sum of all marks a student gets [2]
AverageMark of the learners marks [2]

4. Identify any 5 errors in the following Visual Basic program segment. Justify your answer.
Dim First Number, Second, 1total As Integer
First = Val (txtFirst.Text)
txtSecond.Text = Second
Sum = First + Second
txtResult.Text = Sums [5]

5. a. Explain the terms: syntax and semantics of a language [4]

b. What is a Single data type? [2]

6. e following is a sample of a Table that stores student records, where RegNumber has a xed
length.
Surname RegNumber Class AmountPaid Paymentdate
Mapfumo 000002 3Q $245.20 17/03/2017
Muchabaiwa 003456 4M $300.05 23/04/2017
Makura 237298 3U $520.00 01/02/2017
Mutimhodyo 018574 4J $450.00 14/03/2017
Mapfumo 002756 3T $200.35 14/03/2017

a. How many elds are in the table? [1]

b. How many records are in the le? [1]

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 c. Which eld can be used as the primary key? Justify your answer. [2]
d. State the data type for each of the following elds:
RegNumber
PaymentDate
AmountPaid [3]
e. Write the appropriate input masks for the Paymentdate and Class elds. [2]
f. State the length of the RegNumber data items [1]
g. State the Registration Numbers that will be displayed if the following query statement is
written at the intersection of Class and criteria in the Design View of the Student Query. [3]
h. Which RegNumbers will be displayed if the following search criteria is used using the
AmountPaid eld:
i. Between 200 and 300 [2]

7. a. What is a database management system? Give an example [2]

b. Give any 2 uses of the database management system in a computer system [2]
c. State any 4 advantages of using databases [4]
d. Explain the importance of setting validation rules when designing databases [2]

8. Explain the following terms giving examples where possible:

a. Web site [2]
b. HTML tag [2]
c. Template [1]
d. Upload [1]
e. Hyperlink [2]
f. url [2]

9. a. State any 3 types of websites that exists on the internet. [3]

b. State 3 factors considered when planning or designing a website. [3]
c. Describe the use of the following parts of a webpage:
e banner
e menu system
e content area
Footer [4]

10. State and explain any 3 business ethics an organization should observe. [6]

311