Theoretical questions

The practical exam is divided into 3 types of questions:

 Practical questions testing your technical skills when

you are using the software.
 Theoretical direct question that tests your knowledge
of both theoretical and practical syllabus.
 Theoretical question that tests your analysis,
evaluation and making reasoned judgments to a
specific situation.

The terms evaluate and analyze means that you need to

state the good (advantages) and bad (disadvantages) things
in a certain topic, for example: evaluate this class room!

You will state all the advantages and disadvantages things

within this class room. After you evaluate it, you need to
give a reasoned conclusion based on your evaluation
whether you should you use this class room or not.

Some questions will be asking you to discuss something,

for example: Discuss the usage of e-mail instead of the
post office.

You will also state advantages and disadvantages between

both terms stated in the question and give a reasoned
conclusion to state which is better in your point of view.

All the theoretical questions in the practical exam must be

answered in a paragraph style not as a list.

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 Here you will find questions that are found in the
past exams and their answers.

1) Evaluate the design of a data entry form.

You can discuss the following points based on which point relates to
your form design.

a) Consistent/Inconsistent layout or formatting

b) Appropriate use of title
c) Lack/Advantage of instructions on filling the form
d) Usage/Lack of Navigation buttons
e) Drop down lists (could be used) / (used) to reduce data entry
errors
f) Appropriate spaces between fields and use of white space
g) Suitable/Unsuitable field lengths for data.
2) Identify two ways of recognizing spam sent by email.
a) Incorrect grammar/spelling
b) Plain text/absence of logos
c) Request for personal information
d) Suspicious attachments
e) Links within the body of the message
3) Identify two methods to help protect yourself from
spam sent by email.
a) use of spam/junk email filters
b) block spam
c) not signing up to offers on the internet
d) safe senders list
e) do not click links
f) never reply, delete or ignore the messages
g) Don’t open attachments from suspicious sources

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 4) Evaluate features from your presentation that meet the
needs of your audience.
a) Appropriate slide layout
b) Consistent layout
c) Not too many words per slide
5) Give one example of a strong password.
a) #!EFxSWsq0^!
6) Identify the features which makes this password strong.
a) At least 8 characters
b) At least 1 number
c) At least 1 symbol
d) Not a known name
e) Mixed upper and lower case
7) Evaluation of chart choice.
a) Using comparative bar chart is most suitable when there are 2
or more data series to compare as it easier to compare
differences visually.
b) Line graphs are suitable when it comes to variable data, it
shows how the data changes.
c) Pie charts are suitable when it comes to showing data as a
percentage of a whole.
d) Stacked bar charts ( Search for its layout ), are suitable when it
comes to cumulative data.
8) Advantages and disadvantages of the use of mail merge
to produce letters.
a) Letters can be reused with different recipients.
b) The operative does not need details of recipients
c) One letter only has to be proofread therefore saving time
d) Can select on any criteria which saves time creating it
e) If there is an error, then all the sent letters will have this error.

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 f) Hardcopies will be wasted; taking up time and money
g) Slower checking on all letters
h) Higher level of staff skill is required
i) It may take longer time to setup mail merge than type to
individuals.
Reasoned conclusion must be stated.
9) What is meant by phishing?
a) Unsolicited email to collect personal data
10) How to identify phishing attack?
a) Errors in text
b) asking for personal details
c) email address does not match company
d) unknown source
11) How to protect yourself against phishing?
a) Spam filters
b) Don’t click links or open attachments from unknown sources
c) Never send personal details via email
12) Methods of preventing viruses.
a) Running anti-virus software
b) Keep anti-virus definition files up-to-date
c) Scanning downloaded files
d) Do not allow others to use portable media on your computer
e) Do not run files from unknown sources
f) Do not open email attachments from unknown sources
13) Give reasons to encode Gender to be M and F instead
of Male and Female.
a) Faster data entry
b) Reduces data entry errors
c) Smaller file size
d) Make it less understandable if the data is stolen

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 14) Why internet information may not be reliable?
a) Anybody can set up a website
b) Internet is not regulated
c) Commercial websites can be biased
d) Wikis can be edited by non-experts
15) How to evaluate website content?
a) Check if the website domains are reliable
b) Compare information from different sources
c) See if responsible bodies have endorsed the site
d) If site has testimonials it likely to be reliable
e) Check date – if out of date then it will be unlikely to be reliable
f) Check author’s credentials
g) Check functionality of website
16) Evaluate the differences between a blog and a forum.
a) Blog creator drives content, one person’s thoughts, one author
posts thought on a subject, blog posts typically longer, readers
can comment on content, blog is not moderated
b) Forum, a group sharing thoughts, discussions, comments are
brief, user generated content, broader collection of thoughts,
conversation between members of a group, several different
thoughts on a subject, comments could be moderated.
17) State features that can be added to a form to be easier
to use.
a) Navigation buttons
b) Drop down lists
c) Radio buttons
d) Checkboxes
e) Self-explanatory field names
f) User notes
g) Legible styles and sizes and appropriate field spacing

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 18) Describe advantages of using relational databases
over flat databases.
a) Data only stored once and reduces data redundancy or
duplication
b) Quicker to enter/update/edit data
c) Fewer errors are likely to happen
d) Reduces storage requirements
19) Describe how a business can promote to itself using
social networking.
a) release news/status updates about new products
b) post images/videos of products
c) allow customers to ask questions about service/product
d) request customer feedback to improve service/product
20) Describe what is meant by data verification.
a) Checking the accuracy of data entered exactly matches
original source
21) Name and describe two methods of data verification.
a) Double data entry – data entered twice using two people and
both data are compared using the computer.
b) Visual check – comparing data with the original source.
22) Evaluate in your own words the effects of IT on
potential employment.
a) Fewer jobs available as taken over by robots/computer
controlled warehouses/labor intensive work
b) Reduction in manual workers
c) Creation of new ICT jobs
d) Increase in jobs in writing software/programs
e) Increase in jobs relating to maintenance of robots and IT
equipment
f) Increase in jobs relating to web designers/advertising

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 g) Increase in computer engineers/project managers/systems
analysts
h) People need to be trained in new technology
i) Tend to work in a cleaner/safer working environment
j) People may not have full time/permanent jobs (part time
jobs/compressed hours/job sharing)
k) Working from home/remote/workers do not need to be in a
fixed location/near factory
23) Define the term data validation.
a) Checks if data is sensible/Checks to see if the data satisfies
certain criteria when input into a computer.
24) Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of using
online forms when applying to interviews.
a) Less potential errors as the user is only entering their own data.
b) Easier to correct errors on an online form than a paper form.
c) No need to take the form to the interview as it found online.
d) Easier to be used by disabled people as accessibility tools can
be used.
e) Not all applicants can complete an online form as they may not
have a computer device or software
f) Not all applicants have IT skills to complete the online form
g) Increased risk of data loss as the data can be transmitted
electronically
h) Increased risk of unauthorized access to the data as it can be
transmitted electronically
i) Possible data protection issues as it is stored in digital form
Reasoned conclusion must be stated.

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 25) Describe the 3 web development layers.
a) Presentation layer:
i) Used to format the whole page webpage/s or individual
elements.
b) Content layer:
i) Used to enter the content of a webpage and create a
webpage structure.
c) Behavior layer:
i) Used to enter scripting language to a webpage or an
individual element.
26) Define a hyperlink.
a) An element in an HTML document that links either to another
portion in the same document or another document.
27) What is a corporate house style? What is the purpose
of it?
a) It’s used to make sure that all the documents and other
materials produced from a certain organization have
consistency, it is also produced to support brand recognition.
28) What is the difference between formula and function?
a) A formula in excel starts with an equal sign, it could be a
simple formula using mathematical operators or a complex
formula nested statements or a formula including functions.
b) A function has a pre-defined name to perform a particular
calculation, it is an operation built into the spreadsheet.
29) What is a nested formula or function?
a) A nested formula or function is having one formula or function
inside another one.

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 30) Making an image suitable for a webpage.
a) Change color depth from 16 bits per channel to 8 bits per
channel
b) Saving in a gif format
c) Saving in a jpg format
d) It will reduce the image transmission time, the storage space
needed.
31) Difference between relative and absolute file path.
a) Relative path points to current folder.
i) Uploaded to a server therefore will retain the hierarchical
structure and therefore work.
Example: <img src="/images/picture.jpg" alt="Mountain">
b) Absolute file path points to a location on a storage device.
i) Uploaded to a server but unlikely to work unless same
hierarchy.
Example:
<img src="https://www.w3schools.com/images/picture.jpg
" alt="Mountain">
32) How to upload/publish a website?
a) Step 1: Find a domain name, ex: www.facebook.com.
b) Step 2: Organize all files in one folder.
c) Step 3: Use FTP client software.
d) Step 4: Use the host port to upload on your web hosting server.
e) Step 5: Use the username and password to login to your web
hosting server.
33) Identify two factors that must be considered when
designing an effective test plan for a website.
a) The purpose of the website
b) The target audience
c) Corporate house styles

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 d) Describe each item that needs to be tested
e) Identify inputs
f) Identify expected outcomes
34) Identify two methods of testing a web page.
a) Functional testing
b) Alpha testing
35) Questions that needs to asked while creating a test
plan for hyperlinks.
a) Is hyperlinks from correct text/image?
b) Do hyperlinks to anchors within the page work?
c) Do hyperlinks to other pages in this site work?
d) Do hyperlinks to email open the editor/software?
e) Do hyperlinks to email have the correct address/subject line?
f) Do all external hyperlinks to existing URLs work?
g) Are planned URL’s owned/available for purchase?
36) Explain the order in which mathematical operations
are performed within a spreadsheet.
a) Brackets have highest priority so are calculated first.
b) Exponents/indices have second priority.
c) Division and multiplication are next.
d) Last are addition and subtraction.
37) Symbols that can be seen in spreadsheets and
databases
(Excel and Access) and their meaning:
a) + : addition
b) - : subtraction
c) * : multiplication
d) / : division
e) ^ : indices
f) <> : not

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 38) Stylesheet comment:
a) /* write the comment */
39) HTML / Webpage comment:
a) <!-- write the comment -->
40) Explain in your own words how the browser interprets
these fonts and why one value in the font-family
definition has speech marks around it.
font-family: Times, “Times New Roman”, serif
a) Browser searches (through available fonts) for the font Times
(and if found it is displayed).
b) If the font Times is not available, browser searches for “Times
New Roman”
c) If neither is available, browser uses its pre-defined/default
generic serif font.
d) Speech marks are around “Times new roman” to define it as a
single String/so it does not search for Times
41) Why generic file formats are needed?
a) Generic file formats are files that do not belong to any software
specifically, so generic file formats are handy when it comes to
transferring simple file from a software to another.
b) Examples of generic files formats: .txt , .csv.
42) Why consistent style/house style is needed?
a) To ensure consistency across all documents.
b) To support brand recognition.
c) To reduce the amount of time staff spend setting up and
formatting documents..
d) To reduce the risk of mistakes.

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 43) Explain why the automated suggestions given by spell
check software do not always give the correct response.
a) It won’t detect a mistake between two correctly written words
like miss and mess.
b) It can detect names as spelling mistakes
c) If it’s not updated it won’t be familiar to new words.
44) What are placeholders for images, sound and video
clips?
a) Placeholders are used to hold these types of data.
45) Why it is important to enter the data accurately?
a) To avoid loss of money because of refunds or compensations
b) If a wrong date is entered it may lead to confusion with people
c) To avoid any law suits
d) If you are selling some goods, it may lead to sending wrong
goods or sending to wrong people.
46) Transcription and transposition errors
a) Transcription errors means spelling mistakes.
b) Transposition errors means characters entered in wrong order
e.g ( ABDC instead of ABCD )
47) Define absolute cell reference, relative cell reference,
named cell and named range.
a) Absolute cell reference: a cell within a formula is when it is
copied or replicated. The dollar sign is to indicate this type of
cell reference.
b) Relative cell reference: when a formula is copied (or
replicated), the row and column will automatically change.
c) Named cell: a cell can be given a name instead of the regular
cell reference, it will be treated as absolute cell reference as it
won’t change when copied or replicated.

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 d) Named range: a highlighted group of cells can be given a
name and it will be treated as absolute reference as it won’t
change when copied or replicated.
48) Explain why testing the data model is important?
a) Testing is helpful in identifying problems and developing
solutions to ensure something works as it should do.
49) Testing ways for data models:
a) Normal data: within acceptable range.
b) Abnormal data: outside of acceptable range.
c) Extreme data: data on boundaries of acceptability.
50) Testing plan for data models or spreadsheets:
a) Identify data to be tested
b) Identify data to be tested with
c) Record Expected results
d) Record Actual results
e) Remedial actions
51) Justify the usage of tables to structure a webpage
a) Easier to structure the elements inside the webpage.
b) Text, images and other elements can be placed into a cell in
the table.
52) Why a bookmark or an anchor are rarely seen within a
website?
a) Because it is a reference point on a webpage not a hyperlink.
53) Why stylesheets are connected to webpages using
relative file paths?
a) Because it’s connected to all webpages within a website so
must ensure its availability.

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 54) What is meant by cascading style sheets and why it
used?
a) Files attached to a webpage that contains the settings for the
appearance of text and colors.
b) Saves time as changes can only be done once.
c) Consistent appearance across all pages within a website.
55) What is meant by widows and orphans and how to
avoid it?
a) Orphan: the first line of a paragraph, but it is the last line of text
on a page. The rest of the paragraph is on the next page.
b) Widow: the last line of a paragraph that appears by itself at the
top of the page. The rest of the paragraph is on the previous
page.
c) They can ruin the appearance of the document so it can be
avoided by using page breaks, column breaks or changing
page layout.

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