BLI-224

(I)

(Q1) What are Operating Systems? Discuss features of Ubuntu Operating System.

Ans) An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware and
software resources and provides common services for computer programs. The operating
system is a component of the system software in a computer system.

Ubuntu is a Debian-based Linux operating system and distribution, with Unity as its default
desktop environment for personal computers including smartphones in later versions. Ubuntu
also runs network servers. It is based on free software and named after the Southern African
philosophy of ubuntu , which often is translated as "humanity towards others" or "the belief in
a universal bond of sharing that connects all humanity".

Development of Ubuntu is led by UK-based Canonical Ltd., a company owned by South African
entrepreneur Mark Shuttleworth. Canonical generates revenue through the sale of technical
support and other services related to Ubuntu. The Ubuntu project is publicly committed to the
principles of open-source software development; people are encouraged to use free software,
study how it works, improve upon it, and distribute it.

A default installation of Ubuntu contains a wide range of software that includes LibreOffice,
Firefox, Thunderbird, Transmission, and several lightweight games such as Sudoku and
chess.[21][22] Many additional software packages, including titles no longer in the default
installation such as Evolution, GIMP, Pidgin, and Synaptic, are accessible from the built in
Ubuntu Software Center as well as any other APT based package management tool. Execution
of Microsoft Office and other Microsoft Windows applications can be facilitated via the Wine
compatibility package or through the use of a virtual machine such as VirtualBox or VMware
Workstation.

(Q2) Differentiate Multimedia from Print media. Discuss major areas of multimedia usage.

Ans) Multimedia refers to content that uses a combination of different content forms. This contrasts
with media that use only rudimentary computer displays such as text-only or traditional forms of printed
or hand-produced material. Multimedia includes a combination of text, audio, still images, animation,
video, or interactive content forms.

Multimedia can be recorded and played, displayed, dynamic, interacted with or accessed by information
content processing devices, such as computerized and electronic devices, but can also be part of a live
performance. Multimedia devices are electronic media devices used to store and experience multimedia
content. Multimedia is distinguished from mixed media in fine art; by including audio, for example, it
has a broader scope. The term "rich media" is synonymous for interactive multimedia. Hypermedia
scales up the amount of media content in multimedia application.

Multimedia may be broadly divided into linear and non-linear categories. Linear active content
progresses often without any navigational control for the viewer such as a cinema presentation.
Non-linear uses interactivity to control progress as with a video game or self-paced computer
based training. Hypermedia is an example of non-linear content.

Multimedia presentations can be live or recorded. A recorded presentation may allow

interactivity via a navigation system. A live multimedia presentation may allow interactivity via
an interaction with the presenter or performer.

(Q3) Discuss in brief different types of Markup Languages

Ans) A markup language is a system for annotating a document in a way that is syntactically
distinguishable from the text. The idea and terminology evolved from the "marking up" of paper
manuscripts, i.e., the revision instructions by editors, traditionally written with a blue pencil on authors'
manuscripts.

In digital media this "blue pencil instruction text" was replaced by tags, that is, instructions are
expressed directly by tags or "instruction text encapsulated by tags." Examples include typesetting
instructions such as those found in troff, TeX and LaTeX, or structural markers such as XML tags. Markup
instructs the software that displays the text to carry out appropriate actions, but is omitted from the
version of the text that users see.

Some markup languages, such as the widely used HTML, have pre-defined presentation semantics—
meaning that their specification prescribes how to present the structured data. Others, such as XML, do
not.

HyperText Markup Language (HTML), one of the document formats of the World Wide Web, is an
instance of SGML (though, strictly, it does not comply with all the rules of SGML), and follows many of
the markup conventions used in the publishing industry in the communication of printed work between
authors, editors, and printers.

(II)

(Q1) Computer storage devices

Ans) Alternatively referred to as digital storage, storage, storage media, or storage medium, a storage
device is any hardware capable of holding information either temporarily or permanently.

There are two types of storage devices used with computers: a primary storage device, such as RAM,
and a secondary storage device, like a hard drive. Secondary storage can be removable, internal, or
external storage. The picture shows an example of a Drobo, an external secondary storage device.
Without a storage device, your computer would not be able to save any settings or information and
would be considered a dumb terminal.

(Q2) WAN Topologies

Ans) Wide area network (WAN) topology. Computer and Network Examples. A Wide area network
(WAN) is a telecommunication network that is used for connecting computers and covers a wide
geographical area. WANs often contain a few smaller networks (LANs, MANs, etc.).

(Q3) Advantages of LibreOffice

 Ans) It's free (as in speech) which means you can change it and rebuild it should you
desire.
 It's free (as in beer)
 It's cross-platform in that it's written in Java, so it'll run on pretty much any platform
 Since it and its file formats are open you will still have access to the source in years to
come and won't be stuck with not being able to open old legacy documents, like MS
Office et al have demonstrated in the past
 It defaults to using open standards, rather than Microsoft's "open" standards which
aren't really that open
 It'll save PDFs without hassle
(Q4) Hierarchical Database Management System
Ans) A hierarchical database model is a data model in which the data is organized into a tree-like
structure. The data is stored as records which are connected to one another through links. A record is a
collection of fields, with each field containing only one value. The entity type of a record defines which
fields the record contains.

A record in the hierarchical database model corresponds to a row (or tuple) in the relational
database model and an entity type corresponds to a table (or relation).
The hierarchical database model mandates that each child record has only one parent,
whereas each parent record can have one or more child records. In order to retrieve data
from a hierarchical database the whole tree needs to be traversed starting from the root
node. This model is recognized as the first database model created by IBM in the 1960s.
Q5) Internet Protocol
Ans) The Internet Protocol (IP) is the principal communications protocol in the Internet protocol suite for
relaying datagrams across network boundaries. Its routing function enables internetworking, and
essentially establishes the Internet.
(Q6) Interactive Television
Ans) Interactive television (also known as ITV or iTV) is a form of media convergence, adding data
services to traditional television technology.
(Q7) Proxy Servers
Ans) A proxy server is a computer that offers a computer network service to allow clients to make
indirect network connections to other network services. A client connects to the proxy server, then
requests a connection, file, or other resource available on a different server.
(Q8) Instant Messaging
Ans) Instant messaging (IM) is a type of online chat which offers real-time text transmission over the
Internet. A LAN messenger operates in a similar way over a local area network. Short messages are
typically transmitted bi-directionally between two parties, when each user chooses to complete a
thought and select "send". Some IM applications can use push technology to provide real-time text,
which transmits messages character by character, as they are composed.
(Q9) Architecture of Search Tools
Ans) The use of search engine technology is the main integration component in an information system.
In a traditional business environment the architectural layer usually occupied by a relational database
management system (RDBMS) is supplemented or replaced with a search engine or the indexing
technology used to build search engines. Queries for information which would usually be performed
using Structured Query Language (SQL) are replaced by keyword or fielded (or field-enabled) searches
for structured, semi-structured, or unstructured data.
(Q10) Webcasting
Ans) A webcast is a media presentation distributed over the Internet using streaming media technology
to distribute a single content source to many simultaneous listeners/viewers. A webcast may either be
distributed live or on demand. Essentially, webcasting is “broadcasting” over the Internet.