The course syllabus states that you should be able to:
1.1	Hardware and software Define hardware as consisting of physical components of a computer system Identify internal hardware devices (e.g. processor, motherboards, random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), video cards, sound cards and internal hard disk drives Identify external hardware devices and peripherals (such as monitorsm keyboards, mice, printers as input and output devices and external storage devices in general) Define software as programs for controlling the operation of a computer or processing of electronic data Identify the two types of software - applications software and system software Define applications software (e.g. word-processing, spreadsheet, database management systems, control software, measuring software, applets and apps, photo-editing software, video editing Define system software (e.g. compilers, linkers, device drivers, operating systems and utilities
1.2	The main components of computer systems Describe the central processing unit including its role Describe internal memory, i.e. ROM and RAM and the differences between them Define input and output devices and describe the difference between them Define secondary/backing storage
1.3	Operating systems Define and describe operating systems which contain a Command Line Interface (CLI) Define and describe operating systems which contain a Graphical User Interface (GUI) Describe the differences, including the benefits and drawbacks, between operating systems which contain a CLI and those which contain a GUI
1.4	Types of computer Describe the characteristics of a personal/desktop computer and its uses, both as a standalone and networked computer Describe the characteristics of a laptop computer and what it is used for, both as a standalone and networked computer Describe the characteristics of a tablet computer and what it is used for, including its ability to use wireless technology or 3G/4G technology Describe the computer characteristics of a smartphone and what it is used for in computing terms Describe the advantages and disadvantages of each type of computer (as above) in comparison with the others (as above)
1.5	Impact of emerging technologies Describe how emerging technologies are having an impact on everyday life (e.g. artificial intelligence, biometrics, vision enhancement, robotics, quantum cryptography, computer-assisted translation, 3D and holographic imaging, virtual reality)

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