TEST CODE 02229020

FORM TP 2012212 MAY/JUNE 2012

CARIBBEAN E XAM I NAT I O N S COUNCIL

ADVANCED PROFICIENCY EXAMINATION

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

UNIT 2 – Paper 02

2 hours 30 minutes

11 MAY 2012 (a.m.)

READ THE FOLLOWING INSTRUCTIONS CAREFULLY.

1. This paper consists of THREE sections and NINE questions.

2. Answer ALL questions.

DO NOT TURN THIS PAGE UNTIL YOU ARE TOLD TO DO SO.

Copyright © 2011 Caribbean Examinations Council

All rights reserved.

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SECTION I – INFORMATION MANAGEMENT

Answer ALL questions.

1. Information technology is dynamic, with data management procedures for both storage and retrieval
changing significantly.

(a)
Explain TWO ways in which EACH of the following has changed over the last 15
years:

(i) Data storage [4 marks]

(ii)
Data retrieval [4 marks]

(b) In data management, one may choose either a flat file approach or a database approach.
Outline TWO disadvantages of using the flat file approach instead of the database
approach. [4 marks]

(c) Define EACH of the following data management terms:

(i) Field [1 mark]

(ii)
Record [1 mark]

(iii)
Cardinality [1 mark]

Total 15 marks

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2. At ABC International Airport, large volumes of data are stored, retrieved and transmitted daily in
relation to flights, passengers and other aspects of the airport’s business.

Explain how the absence of EACH of the following may affect the airport’s business:
(a)

(i) Data timeliness [2 marks]

(ii)
Data accuracy [2 marks]

(b) The following information on EACH passenger is to be stored:

• Passenger ID
• Last name
• First name
• Flight
• Seat

(i) Write an SQL statement for creating a passenger table, assuming that all information
is stored as strings. [3 marks]

(ii) A record is to be added to the passenger table. Write an SQL statement to add
data for passenger John Brown, with ID 1001, taking flight AB2031 and assigned
to seat 17C. [3 marks]

(iii) Write a query to display ALL of the details of passengers with the last name
‘James’. [3 marks]

(c) A passenger wishes to verify his flight information prior to leaving home. State TWO
ways in which he can do this. [2 marks]

Total 15 marks

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3. (a)
Distinguish between the use of EACH of the following pairs of database features:

(i) Forms and reports [2 marks]

(ii) Primary key and foreign key [2 marks]

(b) The customer service representatives at a hardware store maintain a database of information
on customers and their orders. The table below is an extract from the hardware store’s
database.

Customer First_Name Last_Name Address Order Product Quantity Unit Total
No. No. Price

1 James Brown 15 Brown’s Road 50 Nails 100 1.00 100

2 Fabian Lovelace 21 Allen Place 51 Screws 100 1.50 150

3 Jason Cruger 15 City Street 52 Hammers 10 10.00 100

2 Fabian Lovelace 21 Allen Place 53 Light Bulbs 20 5.00 100

4 Kareen Brown 5 Rose Drive 54 Nails 200 1.00 200

(i) It has been recommended that the database be normalized. Identify THREE features
of the table that justify this recommendation. [3 marks]

(ii) Show the resulting table(s) if the database were to be normalized to the second
normal form (2NF). [9 marks]

(iii) A higher level of normalization is the third normal form (3NF).

a) Explain what is meant by the term ‘3NF’, highlighting the benefit it brings
to a database. [3 marks]

b) What change would be necessary to convert this database from 2NF to
3NF? [1 mark]

Total 20 marks

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SECTION II – USE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY TOOLS

Answer ALL questions.

4. Most computer users have access to an office productivity suite which includes tools such as
spreadsheet, word processing and presentation software.

(a) For EACH task below, explain the MOST appropriate way in which it can be accomplished,
highlighting the specific feature of a word processor you would use.

(i) You would like to save your assignment on your computer at school, but you
are worried that it may be accessed by other students who will use the computer
later. [2 marks]

(ii)
You have a database with information on 150 members of the local youth club.
You want to create a letter for each of them, and wish to automate the process of
inserting their names, addresses and outstanding member fees, which are all in the
database. [2 marks]

(iii) You have a document in which you mention a particular person’s name several
times. You have since discovered that the wrong person’s name was used in the
document. You wish to make the change automatically to save time and also to
ensure that no occurrence is overlooked. [2 marks]

(b)
Spreadsheet and database applications have several similarities. Discuss TWO features
of spreadsheet applications that make them more appropriate than database applications
for statistical use. [6 marks]

(c) A newsletter is to be produced for the school’s chess club. The newsletter is to include
graphics and text of various sizes and colours. What is the MOST appropriate type of
software to produce the newsletter? Justify your response. [3 marks]

Total 15 marks

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5. The St Vincent Gym and Spa has contracted you to update their website. Figure 1 below shows
the HTML code written for their home page.

<html>
<title> The St Vincent Gym and Spa </title>
<body bgcolor=”blue”>
<H1> Welcome to the St Vincent Gym and Spa </H1>

<P><font face= “arial”> Where workouts and training

meet pampering and relaxation. </font></P>
</body>
</html>

Figure 1

(a) Draw a carefully labelled diagram to show ALL components of the web page that this
code will generate. [4 marks]

(b) The management of the gym wants you to update the web page with the information shown
in the table below.

Item Price

Regular Member $ 900

Gold Member $ 1000

Platinum Member $ 1200

Write the additional code that would be required to update the webpage. [5 marks]

(c) Outline an alternative method to writing HTML code for developing a web page.
[2 marks]

(d) Distinguish between the terms ‘blog’ and ‘wiki’. [4 marks]

Total 15 marks

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6. (a) Jonathan, who lives in Belize, has been employed by a software development company
with its head office in Dominica, to write software for its clients. Jonathan will continue
to live in Belize and will utilize information and communication technologies to work
with the company.

(i) Explain ONE benefit of using information technology which makes this arrangement
feasible for the software development company. [2 marks]

(ii) For EACH task below, explain ONE way that Jonathan can accomplish it, identifying
appropriate IT technologies.

a) Johnathan has written source code for a project and needs to send it to the
head office. [2 marks]

b)
Jonathan supervises a team of programmers, not all living in Belize, and
wishes to meet with them to discuss the design of a software package.
[2 marks]

c) Jonathan drew a sketch of a graphical user interface (GUI) on a sheet of

paper and needs the feedback of his team on the sketch. [2 marks]

(b)
State TWO criteria that may be used to assess the appropriateness of a source of
information. [2 marks]

(c) (i) VOIP, also called internet telephony, is quickly becoming a very popular alternative
to traditional telephone communication. What does EACH letter in the acronym
VOIP represent? [1 mark]

(ii) Outline TWO advantages and TWO disadvantages of VOIP compared with
traditional telephone communication. [4 marks]

(d)
Intelligent appliances offer improvements over traditional appliances through the use of
information technology.

(i) Identify TWO examples of intelligent appliances in the home. [2 marks]

(ii)
For ONE of the appliances identified in (d) (i) above, discuss how the features and
use of the appliance in the home setting distinguish it as an intelligent appliance.
[3 marks]

Total 20 marks

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SECTION III – SOCIAL, ORGANISATIONAL AND PERSONAL ISSUES

Answer ALL questions.

7. The incidence of computer crimes have increased over the years.

(a)
Define EACH of the following computer crimes:

(i) Software piracy [1 mark]

(ii) Spoofing [1 mark]

(iii)
Spamming [1 mark]

(b) Seeta spends many hours a day on the Internet where she does most of her shopping and
banking. Her friends are concerned that she may be at risk for identity theft and computer
addiction.

(i) To help Seeta understand her friends’ concerns, explain EACH of these risks and
how she may become affected by them. [4 marks]

(ii) For EACH of the risks identified in (b), state ONE action which Seeta can take to
minimize the risk. [2 marks]

(c) Distinguish between EACH of the following pairs of terms:

(i) Cracking and hacking [2 marks]

(ii) Adware and spyware [2 marks]

(iii) Pharming and phishing [2 marks]

Total 15 marks

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8. (a) Caribbean countries are prone to various natural disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes
and flooding. These pose various risks to information technology (IT) systems.

(i) Identify THREE risks to IT systems, associated with natural disasters.
[3 marks]

(ii) For EACH risk identified in (a) (i) above, explain how an organization may reduce
the risk. [6 marks]

(b)
Organizations periodically change their computers and other hardware as they become
outdated.

(i) State TWO reasons why the disposal of hardware may be a challenge for
organizations. [2 marks]

(ii) Describe TWO strategies that may be used by organizations to assist with the
disposal of hardware. [4 marks]

Total 15 marks

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9. (a) Figure 2 below illustrates suggested seating and positioning o f equipment for computer
use.

/ \ Space in front
>' ( m\ I l // / ofkeyboardto
\ \ jy I | - I I______- " suPPort hands

Foot support

Figure 2

(i) Explain the purpose o f the foot support in the diagram and the potential effect on
the health o f the user if it is NOT provided. [3 marks]

(ii) The image also illustrates that space should be in front o f the keyboard to support
hands during pauses in keying. Name and describe the ailment that can occur if
this space is NOT provided. [3 marks]

(b) Explain how EACH o f the following types o f malware listed below affects the computer
system and can be prevented from occuring.

(i) Virus [2 marks]

(ii) Trojan [2 marks]

(iii) Worm [2 marks]

(c) There is growing concern in businesses with respect to safeguarding information assets.
The Caribbean Bank has decided to develop an Internet policy document because o f the
increased use o f the Internet on computers in the bank.

(i) State any TWO information assets that would need to be protected at the Caribbean
Bank. [2 marks]

(ii) Describe TWO policies that should be included in the Caribbean Bank’s Internet
policy document. [4 marks]

(iii) Identify TWO other means by which the Caribbean Bank could safeguard its
information assets. [2 marks]

Total 20 marks

END OF TEST

IF YOU FINISH BEFORE TIME IS CALLED, CHECK YOUR W ORK ON THIS TEST.

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