Giáo trình Tiếng Anh chuyên ngành (Ngành Kỹ thuật lắp ráp, sửa chữa máy tính)

Unit 1: Computers today WARM UP: COMPUTER APPLICATIONS A.. Information in the form of data and programs in known as software, and the electronic and mechanical parts that make up a com

UBND TỈNH HẢI PHÒNG TRƯỜNG CAO ĐẲNG CÔNG NGHIỆP HẢI PHÒNG

GIÁO TRÌNH TIẾNG ANH CHUYÊN NGÀNH

(Lưu hành nội bộ)

HẢI PHÒNG

Nội dung môn học

Nội dung tổng quát và phân phối thời gian:

- Computer applications

Unit 1 Computers today - Reading: What is a computer?

- Speaking: Your ideal computer system

- Grammar focus: Relative clauses

- Reading: Point and click!

Revision 1 + - Review Unit 1 & 2

Progress 1 - Progress test 1

- Reading: Computer graphics

- Writing: Creating a home page with a Web page editor

- Grammar focus: Conditional clauses

- Reading: Programming languages

- Writing: Describing C language

- Grammar focus: Infinitive constructions

Revision 2 +- Review Unit 3 & 4 Progress 2 - Progress test 2

Computers

- Reading: Security and privacy on the net

tomorrow - Mini project: designing a cybercafe

- Grammar focus: making predictions

Final Revision - Final Review

MỤC LỤ

C

Unit 1: Computers today 5

WARM UP: COMPUTER APPLICATIONS 5

READING 7

GRAMMAR FOCUS: RELATIVE CLAUSES 10

SPEAKING: YOUR IDEA COMPUTER SYSTEM 11

Unit 2: Input/ output devices 12

WARM UP 12

READING 14

WRITING 15

Unit 3: Software 16

WARM UP 16

READING 17

GRAMMAR FOCUS: CONDITIONAL CLAUSES 19

READING 20

WRITING 22

Unit 4: Programming 23

WARM UP 23

READING 24

GRAMMAR FOCUS: INFINITIVE CONSTRUCTIONS 26

Unit 5: Computers tomorrow 27

WARM UP 27

READING 28

GRAMMAR FOCUS: MAKING PREDICTIONS 30

4

Tài liệu này thuộc loại sách giáo trình nên các nguồn thông tin có thể được phép dùng nguyên bản hoặc trích dùng cho các mục đích về đào tạo và tham khảo

Mọi mục đích khác mang tính lệch lạc hoặc sử dụng với mục đích kinh doanh thiếu lành mạnh sẽ bị nghiêm cấm

Unit 1: Computers today

WARM UP: COMPUTER APPLICATIONS

A Computers have many applications in a many fields Look at these pictures of different situations and match them with text

1 to 4 below

d

c

1 A computer has high speed of calculation, diligence, accuracy, reliability, or

versatility which made it an integrated part in all business organizations Computer

is used in business organizations for:

Payroll calculations

Budgeting

Sales analysis

Financial forecasting

Managing employees database

2 The computer has provided a lot of facilities in the education system

The computer provides a tool in the education system known as CBE

(Computer Based Education)

CBE involves control, delivery, and evaluation of learning

The computer education is rapidly increasing the graph of number of

computer students

There are number of methods in which educational institutions can use

computer to educate the students

It is used to prepare a database about performance of a student and analysis

is carried out on this basis

3 Computers are widely used in Engineering purpose

One of major areas is CAD (Computer aided design) That provides creation and modification of images Some fields are:

Structural Engineering - Requires stress and strain analysis for design of

Ships, Buildings, Budgets, Airplanes etc

Industrial Engineering - Computers deal with design, implementation and

improvement of integrated systems of people, materials and equipments

Architectural Engineering - Computers help in planning towns, designing

buildings, determining a range of buildings on a site using both 2D and 3D drawings

4 Computers are largely used in defense Modern tanks, missiles, weapons etc

Military also employs computerized control systems Some military areas where a computer has been used are:

Missile Control

Military Communication

Military Operation and

Planning Smart Weapons

B Match these captions with pictures above:

Learning with computers is very interesting

Entertainment: game, music, animated image, multimedia, encyclopedia

Factories: machinery, robot, production line, computer-aided manufacturing

software

Hospitals: medical personnel, database program, records, scanner, diagnose,

surgery

Useful constructions

Computers are used to …

A PC can also be used for …

Computers can help …/ make …/ control …/ store …/ keep … / provide … manage

… / give … / perform … / measure … / test … / provide access to …

READING

A In group of four, finish the word puzzle of computer parts below

B Read the text and study the diagram below

What is a computer?

Computers are electronic machines which can accept data in certain form, process the data and give the results of the processing in a specific format as information Three basic steps are involved in the process First, data is fed into the computer’s memory Then, when the program is run, the computer performs a set of instructions and processes the data Finally, we can see the results (the output) on the screen or in printed form

Information in the form of data and programs in known as software, and the electronic and mechanical parts that

make up a computer system are called

hardware A standard computer system

consists of three main sections: the

central processing unit (CPU), the main

memory, and the peripherals

Perhaps the most influential component

is the central processing unit Its function

is to execute program instructions and

coordinate the activities of all the other

units In a way, it is the “brain” of the

computer The main memory holds the

instructions and data which are currently

being processed by the CPU The

peripherals are the physical units

attached to the computer They include

storage devices and input/output devices

Storage devices (floppy, hard or optical disks) provide a permanent storage of both data and programs Disk devices are used to handle one or more floppy disks Input devices enable data to go into the computer’s memory The most common input devices are the mouse and the keyboard Output devices enable us to extract the finished product from the system For example, the computer shows the output on the monitor or prints the results onto paper by means of a printer

On the rear panel of the computer, there are several ports into which we can plug a wide range of peripherals – modems, fax machine, optical drives, and scanners These are the main physical units of a computer system, generally known as the configuration

C Use the information in the text and the diagram to help you match the terms in the box with the appropriate explanation or definition below

a software b peripheral devices c monitor d USB

1 The brain of the computer

2 Physical parts that make up a computer system

3 Programs which can be used on a particular computer system

4 The information which is presented to the computer

5 Results produced by a computer

6 Hardware equipment attached to the CPU

7 Visual display unit

8 Small device used to store information

9 Any socket or channel in a computer system into which

an input/output device may be connected

GRAMMAR FOCUS: RELATIVE CLAUSES

A Study these sentences:

1 The microprocessor is a chip

2 The chip processes the information provided by software

Both sentences refer to chip We can link them by making sentences 2 a relative clause:

The microprocessor is a chip which processes the information provided by

software

The relative clause is in italics Note that the chip in sentences 2 becomes which

Study these other pairs of sentences and note how they are linked

3 The teacher has just arrived

4 The teacher is responsible for the computer centre

3+4: The teacher who is responsible for the computer centre has just arrived

B Now link these sentences Make the second sentences in each pair a

relative clause

1 Virus is a destructive software

This software causes damage to the data, the information or the hardware of the computer

………

2 A USB port is a gateway

The gateway is used to connect all kinds of external devices to your

computer

………

3 A co-processor is a silicon chip The chip carries out mathematical operation at a very high speed ………

4 The megahertz is a unit of frequency The unit is used to measure processor speed ………

5 A password is a secret word The word must be entered before access is given to a computer system ………

6 The gateway is a device The device is used to interconnect different types of networks ………

SPEAKING: YOUR IDEA COMPUTER SYSTEM A Make notes about the features of the computer that you would like to have CPU: ………

Speed: ………

Minimum/maximum RAM: ………

Hard disk: ………

Monitor: ………

Software: ………

B Now describe it to your

partner Useful expressions

It has got …

It’s very fast It runs at …

The standard RAM memory … and it is expandable

… The hard disk can hold …

I need a SuperVGA monitor because

… As for the Internet …

Unit 2: Input/ output

devices

WARM UP

A Interacting with your computer

Input devices are the pieces of hardware which allow us to enter information into the computer, the most common are the keyboard and the mouse We can also interact with a computer by using one of these: a lightpen, a scanner, a trackball, a graphics tablet, a joystick or a voice recognition device

Look at the illustration and see if you can name them

3………

1………

2………

5……… 6………

4………

B About the keyboard

Look at the picture of PC-compatible keyboard below and identify these groups of keys

1 Alphanumeric keys: arranged in the same order as a typewriter

2 Function keys: used by various programs to instruct the PC to perform

specific tasks such as Save, Copy, Paste, Help, etc

3 Numeric keypad: set of numeric or editing keys The Num Kock key is used

to switch from numbers to editing functions

4 Editing keys: cursor and other keys usually used within word processors to

page up and down in a long document or to edit text (using Insert or Delete keys)

Match these descriptions with the names of keys on the right Then find them

on the keyboard

1 A long key at the bottom of the keyboard Each time it is

pressed, it produces a blank space

2 It moves the cursor to the beginning of a new line It is also

used to confirm commands

3 It stops a program without losing the information from the

main memory Sometimes, its use depends on the applications

4 It works in combination with other keys to produce special

characters or specific actions

5 It removes the character on the left of the cursor or any selected

text

6 It produces UPPER-CASE character

7 It produces upper-case letters, but it does not affect numbers

READING

Point and click!

A computer mouse is an input device that is most often used with a personal computer Moving a mouse along a flat surface can move the on-screen cursor to different items on the screen Items can be moved or selected by pressing the mouse buttons (called clicking)

It is called a computer mouse because of the wire that connects the mouse to the computer The people who designed the first computer mice thought that it looked like the tail on a mouse Today, many computer mice use wireless technology and have no wire

In 1964 Douglas Engelbart (1925-2013), a researcher at Stanford Research Institute, wanted to find a way to make using computers easier In those days, computers were large and expensive Using them was very hard because everything had to be typed in by hand, and there was no way to alter things if you made a mistake

After studying and designing for a long time, Engelbart succeeded in inventing an input device which he named 'XY index'

At first, it needed two hands to use, but it was changed so that only one hand was needed to use it This model was more like the mouse that we use today Xerox Palo Alto Research introduced a GUI in 1981, using a mouse

The mouse was used with Macintosh of Apple Inc when it came out in 1984 Microsoft Windows also used the mouse when it came out, so over time computer mice became used with many computers Modern mice have three buttons: left button, right button, scroll button

On most computers, the user can move the mouse to move the cursor in the same direction To choose something that is on the screen, the user can move the cursor

to it and "click" the left mouse button The right mouse button is used to open menus that are different depending on where the cursor is The other mouse buttons can do different things, depending on the software Most mice have two buttons to click

Most mice also have a "scroll wheel" —a small wheel found between the two main mouse buttons The user can move the wheel back and forth to "scroll" through things like a website or folder "Scrolling" means moving the words or pictures up

or down on the screen, so another part of the page comes into view The wheel can also be pressed, to click it like another button

Try to answer these questions:

1 Why it is called a computer mouse?

Unit 3: Software

WARM UP

A Look at the diagram What are the functions of the operating system?

B Read the text below and complete it with the phrases in the box

An operating sys tem is a group of computer ……… that coordinates all the activities among computer hardware devices It is the first program loaded into the computer by a boot program and remains in memory at all times The basic functions of an operating system are:

Provides file ……… which refers to the way that the operating system manipulates, stores, retrieves and saves data

systems for personal computers are Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac OS X, and Linux

or GUI (pronounced gooey) A GUI lets you use your mouse to click icons, buttons, and menus, and everything is clearly displayed on the screen using a combination of graphics and text Each operating system's GUI has a different look and feel, so if you switch to a different operating system it may seem unfamiliar at first However, modern operating systems are designed to be easy to use, and most

of the basic principles are the same

Microsoft Windows

Microsoft created the Windows operating system in the mid- 1980s Over the years, there have been many different versions of Windows, but the most recent ones are Windows 8 (released in 2012), Windows 7 (2009), and Windows Vista (2007) Windows comes preloaded on most new PCs, which helps to make it the most popular operating system in the world

If you're buying a new computer or are upgrading to a newer version of Windows, you can choose from several different editions of Windows, such as Home Premium, Professional, and Ultimate You may need to do some research to decide which edition is right for you

Mac OS X

Mac OS is a line of operating systems created by Apple It comes preloaded on all new Macintosh computers, or Macs All of the recent versions are known as OS X (pronounced O-S Ten), and the specific versions include Yosemite (released in 2014), Mavericks (2013), Mountain Lion (2012), Lion (2011), and Snow Leopard (2009) Apple also offers a version called Mac OS X Server, which is designed to

be run on servers

According to StatCounter Global Stats, Mac OS X users account for 9.5% of the operating systems market as of September 2014 - much lower than the percentage

of Windows users (almost 90%) One reason for this is that Apple computers tend

to be more expensive However, many people prefer the look and feel of Mac OS

X

Linux

Linux (pronounced LINN-ux) is a family of open-source operating systems, which means they can be modified and distributed by anyone around the world This is different from proprietary software like Windows, which can only be modified by the company that owns it (Microsoft) The advantages of Linux are that it is free, and there are many different distributions —or versions—you can choose from Each distribution has a different look and feel, and the most popular ones include Ubuntu, Mint, and Fedora

Linux is named after Linus Torvalds, who created the Linux kernel in 1991

The kernel is the computer code that is the central part of an operating system

1 What does GUI mean?

GRAMMAR FOCUS: CONDITIONAL CLAUSES

A Two types of conditional clauses

When you want to talk about a possible situation and its consequences, you use a conditional sentence Here, we examine two types of conditionals

First conditional (possible situation)

If A happens, B will happen

(present simple), (will + verb)

E.g If you click on the speaker ico n, you’ll get a piece of dialogue from the movie

In the main clause, we can also have modal (can, be able to), an imperative, or a present tense verb

Second conditional (unlikely situation)

If A happened, B would happen

(past simple), (would + verb)

E.g If I had money, I would invest in a multimedia upgrade kid

Other modals (could, should, might, be able to) may appear in the main clause

B Read these sentences, then identify the tenses used in the if-clause and in the main clause

1 If you upgrade your PC, you’ll be able to run multimedia applications

2 If the marketing manager had a multimedia system, she could make more effective presentations

C Put the verbs in the brackets into the correct form

1 If I (get) ……… a sound card, I’ll be able to create my own music with a MIDI

2 If the system (have) ……… a SuperVGA card, we would obtain a better resolution

3 You won’t be able to play CD-ROM disks if you (not have) ………

D Match the sentences in Column A with appropriate sentences from

Column B Then join each action and effect using an if-sentence

1 you press Print Screen a you drag it across the screen

2 you press Ctrl+Alt+Del in Windows 7 b it would speed up the computer

5 you used a better search engine desk

6 you forget to save regularly e you would be able to connect to a

7 you hold down the mouse button over telephone line

8 you used an LCD display g you would find more relevant

results

h it displays a list of active programs

E Describe the consequences of these actions using an if-sentence

1 you don’t virus-check USB

2 there was a power cut while you were using your computer

3 you install a faster processor

4 you forgot your password

5 you press the delete key

6 you use search engine

7 you double-click on an icon

8 you use power-saving options

READING

A Read the text below

Computer graphics

Computer graphics are visual representations of data displayed on a monitor made

on a computer Computer graphics can be a series of images (most often called video) or a single image

Computer graphics are very useful Computer-generated imagery is used for movie making, video game and computer program development, scientific

modeling, and design for catalogs and other commercial art Some people even make computer graphics as art

Computer graphics can be 2D or 3D They are made differently and used differently People use different computer programs to make different types of graphics

2D computer graphics are usually split into two categories: vector graphics and raster graphics

Vector graphics use lines, shapes, and text to create a more complex image If a vector graphic image is made very big on the monitor, it will still be as good as its regular size This is one of the reasons vector graphics are liked so much Vector graphics are made with programs like Adobe Illustrator and Inkscape, and were used for some older computer games Today, they are often used for when computer graphics have to be printed out

Raster graphics use pixels to make up a larger image This does not mean the artist has to change a single pixel at a time - raster programs often have tools like paintbrushes, paint buckets, and erasers to make a picture Programs used to make these include Adobe Photoshop and Corel Paint Shop Pro These are often used as part of what the user sees when she uses a computer program

Sometimes people do use only pixels to make an image This is called pixel art and

it has a very unique style

3D graphics are graphics that look like objects because they are three- dimensional This means the computer thinks it has a height, a length, and a depth, and displays them as this Some programs used to make 3D graphics are Bryce, 3D Studio Max, Maya and Blender, and 3D graphics are used many times in movies and TV shows and video games

Computer graphics may be used in the following areas:

o Infographics

B More about graphics

Graphics programs have several options that work in conjunction with the tools menu to enable the user to manipulate and change pictures

Look at the facilities on the left and match them with the definitions on the right

1 Patterns menu a Turning an image round

2 Scaling b A tool which lets you scale the ‘view’ of a picture and edit

a small potion of it as if you were working under a

magnifying glass It is very useful for doing detailed work as

3 Rotating c Making the object larger or smaller in any of the horizontal,

4 Inverting d A shading technique where two different colors are placed

next to each other; the human eye blends the colors to form a

third one It is also used to show shading in black and white

5 Zoom e A palette from which you choose a design to fill in shapes

6 Slanting f Reversing the color of the dots in the selected part of a

picture, so that white dots become black and black dots

Unit 4: Programming

WARM UP

A In pairs, try to think of an answer for the question

What is programming?

B Complete the following definitions with the words and phrases in the box

the various parts of the program may occur in programs language

binary numbers a given problem

The basic instructions understood by computers The processor operates

on codes which consist of

called machine code This consists of the 1s and 0s (binary codes) that are

processed by the CPU

However, machine code as a means of communication is very difficult to write For this reason, we use symbolic languages that are easier to understand Then, by using a special program, these languages can be

translated into machine code For example, the so-called assembly languages use abbreviations such as ADD, SUB, MPY to represent

instructions These mnemonic codes are like labels easily associated with the items to which they refer

Basic languages, where the program is similar to the machine code version,

are known as low-level languages In these languages, each instruction is

equivalent to a single machine code instruction, and the program is

converted into machine code by a special program called an assembler

These languages are still quite complex and restricted to particular machines

To make the programs easier to write and to overcome the problem of intercommunication between different types of machines, higher-level languages were designed such as BASIC, COBOL, FORTRAN or Pascal These are all problem-oriented rather than machine-oriented Programs

written in one of these languages (known as source programs) are

converted into low-level language by means of a compiler (generating the

object program) On compilation, each statement in a high-level language

is generally translated into many machine code instructions

People communicate instructions to the computer in symbolic languages and the easier this communication can be made, the wider the application of computers will be Scientists are already working on Artificial Intelligence and the next generation of computers may be able to understand human languages

Instructions are written in a high-level language (e.g Pascal, BASIC, COBOL, Ada, C, Lisp)

This is known as the source program

Compiler Compilers translate the original code into a lower-level language

or machine code so that the CPU can understand it

Instructions are compiled and packaged into a program

The software is ready to run on the computer

1 Do computer understand human languages?

5 What do you understand by the terms source program and object program?

………

6 In the future, could computers be programmed in Spanish, French, or

Japanese?

………

GRAMMAR FOCUS: INFINITIVE CONSTRUCTIONS

A The infinitive is used:

after adjectives

It is difficult to use machine code

after modal verbs with to: ought to, used

to I ought to make a back-up copy

Using a computer is much easier than it used to be

after modal and auxiliary verbs without to: can, could, may, might,

shall, will, should, would, would rather

Unfortunately, computers can’t understand

English I’d rather buy a game than a spreadsheet

B Make sentences as in the example

E.g: Not easy/write instructions in Pascal

 It is not easy to write instructions in Pascal.

C Now look again at the reading passage Underline the infinitive

constructions after modal verbs

E.g: Unfortunately, computers cannot understand ordinary spoken English

D Look at these pairs of examples and decide where there is an

important change in meaning

1 a I remember shutting down the computer before I left the room

b Please, remember to buy the new program

2 a They stopped to look at the flowchart

b They stopped looking at the flowchart

3 a I like studying C language

b I like to study C language in the evenings

4 a It has started to rain

b It has started raining

5 a He needs to work harder

b This hard disk needs repairing

Unit 5: Computers

tomorrow

WARM UP

A Try to answer these questions

1 Is it technically possible for computer criminals to infiltrate into the Internet and steal sensitive information?

2 What is a hacker?

3 Can virus enter your PC from the Internet?

B Match these texts with the correct pictures

1 Web browsers warn you if the connection is not secure; they display a

message when you try to send personal information to a server

2 Private networks use software and hardware mechanism, called a ‘firewall’,

to block unauthorized traffic from the Internet

3 You have to type your user name and password to access a locked computer system or network

4 An open padlock in Netscape Communicator indicates the page is not secure;

a closed padlock indicates the page is encrypted

Privacy and Security on the

Internet: 5 Tips to Stay Safe

As the Internet becomes an increasingly integral part of daily life, questions about privacy and security on the Internet are on the rise Keeping your personal

information, private data and finances safe can be difficult, but

by following a few tips, you can avoid the vast majority of scams,

The best tool to avoid spyware and stay safe on the Internet is your own brain Free software with no potential upgrades or strings attached, websites that are covered in flashy ads, and free Wi-Fi in an unexpected place are all signs that something may be wrong, and ignoring that intuition can get you in trouble By staying aware of what you are doing, and thinking about your security while you live your online life, you stand a better chance of avoiding potentially dangerous situations

Tip 2: Check for website safety

The Internet can be dangerous because so many websites require your personal information to either log in to your account or to complete a transaction Hackers, thieves and spyware programmers realize this and often try to intercept your information during these transactions, so make sure you are always dealing with secure websites and companies First, only provide your information to reputable businesses, then ensure that the company's website uses a Web address that starts with "https" and has a padlock symbol either in the address bar or at the bottom of the browser This means that the site encrypts your information, making the data nearly useless to any thieves or hackers who may intercept the transmission

Tip 3: Choose strong and varied passwords

For most people, a password is the strongest protection to ward off hackers and thieves, and yet

so many choose passwords that are barely worth the time it takes to enter them When creating

a password, always use a mix of letters and numbers, and include a symbol if the website allows

it While more difficult to remember, this will make your password almost impossible to guess More importantly, you have to use different passwords for different websites Think about how often you use the same username and password for many online accounts Hackers specifically target low-security sites to gain access to large lists of usernames and corresponding passwords, knowing that many people use the same combination of credentials for things like online banking

Additionally, take advantage of any two- factor authentication offered by these sites This requires not only a password to log in, but a code that's sent to a dedicated device or to your smartphone as an SMS message This makes it very difficult for a third party to hack into your account

Tip 4: What is spyware? How do I stop it?

Spyware probably poses the biggest threat to privacy and security on the Internet, yet so few people really know what it is or how it works Put simply, spyware is any piece of software that records your actions or information without your knowledge Some spyware is fairly benign, tracking browsing history and keeping the data it receives anonymous, while other spyware is specifically designed to get your online banking credentials so thieves can clean out your accounts

Because it's almost impossible to avoid spyware on your own, having anti-spware and antivirus programs running on your computer is a must These programs will automatically scan any piece of incoming software for malicious signatures and block the installation if the program looks suspect They'll also scan existing files and monitor Internet traffic to ensure that spyware isn't hiding somewhere on the machine and sending your information to some hacker's terminal There are free anti-spyware programs out there, but you have to be careful when trying to save

a buck or two — quite a few of these programs are really Trojan horses in disguise, looking to infect your machine instead of protect it Instead, your best option is to go with an industry leader These companies have no interest in scamming you, and are big enough to ensure that their databases are constantly updated as new threats emerge The best options also offer a free trial, so you can see the anti-spyware program in action before paying some of your hard- earned cash

Tip 5: It's not all about spyware and scams

With all this talk about spyware, hackers and Internet security, it's important to remember that most people with privacy issues on the Internet put themselves in that position Think about

social networking sites and just how much personal information you have posted there If someone were trying to steal your identity and needed your father's middle name or where you went to elementary school — two commonly used security questions — you need to think about how a thief could locate those facts If you're concerned about Internet privacy, you have to consider staying away from social networking sites, minimizing the information you put out there,

or maximizing privacy settings on these sites

Complete privacy and security on the Internet is a tough goal to reach, these tips will help you

go a long way toward keeping yourself safe Millions of people use the Internet, and thieves will inevitably go for easy targets People who give even the smallest amount of thought to security and privacy, and take steps in that regard, will find themselves passed over as thieves search out greener pastures

(From http://usa.kaspersky.com/ )

GRAMMAR FOCUS: MAKING PREDICTIONS

A prediction is a statement about a particular subject in which we say what we think will happen in the future Predictions are not always absolute, but can be expressed with the different levels of certainly, according to the context in which they are made

Certainly can be expressed by:

will (definitely, certainly)

certain, sure

without a doubt, without question

Probability can be expressed

by: probable, probably, likely

most/highly probable, most probably, most/highly likely

Possibility can be expressed by:

may (not), might (not), can, could, possible, possibly, perhaps

These expressions are used in sentences in different ways For examples:

1 Notebook computers will definitely be cheaper next year

2 It is highly probable/ likely that notebook computers will be cheaper next year

3 Notebook computers may/ might be cheaper next year

4 Perhaps notebook computers will be cheaper next year

5 It is unlikely/ doubtful that notebook computers will be cheaper next year

6 Notebook computers will most probably not be cheaper next year

7 Notebook computers will definitely not be cheaper next year

8 It is impossible that notebook computers will be cheaper next year

A Match the if-clauses to the main clauses to make complete sentences

1 If you never read computer magazine,

2 If you back up your hard disk,

3 If you had a modem,

4 If you don’t copy pirated software,

5 If I knew more

programming languages,

6 If we bought a better printer,

a you would be able to access our bulletin board

b it is unlikely that you will have a problem with computer virus

c we should have a bigger range of typefaces and fonts to choose from

d you will miss important new products

e I would get a better job

f you will probably lose some important files

B Now make up three first conditional and three second conditional

sentences of your own

Glossary of ICT terminology

A

Absolute Link: A term used by Web authors In an HTML document a Relative Link indicates

the location of a file relative to the document, whereas an absolute link specifies the full URL

For example, the relative link of this Glossary to the ICT4LT homepage is /en/en_glossary.htm

whereas it's absolute link is http://www.ict4lt.org/en/en_glossary.htm It's generally better for Web authors to link to files within the same website using relative links rather than absolute links,

as this makes site and file maintenance easier See Section 5.4, Module 3.3, headed Shared

Acceptable Use Policy (AUP): An AUP is a set of rules that define the ways in which ICT

facilities can and cannot be used in a business or educational institution, including a description

of the possible sanctions that can be applied if a user breaks the rules Two of the most important

topics covered by an AUP are (i) e-safety and (ii) awareness of and compliance with

copyright See Section 12.6, Module 1.5, headed E-safety, and General guidelines on copyright

forfurther information about these topics

Access: The name of a Database program forming part of the Microsoft Office suite of programs

Accessibility: The fundamental issue regarding accessibility is that everyone should have access

to the services provided by ICT, e.g computer programs, Email and the World Wide Web, regardless of any visual, auditory, or other physical impairment they might have Assistive

screen readers, screen magnifiers, speech recognition systems, hearing assistance devices, etc Designers of computer programs and websites need to take account of accessibility when choosing colours, fonts and font sizes, etc: see Font See Section 4, Module 3.5 regarding speech technologies and how they may help unsighted and partially sighted computer users and people with hearing impairments See SENDA See Section 6.3.1, Module 3.3, headed HTML

Action Maze: A type of computer program used in Computer Assisted Language Learning

See Maze for a more detailed explanation

Active Matrix: A term used to describe the newer type of computer Display Screen that makes

use of Thin Film Transistor (TFT) technology: see TFT Active matrix screens have excellent colour resolution and can display motion accurately and rapidly See Resolution

Additive Colour: A term used mainly by graphic designers Additive colour is produced by the

addition of light from a luminescent primary source A light bulb appears white because it emits light in all colours of the visible spectrum, which combine to produce white light All the colours

in the light spectrum add up to make white light Computer monitors use three additive colours, Red, Green and Blue (RGB), which are combined in different ways to produce millions of other colours See CMY, RGB, Subtractive Colour

Address Book: Usually supplied as part of your Email software An address book in this sense is

used to keep a record of all the email addresses of people whom you may wish to contact by email

ADSL: Abbreviation for Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line A high-speed digital telephone

connection that operates over an existing copper telephone line, allowing the same line to be used for voice calls ADSL lines offer transmission speed that are usually in the range 2Mbps to 8Mbps, and are used mainly for Internet access The term asymmetric is used because the data

flows more quickly from the telephone exchange to the user than from the user to the exchange - because most Web users are more interested in receiving data quickly from websites rather than

uploading it to websites The term symmetric is used for connections where the data flows at the

same speed in both directions, which is essential for accessing websites where there is a high degree of interactivity See Broadband, ISDN, Kbps, Leased Line, Mbps

Adventure Game: Adventure games date back to the early days of mainframe computing The

early adventure games consisted entirely of written text, but modern adventure games incorporate elaborate graphics, sound and video sequences The dividing line between an adventure game and

overcome, and the player has to indulge in mind-stretching lateral thinking in order to overcome

them Adventure games are often set in a fantasy world, e.g Myst or Riven, but some are more down-to-earth and can play an important role in language teaching and learning, e.g Who is

Oscar Lake? See Section 3.4.9, Module 2.2 , headed A simulation on CD-ROM See Maze, MOO, MUD, MUVE

Adware is software that may have been installed on your computer by a remote computer, i.e

via the Web Many free utilities that you download from the Internet will install hidden software

that sends details of the websites you visit and other information from your computer (which can include your email address) to advertisers so they can target you with popup ads and spam

are described See Spam, Spyware

AI: Abbreviation for Artificial Intelligence

AJAX: Acronym for Asynchronous JavaScript and XML AJAX is a Web programming tool (or

rather a set of tools) that makes it possible to create interactive Web applications that work in much the same way as computer applications on your computer's hard disc, i.e more responsive, more spontaneous, so that when you click on something on the Web page there is very little time delay - as in your word-processor, for example While you are browsing a Web page AJAX is working behind the scenes AJAX allows your browser to fetch data from the Web and use it to update a fragment of the page without refreshing the whole page so that you don't have to wait for the whole Web page to refresh or reload each time you click on a button or initiate an action

in some other way This increases the Web page's interactivity, speed, functionality, and usability Google Maps is a typical example of a Web application incorporating AJAX Scroll around the map and watch it update itself with relatively little time delay AJAX is a programming tool that is used extensively in what are known as Web 2.0 applications See

ALTE: Abbreviation for Association of Language Testers in Europe

Alt Key: The Alt keys can be found on either side of the space bar on a computer keyboard They

are commonly used in conjunction with a set of numbers to enable foreign characters to be typed

Analogue: The basic meaning of analogue is "something that corresponds to something else"

For example, in the context of equipment used for recording and playing back sound, analogue refers to the way in which the sound is recorded and reproduced If you look closely at the groove

of a 33 rpm vinyl gramophone record you will see that it is essentially a continuous wave, an undulating series of "hills" These "hills" correspond to the nature and volume of the sound that has been recorded As the stylus of the record player moves along the wave it produces vibrations that are amplified and converted into sound A parallel can be drawn with radio transmissions, where the sound signals are transmitted in the form of invisible waves Early mobile phones worked in a similar way Older tape recorders and videocassette recorders are based on the same principle, except that the signals representing the sound and moving images are imprinted onto a plastic tape coated with a magnetic powder All analogue recordings suffer from background noise, and the quality of reproduction gradually degrades as the record or tape wears out If the recording is copied, the copy will not be as good as the original, regardless of the quality of the equipment used to copy it See the contrasting term Digital

Anchor: A term used in connection with HTML, the coding system used for creating Web pages

An anchor is the target of a Hyperlink, i.e a point in a Web document to which you jump when you click on a hyperlink

Animation: The display of a sequence of images in a computer program or on a Web page to

give the impression of movement

ANSI: Abbreviation for American National Standards Institute This is a system that specifies

code numbers for all the characters that appear on a computer Keyboard, plus the extended

character set used in Microsoft Windows It includes all the ASCII codes plus many others Each character on the keyboard of a computer is assigned a unique ANSI code number, e.g A = ANSI

65 Characters that don't appear on the keyboard can be typed by holding down the Alt key, pressing a series of digits on the number pad, e.g ALT + 0233, and then releasing the Alt key

0233 is the ANSI code for é See also Unicode See Alt Key See Section 5, Module 1.3, headed

Anonymous FTP: An anonymous FTP is a convention whereby users are not required to identify

themselves with an account number, user name or password when they access a website from which they wish to download publicly available programs or files Users may, however, be required to enter their email address before accessing certain websites The vast majority of publicly available Freeware and Shareware archives on the Web permit anonymous FTP See

Anorak: A colloquial term that is often used to describe someone who is fascinated by the

technology of computers but not particularly interested in their applications A synonym is

different connotations

Anti-virus Software: See Virus

Apache: The most popular Web Server software on the World Wide Web Apache runs mainly

on Unix systems, although there is also a Microsoft Windows version The Apache Project website is at http://www.apache.org

API: Abbreviation for Application Programming Interface API is a so-called protocol of

communication that enables different computer programs to communicate with one another A good API makes it easier to develop a program by providing all the building blocks that the programmer needs Although APIs are designed for programmers, they are also good for program users insofar as they guarantee that all programs using a common API will have similar interfaces This makes it easier for users to learn new programs

App: Abbreviation for Application

Applet: A small program written in the Java programming language and embedded in a Web

page When you use your Browser to access a Web page, an applet may run "inside" the Web page, as it were, to perform an interactive animation, make a calculation or carry out another simple task

Application: A computer program or a suite of computer programs that performs a particular

function for the user, such as a word-processor, e.g Microsoft Word, or a range of functions, such

as Microsoft Windows or Microsoft Office Commonly abbreviated to app, especially in the

context of Web 2.0 and Mobile Assisted Learning (MALL) apps See Computer Program,

Archive: Used to describe documents or files that are not immediately needed but which should

not be completely discarded An archive may be stored on an external Hard Disc , CD-ROM,

DVD orother Storage Device.Also used to describe stored messages that have beencontributed

to discussion lists or blogs Also used as a verb See Blog, Discussion List

Artificial Intelligence (AI): The ability of a computer to mimic human attributes in finding a

solution to a problem Artificial Intelligence techniques are applied in various ways in computer

applications in the language world, e.g in Machine Translation (MT) programs and in grammar and style checkers See Module 3.5, Human Language Technologies (HLT), especially Section 6,

headed Human Language Technologies and CALL, and Section 8 on Parser-based CALL See

ASCII: Abbreviation for American Standard Code for Information Interchange This is a system

that specifies code numbers for all the characters that appear on a computer Keyboard, plus other specialised characters Each character on the keyboard of a computer is assigned a unique ASCII code number, e.g A = ASCII 65 Characters that don't appear on the keyboard can be typed by

holding down the Alt key, pressing a series of digits on the number pad, e.g ALT + 130, and then releasing the Alt key 130 is the ASCII code for é The ANSI character set (as used in Microsoft

standard coding system See Unicode See Alt Key See Section 5, Module 1.3, headed Typing

ASF: Abbreviation for Advanced Streaming Format This is Microsoft's own file format that

stores both audio and video information and is specially designed to run over the Internet ASF

enables content to be delivered as a continuous stream of streaming audio or streaming video data.with little wait time before playback begins This means that you no longer have to wait for

your audio and video files to fully download before starting to view them See Streaming See

ASR: Abbreviation for Automatic Speech Recognition

Assistive Technology: This term describes computer software or devices used by people with

special needs to enable them to access the services provided by ICT, e.g computer programs,

screen readers for the unsighted or partially sighted, alternative keyboards and mice for people who have problems in hand-eye coordination, head-pointing devices, speech recognition software, and screen magnification software See Accessibility, PointingDevice, SENDA

Association of Language Testers in Europe (ALTE): An association of providers of foreign

language examinations: http://www.alte.org

Asynchronous: "Not at the same time" Often used to refer to communication by Email or via a

to be present at the same time and can respond at their own convenience A feature of

computers at the same time See Synchronous See Section 14, Module 1.5, headed Computer

Attachment: A term used in connection with Email An attachment can be a File of almost any

kind - a document file, an image file, a sound file or a video clip - that you can add, i.e attach, to

an email

Attribute: A term used by Web authors An attribute of an HTML tag controls how that tag

operates For example, in the HTML fragment <img src=" /images/home01.gif" alt="English

home page">, the required attribute src defines the image file to be displayed, and the optional

attribute alt defines the text to be displayed when the Mouse moves over the image Attributes can only exist within tags See HTML, Tag

Audio Card: See Sound Card

Audioconferencing or Audio Conferencing: A computer-based communications system that

allows a group of computer users at different locations to conduct a "virtual conference" in which the participants can hear one another as if they were in the same room participating in a real conference Unlike Videoconferencing, audioconferencing systems do not allow the participants

to see one another See Conferencing See Section 14.1.2, Module 1.5, headed

AUP: Abbreviation for Acceptable Use Policy

Authoring Package / Authoring Program / Authoring Tool: These terms describe free software packages that allow the teacher to develop interactive learning and teaching

content-materials without having to have a detailed knowledge of a computer Programming Language

These terms may also be applied to software packages used for creating Web pages, e.g Front

Page or Dreamweaver See Module 2.5, Introduction to CALL authoring programs See Module

site See Content-Free

Authorship Analysis Software: Authorship Analysis Software can help to identify authorship of

texts Such software has been used by literary and linguistic researchers for many years and is now widely used by security services in counter-terrorism activities

Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR): A branch of Human Language Technologies devoted to

the automatic processing of human speech See Speech Recognition See Section 4, Module 3.5,

headed Speech technologies

Avatar: A graphical representation of a real person, such as used in a MUVE or MMORPG, a

kind of "virtual world" Participants in a MUVE or MMORPG choose a name and a visual representation of the character that they wish to adopt as an inhabitant of the MUVE or player in the MMORPG See Section 14.2, Module 1.5, headed Chat rooms, MUDs, MOOs and MUVEs

AVI: Abbreviation for Audio Video Interleave (or Interleaved) A file format for storing video

recordings on a computer See ASF, MOV, MPEG, RM, which are alternative video file formats

Top

B

Backup or Back Up: Used as a verb, to back up means to copy a File or Folder from your

computer to another Storage Device, e.g a CD-ROM, as a precaution in case your Hard Drive

fails or is infected by a Virus.A backup, used as a noun, or abackup copy describes a copythat you have made in this way It is essential to back up new files and folders at regular intervals

Bandwidth: The amount of data that can be sent from one computer to another through a

particular connection in a certain amount of time, e.g via a computer to the Internet and vice versa The more bandwidth available, the faster you are able to access information Bandwidth is

usually measured in kilobits per second (Kbps) or megabits per second (Mbps) See ADSL,

Baud: A unit of measurement at which data can be transferred (i.e the baud rate), for example

over a telephone line via a Modem or from a computer to an external device such as a Printer Rarely used nowadays, as transfer transfer rates are normally expressed in kilobits per second (Kbbs) or megabits per second (Mbps)

BBS: Abbreviation for Bulletin Board System See Bulletin Board

BECTA: British Educational Communications and Technology Agency, formerly known as

NCET (National Council for Educational Technology), MESU (Microelectronics Education Support Unit) and the CET (Council for Educational Technology) BECTA is due to close down under the recently elected UK government (May 2010)

Binary: A number system using base 2 instead of the usual (human) base 10, which is normally

referred to as the decimal system Computers use base 2 because they can only recognise two values, 1 or 0 This is simulated electronically by using a device, such as a switch, which is either

on (1) or off (0) All numbers are represented by combinations of ones and zeroes, thus the number 9 is represented as 1001, the right-most column being the units column and the other columns, moving from right to left, being 2, 4, 8 See Hexadecimal

Binary File: Strictly speaking all computer files are Binary, consisting of a string of ones and

zeroes, but the term binary file is often used to differentiate program files and data files from text

BIOS: Acronym for Basic Input/Output System This is a built-in ROM Chip on the

loaded into memory during the boot process See Boot,ROM

Bit: Contraction of binary digit A bit is the smallest measurement unit of computer memory or

data transmission speed, e.g via a Modem See the entry on Measurement Units See Byte,

Bitmap: A computer graphic or image composed of thousands of individual dots or pixels , each

pixel being stored as a number The image is displayed by specifying the colour of each pixel Bit-mapped graphics can be imported into other applications, e.g a word-processor, but they cannot be edited within these applications When bit-mapped graphics are resized they usually

suffer a loss of sharpness, whereas vector graphics can be resized without such loss See BMP,

Blackboard: A commercial Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) package, i.e a software

package that integrates online communications software with content software enabling teachers

to create courses that are delivered partially or entirely via the Web Courses using Blackboard

might be mainly text-based, but can be enhanced with images, audio and video See:

October 2005

Blended Learning: This term normally refers to combining Internet-based distance learning

with face-to-face tuition but it may also be used to describe combining offline ICT-based materials with more traditional materials, such as books, audiocassettes and videocassettes See

Blog: Contraction of the term Weblog A blog is essentially a website that contains discrete

pieces of information posted by different users New items of information are usually entered by contributors via a simple form, following the introduction of each new theme by a person who initiates the blog, and then submitted to the site, where they may be filtered by an administrator before being posted A blog can contain news items, short essays, annotated links, documents, graphics, and multimedia These posts are usually in reverse chronological order and often take the form of a journal or diary A blog is normally accessible to any Internet user, but closed blogs may also be created, e.g to document the thoughts and experiences of a group of students or to provide a means of communication between teachers and students following a particular course

The word blog is also used as a verb, and Blogger is used as a noun to describe someone who blogs (see next entry) A blog is usually distinguished from an Internet Discussion List (also known as a Forum), but the latter can function in a similar way insofar as it typically allows any user to post messages to it that can be viewed via the Web See Moblog, RSS, Splog, Wiki See

website blog is at: http://ictforlanguageteachers.blogspot.com

Blogger: Normally used to refer to someone who blogs , i.e who regularly writes blogs Also

used to describe a service that provides Web-based tools used by individuals to create a Blog or

Bluetooth: Bluetooth is a technical industry standard for radio technology which facilitates the

transmission of signals over short distances (up to around 10 metres) between telephones, computers and other devices without the use of wires For example, a Bluetooth-enabled mobile phone can communicate with a Desktop Computer or Laptop Computer for the purpose of synchronising data, such as an appointments diary

BMP: Abbreviation for Bitmap , a file format for storing images This is the standard format

used, for example, by Windows Paint BMP image files occupy quite a lot of space compared to

other formats See EPS, GIF, JPEG/JPG, TIFF See also Section 2.2.3.1, Module 2.2, headed

Bookmark: A bookmark is a facility within a Browser that enables you to keep a record of Web

pages that you have visited and may wish to visit again Bookmarks are stored in a subdirectory

of the Windows directory on your computer In Internet Explorer bookmarks are known as

are stored Bookmarks are also used to mark positions in a Word document, i.e positions to

which you can jump from other points in the document by clicking on them with the Mouse

Boot: (verb) To start up a computer by loading the operating system into memory The computer

is regarded as bootstrapping itself into operation, i.e picking itself up by its own bootstraps The adjective bootable is often used to describe a backup disc that can be used to start a computer,

e.g when the hard disc fails or becomes corrupted for some reason See Operating System

Bot: Short for Robot See Crawler

bps: Abbreviation for bits per second, the smallest measurement of data transmission speed, e.g

via a Modem Computer people normally measure data transmission speeds in Kbps, meaning

(which is slow by today's standards) it means that your modem can transmit at speeds up to 56,000 bits of information per second See Bit, Kilobit, Megabit

Branching: The process of interrupting a sequence of instructions in a computer program in

order to go to a different point For example, in a CALL exercise the program might branch to one point if the learner is right but to another if the learner is wrong This is a technique that is also used frequently in adventure games, mazes and simulations See Adventure Game, Maze,

Broadband: A general term used to describe a high-speed connection to the Internet Connection

speed is usually measured in Kbps (kilobits per second) and Mbps (megabits per second) Typically, a home user will have a broadband connection using an ADSL telephone line running

at 2Mbps to 8Mbps Educational institutions ideally need a symmetric connection of at least 8Mbps to ensure smooth trouble-free connections to the Internet when large numbers of students are accessing the Internet all at once See ADSL, Bandwidth, ISDN, Kilobit, Leased Line,

Browser: A software package installed on the hard disc of your computer that enables you to

access and to navigate the World Wide Web - to "surf the Web" in colloquial terms See Section