Syllabus Detail
- Flow of data through an information system; input, processing, storage, output. 11 GEN
Input
- Information systems have multiple stages of data flow
- The first stage of data flow is input
- This is where the data to be processed is put in to the system
- Data input can occur in many ways, such as from:
- A keyboard
- A mouse / trackpad
- Scanners
- Barcode readers
- Touch screens (common on mobile computing systems)
- Microphones
- Web-cams
- Data must be converted from an analogue to digital format if it is not already digital
- This is because computers work in a digital format (i.e. binary)
Processing
- Processing is the next phase of data flow
- This is the stage where the data is prepared for the task being performed
- The data is shaped to provide an output of useful information
- Data processing can refer to multiple tasks, such as:
- Sorting
- Searching
- Graphing
- Calculations
- Converting (e.g. to another format)
- Validation (ensuring the data's validity)
- Aggregation (combining multiple pieces of data)
- Analyzing
- Reporting
- There are different types of processing types that are each suited to particular situations
- Read The Computing Teacher's article on Processing Types here
Storage
- Data is often stored after it has been processed, but not necessarily permenantly
- Data can be held temporarily in memory or stored on non-volatile storage devices, such as:
- Hard Disk Drives (HDD)
- Solid-state Drives (SSD)
- Optical Drives
- Flash drives
- Storage is useful for data that we may need to process in the future
- Read The Computing Teacher's article on primary and secondary storage here
- Read The Computing Teacher's article on storage capacities here
Output
- Data that has been processed is now ready for output
- The data is presented in a suitable format depending on the desired result
- For example:
- We can hear the output for data involving sounds (such as music)
- We can see data such as text and graphs as a visual output
- We can feel certain outputs such as haptic feedback (e.g. mobile phone vibrations upon touch input)
- Other data that has been output may be re-used for further processing
- Some devices such as printers allow for data output in other physical forms
- Multiple systems include various types of output
- We generally think of data that has been output as information from a process that we can see, hear, feel or work with
Further Research
Worksheet and Practice (yet to be added)
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