IT and Computer Fundamentals Quiz

Supercomputer performance is measured in FLOPS (Floating Point Operations Per Second), indicating how many floating-point calculations the system can perform. Bytes measure storage capacity, Instructions per Second is a general CPU metric, and DPI measures print resolution.

LAN (Local Area Network) connects computers in a limited geographical area like office, building, or campus using cabling or wireless. WAN covers large geographical areas, WiFi is a wireless technology, and Internet is a global network of networks.

Aluminum is used for connecting leads in IC chips due to its excellent conductivity, low cost, and ability to form reliable wire bonds. Silicon and germanium are semiconductors used for the chip substrate, while lead is not used due to toxicity and poor bonding properties.

Spacewar! (1962) was the first interactive computer game, created by Steve Russell at MIT on the PDP-1 computer. Deep Blue was a chess computer (1997), LISA was an Apple computer (1983), making Spacewar the correct answer for the first interactive game.

IBM revolutionized the micro-computer industry in 1981 with the IBM Personal Computer (PC), which established the de facto standard for PCs. Apple existed earlier (Apple II in 1977) but IBM's entry legitimized personal computers for business use. DELL and Microsoft became prominent later.

Blaise Pascal invented the Pascaline, a mechanical calculator/adding machine in 1642 at age 19. Archimedes lived in ancient times, Newton and Descartes were 17th century contemporaries but did not invent adding machines - Pascal's invention was the first of its kind.

Dot Matrix Printer speed is measured in CPS (Characters Per Second), indicating how many characters the printer can output per second. DPI measures resolution, Bytes are for data storage, and FLOPS measure processor performance - none of these measure printer speed.

Booting is the process of loading the operating system into memory when a computer is powered on, derived from 'pulling oneself up by bootstraps'. Formatting erases disk contents, downloading/uploading involve data transfer over networks - none describe the OS loading process.

FLOPS (Floating Point Operations Per Second) is a standard metric for measuring computational performance, specifically for supercomputers. It counts how many floating-point calculations a processor can perform in one second. Unlike other options: internet speed uses Mbps/Gbps, printers use PPM (pages per minute), and image resolution uses pixels or DPI.

Ada Lovelace (born Augusta Ada Byron) is widely recognized as the first computer programmer for her work on Charles Babbage's Analytical Engine in the 1840s. She wrote what is considered the first algorithm intended to be processed by a machine. Blaise Pascal built a mechanical calculator, Douglas Engelbart invented the mouse, and Tim Berners-Lee created the World Wide Web.

IPS (Instructions Per Second) measures how many instructions a CPU can execute per second, making it the appropriate unit for computer processing speed. DPI measures print/display resolution, CPS (Cycles Per Second) is related to clock speed (now measured in Hz), and RAM is memory capacity measured in bytes, not speed.

Standard IBM-compatible PC keyboards historically had 101 keys, including function keys, number pad, and standard QWERTY layout. This became the baseline for desktop keyboards before enhanced 104-key layouts (with Windows keys) became common. Laptop keyboards typically have fewer keys (87-90) due to space constraints.

Douglas Engelbart invented the computer mouse in 1964 at Stanford Research Institute. The mouse was originally called an 'X-Y Position Indicator for a Display System.' Ada Lovelace was the first programmer, Tracy Kidder is an author, and Dennis Ritchie created the C programming language and Unix.

Winchester disk was the code name for IBM's revolutionary hard disk drive technology introduced in 1973. It featured sealed unit construction with read/write heads floating over the disk surface on an air cushion. This became the industry standard for hard drives. CD-ROMs, floppy disks, and pen drives are all removable storage media.

Adobe Photoshop is the most widely used professional photo editing software globally. It has been the industry standard since 1990. PageMaker is for desktop publishing, Photo Paint is a Corel product, and DreamWeaver is for web development.

Intel developed the first commercial microprocessor, the Intel 4004, in 1971. This single chip contained the complete CPU of a computer. Dell is a PC manufacturer, IBM developed mainframe computers and later PC architecture, and Apple developed their own processors (M1/M2) much later.

Satyam Infoway (later Sify) was India's first private sector internet service provider, starting operations in 1998. It played a crucial role in making internet access available to Indian consumers and businesses before the telecom giants entered the ISP market.

Mosaic, developed at NCSA and released in 1993, was the first widely-used graphical web browser. It popularized the World Wide Web by making it accessible with clickable links and images. Netscape was founded by Mosaic's creators but came later, Firefox is a much later browser (2002), and Internet Explorer was Microsoft's response to Netscape.

Tracy Kidder wrote 'The Soul of a New Machine' (1981), a Pulitzer Prize-winning account of the development of a new computer at Data General. The book chronicles the intense engineering effort and corporate drama. Ada Lovelace was the first programmer, Douglas Engelbart invented the mouse, and 'None of these' is incorrect.

Sabeer Bhatia co-founded Hotmail in 1996, which became the first web-based email service offering free email accounts accessible from anywhere via browser. Microsoft acquired Hotmail for $400 million in 1997. Shakuntala Devi was a mathematician, Narayana Murthy co-founded Infosys, and Azim Premji is Wipro's chairman.

Visual Basic was historically the most widely used language for Windows application development due to its tight integration with Windows API, ease of use, and Microsoft's strong support. Java is cross-platform, Fortran is for scientific computing, and Oracle is a database company, not a programming language.

Tim Berners-Lee introduced the URL (Uniform Resource Locator) concept as a fundamental component of the World Wide Web in 1990 while working at CERN. Douglas Englebart pioneered hypertext, Jack Kilby invented the integrated circuit, and Konrad Zuse built the first programmable computer.

IBM introduced the first floppy disk in 1971 (8-inch) as a revolutionary data storage medium. Apple, Motorola, and Dell were not involved in the initial development of floppy disk technology.

Philips and Sony jointly developed the CD-ROM technology, building on their earlier collaboration for the compact disc (CD). This partnership combined Philips' optical disc expertise with Sony's digital technology prowess.