Prerequisites

The course 02002/02003 is an introductory programming course, and we expect no prior experience in programming. However, we do expect a certain level of computer literacy (ability to use computers) and digital literacy (ability to navigate digital platforms). Below are the most important prerequisites for the course, and some material to help you test your skills.

Prerequisites for the course

Basic computer knowledge

Having a basic conceptual understanding of how a computer works; understanding what is meant by terms hardware, software, memory, and operating system (OS). Knowing how to look up basic specifications of your laptop describing brand, OS version, processor, RAM, storage, and display. Having a basic conceptual understanding of how these specifications impact your laptop’s performance.

File management

• Understanding the concept of files and folders.

• Being able to use a file manager (File explorer on Windows or Finder on MacOS) to perform basic actions including creating, deleting, renaming, copying, and moving files and folders.

• Understanding the concept of paths and how to look up the path for files and folders on your laptop.

• Understanding file formats and file extensions, and being able to identify file formats and extensions for files on your laptop.

• Being able to navigate your computer’s file system.

• Recognizing and understanding the purpose of common folders like My Documents/Documents and Desktop.

• Knowing how to start programs and open files on your laptop.

• Understanding the actions initiated by clicking, double-clicking and right-clicking on program or file names and icons.

• Being able to change your computer’s basic system settings and the settings of your file manager.

Text files

• Being able to create and edit text files using an editor that supports saving files in plain text format.

• Understanding the difference between pain text files, and other types of files that contain text (e.g., rtf, doc, pdf).

Browser and downloading

• Understanding the concept of an internet browser and how to use it to navigate web pages. - Understanding the difference between online content and local content.

• Being able to download content from the internet and store it in a specific folder.

• Knowing what a .zip file is, and being able to extract its content into a specific folder.

Organizing files

• Having experience organizing files and folders for a subject or course.

• Being able to copy, rename and modify provided files and organize them systematically, such as by weeks or topic.

Exercises

Exercise 1: File handling

With this (optional) exercise you can test your file-handling skills.

Download the material from this link. Unzip the document, and conduct the exercise listed in the pdf file. link test

Exercise 2: Get to know your computer

Answer the following questions to further test your computer literacy.

• What operating system does your computer use?

• Which file manager do you typically use?

• What is the name of the folder where you keep your study-related documents? What is the full path to that folder?

• Find a file in this folder or another one. What is the name of the file? What is its file extension?

Self quiz

The quiz tests your basic computer knowledge.

Question 1

What is the difference between hardware and software?

a)

Hardware is the physical components of a computer, while software is the programs and applications that run on a computer.

b)

Hardware is the programs and applications, while software is the physical components.

c)

Hardware and software are the same things.

d)

None of the above.

Question 2

Which of the following is an operating system?

a)

Intel

b)

Microsoft Word

c)

Windows 10

d)

RAM

Question 3

The specifications of a laptop include the value 2.40GHz. What does this refer to?

a)

The size of the display.

b)

Processing speed.

c)

The amount of storage.

d)

Operating system version.

Question 4

What do you expect to happen when you double-click a program icon on a desktop?

a)

The computer shuts down.

b)

The program opens.

c)

The icon changes color.

d)

The icon gets deleted.

Question 5

Which of the following actions can you perform with a file manager (File Explorer or Finder)?

a)

Create and delete files.

b)

Copy and move files.

c)

Rename files.

d)

All of the above.

Question 6

What is a file extension?

a)

A tool to edit files.

b)

A string of characters added to a filename that defines the file type.

c)

A hidden part of the file.

d)

The name of the file.

Question 7

What is the purpose of the My Documents/Documents folder in most operating systems?

a)

To store system files.

b)

To store personal files and documents.

c)

To store applications.

d)

To store temporary files.

Question 8

Which of the following is a pure text file format?

a)

.pdf

b)

.doc

c)

.rtf

d)

.txt

Question 9

What is the main purpose of an internet browser?

a)

To organize and edit documents.

b)

To navigate and view web pages on the internet.

c)

To create spreadsheets.

d)

To manage email accounts.

Question 10

What does it mean to unzip a file?

a)

To delete the file.

b)

To extract the contents of a compressed file.

c)

To rename the file.

d)

To move the file to the trash.

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