CSc 050: Class Notes

These notes are only meant to be a supplement and not a substitution for class lectures. These give broad outlines to topics covered, with details omitted. If you missed class and need extra help catching up, you should read the relevant chapters in the text, get notes from your fellow classmates, and then come to the instructor's office hours for further clarifications.

Click on a topic to take you to the relevant part of this index, or you can search it yourself.

Computer basics
Email/Networks/Internet
Access
Excel
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1. Introduction Lecture
   1. Hardware vs Software
      1. Hardware = physical components, electronics, peripherals
      2. Software = programs and data used by computer and stored on disk
         1. System Software / Operating System
   2. Hierarchical File structure
   3. Common Aspects of Programs: Consistency and Redundancy
   4. Dialog Boxes
   5. WYSIWYG
   6. Software Compatibility
   7. Transferring data
   8. ASCII
   9. Digital vs. Analog
   10. Bits and Bytes

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2. E-Mail, Unix, the Internet, and the Web
   1. Electronic Mail (E-Mail)
   2. Computer Networks
      1. Local Area Network (LAN)
      2. Wide Area Networks (WAN) a.k.a. Long Haul Networks (LHN)
      3. Internet
         1. Addresses
   3. Unix: Another operating system
   4. Using a Web Browser
      1. What is it not?
      2. Ok, then what is it?
      3. Searching and Surfing
      4. Making your own web pages (learning HTML)

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3. Database Management Lecture: Access
   1. What are databases?
   2. Structure of Relational Databases
      1. Tables
      2. Records
      3. Fields
      4. Field names
   3. Examples
   4. Designing a Database
   5. Using Access
      1. Creating Tables
         1. Design View
         2. Datasheet View
      2. Queries (Searching a Database)
         1. Select Queries
         2. Parameter Queries
            1. Operators
            2. Wildcards
         3. Other types of queries
      3. Forms
         1. Using the Form Wizard
         2. Customizing your form
      4. Reports
         1. Using the Report Wizard
         2. Customizing your report

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4. Spreadsheets Lecture: Microsoft Excel
   1. What are Spreadsheets?
   2. Main reasons to use a spreadsheet
   3. Workbook Layout
   4. Getting Help
   5. Entering Info
      1. Numbers
      2. Text
      3. Formulas
      4. Using Pre-Selected region to enter info
   6. Editing Worksheets
      1. Adjusting rows and columns
      2. Cut
      3. Copy/Paste/Fill
   7. Cell Addressing
      1. Relative
      2. Absolute
   8. Printing
   9. Sorting
   10. What-if? Scenarios
   11. Charts (Graphs)