Courses
Wayne State University
College of Urban, Labor, and Metroplolitan Affairs (CULMA)
Department of Interdisciplinary Studies (DIS)
Computers and Society courses, Winter 2003 (Bowen) at blackboard.wayne.edu
Wednesdays, 6 - 9:40 PM in Computer Classroom 16 at WACC
Bullet1.png (242 bytes)Computers and Society
    GST 2710, Section 986, CRN 25072, 4 credits
Bullet1.png (242 bytes)Computers and Society
    AGS 3360, Section 986, CRN 25009, 4 credits
Office hours: Wednesdays 5 - 6 PM at WACC


                         Instructor
David R. Bowen
2311 A/AB
Wayne State University
Detroit, MI 48202		 Daytime tel: (313) 577-1498
Evening tel: (248) 549-8518
FAX: (313) 577-8585
Home Page:
    http://www.cll.wayne.edu/isp/drbowen
Email: d.r.bowen@wayne.edu

CASicon.gif (1333 bytes)
Last updated: 1/15/03

First class: Agenda 1
Wednesday January 15

  1. Handouts
    1. Syllabus
    2. Agenda 1
  2. Introductions. Pictures during break, for a class photo album on the course web site. Having your picture there is NOT a requirement for the course.
  3. Course overview
    1. This section of GST 2710 will be different than the other sections. My opinion is that here we will use more up-to-date examples.
    2. Course web site. The course web site is on the WSU BlackBoard system. Using the steps below, turn your computer on and go to the course web site.
      1. Get the computer up and running, following the steps below. These steps may change if you use a computer at another location.
        1. Find the power switch on the main computer unit and push it to turn the computer on. The computer will power up and load in the operating system. This process is also called "booting", from the idea of lifting yourself up by your bootstraps.
        2. Once the boot process has completed to the login point, you may or may not see a prompt about <Ctrl><Alt><Delete> to login, or you may see a plain background screen. Log in to the computer as follows: at the same time hold down the <Ctrl>, <Alt> and <Delete> (may be <Del>) buttons until the login Window pops up. Release those keys, make sure that the User Name is labuser and the Password is blank, and then click the "OK" (or equivalent) button, or tap the <Enter> key.
        3. Wait for the computer to finish the boot process. One way of telling when booting is complete is when the screen pointer stops changing to the hourglass shape, also the Start button and screen icons should be visible.
      2. Log in to the course web site on the WSU BlackBoard system. These instructions will be the same no matter where you are. The appearance of the screen may change depending on the browser and version that you are using.
        1. Start a web browser - either Netscape (can also be called Netscape Navigator or Netscape Communicator depending upon version) or Internet Explorer - either by double-clicking on the desktop icon (picture) or by single-clicking on the Start button, then sliding the mouse up to Programs and then sliding the mouse over to Internet Explorer or Netscape Communicator (in earlier versions this was called Netscape Navigator) and clicking (means the same as single-clicking)
          1. When using the mouse, the sensitive part of the on-screen pointer is the very tip of the arrow. To click on an icon, place the tip of the on-screen pointer right on the icon and click the left (normal) mouse button, once.
        2. Click on the "Location" line near the top of the screen and type the following URL (Universal Resource Locator, or web address). Your typing must be 100% complete and accurate - http://blackboard.wayne.edu. When you are finished typing, tap the <Enter> key.
        3. When the BlackBoard login screen comes up, click on the Login button.
          1. To avoid typing the URL in the future,
            • If you are using Netscape, click on the "Bookmarks" menu item (put the tip of the mouse pointer on the word "Bookmarks" and click the left (normal) mouse button), then click on "Add Bookmark"
            • If you are using Internet Explorer, do the same thing except that Internet Explorer uses Favorites in place of Bookmarks
          2. Once you have made the site a Bookmark or Favorite, go to that menu item again and click on the web site Bookmark/Favorite
        4. On the login screen, fill in your WSU AccessID and Password, then click on the Login button. Note that you Password, unless you change it, is your date of birth in the format mmddyyy; that is, two digits for the month (for example 09 instead of just 9), two digits for the day (for example 03 instead of just 3) and ALL FOUR digits for the year of birth. 2 + 2 + 4 = 8 digits in all.
          1. If you have an earlier account with your User Name being your AccessID, and you have changed the password to something else, use that Password instead.
          2. You may have other BlackBoard accounts (User Name and Password) set up from previous semesters. You should stop using these accounts. Starting in Fall 2002, every WSU course has a BlackBoard web site (many courses do not use these web sites) and you are automatically added to the course web site for all courses you register for, under your AccessID.
        5. Under "MY COURSES" select this course - (CL)Cmputrs&Socty Winter 2003 - Section: 986.
      3. Click on the Course Documents button on the left to see the course Syllabus. The future Agendas will be here also. If you lose the Syllabus or an Agenda, come here to get a copy of that document. If you miss a class, get a copy of that Agenda and read it, then contact me.
      4. Online signin (follow directions below). Do this at the beginning and end of each class.
        1. On the course web site, click on the "External Links" button on the left side of the Window, and then click on the "Signin" link.
        2. Fill in the requested information (if you do not have a middle name, leave this blank) and click on the "Sign In" button at the bottom.
        3. If you see the message "OK -- Your sign in worked. Thank you!" then your signin was successful.
        4. scroll down to the "Signin" link. Click on the link (the link is blue and underlined) "Signin". When the signin page appears, click in the First Name box, type in your first name, and continue with the Middle Initial and Last Name boxes. When the typing is done, click on the Sign In button. You will get a confirmation that 
        5. This online signin replaces a paper attendance sheet. Remember to sign in at the beginning and end of each class.
      5. Note the link to the Online math tutor. You may want to use this after we get to binary numbers.
      6. Also note the link to Agenda 1 (this document). In the future, if I can resolve some problems, you may find Agendas under Course Documents.
    3. Syllabus
      1. GST 2710, Computers and Society, carries CS General Education credit
        1. Books are available at Barnes and Noble:
          • Microsoft Office 2000 Professional
          • Computers, Society and Technology
      2. Labs
      3. Assignments
      4. Quizzes and Exams
    4. NOTE: The Labs are preparation for using Microsoft Office 2000 on the quizzes and Exams. If you work at home using other programs, you will not be able to do the computer work on the Quizzes and Exams. The Quizzes and Exams count much more than the labs. Therefore, it does not make sense to get the labs done using other programs.
  4. Topics we will cover in class tonight:
    1. What is the difference between data, information and knowledge?
    2. Describe the structure of a typical desktop computer
    3. List and describe the different types of computer storage and the units in which they are measured
    4. List and describe the two main types of user interfaces for computers, and the one expected future type
    5. List and describe the five mouse actions, and the alternate names for the mouse and mouse icon
    6. List and describe the parts of the Windows desktop and the parts of a window, including their uses, and identify those parts, given a picture of the desktop or a window
    7. List and describe the types of information that can be stored in computers
    8. Describe how to carry out a combination key stroke, e.g. <Ctrl>Q or <Ctrl><Alt><Delete>
    9. Given a file path
      1. Name it (i.e. "path")
      2. List and describe its parts
    10. Given a URL (web address)
      1. Name it (i.e. "URL")
      2. List and describe its parts
    11. Count and add in binary, and define or describe the terms bit and byte.
    12. Starting with the computer off, create, save and open a file in Word
  5. Introduction to computers
    1. Data Vs Information Vs Knowledge
      1. A computer processes symbols. (A symbol is something that stands for something else.)"Process" is a vague term that means "change in a systematic way." For example, if the symbols are symbols of numbers, then "processing" includes addition and multiplication. If the symbols are symbols of letters or text, then "processing" includes inserting new text, deleting existing text, moving text around and spell checking.
      2. The computer is dumb - it doesn't "know" what the symbols mean. (We will see that the human programmer and the user determine what the symbols mean.) 
      3. Data is just the number or symbol, for example 63.
      4. Information is the data with a label explaining what it means, for example David's age: 63. Note that the label doesn't explain anything for the computer, just for people.
      5. Knowledge is an understanding of the significance of the information, for example, "Hmm. 63. May like to nap on Sunday afternoons. I'll call on Saturday." The computer doesn't understand anything; only people understand.
    2. Basic computer structure
      1. Hardware
        1. Main unit > motherboard > central processing unit (CPU, "the brain")
        2. Input devices - examples
        3. Output devices - examples
        4. Storage (does both input and output)
          1. Primary storage (RAM/ROM). Fast but "volatile" - stored information disappears when the power is turned off. This is "working memory"; the CPU uses the information from RAM/ROM
          2. Secondary storage (disks) or permanent storage -- slow, does not disappear when the power is turned off, but must be loaded into primary storage to be used
            1. Hard drive/disk - C: or c:
            2. Floppy drive - A: or a:
              NOTE: Take good care of your floppy diskettes for this course: Keep your diskettes away from dirt or grime, heat, cold, and strong electric or magnetic fields. Do not carry them loose, especially if they can get bent or twisted. Label your diskettes. There is a specific indented area on the plastic case for the label. Keep the label within this area. Make sure the label is tight all around the edges. If the edges stick up, the diskette will get caught in the floppy drive, and most likely destroyed. Never let the label cover any part of the metal door on the diskette.
            3. Others such as CD-ROM, DVD, Zip disk, etc.
        5. Networking hardware such as modem or Network Interface Card (NIC) used to connect to other computers and the Internet.


          Computer structure. Hard drive and floppy are usually inside the box. All devices communicate via Primary Storage (RAM)

      2. Information - types of computer information
        1. Programs - computer commands in a form the computer understands
          1. Applications; what the user sees such as a word processor or spreadsheet (examples - Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel)
          2. Operating system that manages the hardware for the applications (examples - Microsoft Windows)
        2. Data
          1. Numerical data in binary format
          2. Text (includes numbers in text form). This form is used for input and output. That is, if you see a number on the screen such as 1.32, it is on the screen as text. If it is used inside the computer as a number, before displaying it the operating system converts the number form to the text form.
          3. Pictures and animations
          4. Sound
  6. Counting and adding in decimal and binary. Computers use binary so we will learn to use binary, and later extend this into how computer circuits work.
    1. For a computer, the first number is zero!
    2. How the decimal system works - humans use this because it is compact
      1. Symbols
      2. Counting
      3. Carry
      4. Place value
      5. Addition
    3. Binary number system - computers use this because it can be represented by switches - simple, fast and cheap on-off devices.
      1. Symbols - 0 and 1 only. bit, Byte (eight bits or about one alphabetic character), kb, kB, MB, GB. Normally each size increases times 1,000, but in the computer world it is times 1,024.
      2. Counting
      3. Carry
      4. Place value
      5. Addition
    4. Numerals and numbers
      1. The number is the quantity
      2. A numeral is the symbol that represents the number, but the same number has different numerals in decimal and binary
  7. Computer systems and software
    1. Applications and operating system
    2. Primary applications -- the ones covered by this course
      1. File management: Microsoft Windows Explorer
      2. Word processing: Microsoft Word
      3. Spreadsheet: Microsoft Excel
      4. Database: Microsoft Access
      5. Graphics: Microsoft Draw
      6. Communications: Web Browser and WSU Webmail
      7. Computer programming
    3. Files
      1. In Windows, you work with files directly using Windows Explorer (not Internet Explorer). Microsoft puts Windows Explorer in different places. Try Start > Programs, then look for an icon that is a file folder with a blue magnifying glass on top (). If there is a double-down arrowhead () at the bottom of the Programs list, that means that Windows is hiding seldom-used items, and you should either (a) wait briefly until Windows decides to show all items, or (b) click on the down arrow to force showing all items immediately. If you don't see Windows Explorer in Programs, try Accessories (Start > Programs > Accessories).
      2. What is a file?
        1. Collection of related information
        2. Exists in secondary (permanent) storage (files downloaded over the Internet, email or other network do not exist in secondary storage unless and until you save them).
        3. Has a name - filename and extension: filename.ext, at least in Windows. (Macintosh computers do not use file extensions.)
        4. Wildcards -- ? stands for any one character. * stands for any number of characters (including zero characters). For example, *.exe stands for a file with any name and an extension of exe. In Microsoft Excel, there are several file types, whose extensions start with xl. This can be indicated by *.xl*
        5. The filename identifies (or should) the content of the file for you, the user. When saving a file, Windows applications will propose a filename, but you should usually change this to describe the content for you, such as "SyllabusW03.htm"
        6. The extension, in Windows, tells the system which application created the file, and what type of file it is. Examples: *.doc is document produced by Microsoft Word, *.xls is a spreadsheet produced by Microsoft Excel, *.htm or *.html is a web page, and so forth. When saving a file, Windows applications will propose an extension. Do not change this proposed or default extension, or you may have trouble finding and opening the file.
      3. Types of files
        1. Program
        2. Data
      4. Hierarchical file system. ("Hierarchical" means "like an outline," and with respect to files, refers to the existence of folders, sub-folders, sub-sub folders etc.)
        1. Directories / folders. A directory can contain files and other directories (sub-directories), while a file contains data. Does a folder contain data? Only indirectly, in its files. The direct answer is, "No, a folder does not contain data."
        2. Root directory
        3. Examples:
          C:\
          C:\STUDENTS
          C:\STUDENTS\SECT571
        4. "Path" means path to a file, including the directory and file name. Example:
          C:\STUDENTS\SECT571\PROSPECTUS.WPS 
        5. URL - Universal Resource Locator, for example
          http://www.cll.wayne.ed/isp/drbowen/casw01/welcome.htm
          1. Parts are method, Domain Name (of web server computer), path and file
      5. Making folders on a floppy diskette using Windows Explorer
        1. Insert the test floppy diskette into the diskette drive.
          1. The writing ("CH") is on on the top of the diskette. The metal door is on the front of the diskette. Put the diskette into the topside up and front first.
          2. Push firmly until the computer takes the disk in the rest of the way. If the diskette sticks, do not force it.
        2. If Windows Explorer is on the taskbar, click on its button to make it active. If not, open it from Start > Programs etc.
        3. In the Folders window on the left, scroll up and find the A: icon, and click on it to select it.
        4. Use the File > New menu item and select Folder.
        5. Type a name for your new Folder, for example MyFirstFolder.
        6. Make a sub-folder as follows:
          1. Double-click on the icon for your new folder to open it. (Clicking on the letters is apt to start the process for changing the name, which will be confusing.)
          2. Use the File > New > Folder menu item and type a name for your new sub-folder.
        7. Notice that the sub-folder is inside the first folder.
          1. How would you make a new top-level folder?
          2. How would you make a sub-sub folder?
          3. How would you make a new sub-folder at the same level as your first sub-folder?
    4. Command Line Interface (example: DOS) Vs Graphical User Interface or GUI (example: Windows)
      1. What do we mean by "interface" anyway? An interface is the method that a users employs to get the computer to do things.
      2. Using a command line interface:
        1. The characteristics of a command line interface:
          1. The computer does not display what it can do; instead, the user must know the commands.
          2. To get the computer to do something, the user types in the name of the appropriate command.
          3. Just the command is not enough; the computer does nothing until the command is entered with the <Enter> key.
          4. If the command is mistyped (try mistyping dir below), the computer is not very helpful.
        2. Click Start > Run, type cmd and tap the <Enter> key. This will open up a command-line or DOS window (). The flashing horizontal bar is the "prompt," meaning "type something." ("DOS" = "Disk Operating System," the first form of operating system for Intel-type computers.)
        3. Type dir and then tap the <Enter> key. A list of files and folders is displayed.
      3. We have played around with the Windows GUI in several ways. The usual characteristics of a GUI are:
        1. The computer displays actions and files using letters and icons.
        2. To get the computer to do something, the user selects the words or icons using a mouse.
      4. An expected type of interface is the agent - suggest/ask/remind, take commands, execute, report back with results, e.g. Office Assistant
    5. Windows basics
      1. Mouse actions (on a Windows mouse, use left button)
        1. NOTE: The mouse is the thing you hold onto. It is an example of a "pointing device." Other types of pointing devices include the trackball, touch screen and touchpad. The thing on the screen is called the "mouse icon," "pointer" or "mouse pointer" (and sometimes for shorthand the mouse, but this can be confusing). However, the mouse icon can have other shapes than the pointer or left arrow shape (), such as the right arrow or hourglass.
        2. Point. Place the mouse cursor or "pointer" over a feature on the screen by using the mouse. The active part of the pointer is the extreme point of the arrow. In many cases, when you point to an icon, a text box pops up with its full name and often some status information.
        3. Click. Point the pointer and click the left mouse button once. Use this to actuate buttons and menu items, and to select (highlight, getting ready for action) icons.
          1. "Click on" means to point at the feature named and click the left mouse button once. Example: "Click on the Netscape icon."
        4. Right-click. Same as Click, except use the right mouse button. Used to bring up a menu of actions from all menus that you can use in the current situation.
        5. Double-click. Point the mouse and click the left mouse button twice, rapidly. Use this to open icons (can also Click on the icon to select it and then tap <Return>).
          1. Double-click on Clock to open it
        6. Drag. Point the mouse at a screen feature, hold the button down and move the mouse with the button held down. Use this to move windows and icons, and to change the size of windows, to select a range of text in a word processor or a range of cells in a spreadsheet.
        7. NOTE: Be careful any time that an icon, text, or other screen function is selected, or highlighted. Hit the <Delete> key be accident and the selection is gone.
      2. Windows desktop. This has the Start button, taskbar and tray at the bottom, with desktop icons above.
        1. Task Bar - applications that are running, click on icon to make that application active and bring its window to the front
        2. Tray - applications that are started automatically, on bottom right of screen.


      3. Active elements of windows
        1. Border - use it to resize -- mouse cursor changes shape to double-headed left-right arrow - drag on the border (left-right or up-down only) or resize box in lower left corner (both directions)
        2. Title bar - uses are see what the window is (its title), to show if window is activated (blue for activated, grey for unactivated) and to move the window by dragging on it
        3. Minimize / Maximize / Close boxes at the right end of the title bar
          1. Minimize = reduce window back to an icon
          2. Maximize = make window take up whole screen
          3. Close = leave the application
          4. When a window is maximized, its maximize button turns into double overlapping boxes. Click this button to return the window to its original (smaller) size.
        4. Control box at left end of title bar, duplicates actions of close and other boxes at the right.
        5. Menu - a list of options that drops down when you click on the text on the menu bar. Click on the option you you want to choose it.
        6. Menu bar - usually just below title bar, holds menu items; its use is to make window do work for you
        7. Icon - a small picture indicating a file that can be started or run with a double-click or alternately, use a single click and then tap the <Enter> key
        8. Button - a rectangular picture that looks like a button, often with a label or icon, that takes an action when it is (single-)clicked. A button changes color and shape slightly when "clicked" or "depressed."
        9. Tool bar - a bar of buttons with icons, usually just below the menu bar, that are shortcuts for menu items. Toolbars are often a way to work more efficiently. For example, do exactly the same things as the File > Open and File > Save buttons, and let you work faster. Clicking on diskette icon on the left is exactly equivalent to the File > Save menu action.
        10. Dialog: a collection of active elements to accomplish a multipart task. Dialogs are windows, so they have title bars. We will identify dialogs by their title -- the text on the title bar. When you save a file for the first time in Word, you use the "Save As..." dialog.
        11. Pull-down list - a line of text with a down-pointing arrowhead to the right. When you click the arrowhead, a list of options drop down. Click on the option you want to choose it.
          1. On the Save As... dialog, you used the pull-down drive list to choose drive a:
        12. List box - a list of choices inside a box, with the chosen item shown above the list.
          1. On the Open dialog, you used the list box of file names
        13. Scroll bars - bars at the right side and/or bottom of the screen with up and down arrowheads and an "elevator box." These are for moving ("scrolling") through a long text or graphics file. The elevator box shows your location within the file. Click on the arrowheads for small movements. Click on the bar near the arrowhead to move one full screen at a time. Drag the elevator box for large movements. Try all three.
      4. Managing windows - double click on the time in the tray (bottom-right corner of the screen). This will open up the clock window.
        1. Open an icon into a window - double-click the icon
        2. Moving - drag on title bar
        3. Resizing - drag on border -- dragging on a corner can change height and width at once
        4. Closing
        5. Maximizing / minimizing
        6. Bring to front, same as activating -- single click on a window anywhere to do this
      5. Windows usually gives you several methods for doing anything. For example, to close or exit from a program, you can do any one of the following:
        1. Click the program's Close Box (X) in its upper right corner
        2. Choose the menu item File, and then Exit
        3. In some cases, <Ctrl>Q (means to hold down the <Ctrl> key and tap Q while <Ctrl> is down.
  8. Microsoft Office - combines word processing, database, spreadsheet and graphics
    1. Parts of Office that we will be using
      1. Word - word processing
      2. Excel - spreadsheet
      3. Access - database
        You carry out the underlined items.
    2. (For this first class, we will be using Word 2000.) Start Word by
      1. clicking on the Start button in the lower left corner of the screen
      2. then pointing to Programs
      3. then sliding the mouse cursor over horizontally, then up-down to Microsoft Word () and clicking
      4. NOTE: the Word icon may not be directly on the Programs menu, but in the Microsoft Office subgoup (). The right arrowhead () indicates a subgroup will display when you slide the pointer over towards the right. In this case, slide the pointer to the right of the Office icon, then right into the subgroup and up-down to the Word icon, then click on the Word icon as above..
    3. Make sure your test floppy diskette is still in the drive
    4. Type something in Word -- anything.
    5. Save what you have written
      1. Click on the "File" menu item and then "Save As."
        1. In the future, we will call this the menu item File > Save As...
        2. NOTE: In "Save As..." the ellipsis (three dots at the end) indicates that you will need to supply further information to carry out the action. This is standard Windows usage. For one thing, it means that if you try it and don't like it, you will be able to cancel the action.
      2. The "Save As" dialog opens.
        1. NOTE: Always follow the path from left to right: drive first, then folder, then filename and extension. A primary cause for losing credit on Quizzes and Exams in this course is not controlling the drive and folder in which you save files; either forgetting where you put a file, or not putting it where the directions say. Always remember - drive first, then folder, then filename and extension.
        2. Locate the "Save In" line near the top of the dialog and the down-pointing arrowhead at the right side of this. Click on the down-pointing arrowhead and choose the 3½ Floppy drive (A:) by clicking on the drive icon () to the left of these words (clicking on the letters is apt to start the process for changing the name, which will be confusing). Notice that "Save In" is now showing the floppy diskette as the place where the file will be saved.
        3. Click on the down-pointing arrow again, and double-click on the first (top-level) folder you made on the floppy diskette to select it. Notice that "Save In" is now showing the folder as the place where the file will be saved.
        4. Click in the "File Name" line near the bottom of the dialog, type in a file name, for example WordClass1, being sure to leave the ".doc" just as you found it.
      3. When the "Save As" dialog is set up as in #2 above, click on its "Save" button near the right side. You may see one or more of the following indications as the file is actually being saved:
        1. Light on beside the drive
        2. Noise or vibration
        3. Pulsating drive icon on the status bar or row of boxes marching across the status bar.
      4. Reopen your file.
        1. Choose the menu item File / Open
        2. Select the drive (A:) and folder, then either (both do the same thing)
          1. double click on the file name
            OR
          2. single-click on the file name and click the OK button
      5. Close your file but leave Word open.
        1. In the upper right corner of the Word window, there are two sets of controls. Click on the lower "X" to close your file.
      6. Close Word by clicking on the upper "X"
  9. Turning your computer off.
    1. Save any files that you have worked on during the class and still have open
    2. Do the end-of class signin on the course web site. (NOTE: when leaving BlackBoard or Pipeline, to protect your privacy, you should always log out of BlackBoard and Pipeline when leaving them)
    3. Click on "Start" or tap the "Windows" button, then "Shut Down..."
    4. Make sure that "Shut down the computer" or similar statement is selected and click "Yes"
    5. Wait for the dialog "It is now safe to turn off your computer.", then turn off the power using the red switch under the desktop.

Be sure to turn the test diskette back in.

Assignment 2 - turn in at the next class (January 22).

On each assignment, at the top, put your name, the class (Computers and Society Winter 2003) and the Assignment number (here, Assignment 2). I know that my numbering is funny (no Assignment 1) but this way Assignment 2 is due Week 2, Assignment 3 is due Week 3, etc.

  1. Read Chapter 1 in Computers, Society and Technology. Turn in answers for the following Review questions on Pg 1-36: 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7.
  2. In Microsoft Office 2000 Professional, read the sections EC (Essential Computer Concepts), WIN98 (Windows) and WEB (Browser Basics), and be prepared to carry them out in the lab section, which will be the second half of the class.
  3. Write the numbers after the following numbers (binary):
    1. 100
    2. 110
    3. 111
    4. 1001
    5. 10111001101
  4. Add the following binary numbers:
    1. 10 + 11
    2. 1010 + 1101
    3. 11 + 1
    4. 11 + 10
    5. 110011 + 1101
  5. Why do computers use the binary system?
  6. Why do humans use the decimal system?
  7. What does the term "bit" refer to?
  8. What does the term "byte" refer to?

Next week in class I will continue taking pictures for the course Web Site. This is not a required part of the course; if you do not want your picture taken, let me know.