TYPES OF DATA

TYPES OF DATA

1. Text

   • Word processor is usually used to process text data
     • Microsoft word is the most common
     • Other software is 'Pages' which is from Apple
   • Data made of words or symbols is stored in text form
   • A disadvantage of language is there may be language barriers

2. Images

   • Bitmap
     • Split into 1000s of pixels
     • Number of pixels determines resolution
     • More pixels the better it looks
     • Each pixel is allocated a number of bits in the bitmap to represent colour
     • Data compression needed to minimize storage space
     • Real photo
   • Vector
     • Line drawings - usually by hand or shapes
     • Vector art/graphics uses shapes eg points, lines, curves, polygons to represent images
     • Usually used for illustrations
     • Often used for logos and graphic design
     • Quality doesn't change as size changes

3. Numbers

   • Integers are whole numbers
   • Numbers stored on a computer are stored in binary code
   • One Byte is 8 bits stores positive numbers between 0-255, whole 2 bytes (16 bits) store positive numbers 0-65535

4. Boolean

   • It can only take one of 2 values
   • True or false
   • Yes or no

5. Digital Sounds

   • Sounds are input into computer and analogue waves are converted to digital for storage and playback
     • Input using microphone, musical instrument or CD.
   • Sound is stored as binary digits
   • Computer hardware eg sound card converts it so it is read and stored.
     • This is an analogue digital converter
   • The quality and accuracy is determined by sampling rate and resolution of the sound card.
     • Sampling Rate: how often sound card takes a sound sample to store. Higher rate greater the accuracy.
     • Resolution: How accurate the amplitude of the sound that can be measured. An 8 bit sound card allows 256 sound levels of amplitude.