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OGE Informatics study materials
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OGE Informatics practice questions

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Question 1Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

Which unit is the smallest amount of information that can be stored by a computer?

  1. Megabyte
  2. Bit Correct answer.
  3. Byte
  4. Kilobyte

Explanation

A bit is a single binary digit, 0 or 1, and is the fundamental unit of stored information. Larger units such as byte, kilobyte and megabyte are built from groups of bits.

Question 2Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

How many bytes are there in one kilobyte in the binary convention used in computing?

  1. 512
  2. 1024 Correct answer.
  3. 1000
  4. 2048

Explanation

In the binary convention a kilobyte equals 2^10 bytes, which is 1024 bytes. The value 1000 belongs to the decimal SI prefix, not the binary one.

Question 3Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

Which device is classified as an input device?

  1. Monitor
  2. Keyboard Correct answer.
  3. Plotter
  4. Printer

Explanation

An input device sends data from the user into the computer, and a keyboard does exactly that. Monitors, printers and plotters all present output from the computer to the user.

Question 4Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

Which type of software is an operating system?

  1. System software Correct answer.
  2. Utility driver
  3. Application software
  4. Programming tool

Explanation

An operating system manages hardware and provides services to programs, which places it in the system software category. Application software such as editors and browsers runs on top of the operating system.

Question 5Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

A file has size 2 megabytes. Approximately how many kilobytes is that?

  1. 20
  2. 20000
  3. 2000 Correct answer.
  4. 200

Explanation

One megabyte equals 1024 kilobytes, so 2 megabytes is about 2048 kilobytes, closest to 2000. Multiplying by 1000 gives the right order of magnitude for this estimate.

Question 6Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

What does the abbreviation CPU stand for?

  1. Core Peripheral Unit
  2. Central Program Utility
  3. Computer Power Unit
  4. Central Processing Unit Correct answer.

Explanation

The CPU, or Central Processing Unit, executes program instructions and coordinates the other parts of the computer. The other expansions are invented phrases that do not describe this component.

Question 7Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

Which of these is an example of a file extension?

  1. http
  2. C:
  3. .txt Correct answer.
  4. www

Explanation

A file extension is the suffix after the dot in a file name, such as .txt, and it hints at the file format. The other strings are a drive letter, a host prefix and a protocol name.

Question 8Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

What is the main purpose of a firewall on a computer network?

  1. To convert web pages into text
  2. To filter incoming and outgoing traffic by rules Correct answer.
  3. To speed up the connection
  4. To store backup copies of files

Explanation

A firewall inspects network traffic and allows or blocks it according to configured rules, protecting the system from unwanted access. It does not accelerate links, store backups or translate pages.

Question 9Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

A student types a document and saves it. Which pair correctly names the storage location and the file name in the path D:\school\report.docx?

  1. Folder school, file D:
  2. Folder D:\school, file report.docx Correct answer.
  3. Folder D:, file school
  4. Folder report.docx, file D:\school

Explanation

In a path the last element after the final backslash is the file name, and everything before it is the folder chain. So report.docx is the file inside the folder D:\school.

Question 10Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

How many different values can be represented with 5 bits?

  1. 32 Correct answer.
  2. 10
  3. 25
  4. 5

Explanation

Each bit doubles the number of combinations, so n bits give 2^n values. For 5 bits this is 2^5 = 32.

Question 11Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

The binary number 1011 equals which decimal number?

  1. 11 Correct answer.
  2. 7
  3. 15
  4. 13

Explanation

Reading place values from left to right: 1·8 + 0·4 + 1·2 + 1·1 = 11. Only the positions holding a 1 contribute to the sum.

Question 12Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

Which statement best describes the role of RAM in a computer?

  1. It performs arithmetic on data
  2. It permanently stores the operating system after shutdown
  3. It converts digital signals into sound
  4. It holds programs and data currently in use and is cleared when power is lost Correct answer.

Explanation

RAM is volatile working memory that holds the data and instructions the processor is actively using. Because it is volatile, its contents disappear when power is removed.

Question 13Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

Which of these is an example of a strong password?

  1. 12345678
  2. password123
  3. qwerty
  4. Tr7#kL9$mQ2x Correct answer.

Explanation

A strong password mixes upper and lower case letters, digits and symbols and avoids common words or keyboard patterns. Tr7#kL9$mQ2x satisfies these properties while the others are easily guessed.

Question 14Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

A message states that a famous bank asks users to confirm their card details by email. Which action best matches safe behaviour?

  1. Reply with the card details to help the bank
  2. Open the link and enter the details quickly
  3. Forward the message to friends to warn them by replying to it
  4. Delete the message without clicking links and contact the bank directly Correct answer.

Explanation

Banks do not request card details by email, so such a message is a phishing attempt. Ignoring its links and verifying with the bank through an official channel avoids disclosure of sensitive data.

Question 15Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

In a spreadsheet, cell C3 contains the formula =A3+B3. If this formula is copied into cell C4, what will it contain?

  1. =A4+B3
  2. =A4+B4 Correct answer.
  3. =A3+B3
  4. =A3+B4

Explanation

A formula with relative references shifts by the same offset when copied. Moving one row down changes every row number by one, so A3 and B3 both become A4 and B4.

Question 16Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

Which file format is most suitable for storing a photograph with many colours while keeping the file small through lossy compression?

  1. HTML
  2. JPEG Correct answer.
  3. CSV
  4. TXT

Explanation

JPEG is designed for photographic images and uses lossy compression to reduce size while preserving visual quality. TXT, CSV and HTML are text formats that cannot store a picture.

Question 17Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

A company wants to give each employee a unique eight-character code using only the 26 lowercase letters. How many distinct codes are possible?

  1. 8^26
  2. 26 + 8
  3. 26 × 8
  4. 26^8 Correct answer.

Explanation

Each of the eight positions can be any of 26 letters independently, so the count is 26 multiplied by itself eight times, that is 26^8.

Question 18Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

Which statement about the difference between the internet and the World Wide Web is correct?

  1. The web is a service that runs on top of the internet Correct answer.
  2. The internet is a part of the web
  3. They are two names for the same thing
  4. The web works without any network

Explanation

The internet is the global network of connected computers, while the web is one service, built on HTTP and browsers, that uses that network. Other services such as email also use the internet.

Question 19Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

A user searches the web and wants results only from official government sites. Which query refinement achieves this most directly?

  1. Using the site: operator with a domain suffix Correct answer.
  2. Adding the word government to the query
  3. Putting the whole query in quotation marks
  4. Sorting results by date

Explanation

Search operators such as site: restrict results to a chosen domain, for example site:gov. Adding a plain word, sorting or quoting does not limit results to a domain.

Question 20Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

A text file contains 2000 characters encoded in a scheme that uses 1 byte per character. How large is the file in kilobytes, approximately?

  1. About 20 KB
  2. About 2 KB Correct answer.
  3. About 200 KB
  4. About 0.2 KB

Explanation

2000 bytes divided by 1024 bytes per kilobyte is roughly 2 kilobytes. The conversion uses the binary kilobyte of 1024 bytes.

Question 21Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

Which task is best handled by a database management system rather than a text editor?

  1. Editing a single configuration file
  2. Drawing a diagram
  3. Searching thousands of records by several criteria at once Correct answer.
  4. Writing an essay

Explanation

A database management system stores structured records and supports fast queries with multiple conditions. Text editors are suited to prose and small plain-text files, not to querying large record sets.

Question 22Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

A program must decide whether a number is even. Which operation gives the needed information most directly?

  1. Finding the remainder of division by 2 Correct answer.
  2. Multiplying the number by 2
  3. Dividing the number by 2 and rounding up
  4. Taking the square root of the number

Explanation

A number is even exactly when the remainder of division by 2 is zero. The remainder operation therefore answers the question in a single step.

Question 23Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

A network has 6 computers, and every computer must connect directly to every other one. How many direct connections are needed?

  1. 30
  2. 12
  3. 15 Correct answer.
  4. 36

Explanation

Each pair of computers needs one connection, and the number of pairs among 6 items is 6·5/2 = 15. Dividing by two avoids counting each connection twice.

Question 24Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

An algorithm reads a list of n numbers and, for each number, scans the whole list to count its occurrences. Roughly how does the work grow as n increases?

  1. Proportionally to the logarithm of n
  2. Proportionally to n squared Correct answer.
  3. Proportionally to n
  4. It stays constant

Explanation

For each of the n numbers the algorithm performs a scan of n elements, giving about n·n operations. The total therefore grows with the square of the input size.

Question 25Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

A file of 3 MB is sent over a link that transfers 512 KB per second. About how long does the transfer take, ignoring overhead?

  1. About 12 seconds
  2. About 3 seconds
  3. About 24 seconds
  4. About 6 seconds Correct answer.

Explanation

3 MB equals 3072 KB, and dividing by 512 KB per second gives 6 seconds. Keeping the units consistent is the key step.

Question 26Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

A school wants to back up its files so that they survive a fire in the server room. Which choice best meets this goal?

  1. Copy the files to a second folder on the same server
  2. Copy the files to a disk kept in another building Correct answer.
  3. Rename the files so that they are easier to find
  4. Compress the files into one archive on the same disk

Explanation

A backup protects data only if it is stored separately from the original, so damage to one location does not affect the copy. Keeping the copy in a different building ensures a fire in the server room cannot destroy both versions. Operations on the same server or disk share the same physical risk.

Question 27Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

Which statement correctly describes the relationship between hardware and software?

  1. Hardware is created by running a program
  2. Software gives instructions that hardware carries out Correct answer.
  3. Software wears out physically with use
  4. Hardware must be reinstalled after each restart

Explanation

Hardware is the physical equipment, while software is the set of programs and instructions. Programs direct the hardware to perform operations, so software acts as instructions for the machine. Hardware is the physical part and is not produced by running programs.

Question 28Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

A user wants to attach a short written report to an email so that the recipient can edit the text afterwards. Which file type is most suitable?

  1. An audio file such as .mp3
  2. A compressed archive such as .zip
  3. A document file such as .docx Correct answer.
  4. An image file such as .jpg

Explanation

An editable text document preserves the wording and structure so the recipient can change it. Image and audio formats store pictures or sound rather than editable text. An archive bundles files but does not by itself provide an editable report.

Question 29Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

A table in a relational database stores information about books, and each book has a unique identifier in a column called BookID. What is the main role of this column?

  1. It uniquely identifies each record in the table Correct answer.
  2. It links the table to the operating system
  3. It sorts the records automatically by title
  4. It stores the total number of books

Explanation

A key column holds a value that is different for every record, so each row can be identified without ambiguity. This uniqueness lets other tables refer to a specific book reliably. Sorting, counting, and linking to the operating system are separate functions.

Question 30Digital literacy and information technology fundamentals

A student needs to send a 40 MB file over a link whose speed is 2 Mbit/s. Ignoring overhead, about how long will the transfer take? (1 byte = 8 bits; 1 Mbit = 1 000 000 bits; 1 MB = 1 000 000 bytes.)

  1. About 320 seconds
  2. About 80 seconds
  3. About 160 seconds Correct answer.
  4. About 20 seconds

Explanation

First convert the file size to bits: 40 MB = 40 000 000 bytes = 320 000 000 bits. Dividing by the link speed of 2 000 000 bits per second gives 160 seconds. Forgetting the factor of 8 between bytes and bits is the usual source of error.

Question 31Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

What is the decimal representation of the binary number 1011?

  1. 13
  2. 15
  3. 9
  4. 11 Correct answer.

Explanation

In binary, each digit represents a power of 2, starting from 2^0 on the right. So 1011 = 1×2^3 + 0×2^2 + 1×2^1 + 1×2^0 = 8 + 0 + 2 + 1 = 11.

Question 32Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

How many bits are there in one byte?

  1. 8 Correct answer.
  2. 4
  3. 16
  4. 32

Explanation

A byte is defined as a group of 8 bits. This is a standard unit in computing for representing a single character or a small amount of data.

Question 33Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

Which of the following is the hexadecimal representation of the decimal number 255?

  1. 100
  2. FE
  3. 7F
  4. FF Correct answer.

Explanation

To convert 255 to hexadecimal, divide by 16: 255 ÷ 16 = 15 remainder 15. In hexadecimal, 15 is represented by F, so the result is FF.

Question 34Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

What is the result of adding the binary numbers 101 and 110?

  1. 1001
  2. 1011 Correct answer.
  3. 1101
  4. 1111

Explanation

Adding binary numbers follows the same rules as decimal, but 1+1=10 and 1+1+1=11. 101 + 110 = 1011 (since 5 + 6 = 11 in decimal).

Question 35Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

How many kilobytes are in one megabyte?

  1. 1024 Correct answer.
  2. 2048
  3. 1000
  4. 512

Explanation

In computing, 1 kilobyte is 1024 bytes (2^10), and 1 megabyte is 1024 kilobytes. This is because computer memory is based on powers of 2.

Question 36Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

What is the decimal value of the octal number 17?

  1. 17
  2. 15 Correct answer.
  3. 16
  4. 14

Explanation

In octal, each digit represents a power of 8. So 17 in octal is 1×8^1 + 7×8^0 = 8 + 7 = 15 in decimal.

Question 37Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

In a certain number system, the number 100 is equal to 16 in decimal. What is the base of that number system?

  1. 8
  2. 4 Correct answer.
  3. 16
  4. 2

Explanation

In base b, the number 100 is equal to 1×b^2 + 0×b + 0 = b^2. Setting b^2 = 16 gives b = 4. So the base is 4.

Question 38Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

What is the minimum number of bits required to encode 30 different symbols?

  1. 6
  2. 5 Correct answer.
  3. 4
  4. 8

Explanation

With n bits, you can represent 2^n distinct values. To represent 30 symbols, you need the smallest n such that 2^n ≥ 30. Since 2^4 = 16 and 2^5 = 32, 5 bits are required.

Question 39Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

A text is encoded using a 16-bit encoding. If the text contains 100 characters, what is its size in bytes?

  1. 800
  2. 100
  3. 400
  4. 200 Correct answer.

Explanation

In a 16-bit encoding, each character requires 16 bits, which is 2 bytes. Therefore, 100 characters take 100 × 2 = 200 bytes.

Question 40Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

How many bits are needed to encode the decimal number 100 in binary?

  1. 6
  2. 8
  3. 7 Correct answer.
  4. 9

Explanation

The decimal number 100 in binary is 1100100, which has 7 bits. Alternatively, since 2^6 = 64 < 100 ≤ 128 = 2^7, 7 bits are required.

Question 41Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

What is the hexadecimal representation of the binary number 11011010?

  1. AD
  2. D8
  3. DA Correct answer.
  4. B4

Explanation

Group the binary digits into sets of four from right to left: 1101 1010. 1101 in hexadecimal is D (13), and 1010 is A (10). So the result is DA.

Question 42Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

How many different values can be represented with 12 bits?

  1. 8192
  2. 2048
  3. 1024
  4. 4096 Correct answer.

Explanation

The number of distinct values representable with n bits is 2^n. For n = 12, 2^12 = 4096.

Question 43Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

What is the decimal value of the hexadecimal number 2A?

  1. 42 Correct answer.
  2. 44
  3. 52
  4. 32

Explanation

In hexadecimal, A represents 10. So 2A = 2×16 + 10 = 32 + 10 = 42 in decimal.

Question 44Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

A message of 512 characters is encoded using an 8-bit encoding. What is the size of the message in kilobytes? (1 KB = 1024 bytes)

  1. 0.5 Correct answer.
  2. 1
  3. 4
  4. 2

Explanation

With 8-bit encoding, each character takes 1 byte. So 512 characters take 512 bytes. Since 1 KB = 1024 bytes, 512 bytes = 0.5 KB.

Question 45Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

What is the result of subtracting the binary number 101 from 1101?

  1. 1010
  2. 1100
  3. 1000 Correct answer.
  4. 1001

Explanation

1101 in binary is 13, and 101 is 5. 13 - 5 = 8, which is 1000 in binary.

Question 46Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

How many bits are required to store the decimal number 1000 in binary?

  1. 11
  2. 8
  3. 9
  4. 10 Correct answer.

Explanation

The largest number representable with n bits is 2^n - 1. For n=9, 2^9 - 1 = 511, which is less than 1000. For n=10, 2^10 - 1 = 1023, which is at least 1000. So 10 bits are needed.

Question 47Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

What is the base of the number system in which the equation 14 + 5 = 21 holds?

  1. 7
  2. 6
  3. 8 Correct answer.
  4. 9

Explanation

In base b, the number 14 is 1×b + 4, and 5 is 5. Their sum is b + 9. The result 21 is 2×b + 1. Setting b + 9 = 2b + 1 gives b = 8. So the base is 8.

Question 48Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

How many bits are needed to encode the word 'exam' in ASCII?

  1. 16
  2. 32 Correct answer.
  3. 24
  4. 40

Explanation

In standard ASCII, each character is encoded using 8 bits (1 byte). The word 'exam' has 4 characters, so it requires 4 × 8 = 32 bits.

Question 49Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

How many bits are required to encode all 26 lowercase letters of the English alphabet if each letter is encoded with the same number of bits?

  1. 4
  2. 5 Correct answer.
  3. 6
  4. 7

Explanation

To encode 26 different symbols, you need the smallest n such that 2^n ≥ 26. Since 2^4 = 16 < 26 and 2^5 = 32 ≥ 26, 5 bits are required.

Question 50Information coding, number systems, and measurement of information

What is the result of multiplying the binary numbers 101 and 11?

  1. 1111 Correct answer.
  2. 1001
  3. 1101
  4. 1010

Explanation

101 in binary is 5, and 11 is 3. Their product is 15, which is 1111 in binary.