Ocr software
Optical Character Recognition: This software takes a scanned image and converts the characters in the image into computer characters. The document can now be edited with a word processor. This is a very tricky process. Documents must be carefully checked for wrong conversions. If the original print was not very crisp and clean, errors are very likely. Manually checking for proper translation is necessary. These programs are getting really good if they have a clear scan to work with.
Data accuracy
A famous slogan in computing sums up the importance of accurate data: |
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GIGO = Garbage In, Garbage Out
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Conclusions are no better than the data they are based on. |
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A major task for any program that accepts data is to try to guarantee the accuracy of the input. Some kinds of errors cannot be caught but many of the most common kinds of mistakes can be spotted by a well-designed program.
A program should attempt to do the following:
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test data type and format |
ex. |
2/a/96 is not a date |
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ex. |
If a phone number should have exactly 10 digits with the area code, then 555-123 is not acceptable. |
2. |
test data reasonableness |
ex. |
231 should not be a person's age |
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ex. |
A sale of $50,000 worth of chewing gum at the corner market is probably missing a decimal point somewhere! |
3. |
test data consistency |
ex. |
A man's death date should be later than his birth date! |
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ex. |
The sum of the monthly paychecks should be the same as the total pay for the year. |
4. |
test for transcription and transposition errors |
ex. |
Typing 7754 instead of 7154 is a transcription error, typing the wrong character. |
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ex. |
Typing 7754 instead of 7745 is a transposition error, interchanging two correct characters. Both are very hard to check for. |
Comprehension Tasks
1. Match the keyboard terms with their definitions.
1) keyboard 2) tab 3) delete 4) characters 5) backspace 6) insert 7) end 8) home 9) spacebar 10) escape |
a) erases the character on the left of the cursor and moves the cursor that direction b) sends the cursor to the end of the current line c) the letters, numbers and all special signs that you see on the keyboard d) a computer input device that uses a set of keys to put data into computer e) is used to cancel actions in progress before they finish f) moves the cursor to the beginning of the current line g) is used to enter blank spaces in text h) is used to add characters to a document by moving the old characters over to make room for the new ones i) is used to erase the character just to the right of the cursor j) a key that allows you to move more than one space at a time |