Test 1/Midterm Study Guide
This page contains a big list of things I expect you to know. Therefore, these items may very well appear on the test. If an item does not appear here, then to the best of my knowledge it will not be on the test (or, it is so trivial / easy that it's not worth listing).
What will be the test format? It'll consist of some multiple choice, some true/false, and free response. Most of the points will come from free response. I've decided not to include a portion of the test to be done on the computer, as the programs have been known to freeze. Also, it makes it all too tempting to look at a neighbor's screen.
Word
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Shortcuts - know several non basic ones (i.e., know more than how to simply copy and paste using the keyboard)
computer storage units (bit, byte, kilo/mega/giga prefixes): know how to convert between / from them
non-breaking spaces: why would we want to use them? how do we insert one? how can we tell if a space is a nonbreaking space or a breaking space?
view tab : including, what are the differences between the different views in Word?
images:
raster versus vector image
examples of each format (the ones discussed in class) and basic capabilities of each format
DPI, what does it stand for, how does it affect your document?
know at least three things you can do in Word to manipulate images
formatting units: how many points are in an inch?
styles:
example default styles (e.g., Title, Normal Text, Heading 1, etc)
why do we want to use styles?
references:
you should know how to use Word to manage your references in a report. I won't ask for super specifics (like exact button names), but perhaps a general idea. Which tab do you go to? How might I add a new source to my document? How would I insert a parenthetical reference? What is a placeholder and what is it used for?
how to insert a list of works cited/bibliography that's completely managed by Word
Table of contents: how do you insert one and how do you control what goes in there, WITHOUT manually typing into or editing the table of contents
tabs : what might you use custom tabs for? What do the different types of tabs do?
Excel
basic vocab (cell, worksheet, formula, function): there is a difference between formula and function!
example functions and how to use them (I won't ask you to remember which parameters go in which order and which are optional but you should know what each function needs to do its work)
Are letters (A, B, C) the columns or are they the rows? Are numbers (1, 2, 3) the columns or are they the rows?
How to have one cell always show a value from an original cell (so if the original cell updates, the other cell updates)
basic formatting capabilities: I won't ask which buttons you need to press, but you should know what Excel can do (e.g., how many decimal places to show, colors, display as money, borders)
conditional formatting: know at least 2 types of conditional formatting that you can apply to data (e.g., icon sets, color scales, color bars)
know how to read scientific notation (e.g., what does "2.3E+17" mean?)
know a few of the types of the charts that Excel can display and which ones would be best in an example situation
know basically how to manipulate charts (e.g., you should be able to describe to me how to change a slice of a pie chart's color, or how to adjust the horizontal axis of a chart, etc.)
how to "anchor" references to a cell, so that when copying a formula to other cells (e.g., through clicking and dragging) the formula behaves as we expect it to. Know how to anchor the row and/or the column.
perhaps be able to "do" (by writing down formulas and drawing a sketch of a worksheet) an example (e.g., a grade book with student grades, a store inventory, data from a science experiment, etc.)