hoffer_msad7_tif_10
Modern Systems Analysis & Design, 7e (Hoffer)
Chapter 10 Designing Forms and Reports
1) In general, forms are used to present or collect information on a single item.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 354
2) The contents of a form or report correspond to the data elements contained in an associated data flow located on a data flow diagram.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 355
3) The data on all forms and reports must consist of data elements in data stores and on the E-R data model for the application or must be computed from these data elements.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 355
4) Invoices and mailing labels are examples of forms.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 356
5) On the Internet, form interaction is the standard method of gathering and displaying information when consumers order products, request product information, or query account status.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 356
6) When preparing an initial prototype of a form or report, the structuring and refinement of the requirements requires much input from the end users.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 356-357
7) Often, the initial prototypes of forms and reports are mock screens that are not working modules or systems.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 357
8) The major deliverables from the designing forms and reports stage are logic models. Answer: FALSE
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 359
9) Structure charts, flowcharts, and dialogue diagrams are the major deliverables for the designing forms and reports stage.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 359
10) Designing usable forms and reports requires your active interaction with users.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 361
11) The purpose of the testing and usability assessment section of a form design specification is to explain to those who will actually develop the final form why this form exists and how it will be used.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 359-360
12) Notifying the user on the last page of a multipaged sequence is a guideline for designing forms and reports.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 361
13) Gaining an understanding of the skills of the intended system users and the tasks they will be performing is invaluable when constructing a form or report.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 362
14) Highlighting techniques can be used singularly or in tandem, depending upon the level of emphasis desired by the designer.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 363
15) Highlighting should be used as often as possible to draw the user away from or to certain information.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 364
16) Form designers should use highlighting as often as possible to distinguish the different categories of data.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 364
17) Color, intensity, and size differences are methods of highlighting.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 363
18) Highlighting methods should be consistently selected and used based upon the level of importance of the emphasized information.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 364
19) Generally speaking, highlighting methods appear the same on all output devices. Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 364
20) In business-related systems, textual output is becoming less important as the text-based applications that use these systems are slowly disappearing.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 365
21) Where possible, text should appear in all upper case on forms.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 365
22) The guidelines for displaying text include case, spacing, and justification guidelines. Answer: TRUE
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 365
23) When designing textual output, the text's case should be displayed in mixed upper and lower case.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 365
24) When designing textual output, you should use single spacing wherever possible. Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 365
25) When designing textual output, you should hyphenate words between lines.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 365
26) When designing textual output, both the left and right margins should appear justified. Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 365
27) When displaying textual information, use abbreviations and acronyms as often as possible. Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 365
28) When using color, printing or conversion to other media, may not easily translate. Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 365
29) The context and meaning of tables and lists are derived from the format of the information. Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 366
30) When displaying tables and lists, you should right-justify numeric data and align columns by decimal points or other delimiters.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 367
31) When displaying tables and lists, you should break long sequences of alphanumeric data into small groups of three to four characters each.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 367
32) Tables are very beneficial for analyzing data changes over time.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 369
33) When selecting tables versus graphs, you should use graphs for reading individual values. Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 369
34) When selecting tables versus graphs, you should use graphs for detecting trends over time. Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 369
35) When selecting tables versus graphs, you should use tables to forecast activities. Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 369
36) When selecting tables versus graphs, you should use tables to provide a quick summary of data.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 369
37) One of the primary advantages of impact printers is their ability to exactly replicate a screen report on paper.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 370
38) Reliability is an overall evaluation of how a system performs in supporting a particular user for a particular task.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 371
39) Referencing form and report usability, the consistency guideline means that formatting should be designed with an understanding of the task being performed and the intended user. Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 371
40) Referencing form and report usability, special symbols, such as decimal places, dollar signs and +/- signs should be used as appropriate.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 372\
41) Referencing the general design guidelines for form and report usability, the ease usability factor means that information should be viewed and retrieved in a manner most convenient to the user.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 372
42) When designing forms and reports, issues related to a user's experience, skills, motivation, education, and personality should not be considered.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 373
43) When designing the forms and reports for an Internet-based electronic commerce application,
a prototyping design process is most appropriate.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 373
44) When designing the layout of Web pages, you should avoid using bleeding-edge technology. Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 374
45) To avoid the nonstandard use of GUI widgets, make sure that users do not need the latest browsers or plug-ins to view your Web site.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 374
46) Nonstandard colors confuse the user and reduce ease of use.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 374
47) To avoid outdated information on your Web site, you should make sure your site is continuously updated so that users feel that the site is regularly maintained and updated. Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 374
48) Fixed-formatted text processing refers to the use of small simple images to allow a Web page to more quickly be displayed.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 374
49) XML icons are templates that display and process common attributes of higher-level, more abstract items.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 375\
50) One key to designing quality business processes is the delivery of the right information to the right people, in the right format, at the right time.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 376
51) Presenting or collecting information on a single item is the purpose of a:
A) diagram
B) form
C) report
D) none of the above
Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 356
52) The type of document that is used to convey information on a collection of items is a:
A) report
B) diagram
C) letter
D) form
Answer: A
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 356
53) Which of the following is not a true statement?
A) Forms and reports are integrally related to various diagrams developed during requirements structuring.
B) Every input form will be associated with a data flow leaving a process on a DFD.
C) The contents of a form or report correspond to the data elements contained in an associated data flow.
D) The data on all forms and reports must be data elements in data stores and on the E-R data model for the application, or must be computed from these data elements.
Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 355
54) A class registration sheet is an example of a:
A) report
B) diagram
C) memo
D) form
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 356
55) Which of the following is not a true statement concerning forms?
A) Most forms have a stylized format and are usually not in a simple row and column format.
B) Forms may be displayed on a video display and may be used for data display or data entry.
C) Forms are used to convey information on a collection of items.
D) Every output form will be a data flow produced by a process on a DFD.
Answer: C
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 356
56) A business document that contains some predefined data and may include some areas where additional data are to be filled in best describes a:
A) report
B) diagram
C) memo
D) form
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 356
57) A passive document that contains only predefined data best describes a:
A) report
B) diagram
C) form
D) none of the above
Answer: A
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 356
58) Which of the following is a true statement?
A) An employee application is an example of a report.
B) Reports are only for reading and often contain data about multiple unrelated records in a computer file.
C) Reports are used to convey information on a single item.
D) Generally, reports are only printed on paper.
Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 356
59) A pie chart of population by age categories is an example of:
A) a statistical chart
B) a report
C) a form
D) regression analysis
Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 356
60) Which of the following is a report?
A) employment application
B) class registration sheet
C) product order form
D) invoice
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 356
61) When designing forms and reports, the first activity is to:
A) gain an understanding of the intended user and task objectives by collecting initial requirements during requirements determination
B) structure and refine the requirements independent from the users
C) ask users to review and refine prototypes of the form or report
D) structure and refine the requirements with the users
Answer: A
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 356
62) Which of the following is a fundamental question to ask when designing forms and reports?
A) Who will use the form or report?
B) What is the purpose of the form or report?
C) Where does the form or report need to be delivered and used?
D) all of the above
Answer: D
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 357
63) The focus placed on forms and reports during logical design is on:
A) the content and layout design of the forms and reports
B) identifying how specific forms or reports should be implemented
C) identifying the content, layout design, and implementation method
D) none of the above
Answer: A
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 357
64) In the case of designing forms and reports, the major deliverables are:
A) the design specifications
B) an updated baseline project plan and updated statement of work
C) entity-relationship diagrams
D) the implemented forms and reports
Answer: A
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 358-359
65) Which of the following is a design specification section?
A) management issues
B) system description
C) testing and usability assessment
D) feasibility assessment
Answer: C
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 359
66) The section of a design specification that explains to those who will actually develop the final form why this form exists and how it will be used is called:
A) testing and usability assessment
B) rationale and benefit
C) narrative overview
D) usage and application
Answer: C
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 360
67) If a form is delivered on a visual display terminal, which design specification section would describe the capabilities of this device?
A) sample design
B) narrative overview
C) testing and usability
D) management issues
Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 360
68) Clearly labeling all data and entry fields refers to the general guideline of:
A) meaningful titles
B) meaningful information
C) balanced layout
D) easy navigation
Answer: C
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 361
69) Providing a valid date (or time) that identifies when the data in the form or report were accurate refers to the general guideline of:
A) meaningful titles
B) meaningful information
C) balanced layout
D) easy navigation
Answer: A
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 361
70) All of the following are general guidelines for the design of forms and reports except:
A) meaningful titles should be used
B) extraneous information should be used to provide additional information as needed
C) the user should be able to navigate easily through the document
D) the layout should be balanced
Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 361
71) In general, highlighting:
A) should not be used to warn users of errors in data entry or processing
B) should not be used to provide warnings to users regarding possible problems such as unusual data values
C) should not be used in tandem
D) should be used sparingly to draw the user to or away from certain information and to group together related information
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 364
72) Which of the following is a highlighting method?
A) using all capital letters
B) using different fonts
C) underlining
D) all of the above
Answer: D
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 362
73) Research conducted on highlighting suggests:
A) highlighting should be used conservatively
B) highlighting methods should be consistently used and selected based on the level of importance of the emphasized information
C) blinking and audible tones should only be used to highlight critical information that requires an immediate response from the user
D) all of the above
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 363-364
74) All of the following are problems with using color except:
A) printing or conversion to other media may not easily translate
B) evokes more emotional reactions
C) resolution may degrade with different displays
D) color pairings may washout or cause problems for some users
Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 365
75) Which of the following is not a benefit of using color?
A) soothes or strikes the eye
B) facilitates subtle discriminations in complex displays
C) evokes more emotional reactions
D) printing or conversion to other media may not easily translate
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 365
76) Research conducted on the usage of color found that:
A) color had positive effects on user task performance and perceptions when the user was under time constraints for the completion of a task
B) color is universally better than no color
C) the benefits of color are apparent regardless of the presentation format of the information
D) limiting the number and amount of color is not a good idea
Answer: A
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 364-365
77) When displaying text, a person should:
A) right justify text
B) hyphenate words between lines
C) use double spacing if space permits
D) use obscure abbreviations and acronyms
Answer: C
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 365
78) In reference to the general guidelines for displaying tables and lists, which of the following statements is not true?
A) The context and meaning of tables and lists are significantly derived from the format of the information.
B) The usability of information displayed in tables and alphanumeric lists is likely to be much more influenced by effective layout than most other types of information.
C) A blank line should be placed between every ten rows in long columns.
D) A single type face should be used, except for emphasis.
Answer: C
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 367
79) The general guidelines for displaying tables and lists include:
A) providing meaningful labels for all columns and rows
B) allowing white space on printed reports for users to write notes
C) breaking long sequences of alphanumeric data into small groups of three to four characters each
D) all of the above
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 367
80) Tables should be used instead of graphs when the user will be:
A) comparing points and patterns of different variables
B) forecasting activities
C) reading individual data values
D) detecting trends over time
Answer: C
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 369
81) Graphs should be used instead of tables for all of the following except:
A) comparing points and patterns of different variables
B) forecasting activities
C) reading individual data values
D) detecting trends over time
Answer: C
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 369
82) Which of the following is not a true statement?
A) Tables are best when the users' task is related to finding an individual data value from a larger data set.
B) Line and bar graphs are more appropriate for gaining an understanding of data changes over time.
C) Providing sufficient white space often entails printing a report in portrait rather than in landscape orientation.
D) The key determination as to when you should select a table or a graph is the task being performed by the user.
Answer: C
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 369
83) All of the following are usability characteristics except:
A) satisfaction
B) completeness
C) speed
D) accuracy
Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 371
84) An overall evaluation of how a system performs for supporting a particular user for a particular task refers to:
A) usability
B) testing
C) quality check
D) feasibility assessment
Answer: A
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 371
85) The general design guideline stating that information should be viewed and retrieved in a manner most convenient to the user is:
A) efficiency
B) ease
C) flexibility
D) format
Answer: C
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 372
86) The general design guideline stating that outputs should be self-explanatory and not require users to remember information from prior outputs in order to complete tasks is:
A) efficiency
B) ease
C) flexibility
D) format
Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 372
87) The general design guideline stating that formatting should be designed with an understanding of the task being performed and the intended user refers to:
A) efficiency
B) ease
C) flexibility
D) format
Answer: A
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 372
88) When designing forms and reports, the user characteristic addresses:
A) issues related to experience, skills, motivation, education, and personality
B) social issues such as the user's status and role, lighting, sound, task interruptions, temperature, and humidity
C) job activities that differ in the amount of information that must be obtained from or provided to the user
D) the platform in which the system is constructed, influencing interaction styles and devices Answer: A
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 373
89) When designing forms and reports, the task characteristic addresses:
A) issues related to experience, skills, motivation, education, and personality
B) social issues such as the user's status and role, lighting, sound, task interruptions, temperature, and humidity
C) activities that differ in the amount of information that must be obtained from or provided to the user
D) the platform in which the system is constructed influencing interaction styles and devices Answer: C
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 373
90) When designing forms and reports, the environment characteristic addresses:
A) issues related to experience, skills, motivation, education, and personality
B) social issues such as the user's status and role, lighting, sound, task interruptions, temperature, and humidity
C) job activities that differ in the amount of information that must be obtained from or provided to the user
D) the platform in which the system is constructed influencing interaction styles and devices Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 373
91) When designing forms and reports, the system characteristic addresses:
A) issues related to experience, skills, motivation, education, and personality
B) social issues such as the user's status and role, lighting, sound, task interruptions, temperature, and humidity
C) job activities that differ in the amount of information that must be obtained from or provided to the user
D) the platform in which the system is constructed influencing interaction styles and devices Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 373
92) Which of the following are methods used for assessing usability?
A) subjective satisfaction
B) speed of performance
C) rate of errors
D) all of the above
Answer: D
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 373
93) To assess usability, information can be collected by:
A) observation
B) interviews
C) keystroke capturing
D) all of the above
Answer: D
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 373
94) When designing Web pages, which of the following is the recommendation for avoiding nonstandard use of GUI Widgets?
A) avoid using large images, lots of images, unnecessary animations, or other time-consuming content
B) avoid scrolling text and animations since they are both hard to read and users often equate such content as advertising
C) make sure that users do not need the latest browsers or plug-ins to view your site
D) make sure that when using standard design items, that they behave in accordance to major interface design standards
Answer: D
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 374
95) When designing Web pages, which of the following is the recommendation for avoiding bleeding-edge technology?
A) avoid using large images, lots of images, unnecessary animations, or other time-consuming content
B) avoid scrolling text and animations since they are both hard to read and users often equate such content as advertising
C) make sure that users do not need the latest browsers or plug-ins to view your site
D) make sure you avoid designing any legitimate information in a manner that resembles advertising
Answer: C
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 374
96) When designing Web pages, which of the following is the recommendation for the displaying long lists as long pages error?
A) avoid using large images, lots of images, unnecessary animations, or other time-consuming content
B) show only N items at a time, use multiple pages, or use a scrolling container within the window
C) make sure that users do not need the latest browsers or plug-ins to view your site
D) make sure you avoid designing any legitimate information in a manner that resembles advertising
Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 374
97) When designing Web pages, which of the following is the recommendation for avoiding anything that looks like advertising?
A) avoid using large images, lots of images, unnecessary animations, or other time-consuming content
B) avoid scrolling text and animations since they are both hard to read and users often equate such content as advertising
C) make sure that users do not need the latest browsers or plug-ins to view your site
D) make sure you avoid designing any legitimate information in a manner that resembles advertising
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 374
98) When designing Web pages, which of the following is the recommendation for avoiding slow download times?
A) avoid using large images, lots of images, unnecessary animations, or other time-consuming content
B) avoid scrolling text and animations since they are both hard to read and users often equate such content as advertising
C) make sure that users do not need the latest browsers or plug-ins to view your site
D) make sure you avoid designing any legitimate information in a manner that resembles advertising
Answer: A
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 374
99) The use of small simple images to allow a Web page to be displayed more quickly best describes:
A) icons
B) lightweight graphics
C) cookie crumbs
D) MPEG files
Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 375
100) Templates used to display and process common attributes of a higher-level and more abstract items best describes:
A) object-oriented templates
B) CGI scripts
C) Java
D) template-based HTML
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 375
101) A ________ is a business document that contains some predefined data and may include some areas where additional data are to be filled in.
Answer: form
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 356
102) A ________ is a business document that contains only predefined data; it is a passive document used only for reading or viewing.
Answer: report
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 356
103) Designing forms and reports is a user-focused activity that typically follows a ________ approach.
Answer: prototyping
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 357
104) The three design specification sections are ________, ________, and ________. Answer: narrative overview, sample design, testing and usability assessment
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 358
105) The ________ section of a design specification provides a general overview of the characteristics of the target users, tasks, system, and environmental factors in which the form or report will be used.
Answer: narrative overview
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 358-359
106) Guidelines for designing forms and reports address ________, ________, ________, and ________.
Answer: using meaningful titles, including meaningful information, balancing the layout, designing an easy navigation system
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 361
107) Guidelines for displaying text include ________, ________, ________, ________, and
________.
Answer: case, spacing, justification, hyphenation, abbreviations
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 365
108) ________ is an overall evaluation of how a system performs in supporting a particular user for a particular task.
Answer: Usability
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 371
109) The three usability characteristics are ________, ________, and ________.
Answer: speed, accuracy, satisfaction
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 371
110) The ________ general design guideline for usability of forms and reports specifies that information should be viewed and retrieved in a manner most convenient to the user. Answer: flexibility
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 372
111) The ________ general design guideline for usability of forms and reports specifies that formatting should be designed with an understanding of the task being performed and the intended user.
Answer: efficiency
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 372
112) The ________ general design guideline for usability of forms and reports specifies that outputs should be self-explanatory and not require users to remember information from prior outputs in order to complete tasks.
Answer: ease
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 372
113) When designing forms and reports, the ________ characteristic suggests that issues related to experience, skills, motivation, education, and personality be considered.
Answer: user
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 373
114) When designing forms and reports, the ________ characteristic suggests that social issues be considered.
Answer: environment
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 373
115) ________, ________, ________, ________, and ________ are methods for assessing usability.
Answer: Time to learn, speed of performance, rate of errors, retention over time, subjective satisfaction
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 373
116) When assessing usability, you can collect information by ________, ________, ________, and ________.
Answer: observation, interviews, keystroke capture, questionnaires
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 373
117) ________ reflects how long it takes the average system user to become proficient using the system.
Answer: Time to learn
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 373
118) When designing the layout of Web pages, making sure that standard design items behave in accordance to major interface design standards is the recommendation for the ________ error. Answer: nonstandard use of GUI Widgets
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 374
119) When designing the layout of Web pages, making sure that you avoid designing any legitimate information in a manner that resembles advertising is the recommendation for the
________ error.
Answer: anything that looks like advertising
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 374
120) When designing the layout of Web pages, making sure that users do not need the latest browsers or plug-ins to view your site is the recommendation for the ________ error. Answer: bleeding-edge technology
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 374
121) When designing the layout of Web pages, avoid scrolling text and animations since they are both hard to read and users often equate such content as advertising is the recommendation for the ________ error.
Answer: scrolling test and looping animations
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 374
122) When designing the layout of Web pages, making sure your site is continuously updated so that users feel that the site is regularly maintained and updated is the recommendation for the
________ error.
Answer: outdated information
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 374
123) ________ is the use of small, simple images to allow a Web page to be displayed more quickly.
Answer: Lightweight graphics
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 375
124) Templates to display and process common attributes of higher-level, more abstract items are called ________.
Answer: template-based HTML
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 375
125) Pine Valley Furniture's design guidelines for its WebStore included ________, ________, and ________.
Answer: lightweight graphics, forms and data integrity rules, template-based HTML
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 375
126) Differentiate between a form and a report.
Answer: Forms are defined as business documents that contain some predefined data and may include some areas where additional data are to be filled in. Examples of forms are: order forms, employment applications, and class registration sheets. Reports are business documents that contain only predefined data. Reports are considered to be passive documents used only for reading or viewing. Examples of reports include invoices, a pie chart of population by age categories, and a weekly sales summary by region report.
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 356
127) Identify several general guidelines for the design of forms and reports.
Answer: The guidelines can be grouped into four categories: meaningful titles, meaningful information, balanced layout, and easy navigation. Clear and specific titles describe the content and use of the document. By providing a revision date or code, the document is distinguished from earlier versions. A valid date identifies on what date (or time) the data in the form or report was accurate. Only needed information should be displayed; information should be provided in a usable manner without requiring modification. Information should be balanced on the screen or page. Adequate spacing and margins should be used. Data and entry fields should be clearly labeled. Easy navigation is provided by clearly showing how to move forward and backward, clearly showing the user where he or she is, and by notifying the user when he or she is on the last page of a multipaged sequence.
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 361-362
128) What are the general guidelines for displaying tables and lists?
Answer: Three categories of guidelines were provided in the textbook, including using meaningful labels, formatting columns, rows, and text, and formatting numeric, textual, and alphanumeric data. Table 10-7 provides specific guidelines for each category.
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 367-369
129) When should you use tables? When should you use graphs?
Answer: Tables are recommended for reading individual data values. Graphs are recommended for providing a quick summary of data, detecting trends over time, comparing points and patterns of different variables, forecasting activities, and reporting vast amounts of information when relatively simple impressions are to be drawn.
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 369
130) What is usability? Identify three characteristics for assessing usability.
Answer: Usability is an overall evaluation of how a system performs in supporting a particular user for a particular task. Speed, accuracy, and satisfaction are the three characteristics.
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 371-372
131) Identify nine common errors that occur when designing the layout of Web pages. Answer: The nine common errors are nonstandard use of GUI widgets, anything that looks like advertising, bleeding-edge technology, scrolling test and looping animations, nonstandard link colors, outdated information, slow download times, fixed-formatted text, and displaying long lists as long pages.
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 374
132) Define template-based HTML. What is its advantage?
Answer: Template-based HTML refers to templates that display and process common attributes of higher-level, more abstract items. HTML templates enable the easy maintenance of interfaces, allowing a module to be reused.
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 375
133) Identify four problems from using color.
Answer: Four problems were identified in the textbook, including color pairings may wash out or cause problems for some users, resolution may degrade with different displays, color fidelity may degrade on different displays, and printing or conversion to other media may not easily translate.
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 365
134) Identify five guidelines for displaying text.
Answer: The guidelines presented in the textbook include: (1) text should be displayed in mixed upper and lower case and use conventional punctuation; (2) when possible, double spacing should be used; (3) text should be left-justified; (4) words should not be hyphenated between lines; and (5) abbreviations and acronyms should be used only when they are widely understood by users and are significantly shorter than the full text.
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 365
135) Identify five methods of highlighting.
Answer: Ten methods were presented in the textbook; these include: blinking and audible tones, color differences, intensity differences, size differences, font differences, reverse video, boxing, underlining, all capital letters, and offsetting the position of nonstandard information.
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