P1- Describe the hardware and software used to create and edit

graphic images

• What is a DVI (Digital Visual Interface), what is it used for and what does it ultimately do?

• Digital Visual Interface.

• Connection between graphics card and monitor.

• Gives better picture.

What does ‘Colour Depth’ refer to?

• Number of colours available.

• 1 bit colour (2 to power of 1) monochrome.

• 8 bit (2 to power of 8) =(256 Colours)

• 16 bit =(65536 Colours)

• 24 bit =(16 777 216 Colours).

24 bit truecolour

• 8 bits are used to represent red in 24 bit true colour.

• 8 bits represent blue and a further 8 bits for green.

Explain in terms of 32 bit colour depth the term ‘truecolor’?

• 32 bit colour depth gives ‘Truecolor’.

• 32 bits used for each pixel.

• 24 bits for the colour and 8 for transparency

What is the difference between an integrated and dedicated graphics

card?

•Integrated Graphics Cards are built into the main circuit board of a computer.

•A Dedicated Graphics Card is an add-on card that is installed as a separate component. http://www.helium.com/items/955937-comparing-integrated-and-dedicated-graphics-cards

How do the different types of memory work together to edit digital graphics?

• RAM can be a temporary storage that is used to hold graphic files that have been opened.

• Between Ram and other device is the cache.

• Cache memory helps the drive work more efficiently.

• The File Allocation Table is copied from the disk to the Cache.

Explain in clear terms what is RAM and what it does?

• Internal memory

• Temporary storage

• More RAM can increase efficiency of computer.

• Digital graphics and computers,. Page 217 Book 2

What role does cache memory perform in terms of graphics

• Very fast electronic device.

• On motherboard between RAM And other device.

• Enhances performance of computer

• BTEC National ‘Options’ Page 50

Research 2 different processors used for graphics and explain their

capabilities?

• Onboard GPU and GPU on specialised video card.

• GPUs on specialised video card more powerful than on board GPU.

• Majority of new computers have onboard GPUs.

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graphics_Processing_Unit

What is SCSI?

• Small computer system interface

• Simple interface which consist of a standard port between a computer and its peripherals.

• Transfers data between computers and peripheral devices

http://computer.howstuffworks.com/scsi1.htm

What does ‘DMA’ in a computer system stand for and what does it do?

• Direct memory access

• Transfers data between devices

• Typically used for copying a block of memory from the RAM to a buffer on the device.

• Digital Graphics and computers. Page230

What is a digital camera device driver, what does it do?

• Enables the operating system to recognise the digital camera.

Describe the following functions of a digital camera; zoom and zoom rates, red eye, cropping, colour contrast and

video capture.

• Standard functions of a digital camera.

• Photos and movies.

• Different cameras have different movie formats.

• Eg. Panasonic high end cameras use the AVCHD format.

• www.panasonic.co.uk/html/en_GB/Products/Camcorders/AVCHD/288827/index.html

There are lots of cards’ available on the market for digital cameras. Choose

3 and explain their capacity to store images. (E.g. SD, SDHC, CF, MMC)

• SD <4Gb, SDHC 4<>32, SDXC >32Gb

• http://techlogg.com/2010/05/explained-sd-sdhx-sdxc/478

What are the file storage capabilities of the following items of hardware?

CD RomHard DriveFlash cards

USB. Estimate how many graphic images you could get on each

storage device in relation to its capacity?• Storage capacity to cost ratio doubles approximately every 2 years.• Date: Sept 2010.• CD Rom-650-740Mb• DVD-4.37-15.9Gb• USB-2-64Gb• Hard disk drive 300Gb - 1Tb• http://www.planetoftunes.com/computer/capacities.html#• Digital graphics and computers, page 234

Describe the following input devices, graphics tablet, mouse, digital camera,

scanner.

What input devices are suitable for a computer editing graphics?

• Graphics tablet

• Specialised pen

• Mouse

Describe who would use the above, when they are best used and their

advantages.

• Computer animators

• For 3D modelling

• For computer graphics and digital fine art

What input devices for an anime graphic artist are suitable for a

computer editing graphics?

• Graphics tablet

• Specialised pen

• Mouse

• Software includes:

• Paint Shop Pro

• Corel Painter

• Flash MX

In what way can a PDA be related to editing or manipulating digital

graphics?• Editing

• Manipulating

Explain the output functions a mobile phone:

• Email photos

• View graphics on a screen

• Stream videos

• View the Internet

A monitor is made up of pixels, give examples of different numbers of

pixels on different types of monitors.

Dots per inch (dpi) Pixels per inch (ppi)

More pixels means more clarity as picture is enlarged.

640 by 480 display means 640 pixels from side to side and 480 from top to bottom (Eg VGA display),

640 × 480 = 307,200 pixels or 0.3 megapixels.

What output devices are suitable for a computer editing graphics?

• Plotter

• Printer

• Scanner

Plotters have specific uses. Describe the type of printouts they provide and why plotters would be required rather

than traditional printers

• Architects, engineers and scientists use plotters for their designs.

• At least 17 inches wide.

• Wide format printing.

Explain what is resolution?

• Both colour depth and resolution are needed in order to quantify the amount of VRAM.

• Resolution is dependent on the number of pixels.

• Resolution is the amount of dots (pixels) used to make up a picture.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Display_resolution

1 Name and discuss 3 different file formats used for digital graphics

briefly describe the features of Google Sketch up or Adobe Illustrator.

• SketchUp is designed to be easy to use

• Design in 3D

• And be able to easily share model (s) with Friends

PAINT

•

Free image and photo editing

• Free software for computers that run Windows.

• Wide variety of useful and powerful tools that include support for layers and special effects.

Explain the features and capabilities of Photo manipulation software or Paint.

• paint is a basic editing programme it comes with simple functions such as the ability to paint your own image using your mouse and the brush tool, and the ability to enter text onto images, whereas paint shop pro is a more updated version of paint therefore comes with a wider range of features and tools.

What is compression?

Where the number of bits required to represent text, data, or images are compressed so the file (s) can be transmitted faster over slower Internet connections, or to take up less space on a disk.

Why is colour depth important when converting files?

• Colour depth controls file size

• Reduction of colour depth results in smaller files.

• 8 bit (256 colours)

• 24 bit (16.7 million colours)

What does “One way process” refer to when converting files?

• Once a file has been through the conversion process it is unable to be converted back to its original format.

• Related to colour depth.

• Eg. Converting a 24 bit colour bitmap (JPG) to a GIF will result in an 8 bit colour palette.

What are image viewers and photo galleries and what are they used for?

Image viewer

• Computer program used to display graphical images.

• Photo gallery

• Used to edit, share and organise photos.

Identify some software applications suitable for creating and editing

images.

• Graphics software or image editing software

• Examples:

• Paint

• Photoshop

• Fireworks

• Picasa 3 (Google)

• GIMP