1. The Characteristics of Contemporary Processors, Input, Output & Storage Devices

1.1 Structure & Function of the Processor

Components of the CPU

Fetch-Decode-Execute Cycle

CPU Performance

Pipelining

Von Neumann & Harvard Architecture

1.2 Types of Processor

CISC vs RISC

Graphics Processing Unit (GPU)

Multicore & Parallel Processors

1.3 Input, Output & Storage

Input, Output & Storage

RAM & ROM

2. Software & Software Development

2.1 Systems Software

Operating Systems

Memory Management

System Interrupts

Scheduling

Types of Operating System

BIOS

Device Drivers

Virtual Machines

2.3 Software Development

Waterfall Lifecycle

Agile Programming

Spiral Model

Rapid Application Development (RAD)

Comparing Software Development Models

2.4 Types of Programming Language

Programming Paradigms

Procedural Programming

Assembly Language & Little Man Computer

Modes of Addressing

3. Exchanging Data

3.1 Compression, Encryption & Hashing

Lossy & Lossless Compression

Run Length Encoding & Dictionary Coding

Symmetric & Asymmetric Encryption

3.2 Databases

Relational Databases

Entity Relationship Diagrams

Capturing, Selecting, Managing & Exchanging Data

3.3 Networks

Networks

TCP/IP

Domain Name System (DNS)

LAN & WAN

Packet & Circuit Switching

Network Security & Threats

Network Hardware

Client Server & Peer to Peer

3.4 Web Technologies

HTML

CSS

CSS: Styling

JavaScript

Variables & Constants in JavaScript

Outputs in JavaScript

Selection in JavaScript

For Loops in JavaScript

While Loops in JavaScript

Strings in JavaScript

Operators in JavaScript

Nested Statements in JavaScript

Functions & Procedures in JavaScript

4. Data Types, Data Structures & Algorithms

4.1 Data Types

Primitive Data Types

Positive Binary Numbers

Negative Binary Numbers

Binary Addition & Subtraction

Hexadecimal Numbers

Floating Point Binary Numbers

Floating Point Addition & Subtraction

Character Sets

4.2 Data Structures

Arrays

Records, Lists & Tuples

Stacks

Queues

4.3 Boolean Algebra

Boolean Logic

5. Legal, Moral, Cultural & Ethical Issues

5.1 Computing Related Legislation

The Data Protection Act 1998

The Computer Misuse Act 1990

The Copyright Design & Patents Act 1988

The Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000

5.2 Moral & Ethical Issues

Computers in the Workforce

Automated Decision Making

Artificial Intelligence

Environmental Effects

Censorship & The Internet

Monitoring Behaviour

Analysing Personal Information

Piracy & Offensive Communications

Layout, Colour Paradigms & Character Sets

6. Elements of Computational Thinking

6.1 Thinking Abstractly

The Nature of Abstraction

Abstraction & Reality in Computational Thinking

Abstract Models in Computational Thinking

6.2 Thinking Ahead

Computational Thinking: Thinking Ahead

6.3 Thinking Procedurally

Components of a Problem in Computational Thinking

Order of Steps in Problem Solving

Sub-Procedures

6.4 Thinking Logically

Decisions in Computational Thinking

Logical Conditions in Computational Thinking

6.5 Thinking Concurrently

Concurrency in Problem Solving

Concurrent Processing

7. Problem Solving & Programming

7.1 Programming Techniques

Data Types

Arithmetic, Logical & Boolean Operators

Programming Constructs

Selection

Iteration

Modularity, Functions & Procedures

Parameter Passing

Global & Local Variables

Integrated Development Environment (IDE)

8. Algorithms

8.1 Standard Algorithms & Big O Notation

Suitability of Algorithms

Big O Notation

Binary Search

Linear Search

Bubble Sort

Insertion Sort

Merge Sort

Quick Sort

Exam boards

• Cambridge (CIE) AS Computer Science

Study tools

• OCR AS Computer Science · Past Papers

Related links

• AS Computer Science · Revision Notes
• AS Computer Science · Past Papers
• OCR AS Computer Science · Exam specification