INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
GRADE 12
PAPER 2 
NSC PAST PAPERS AND MEMOS
SEPTEMBER 2017

MEMORANDUM 

SECTION A: SHORT QUESTIONS 
QUESTION 1 
1.1
1.1.1 HTTP ✔ (1)
1.1.2 Byte ✔ (1)
1.1.3 Rootkit ✔ (1)
1.1.4 Patch ✔ (1)
1.1.5 SPAM ✔ (1)
1.1.6 Thread ✔ (Accept multithreading) (1)
1.1.7 Topology ✔ (1)
1.1.8 Microblogging ✔ (Accept tweeting) (1)
1.1.9 4G/LTE ✔ (1)
1.1.10 Bandwidth ✔ (1) 

1.2
1.2.1 D ✔ copy your own CD to play on your mp3 player. (1)
1.2.2 B ✔ a sequence of logical steps that will solve a problem. (1)
1.2.3 C ✔ text file that stores information relating to websites. (1)
1.2.4 D ✔ Digital signature (1) 
1.2.5 B ✔ Wireless communication between PCs in a different  rooms. (1) 

TOTAL SECTION A: 15

SECTION B: SYSTEMS TECHNOLOGIES 
QUESTION 2 
2.1
2.1.1 Any ONE fact ✔ 

• It must be of the same size (number of pins)/Must fit into the  slots on the motherboard.
• The speed of the RAM must be compatible with the  motherboard/FSB/System bus.
  NOTE:
  Also accept any mention of motherboard compatibility/checking/ comparing the specifications of the RAM. (1) 

2.1.2

1. The operating system’s use of secondary storage ✔ (hard drive)  space as memory ✔ (temporary or simulated or additional RAM). (2) 
2. Any ONE fact why virtual memory is not the solution. ✔
   • Virtual memory is slow/using hard disk space as memory  slows down the performance
   • Thrashing may occur 
   • To be effective the need for a large amount of secondary  storage (hard disk space) arises (1) 

2.1.3

1. Any TWO correct facts about cache ✔✔
   TWO MARKS FOR:
   • Instructions/data probably needed next by the CPU are  placed in the cache memory which reduced time lost while  waiting for instructions/data from the RAM and as a result it  improves the performance of the CPU.
     ONE MARK EACH FOR:
     • Cache memory is situated inside the CPU or close by.
     • Cache faster type of memory – can feed the CPU with  instructions at a faster rate. 
     • Instructions/data probably needed next by the CPU are  placed in the cache memory. (2) 
2.                      
   • RAM and cache are different ✔ types of memory (DRAM and  SRAM).
   • Cache memory is found in the CPU; RAM on the  motherboard. ✔
   • Upgrading RAM means replacing DIMMs while upgrading  cache means replacing the CPU. ✔ (3)

2.2
2.2.1 Universal Serial Bus ✔ (1) 
2.2.2 Accept any ONE of the following: ✔ 

• Firewire (Windows) 
• Thunderbolt (Mac) 
• HDMI (1) 

2.2.3

• Program ✔ that tells an operating system how to communicate  with a specific device. ✔ 
  ALSO ACCEPT: 
• Software designed to control a piece of hardware. (2) 

2.2.4 Standard driver: Any ONE correct fact ✔ 

• Is already part of the operating system
• No need to load extra drivers (1) 

2.2.5 Any ONE device that connects to USB port that can make use of  standard/generic driver. ✔ 
Examples of devices: 

• Mouse.
• Keyboard.
• External storage device (e.g. hard drive/flashdisk).
• Printer / scanner / camera (1)

2.3
2.3.1 Yes / No and a valid reason to justify their answer. ✔ (1) 
2.3.2 Any TWO advantages: 

• Powerful CPU ✔
• Full scale operating system ✔
• Expandable 
  DO NOT ACCEPT MOBILITY 

Any TWO disadvantages: 

•  Size ✔
• Battery life ✔
• Not always on
• No built in cellular data (2 + 2) (4)

2.4
2.4.1 Speed (GHz) ✔ and Cores ✔ (2) 
2.4.2 Any TWO correct facts about preventing overheating ✔✔ 

• Large heat sink on the CPU/North Bridge chipset.
• Using thermal paste
• Heat conductive plate over system bus.
• Additional cooling fans in case.
• Alternative cooling systems – any sensible example. (2)

[24]

QUESTION 3 
3.1
3.1.1 Accept any ONE: ✔ 

• 3G/LTE
• ADSL
• WiMAX (1) 

3.1.2 Accept any TWO advantages of the connection mentioned in  QUESTION 3.1.1 ✔✔ 
3G/LTE 

• Widely available in South African cities 
• Allows mobile devices an Internet connection
• Fast data transfer rate
• Only pay for data being downloaded/uploaded 

ADSL 

• Stable
• Fast data transfer rate
• High bandwidth available/capped bandwidth
• Simultaneous voice and data 
• Low latency 

WiMAX 

• Fast data transfer rate
• Can provide broadband wireless access for up to 50 km  for fixed stations and 15 km for mobile stations (2) 

3.2
3.2.1 A router manages the bandwidth because it is able to inspect  the data packets as they arrive and determine the correct  destination ✔ of the data and forward it accordingly. ✔ (2) 
3.2.2 Accept any TWO other capabilities of a router: ✔✔ 

• Connect different network types together
• Ensures the safe transfer of data between networks
• Mainly used to connect LAN’s into a WAN / Used to  connect networks to the Internet
• Routers can also be used for port-forwarding (2) 

3.3
3.3.1 Any ONE of the following: ✔ 

•  No wires
• Mobility
• Easy to setup (1) 

3.3.2 Any TWO of the following: ✔✔ 

• Limited range
• Can be hacked easily
• Interference
• Slower than wired network (2)

3.4
3.4.1 A search engine works as an information locator. ✔ It uses  keywords or phrases entered by the user when looking for  information. (1) 
3.4.2 It is a technology/strategy ✔ used to obtain a high ranking  placement in the search results page of a search engine. ✔ (2) 
3.4.3 Any THREE of: ✔✔✔ 

• Profiled or customised searches
• Context-aware searches
• Mediated searches
• Semantic searches (3)

3.4.4 Any ONE explanation: ✔✔ 

• Profiled or customised searches – a technique used to  customise your search results, matching them to  advertisements that you are most likely to respond to.
• Context-aware searches – here the context or your current  interests taken from your web surfing history is used in  making search results relevant.
• Mediated searches – here third party software/humans  assist in the process of organising the content.
• Semantic searched – for the future, it will allow searches to  happen automatically, using metadata, contextual  information to come up with results. (2) 

3.5
3.5.1

• HTML – website document formatting language designed for  browser ✔
• JavaScript – a scripting language designed to run in a web  browser. ✔ (2) 

3.5.2 Any TWO of: ✔✔ 

• Perl
• Ruby
• ASP.NET 
• Python
• PHP (2) 

3.5.3 Server side scripting makes dynamic creation of webpages  possible, ✔ whilst connecting easily to a database. ✔ (2) 
3.5.4 Any ONE of: ✔ 

• Easy formatting of text
• Consistent formatting of text (1)

[25]

QUESTION 4 
4.1
4.1.1 Any THREE of: ✔✔✔ 

• Management
• Maintenance
• Security access rights
• Backup
• Installing software
• Configuring software (3) 

4.1.2 A relational database that contains many tables linked together  by relations. ✔ (1) 
4.2
4.2.1 Any TWO of: ✔✔ 

• Existing documents
• Existing workflows
• Business plan (2)

4.2.2 Data maintenance involves keeping information up to date. ✔ (1) 
4.3
4.3.1 Normalisation refers to the process of organising a database  into separate tables in such a way as to avoid the duplication  of data and also update/deletion anomalies. ✔ (1) 
4.3.2 Markup or the Total Value fields ✔ as they can automatically  be calculated when needed using a calculated field. ✔ (2) 
4.3.3 

Table Names ✔✔
Primary Keys ✔✔
Foreign Key ✔ 
Relationship ✔ (6)

4.4
4.4.1 SELECT * FROM Stock_DetailsTB ✔Order BY TotalValue ✔ (2)
4.4.2 DELETE ✔ From Stock_DetailsTB✔ WHERE Item=’Dress’ ✔ (3) 
4.4.3 UPDATE Stock_DetailsTB ✔ SET Contact = '0715624117' ✔ WHERE Owner's Name = 'Malcolm Peter'✔ (3)

[24] 

QUESTION 5 
5.1

Get the name and surname ✔ 
Initialise a blank string ✔ 
Get the length of name and surname ✔ 
Loop through the entire string ✔ 
If the character is not a vowel or a space then add to the blank string ✔
Change the first and last character to a capital letter ✔ 
Add a # to the end ✔ (7)

5.2
5.2.1 Indicates that the attributes are private fields ✔ (1) 
5.2.2 Accessor methods are used to return the contents of an object's  fields ✔ e.g. GetTeamName, ✔GetGender, GetDOB,  
Mutator methods are used to change the contents of an object's  fields ✔ e.g. CalculateCost ✔ (4) 
5.2.3 A constructor instantiates the object ✔and initialises the fields of  the object. ✔ (2) 
5.2.4 Compiles the objects attributes into a single string variable ✔ (1)
5.3

One mark per correct column. (6)

[21]

SECTION F: INTEGRATED SCENARIO 
QUESTION 6 
6.1
6.1.1 RFID tag ✔   

• Contains the antenna, the circuit and microchip. ✔ 

RFID reader ✔ 

•  The reader reads the radio signal sent by the tags. ✔ (4) 

6.1.2

• Passive RFID tags, receive all their power from the reader. ✔ These tags do nothing until they enter into the magnetic field of  the reader. ✔
• Active RFID tags, receive power from on-board batteries ✔ which allows them to communicate over long distances. ✔ (4) 

6.1.3 RFID tags would not be advisable ✔ since it is a stall and  people do not have a designated entry or exit point to check for  the tags. ✔ (2) 
6.2
6.2.1 Any TWO of: ✔✔ 

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Wechat 
• Myspace 
• Any other relevant answer. (2) 

6.2.2

• Constant interruptions prevent you from focusing your  attention on whatever task you are supposed to be  doing. ✔ 
• Social networking can consume several hours of your time  each day. ✔ (2) 

6.2.3 Social engineering refers to ‘conning’ or tricking a person into  giving out information willingly. ✔ This often includes sensitive  information such as passwords or other information that can be  used to commit identity theft. ✔ (2) 
6.2.4 Whatever you publish is immediately public and ‘vulnerable’ in  terms of being shared. ✔ 
ACCEPT ALSO: 
Multiple people have access to that information – especially if  the group does not have a controlled or limited membership. (1)
6.3
6.3.1 Distributed Denial of Service in an attack that make a website  unavailable ✔ by the use of thousands or millions of computers  to request data from the site at the same time. The servers  become overloaded, unresponsive and effectively unavailable to  everyone. ✔ (2) 
6.3.2 A botnet is a remotely controlled zombie PC infected with  malware ✔ that enables criminals to use it for launching DOS  attacks, or sending spam. ✔ (2) 
6.3.3 Trolling is sowing discord on the Internet by starting arguments  or upsetting people, by posting inflammatory, extraneous, or off topic messages in an online community (such as a newsgroup,  forum, chat room, or blog) with the deliberate intent of provoking  the readers. ✔ 
Therefore, one cannot cause a DOS by doing this. ✔ (2) 
6.3.4 ONE of: ✔ 

• Hacker
• Scriptkiddie
• Cyber-criminal
• Spammer etc. (1)

6.4
6.4.1 Secure Socket Layer ✔ (1) 
6.4.2 Encryption is when clear and easy to read data is scrambled to  protect it and make it unreadable. ✔ (1) 
6.4.3

• The browser connects to the server using https and requests a secure connection✔ The server sends the browser its public key and its certificate to  prove who it is. ✔
• The browser generates the secret key that will only last for the  duration of the communication session, encrypts the key using  the server’s public key and sends it to the server. ✔
• The server decrypts the secret key and now both has the secret  key that they will use temporarily for the duration of this  communication session. ✔ (4) 

6.5
6.5.1 The use of resources offered as services over the Internet ✔ and  shared between many users, including online file storage  services and the running of programs. ✔ (2)
6.5.2 Online file Storage – Storing files on the internet, which can be  accessed from multiple devices and shared with others ✔ 
Examples: Any ONE ✔ 

• OneDrive
• Dropbox
• iCloud 

Online Backup – Used to backup data that you only access  when disaster strikes, which may include your system  settings. ✔ 
Examples: Any ONE✔ 

• Carbonite
• Acronis
• Crashplan (4) 

6.5.3 DISAGREE ✔ 

• Syncing services do not offer an incremental structure ✔ and  the security of a proper online backup service. ✔
  OR
• Backup services make a copy of the files. ✔
  Syncing services automatically updates and make changes to  the cloud storage so that it mirrors the hard drive. ✔ (3) 

6.5.4 There is an application installed on the device ✔that runs to  create the user interface and so reduce the amount of data that  needs to be transferred. ✔ (2)

[41] 
TOTAL SECTION F: 41 
GRAND TOTAL: 150