National Teaching and Learning Change ProgrammeInformation and Communication Technology:
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• stepwise refinement
  Top-down programming or stepwise refinement is a particular type of structured programming, where the overall problem is defined in simple terms and then split into a number of smaller tasks. Each of these tasks is successively split and refined until they are small enough to be understood and programmed.
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• storage
  A collective word for different types of backing store, such as, disks, tapes.
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• storage medium
  The type of medium used to store data, e.g. disk, CD.
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• store
  Another word for the memory in a computer.
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• store
  To store a file is to save it to disk or to the backing store.
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• stream
  A continuous flow of data.
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• streaming media
  A technique used to allow media (video and audio) to be displayed on a web site, without an excessive delay while a (potentially massive) data file is downloaded. The opening seconds of the video must be downloaded before playback can begin, to provide a buffer. The player software starts to play this video to the user and keeps the buffer filled by downloading the next images while the first are playing. One characteristic of this method of delivery is that once playback is completed, the user has no permanent copy of the video on their computer.
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• string
  Textual data in the form of a list of characters, for example words and punctuation.
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• string data
  String data is textual data in the form of a list of characters, for example words and punctuation. String data is made up of character data and will usually vary in length.
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• string operator
  String operators combine or manipulate strings by performing such tasks as concatenation (joining strings) or replication (replacing part or all of a string).
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• structure diagram
  A means of representing the design of a program or system. It consists of a number of levels, each of which describes the whole design, but at increasing levels of detail.
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• structured programming
  A methodical approach to the design of a program which aims to break down large and complex tasks into smaller tasks.
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• Structured Query Language (SQL)
  An example of a query language, i.e. a simplified programming language, restricted to querying a database.
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• structured systems analysis and design methodology (SSADM)
  A standard method of analysis and design of large-scale software packages used within government departments in the UK and is also widely used commercially. SSADM is very precise and divides the method into many small stages.
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• style
  In word processing and other software, refers to characters being bold, italic, etc.
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• style sheet
  These allow the user to determine what fonts and sizes can be used throughout a document. Headings, body text, and captions can have different formatting characteristics (for example, font size, font, alignment, etc.) on a page. Each set of formatting characteristics can be saved as a style. A style sheet contains all the styles.
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• stylus
  A stylus is the name for pen-like devices used for drawing on a graphics tablet, or used in PDAs.
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• subdirectory
  A subdirectory is a directory within a directory. Its contents may be files or other subdirectories or both.
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• subfolder
  A subfolder is a folder within a folder. Its contents may be files or other subfolders or both.
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• subheading
  A heading or title applied to a section of the document. It is usually placed to the left hand side of the line.