Data, Files, and Digital Information: File Formats and Databases

Engineering

Knowledge check on file types, formats, and how data is organized at scale

10 XP
Reward
10
Questions
5–10 min
Time
Q1 Question 1 of 10

What does a file extension (like .jpg or .mp4) tell the operating system?

Q2 Question 2 of 10

You receive a suspicious email with an attachment called 'invoice.pdf.exe'. What should concern you about this filename?

Q3 Question 3 of 10

What is a database, and why do large websites use them instead of just storing data in files?

Q4 Question 4 of 10

Why do websites format data as JSON or XML when sending it between a server and your browser?

Q5 Question 5 of 10

What is the 'lifecycle of digital information' — from creation to deletion?

Q6 Question 6 of 10

A spreadsheet, a photo, and an audio file are all 'data.' What makes them different from each other at the binary level?

Q7 Question 7 of 10

You take 100 photos on a hiking trip and copy them to a USB drive. Later the USB drive is damaged and some files are corrupted. What does 'file corruption' mean?

Q8 Question 8 of 10

Why is the 3-2-1 backup rule recommended for important data?

Q9 Question 9 of 10

What does it mean when a photo is '12 megapixels'?

Q10 Question 10 of 10

If you delete a file from a cloud storage service like Google Drive, what typically happens to the data?