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UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MARA FINAL EXAMINATION

COURSE COURSE CODE EXAMINATION TIME

CONSOLIDATING LANGUAGE SKILLS / PREPARATORY ENGLISH BEL120/100 OCTOBER 2012 2 HOURS

INSTRUCTIONS TO CANDIDATES 1. 2. 3. 4. This question paper consists of two (2) parts : PART A (9 Questions) PART B (1 Question) Answer ALL questions from both parts in the Answer Booklet. Start each answer on a new page. Do not bring any material into the examination room unless permission is given by the invigilator. Please check to make sure that this examination pack consists of: i) ii) the Question Paper an Answer Booklet - provided by the Faculty

DO NOT TURN THIS PAGE UNTIL YOU ARE TOLD TO DO SO This examination paper consists of 8 printed pages
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PART A: READING (15 MARKS) Read the text below and answer all the questions.

For the first time in Malaysian journalism, you can have your news in a digital newspaper format that provides you with both sound and visuals. Even thirty years ago, few people would have believed that newspapers would become interactive. Thanks to technology, however, you are now able to read the original newspaper in its digital format via desktops, laptops, 5 smartphones and tablets. Even better, you can turn on videos and other media related to articles you have read or respond to other interactive features such as those embedded in advertisements.

II

Until recently, The Star Online news portal offered news in formats which were different from the format of The Star Group's original print newspapers, The Star and The Sunday Star. The innovative website is now taking news media technology to a higher level. Owners of smartphones and tablet computers are now able to read on their electronic devices the online replica of the entire print newspaper. They can also switch to the internet edition of the newspapers for updates. The Audit Bureau of Circulation has decided that the subscriptions to printed newspapers and their online replica should be treated in the same way when recording circulation and readership figures. The future for The Star's digital newspapers is promising. Close to 40,000 people registered for The Star e-Paper free trial offer over the first three weeks. 20 15 10

III

The Star Group has recently introduced a technology called iSnap. The iSnap is an image recognition programme which brings the online newspaper to life. If an article or advertisement carries an iSnap logo, the iSnap programme in the Star Mobile App downloaded into an electronic device can turn on a video or an audio clip. It can also be used to access other content 25 such as photo galleries, maps, product catalogues or contest entry forms. If you own a smartphone or a tablet with a built-in camera, you just have to download the Star Mobile application, point your gadget's built-in camera at

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the page in which the article or advertisement with the iSnap logo is printed. Next, you need to wait for the iSnap icon to appear on the screen of your 30 device before tapping the pause button. After all these steps are done, you will be able to turn on the interactive features. For instance, when you read articles about football in the sports pages which display iSnap logos, you may be able to watch a video clip of the goal being scored; and when you read the review of a movie, the iSnap image recognition technology allows you to view a video trailer of the movie. 35

IV

The Star Group is now better able to satisfy its diverse reader population with the existence of both traditional and online versions of its newspapers. The company believes that there are many readers who only fully appreciate their reading experience if they can see advertisements posted alongside the 40 news articles, as in traditional printed newspapers. By offering this traditional format of its printed newspapers in its digital version, The Star Group wants to serve a large number of its readers who are mainly in their late 30s or older. Nevertheless, by having the traditional newspaper format also available through tablets and smartphones, younger people will learn to 45

enjoy the newspaper reading experience in the e-Paper format as it contains features like voice reading of articles. In addition, e-Paper readers can even instantly send interesting articles to their friends through the internet while on the move.

There are a number of other advantages e-Paper has over traditional printed 50 newspapers. For instance, online news services are able to reduce paper usage and thus, become more environment-friendly compared to their printed versions. Advertisers, too, benefit because they can establish their presence in both the print and digital versions. In other words, organizations that produce advertisements are able to profit from the new e-Paper format thanks to its unique ability to use animations and to produce eye- catching advertisements. 55

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VI

Another major advantage of electronic newspapers is that they can deliver the latest news throughout the day. While traditional printed newspapers provide news that is at least six hours old to their subscribers, electronic newspapers do not have the same time restraints. Electronic newspapers are able to make available news items to the public the instant they are posted on their portals. Thus, the news is guaranteed to be current and the e-Paper will keep its readers aware of events that are going on as they happen. Downloading the e-Paper takes just between three to eight minutes 65 depending on the level of technology of the broadband and mobile data service. 60

VII

As can be noted, the e-Paper has several improvements over the traditional printed newspaper. It marks the beginning of a new experience for the traditional print newspapers readers and will win new readers through its 70 interesting interactive approach. It is indeed an exciting journey in technology application.

Adapted and retrieved from ; The Star, The Star Innovates with e-Paper and iSnap, April 21, 2012 http://www.files.chem.vt.edu

Answer the following questions in complete sentences where appropriate.

1) What do the following words and phrase in the passage refer to? a) The innovative website b) It c) their d) they (line 11) (line 25) (line 48) (line 62)

(2 marks)

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2) Choose the meanings of the following words as they are used in the passage: a) promising (line 18)

i) bright

ii) certain

iii) doubtful

b) diverse (line 37)

i) elderly

ii) varied

iii) huge

c) presence

(line 54)

i) position

ii) existence

iii) value

d) restraints

(line 61)

i) guidelines

ii) factors

iii) limitations

(2 marks)

3) Write T if the statement is true and F if the statement is false.

a) Newspapers were already starting to get interactive thirty years ago. b) By allowing the sale of e-Paper, the Audit Bureau of Circulation has prevented the sale of the printed newspaper version. c) The iSnap technology allows a reader to read an article and view the video clip at the same time.

d) The downloading of The Star's e-Paper takes not more than eight minutes depending on the broadband and mobile data service. (2 marks)

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4) What must a reader of The Star e-Paper do to turn on its interactive features? (2 marks)

5) How can iSnap technology help a person to decide whether it will be worth watching a particular movie? (1 mark)

6) Write out the topic sentence of paragraph IV. (1 mark)

7) Name the two types of organizations which benefit when newspapers are converted from the printed paper medium to the electronic medium.

(114 marks)

8) The discourse marker 'While' in line 59 links two ideas. What are the two ideas? (1 mark)

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9) Fill in the blanks with information from the passage.

Differences between Printed Newspaper and e-Paper

^-\Newspaper Aspects

Printed Newspaper
mat

e-Paper

^^~~^^fJ'

^~"~~--\ a) make available news items to the public the instant they are posted on their portals

Speed at which printed/posted news is made available to readers Allows: Visual and audio features only still photos allowed b) audio features absent c)

video viewing

Preference by age group

d)

mid and early 30s

Paper usage

higher (more paper)

e)

(2 1/2 marks)

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PART B: WRITING (15 MARKS) QUESTION 1

In 1997, the National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) was set up. It is now providing loans to students in institutions of higher learning. Some people are now calling for the loan to be abolished. Write an essay of about 230-250 words on why it is important to continue this loan scheme. You may use the following points:

i)

It helps students from poor families to continue their education after secondary school.

ii)

It motivates students to perform better in their education.

iii)

It enables students to afford better support material such as books and computers for their education.

END OF QUESTION PAPER

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