This week I read about and watched lectures on data, basically just data. Well, and information, and how information is basically just organized/structured data. I had a pretty clear understanding on this week's material, as much of it seems to be information we already discussed, but in more detail. I also learned how data can be organized and brought together in order to make business decisions and not just hunches and how data leverage in the market lies at the center of competitive advantage.
I also read about databases and learned what they focus on, e.g. sales, product returns, inventory, payroll, geographical data and business units. There was a little bit of information that is still somewhat muddy after this week, such as Database Management Systems (DBMS), I mean, I can read about what they do, but actually seeing them in action is a whole other thing.
I also learned about data and security, and how that "Big Data" is often targeted by hackers and other aggregators looking to steal data to either use it for profitable gain or to sell to others.
This week's information was jam-packed full of so much information that to explain everything would take many KB of data!
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This week we started to work in Microsoft Access. This is a database software that is great for gathering and understanding a lot of information, whether it be phone numbers, inventory, guests lists, oe even patient data. It provides a clean way to sort the information, create queries, and reports. Access is very new to me, it does share some similar qualities with Excel, but is still very different. While watching the lectures and going through the scavenger hunt, I was a little worried that this is was going to be very difficult, but like most new software it just takes some getting used to and some familiarity.
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Microsoft Access has so many options that it is unbelievable, and in some ways is easier to use than Excel. Before this class I had seen Microsoft Access and opened it to play around, but didn't know exactly what I was supposed to do with it. Knowing what I know now, I know there is a time and place for Excel and a time and place for Access.
In closing, I give this week, Week 10, a Clear view as I have learned so much from the lectures and am ready to begin my project.
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This week we watched lectures and read about Moore's Law. This was a pretty easy week in terms of information and terminology as we have already discussed some of the material earlier in the course. This week we did discuss Gordon Moore and learned a little about his history and how Carver Mead coined the phrase "Moore's Law." Moore's Law refers to a 4 page paper that Moore wrote in Electronics magazine discussing how chip performance, per dollar, doubles every 18 months and how next generation chips should be twice as fast & cost the same as 18 months ago.
We also discussed
Price Elasticity, which is: The rate at which demand fluctuates with price change. High price elasticity: drop in price results in a spike in demand. In everyday situations, think of the price of gas as having Low price elasticity: As the price of gas increases, people change their driving habits and in turn are more conservative, resulting in using less gas or Decreasing the demand. Much of this material I have already encountered in both my Micro and Macro Economics classes and my Marketing class, so I was already familiar with most of this material.
Another important item of discussion is as a manager in the business world, the concept of having a "Crystal Ball." This is knowing or anticipating what will happen in the future with technology based on the past and being able to make decisions for computing technology in the business world, based on costs and time.
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This week's material was so jam packed full of good stuff it is hard to contain and will probably be hard to retain! We began with Open Source Software (OSS) and learned about the many types, the benefits, and the essentials. It appears that there are so many benefits to using OSS such as: great quality, high reliability, great flexibility, low associated costs, and an end to predatory vendor lock in. Also the access to the source code gives it a great advantage over commercial software as there is the ability to fix bugs yourself, modify behavior of the program, and add features.
The Economics of Open Source Software
Learning how companies can afford to distribute this type of software was very interesting. I have used open source software applications in the past where they were given to me for free. Though most of the applications I got my hands on were of lower quality and I have not really kept using. But they were free, I now know why, as the companies either take donations (smaller companies that have this type of software for use) or they charge for support, which can get very pricey.
The Cloud
Another topic that was pretty clear to me was somewhat new to me, at least most of it was. When the newiPhone 4s came out, it was all about the "Cloud" and I was like what is this cloud stuff they are talking about? Is this something new? But after reading this material and watching the lectures I just found out it was basically the Internet, in a way. Personal cloud based computing, such as, Gmail, YouTube, and Spider Oak are just a few examples of this type of computing. So many of the services we currently use are cloud based and most of us don't really know it, or pay attention to it. Enterprise cloud based computing now, is a little different, there are monthly subscriptions, they are highly scalable, and you can write your own.
Cloud computing options seem infinite and are the way of the future, as it frees up disk space on your physical machines and is ever evolving. It also frees up IT staff and costs to focus your resources.
Virtualization
I can't lie...this week wasn't all clear! When it came to virtualization, it was like I got hit in the head and was left dazed and confused. It actually started out very confusing, but as I went on in the lectures and reading, it started to become more clear, though I know I am not ready to jump in to try doing this on any of machines at this time and probably not in the near future either.
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This week I watched lectures and did some reading on Understanding Software. Most of the information was clear and simple, while some of it seemed pretty intense and complicated. Learning and understanding the types of software was pretty easy, I seem to have a better understanding on the differences between System Software and Application Software. System Software, such as, Windows 7 and McAfee Antivirus are needed for the smooth functioning of a computer and it's peripheral devices. Application Software, such as, Microsoft Word and Quickbooks, help accomplish a specific purpose.
Probably the most interesting thing that I learned this week was about Version Numbers of software. Version Numbers consist of : Major # . Minor # . revision # . build # So a version of an application may look like this. Version: 1.6.4356.41199 This is actually the version of the Bing application that is running on my Blackberry. Version1means that this is the first actual version created for my phone, then the6 is the minor version number which means it has had 6 minor upgrades to fix bugs and to improve performance, the4356is basically how many times it has been tweaked to fix bugs, and the41199is how many times the developers have gone in just to check to make sure everything is still ok and secure.
This information was very important to me because when I see a new version of something I have the tenancy to want to upgrade as soon as it is released, but now knowing that the new versions could be full of bugs and such helped me to understand that I should probably wait a while to make sure everything, or most everything, is worked out before jumping in to something especially when there is a large investment involved.
The muddiest part of this week's lesson was about Writing Software, this seems so confusing, that I am turned off by it even though I am very interested in learning more about it, it just seems like toomuch to grasp! Hopefully it isn't, because I know I am going to have to learn more about it as the semester goes on!
Wish me luck!!
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Week 3 now down 00001011 more to go (binary), still trying to get it. I did find a nice website that has an application that translates binary, just click the link.
Now on to this weeks material: This week we watched lectures and read material on Networking concepts. Though a lot of the material was above what I already knew, I did find most of it very familiar and NOT above what I am capable to understand. I already had the basics of home networks, as I have a desktop, 2 laptops, a printer, and my TV all on my Home Network. But the technical parts like making sure I have the proper wireless security and types of cabling was new to me. My next step for my home network will be a backup system as was discussed in this week's material. I plan on using a spare hard drive and connecting it to my wireless router to backup any important information I may keep on my computers, such as previous tax returns, photos, and other important documents.
My home network is not quite that intricate, but it does seem to keep growing into something that resembles this one in the photo.
Another bit of interesting facts that I learned about were the different WiFi types (802.11). I learned that I must know what type of wireless Network Interface Card my devices have to make sure that they are compatible with my router which is an 802.11g. (I really wanted to move up to an "N", but have not had a real reason yet as my wireless devices seem to operate very nice as they are, even streaming Netflix on my Sony Google Television.
Needless to say, today I came across a problem with my cable modem, it stopped working!! I don't know why it stopped, but I was able to go online in the morning, then my internet access was disconnected. I went round and round going through the steps of trying to get it going again. I called Cox cable to have them refresh the signal, I tried using a different cable outlet and nothing!! They offered to set me up with an appointment to have a technician come out, but I politely declined thinking, why would I pay $60 for a technician to come out to tell me my modem isn't working anymore? So I took my chances and went to BestBuy to purchase a new modem. I brought it home, called my Internet Provider and gave them the MAC address, plugged it in and boom, off to the races I went! The only thing that puzzled me a bit and still has me puzzled is that I never had to go through the setup process with the CD that was included with the drivers and such. But still, I have my internet back!!
Well looking forward to next week! Stay tuned!
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This week in ISM3004 we read and watched lectures on Understanding Hardware. Even though it started out kind of tricky, being that I had no idea or understanding about binary and circuitry, it became very clear when we moved on into Personal Computers.
I have always had a keen interest in computers and how they work. I can remember back 19 years ago when I first started playing on computers. I started out mostly playing video games such as the Wolfenstein SS game.
How addicted was I after that? Wow! I mean really! It was a pretty exciting game but not enough to keep me from browsing through the computer and looking at the files and playing with some software. I then began using a very good graphic software and was able to make great looking pictures, scenery, and newsletter templates. From that moment, I was hooked, I had found something I really enjoyed doing.
In my years, I have had a few computers and some that have crashed. The first time that it had happened to me I was horrified, it was about 10 years ago on my laptop and I didn't know what to do. But I did remember that every so often (6 months or so) I had done a system backup on some CD's. So I inserted the CD and the booted on the computer. A few steps later and some hours I was back in business, thou all of my data was not saved, I at least had my computer runner with a working operating system again! I was so relieved.
I had then gone a few years now with no problem until a desktop computer that I had bought had crashed, the hard disk was not working and it would make noises. I then thought, this computer is only like 3 years old, I can't afford to replace it, or even have it worked on. So, I decided to take matters into my own hands, blindly I went to a local Electronics store and bought a hard drive. I got it home popped open my computer and said, oh this can't be that bad! I followed the instructions that came with the drive hooked it up and boom, off to the races I went!
So when I began reading this week's material, I was like...Bam!! Right up my alley, a subject I enjoy and something that I know a little about. Though there was quite a bit of information that I actually learned and will help me in the future, especially when looking at Core Processors and knowing what is the difference between them and also looking into the RAM and the type of disk storage offered. I really enjoyed this week's lesson and looking forward to some more!
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