Computing: IT Centre Recommendations - Term Paper Example

Computing: IT Centre Recommendations Introduction The idea of establishing a dedicated IT centre certainly holds a lot of appeal for businesses since many services which are required by different branches as well as the home office can be outsourced to the IT centre. This is an efficient use of technology which can let our company compete with the bigger players in the market without making significant offshore investments (Chozich, 2005). Additionally, the benefits of having in company support options for technical services can not be denied because instead of depending on support coming from the vendor or the supplier of the computer equipment the company can have its own people helping out whenever a need for them is present. Recommendations It must be realised that establishing an IT centre is not an easy task since many decisions need to be taken as to what computers, storage systems, configurations, internet access methods, and accessories need to be obtained on the hardware side. Similarly, the software side also needs careful consideration as to the operating system, software requirements and specialised applications which are needed by the company. With regard to these decisions, some recommendations can be made for the company which should allow the process of setting up an IT centre to be as painless as possible. Processors In terms of processors, the best recommendation at the moment would be to go with Intel Core 2 Duo processors with computer motherboards which allow a possible upgrade to quad core processors in the future. Just a year ago it would have been better to go with AMD processors but the launch of the Core 2 architecture has shifted the balance in favour of Intel in the mid and high range systems (Lee, 2007). Additionally, since business software is likely to require more number crunching capabilities than gaming abilities, the company would be able to get more per pound if it went with the latest Intel mid range processors from Intel for their desktop and laptop machines in the IT centre (Burt, 2006). Servers on the other hand can be had with either Intel processors or AMD processors since the performance margin there is not that significant. In fact, AMD has a slight price advantage in that zone (Lee, 2007). Since the majority of the systems in the IT centre will be linked to a storage server for accessing large files, individual hard disk space does not need to be more than eighty to a hundred gigabytes which is the typical storage capacity of a mid-range laptop or a low end desktop. However, the primary memory of each computer should not be less than a gigabyte since the company may need to upgrade to MS Vista in the future even if the decision is made not to go with MS Vista at the present time. The Supplier It would be beneficial for the company to have a single supplier for all its need which will allow it to develop an enterprise level relationship with that supplier. For example, a supplier such as Dell or HP could work with the company to fulfil all the IT needs which we have such as the requirements for Projectors, scanners, printers and other accessories (Fortune, 2006). Often, basic tools for productivity such as flatbed scanners or personal laser printers are included in the purchase made for computer or can be supplied at discounts if orders are placed for them at the time of purchasing the computer (Olenick, 2006). For our needs, Dell stands out as a supplier which could do all of that with a track record that speaks for itself in terms of customer relations and the link to the enterprise and business markets (Lee, 2006). Volume discounts and computers which are preloaded and tested with our required software can be delivered by the company and it should be easy to decide on Dell for our needs. In case there are special requirements within the IT centre for machines or operating systems which are only produced by one supplier, e.g. Apple, the company can use them as secondary suppliers for computers (PC Magazine, 2006). The internet connection required for the IT centre should be started off with a relatively low bandwidth and then increased if the need is present. A one megabit link should be enough to get us started while more can easily be added in the future. Operating System Vista is certainly the latest operating system in town but it does not seem like there is any urgent need for business users to upgrade to the new system. In fact, Windows XP seems to be a perfectly useable system until all the kinks in Vista have been sorted out (LaGesse, 2007). This means that our company can go with the Windows XP environment today and later upgrade to Vista if there is a need for it in the future. Open source operating systems such as Linux can also be considered wherever security is a concern e.g. storage servers and other sensitive computer since the security on Linux machines is much better than Windows based machines. Windows has essentially, and for all practical purposes, a monopoly on operating systems and the discussion for which one is better is sometimes a moot point. However, from a technical as well as a business standpoint, it is an important discussion in terms of security for Windows and Linux. Dahl (2005) further says that Linux was built from the ground up to be a multi-user operating system which means that security consideration have to go into every aspect of the software. Historically, Linux users and administrators as well as programmers have been more focused on networks and security related issues than Windows which has had to look at compatibility as a primary concern. Application Software This does not mean that we can install Linux on all machines to gain the advantages of security primarily because of two reasons. First, Windows machines bring with them a sense of familiarity which a lot of people working in the IT centre would be comfortable with even if they are not used to the Linux environment. Secondly and more importantly, application compatibility with Windows is much more likely to be present for the majority of applications needed by a business as compared to Linux (Galli, 2005). A Linux machine can also emulate a windows environment but that would essentially be defeating the purpose of using the Linux operating system in the first place. In essence, we should have the best machines for the requirements we have even if it means having a Macintosh system for a designer (Schweitzer, 2005). Therefore, once we have decided that some machines are going to use Windows and some are going to use Linux while others still might have to use OS X, application compatibility and application usage on each system becomes very important. Apple and Wintel can both use MS office for sharing documents or other office related files but might not be able to run the same custom made application without patches or compatibility creation code (Beckman and Hirsch, 2001). However, for the larger part of the debate application compatibility does exist especially for commonly used files and computer programs such as office productivity suites. In such a scenario, it becomes easy to recommend open source software such as Open Office for Linux based machines and MS Office for Wintel machines. Open Office does allow for files which are created in MS Office to be used on Linux machines and MS Office can work with files which are created with Open Office. It may even be possible for the company to go with Open Office as well as Linux for all machines if the licensing cost for the software can not be supported. However, the company may need to invest in some training time to bring people up to speed if they are not familiar with Open Office or the Linux environment. Conclusion There are no easy decisions to make in setting up an IT centre for the company and it must be kept in mind that the selection of computers, operating systems as well as the other equipment in the IT centre will have a direct effect on the individuals who are going to be hired to work with the systems. For example, it would be not be very useful to hire a Windows 2003 Server security expert if the servers in the centre are going to run on Linux. Similarly, if the decision is made to go entirely with a Windows environment, the company will have to look for IT administrators who have had experience and know about the system in depth. We can have the best possibly systems, the most optimised networking solutions, the best operating system in the world but if we do not have the right people, the entire investment would be nothing more than a room filled with very expensive hardware and software. Works Cited Beckman, D. and Hirsch, D. 2001, ‘Mac Is Back in Town’, ABA Journal, vol. 87, no. 8, pp. 70-72. Burt, J. 2006, ‘Hits & Misses’, eWeek, vol. 23, no. 50, pp. 20-22. Chozich, A. 2005, ‘Managing Technology; Appearances Are Deceiving’, Wall Street Journal. 19 Sep, pp. R7. Dahl, E. 2005, ‘The Truth About Windows Alternatives’, PC World, vol. 23, no. 9, pp. 75-82. Fortune, 2006, ‘Fortune Global 500’, Fortune Magazine, [Online] Available at: http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/global500/2006/full_list/ Galli, P. 2005, ‘Study pits Windows vs. Linux’, eWeek, vol. 22, no. 47, pp. 22 LaGesse, D. 2007, ‘Tech to Ride an Upgrade Cycle’, US News and World Report, 142(2), pp. 9. Lee, L. 2006, ‘It’s Dell vs. the Dell Way’, Business Week, [Online] Available at: http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/feb2006/tc20060223_710372.htm?chan=search Lee, L. 2007, ‘Dell’s New Lineup May Not Be Enough’, Business Week, vol. 4014, no. 1, pp. 13. Olenick, D. 2006, ‘Hewlett-Packard Outsells Dell In Notebooks’, This Week in Consumer Electronics, vol. 21, no. 27, pp. 106. PC Magazine. 2006, ‘Low-Cost Apple laptop is very enticing’, PC Magazine, vol. 25, no. 13, pp. 31-32. Schweitzer, D. 2005, ‘A Convert With a Crush on His Mac’, Computerworld, vol. 39, no. 31, pp. 30. Read More