Information Systems Urgent - Assignment Example

5 November Budway’s challenges are very different from the ones commonly faced by larger companies because of certain reasons. Larger companies have more money to update the digital system that helps them develop a new system and devices. Since the system they required could not be found, Budway had to develop a personalized service by combining different technologies. Having the consumers use the POD was another challenge because certain consumers liked to sign their name with pens rather than through touch screen. The clients switched over to the new system when they happened to learn its advantages. Although no single technology was specifically innovative, yet the technologies developed an ideal system when combined. In their attempt to keep it specific considering low budget, they ended up creating a system that they and their customers valued. They achieved this as the devices’ cost and the new technology’s cost was far outweighed by the advantages they received since they created their own system rather than using a package system. The computer system constitutes all components of a working computer. A computer compiles several components of information processing that perform several functions like input, output, control, storage, and processing. The hardware components of a computer are such output and input devices as mouse, and keyboard. Operating system is a fundamental requirement of every computer system. When a computer is connected into a system, it can both link with external computers and work independently. There are certain functions of output, input, and processing in every computer. Computer systems can be categorized in several ways, with each type having its own features and qualities. Typically, there are three types of computers, namely micro computers, mainframe computers, and midrange computers. Microcomputers These are the tiniest computers but are of extreme importance for consumers especially business people. Microcomputers are also called personal computers. Their computing power is more than the computing power of the previous generation mainframe computers. Microcomputers today are powerfully networked workstations. Types There are certain microcomputers that are very powerful workstation computers and allow complex mathematical computing as well as several demands of graphic display like computer aided design (CAD) that is frequently employed in engineering and also various other industries. Network computers (NCs): NCs are a new category of microcomputers that are meant for the Internet use as well as corporate intranets by workers and clerks and the knowledge workers that either have limited or specialized applications for computing. Midrange Computers These computers are basically multi-user systems with which several terminals and PCs can be managed. They include both high-end network servers and the minicomputers. The midrange computers originally gained their popularity as mini computers that were used as instrumentation systems, for carrying out engineering analysis, and for scientific research purposes. They also found application in the process supervision and control in various industries. These applications were possible because they had narrow scope and did not require the mainframe systems’ to be versatile in processing. Midrange computers are generally used for general purposes that are tinier and less powerful as compared to a vast majority of large mainframes but are bigger and more powerful as compared to most of the microcomputers. These computers can become powerful technical workstations that are useful for all kinds of graphic and designing purposes. Mainframe Computer Systems These computers are not only big in size, but are also very fast and strong computer systems. Their qualities include bigger size and more strength as compared minis and micros, the ability to process millions of instructions in a fraction of a second, and large capacities of primary storage. The main memory capacity of mainframe computers in the primary storage is anywhere between several hundred megabytes to several gigabytes. In the past few years, very thin varieties of these computers have been released that have rapidly reduced their air-conditioning requirements, along with reducing their power consumption, space requirements, and have also reduced costs related to their possession and operation. Their sales have surged up as a result of this along with the increase in their application in warehousing, data mining, electronic commerce, and decision support. Mainframe computer systems are getting faster, slimmer, and cheaper along with the added benefits of greater memory, increased reliability, user-friendliness, and ease of interlinking in the organizations. Other peripheral devices that can be used for business PC include: Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) Since a UPS enables prevention of damage to the electronic equipment in the incident of power supply variance, all computers should be connected to it. A UPS also helps in data prevention and reduces the frustration of users caused by lost work. USB Hub There are several kinds of peripheral devices including pointers, hard drives, and printers that can be connected using a USB. A hub that is easily accessible enables quick capabilities of connection or disconnection for the portable devices. Dual DVD/CD R/W drives They allow data storage up to almost 4.4 GB. The write capability allows the publication of small-scale multi-media as well as backups. Ergonomic I/O devices These devices like desk, mouse, and keyboard enhance the productivity of work by providing users with comfort and safety. Auto-feed Digital Scanner Auto-feed scanner is so effective that it can even make paper paperless. It allows sharing of access to the paper records, archiving of documents, as well as saving the space in the office that is otherwise consumed by cabinets. High speed color printers Businesses can use them to avoid the bottleneck linked with the employment of 3rd party printers for printing purposes. They also allow the print material to be customized rapidly. ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) compliant I/O devices As the customers, businessmen, and employees can all need additional help, so the appropriate tools need to be available to them. Touch screen workspaces Touch screens can function fully as output devices along with replacing the pointers and keyboards for a variety of input operations. For instance, the activities of file management lend themselves to the spatial representation and icons more than they lend themselves to the characters. Video camera There are a lot of applications of the video camera like entertainment, instruction, feedback, security, and communication. Noise cancellation headphones With the use of headphones, audio output can be received without disturbing the people in the surroundings whereas the technology of sound cancellation assists in the eradication of background noise. Speech can be clearly recorded using the noise cancelling microphones. Large, multiple monitors Users can use large monitors to track more applications actively like telephony, and email etc. without the requirements of audio feedback or pop-ups. Wireless peripheral devices These devices allow power as well as data connections. They are very easy to fix and move around. In addition, these devices help reduce the floor clutter. The system software plays the role of an interface between the application software and computer hardware. Application software needs the support of a system software in order to run any kind of application. End users primarily interact with the application software which performs according to the system software’s permission. Such interface is likely to become more user-friendly in the future with its movement toward the natural interfaces. Java and HTML are becoming increasingly important in the development of multimedia web pages and applications. HTML is used in business for the creation of hypermedia documents and hypertext, thus developing the hyperlinks to other documents available on the Internet. Java is a very easy and safe language for programming which is independent of computing platform. Java is designed particularly for interactive real-tome network applications that are web-based. Java makes use of the applets that any computer can execute anywhere within a network. Applets can stay on a network server at websites till the time the client systems require them. Applets can be easily distributed over the extranet, intranet, or the Internet. Many organizations are using Java as the programming language since it enhances their business potential and also helps them capitalize on their extranets and intranets. Applet can be downloaded by casual users as they require with the help of browser software. This substantially lessens the cost of installation of expensive software on the personal computers of the users. In addition, valuable sources like disk space and RAM are saved. Word processing is a software which deals with the electronic storage, formatting, editing, and document printing. Spreadsheet is a software that shows the data in the form of rows and columns and the numerical data from the grid can be easily recalculated. Database management system is a kind of software that is used to make and maintain a database so that the business applications may retrieve their required data without developing distinct files in their computers. Groupware is a software which assists in the work groups’ collaborative tasks. E-mail helps in the exchange of messages across computers. Web browser is a very simply software that is used to access the Internet and the World Wide Web. Presentation graphics is a software that helps in the formation of good graphics presentations with the use of such tools as photos, charts, clips, and sound. Desktop publishing software is a software which helps more in the placement of graphics, photos, and text in a page’s format as compared to a software of word processing. Read More