Information Systems - Essay Example

Information Systems What is a Network? A network is defined in general as a “interconnected system of things or people”, but in electronics is defined as “a system of interconnected electronic components or circuits” (Princeton WordNet).What are the different types of Networks and how many?There are numerous types of networks. The above definition indicates that an individual desktop computer is a “network” of circuits and components like a hard drive, motherboard, etc. There are also information networks, where information itself is being networked.

There are ad hoc networks, made and dropped quickly. There are computer networks, both wired and wireless. There are virtual private networks, which are emulations of LANs usually done over the Internet.What is the difference between wired and wireless network?A wired network is one which is connected together by cables, typically coaxial or Ethernet cables (whether they be 10, 100 or 1000 base-T, parallel or serial, etc.) A wireless network is connected by some kind of wireless transmission, usually a wireless router projecting a certain radio frequency.

It is important to note that a wired network can have wireless components, say a wireless computer participating or a wireless printer, while a wireless network can and almost always do have wired components, like a final physical throughput (cable, DSL/phone lines, “satellite” - which is effectively a “wired” network for this discussion, etc.)Which frequency do we use for wireless network?What is fiber optics and how does it work?Light is used to encode information and send “bits” the same way a phone line can.

They are sent over cables of tightly bound fibers, usually of a kind of fiber-glass, that act as a waveguide, a “light pipe” the same way a metal pipe can be used to act as a guide for water. Fiber optics are immensely fast because they have speed-of-light transmission.What is the difference between AMD and Intel processor?The maker. AMD and Intel have competed for different parts of the processor market over and over and are in a constant arms race for more clock cycles, more Hertz, etc.

Their architecture is almost identical: “The nice thing about being [a] computer enthusiast is that right now both AMD and Intel platforms support a lot of cross compatible hardware. Sure the CPU and motherboards are platform specific, but you can share DDR2 memory, videocards and other peripherals easily enough” (PC Stats). The common consensus is that Intel tends to make more expensive but higher quality cards while AMD more readily courts the discount market, but even this is not always true.

Why is Intel more popular than AMD? Better brand promotion, marketing and longer reputation. They also tend to court the higher end of the market, which tends to give better market status.Which one came to the market first?Intel was founded in 1968 and created the x86 lines, the most famous of which is undoubtedly the Pentium. AMD was founded in 1969 and got into the semiconductor and processor business somewhat later than Intel.How many pins do we have in the processor?It varies from configuration to configuration.

Some pin counts are in the double digits, some the triples, while the LGA Intel Core i7 has more than a thousand!Why does the manufacturer leave the last pin of the processor blank? Its to make sure that there is only one viable direction to put in the socket. Good computer design always is keyed to one orientation.What is the architecture of a databus?A databus transfers data between computer components, either within or among computers. It is thus the “net” of a network, the junctions.

They used to be actual electrical buses, but now is any functionally similar system. They can be parallel, serial, self-repairable, etc. They often give better messaging speed at the cost of needing a network scheduling protocol.Works CitedPC Stats. AMD vs. Intel: What to Get? Which is Better? August 31, 2007.Princeton Wordnet. Network. Princeton. http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=network