Week 14: Muddy

During week 14 we were introduced to enterprise computing.

Upon completion of this section we were suppose to be able to succesfully:

• Discuss advanced storage technologies that are increasingly used to solve the storage problems faced by larger organizations.
• Explain the concept of virtualization and discuss the potential benefits to either an individual or an organization.
• Discuss the concept of thin client computing.

All of the above concepts were very new to me. I had to go beyond the lecture and reading to really grasp a true understanding of the material.

I decided to research the concept that was most muddy to me in this section.

According to the lecture, virtualization is is a technique for running multiple “virtual computers” on a single physical host computer system.  

To be more clear, "server virtualization is the masking of server resources, including the number and identity of individual physical servers, processors, and operating systems, from server users. The server administrator uses a software application to divide one physical server into multiple isolated virtual environments. The virtual environments are sometimes called virtual private servers, but they are also known as guests, instances, containers or emulations."

This video clearly and explicitly explains to concept of virtualization. What is virtualization?

Secure E-mail

Wells Fargo

Above is the link from the article that I read about businesses that have used secure e-mail or other security measures to protect their data.

In this article Wells Fargo & Company tried to utilize a new way to efficiently and safely exchange confidential information with its business customers. A vice president in the bank's wholesale banking group articulated that she wanted a secure e-mail system that was user friendly and not too cumbersome. She explained that certificates were

always required for secure e-mail and not all users were tech savvy. Wells Fargo looked at three email encryption products and chose Voltage Security's SecureMail, which ended up being the most user friendly system for both employees and customers. Accoring to Well Fargo's Wholesale Architecture & CEO-Mobile application development team, SecureMail has saved time and money in mailing confidential customer documents via an express mail service.

Week 13: Clear

During week 13 we discussed computer security, ethics and privacy.


After completion of this topic, I was able to:

• Identify computer security risks.
• Identify ways to protect computers and data.
• Discuss information theft and piracy as well as how to identify and avoid them.
• Be aware of ethical standards and practices.
• Understand how to protect information.

The information provided this week was straight forward and left no room for confusion. In researching outside information and news articles for this topic, I came a cross an article about anti-virus software scams.

Anti-virus software scams are putting millions of people at risk by posing as legitimate anti-virus software when in actuality fraudsters are advertising malicious software, known as ‘scareware’, in disguise.

The goal of these fraudsters is to obtain the victims credit card information or compromise their computer for other illegal activity, such as identity fraud.

To read the article in entirety, visit this link:  Anti-virus software scams put millions at risk of identity fraud


Here are some sure ways of protecting yourself from computer viruses:

1. Never open a file attachment sent to you from an unknown source. In most cases, the safest thing to do is delete them as soon as you see them in your mailbox.

2. Understand that patches and updates for programs are rarely distributed by email. (Microsoft and other reputable companies use other means, which are more secure.)

3. Never open a file unless you know what it is. If you've received it from someone you know, ask him or her about it. (They may have a virus infection that is mailing out copies of itself without their knowledge.)

4. Files containing virus content are always sent disguised in some way. For example, the message may say a screensaver, bill or invoice is attached.

5. Users of Outlook and Outlook Express should disable the Preview Pane. A recent virus was thought (but not proven) to infect simply by being displayed in Outlook Express. It is be safer to avoid any risk!

Extra Credit: Avatar

For my extra credit for creating an avatar, I used doppelme.com

The site was very simple and easy to use! All the tools provided allowed me to have fun with the customization of my funky avatar.

I was able to customize my avatar by changing the hair, eye color and outfit.

I loved that doppelme gave me the option of putting my avatar in my signature, web page, blog etc.

Week 12: Clear

In class this week, we had an introduction into computer communications and the components required for successful communications.

After completing the lesson we should have been able to do the following:

• Discuss the components required for successful communications
• Identify various sending and receiving devices
• Describe uses of computer communications
• List advantages of using a network
• Differentiate among client/server, peer-to-peer, and P2P networks
• Describe the various network communications standards
• Explain the purpose of communications software
• Describe various types of lines for communications over the telephone network
• Describe commonly used communications devices
• Discuss different ways to set up a home network
• Identify various physical and wireless transmission media 

This weeks information was neither unclear nor complex.  I will explain one of the concepts that I understood very well.

Setting up a home network might seem daunting or intimidating. But in reality the concept actually sounds worst than it is.

Once you know what type of network you want and have the necessary hardware, there are four possible steps to take (two of these are not always required):

1. Install any necessary hardware.
2. Set up an Internet connection (optional).
3. Connect the computers.
4. Run the Set Up a Wireless Router or Access Point wizard (wireless only).

Start by setting up one computer. Once you set up the network and you are sure that the first computer is working correctly, you can add additional computers or devices.

Microsoft Access Project

Before doing this project I was very intimated of database programs. However, after tackling and fighting and overcoming much frustration, I started to understand some of the concepts and features that Microsoft Access had to offer. I think what I learned from using Access is how to successfully make a form. Microsoft Access forms provide a quick and easy way to modify and insert records into your databases.

I think the one thing that this database should do to increase its functionality is to provide some sort of help box for users. There were several times when I had a question and I had to turn to Google for help in finding the answer. I don't think that Access is overly user friendly. When it comes to databases if you don't have some type of computer science capacity then these programs can prove to be somewhat challenging. If Microsoft were to implement a user friendly interface with a help box then things would become a lot easier for users. 

Week 11: Muddy

During week 11 we were introduced to information systems development.

Being that I am not a very computer savvy person at all, this section proved to be challenging for me. It was difficult for me to fully grasp the simple concepts that we were expected to understand by the end of the section.

The objectives of this section included:

• List the phases in the system development cycle
• Discuss the importance of project management
• Explain the activities performed in each phase of the system development cycle
• Describe different tools and processes used in each step of the system development cycle
• Discuss the importance of change management
• Describe different techniques for converting to a new system
• Explain the role of the system analyst
• Describe a project management application, Microsoft Project

I thought that it would be beneficial for me to do some outside research to see if I could find a easier way of understanding the material. The concept that I wanted to fully understand was the system development cycle.

After I did my outside research, I found that the system development cycle was simply a conceptual model used in project management that describes the stages involved in an information system development project from an initial feasibility study through maintenance of the completed application.


The stages include:
1. Planning
2. Analysis
3. Design
4. Implementation
5. Operation, Support and Security


After finally grasping this information, I was able to understand that the purpose of system analysis is to:
- Determine needs
-Solve problems
- Define requirements
-Work around roadblocks