Hoorcollege 8 Flashcards
(25 cards)
Why IT is important?
Information Technology (IT) is important, because:
- A lot of people deal with technology, for example in their jobs.
- IT is everywhere. Much of the thing we do are done with IT.
- Because we use IT much, there is an increased dependency on information and,
therefore, Information Systems (IS). - IT enables organizational change.
Basic IT knowledge is necessary to understand…
Basic IT knowledge is necessary to understand:
- Behavior (how we use technology)
- New innovations in technology
- Information Systems
- Social media
Core Elements of IT in organizations
-Hardware
-Software
-Database
-Networks
Hardware
Hardware refers to the physical components of a computer or electronic system. This includes devices like the CPU, motherboard, memory (RAM), storage drives, keyboard, mouse, monitor, and peripherals such as printers or external drives. It is the tangible part of a system that works alongside software to perform computing tasks.
What does a computer do?
A computer basically does what an Information System does. Things come in the computer, the computer processes those things and then it comes out of the computer (IPO-model). In the meantime, a computer can store the information in the memory and load the information back.
IPO-model
- Input
- Processing
- Output
The processing part of a computer consists out of three things…
The processing part of a computer consists out of three things:
- Central Processing Unit (CPU)
The processor in the computer (‘intel core i5’). - Arithmetic-Logic Unit
Part of the processor, it does the core arithmetic in the computer (transforms 0 into 1 and 0 into 1). - Control Unit
The control unit makes sure that data can flow from one part of the computer to the other part of the computer (e.g., from memory to processor).
There are also two parts of storage in a computer…
There are also two parts of storage in a computer:
- Primary storage (Random Access Memory, RAM)
The ‘8 GB of RAM’ when you buy a computer, the storage a computer uses in real time to store information for a while. When you turn your computer off, all the
information in the primary storage is lost. - Secondary storage
The hard drive, or external USB drive. This is where you store your documents. Even after turning off your computer, the information is retained.
Binary representation
Computers use binary representation to collect, store, represent, and process data.
Binary means a 2 number system. All computer data is visualized in two numbers, 0 and 1.
This is due to the originate of computers. All computer systems were designed on the idea
that all things can be turned on and off. It used to be electrical current and voltage that can be turned on and off, but nowadays it is micro transistors and gates that are turned on and off. Both humans and computers can set 0’s into 1’s and the other way around.
Why use binary representation?
Because of hardware & physics.
- Transistors & Gates
- Based on electrical current and voltage
- But also as:
o north/south magnetic polarization
o reflective/absorptive surface
o photons
o captured electrons
Bytes and multiples
- A bit is 0 and 1 together
- 8 bits = 1 byte
- 1024 bytes = 1 kilobyte
- 1024 kilobytes = 1 megabyte
- 1024 megabytes = 1 gigabyte
- 1024 gigabytes = 1 terabyte
- 1024 terabytes = 1 petabyte
- 1024 petabytes = 1 exabyte
- 1024 exabytes = 1 zettabyte
- 1024 zettabytes = 1 yottabyte
Moore’s Law
Moore’s Law states that we continue to innovate so that we can put more information into a computer. This is an exponential growth between the number of transistors we can fit on a
square inch of a processor.
Layered approach to software
Moore’s Law is how computers work on a very basic level. For example, the software that we use (word, Facebook, etc.) is five levels on top of the basics of the computer.
This is called ‘layered approach to software’. People work from ‘hardware’ (the 0’s and 1’s) all the way up to the ‘application’. You never see the lower layers, but
they are very important. Without them, the upper layers are not possible.
Database
Databases are the basis of all information systems. From Facebook to CRM to financial administration. Database design organizes information in organizations. Database design helps you think about which information is needed for specific processes in an organization.
Database design is one method of modeling information in an organization. Is goes from
broad (information flows) to narrow (database design).
A database consists of…
A database is a collection of data organized to serve
many applications by centralizing data and
controlling redundant data. Databases are just excel sheets connected to other excel sheets.
A database consists of:
- Tables with data
- Relationships between tables
- Metadata (data that describe data)
A database consists out of multiple tables with relationships between these tables.
Network
The router is connected to the worldwide network.
All the devices (computers, mobile phones, etc.) are
connected to the router. The server is also connected to the router. This all basically is a network.
There are different kinds of computers:
- Clients
End-user’s computers (laptop, Chromebook,
phone). - Servers
Computers that provide services to other computers (storage, web, database, CRM).
Client-server model
This is a system architecture in which
end-user machines (the clients) run applications and request data and software from a central computer (the server) through a network.
Network Architecture (topology)
- Centralizes
- 1 server
- Many clients - Distributed
- Many servers
- Many clients - Peer-to-peer
- No dedicated server
- Many clients
Network devices
First of all, there are some network devices. These are devices that make sure that computers can communicate with each other. There are several network devices:
- Access devices → used to get access to a network
o Network Interface Card (NIC)
▪ Wired or wireless
▪ 4G/5G
▪ Bluetooth
o Modem - Interconnection devices → used to make connections between devices
o Router
o Hub/switch - Mesh network → a network and a connection device in one
o Google Home
Internet
The internet consists of billions of these network devices and the computers that are
connected to these devices. It is a large-scale network consisting of billions of connected
devices. The internet consists of many different applications:
- WWW
- Email
- FTP
- Chat/newsgroups
Protocols and standards
Protocols and standards are really the backbone of the internet. These are general agreements on how systems talk to each other, the standard language for computer
communication. An example are unicodes. This is an agreement on which characters are
assigned to a certain numeral code, e.g., A = 65.
These agreements are made by a committee that talks about how protocols and standards should function.
Governed by standard-setting organizations, such as:
o International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
o Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
o Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF)
o World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
Internet & WWW protocols
There are different WWW protocols:
- TCP (Transmission Control Protocol)
(Breaks traffic up into packets and sends each one along its way)
- IP (internet Protocol)
(Routes and delivers the packages, IPv4, IPv6)
- URL
(Label that specifies a certain place on the WWW, DNS translates an IP-address in a domain name space)
- HTTP(s)
(Communication protocol between browsers and web servers. The (s) is for secured (i.e., encrypted) connections)
- HTML, CSS, JavaScript, DOM, XML
(Languages & protocols used to display pages in a browser (and do much more))
Hypertext Markup Language (HTML)
HTML (HyperText Markup Language) is the standard language used to create and structure content on the web. It uses a system of tags to define elements such as headings, paragraphs, links, images, and more, allowing browsers to display content properly. HTML forms the backbone of most websites and works alongside CSS and JavaScript for styling and interactivity.
Technology trends in organizational IT
There are two technology trends in employee IT usage:
- Mobile technologies & personal hard- and software.
o Some examples are:
▪ Bring your own device (BYOD), or a laptop from the organization.
▪ Working from home
o This has some consequences:
▪ Security issues
▪ Access and integration with corporate network and systems.
o Solutions for this are:
▪ VPN: Virtual Private Networking
▪ Advanced authentication: 2-factor, fingerprint authentication.
