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Past Qs

1) What do you mean by SDLC. Steps in SDLC. Error encountered while

developing software?

2) Difference between:

a. Primary and secondary storage devices

b. System and application software

c. Master and Transaction Files

d. Front-End and Back-end computing.

3) How is on-line processing different from batch processing? Illustrate different

characteristics of these two types of processing systems and their suitability

for different areas of applications. Give two examples of each.

4) Design Master and Transaction Table structures for Leave Accounting System

for a medium sized manufacturing setup. Explain the process of updating of

master data table for the application.

5) Discuss utility:

a. Spreadsheet software system

b. Text Processing software system

c. Presentation graphics software system

d. Database manager

6) Discuss in MS-Office:

a. “What if” analysis

b. Mail-Merge

c. Slide Transition

d. Data Query

Take the example of a courier company for explaining the above.

7) Short notes on:

a. Computer Networks

b. I-P-O Cycle



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c. Generation of languages

d. Internet based computing

8) Discuss the organization you have studied as a part of your field study and

illustrate the following aspects of computerization w.r.t. this organization:

a. H/W Platforms

b. S/W Platforms

c. DBMS

d. Networking

e. Most Critical Applications



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9) What do you understand by an I-P-O cycle in data processing? Discuss the

relevance of an I-P-O cycle for:

a. Batch processing system

b. On-line processing system, detailing various components of the I-P-O

cycle.

10) What is the significance if Data Tables in business data processing? Discuss

various types of Data Tables required to be used for processing taking an

example each of:

a. Inventory Accounting System

b. Savings Bank Accounting System

11) Critically evaluate the Indian IT Industry and its growth. What do you think is

responsible for such a growth of this industry? Specifically identify the major

components of Indian IT industry and respective key players.

12) How do we develop IT portfolio for an organization? Illustrate with

the help of an example. Distinguish between generic and business

specific applications for the chosen organization.

13)Discuss the following in MS-Office Suite:

a. Goal Seeking Analysis in Excel

b. Consolidation of Data in Excel

c. Mail Merge in Word

d. Report Creation In Access

e. Animation in Power point

14)Short Notes:



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a. Programming

b. E-Commerce

c. Flow Charting

d. Computer Networking

15) Discuss the organization you have studied as a part of your field study and

illustrate the following aspects of computerization in the context of the

organization:

a. Which H/W systems are being faced by this organization?

b. Which are the key DBs being used by the organization?

c. Comment on the computer networking in the organization?

d. Discuss the critical business applications of computers in this

organization

e. If you were to recommend three improvements in the IT systems, what

would be these recommendations?

16)a) Give a brief outline of development of modern computing.

b) What are the factors that affect the performance of a desktop computer?

c) Make a brief comparison between MS-Windows and Linux

17)What do you understand by the concept of a data centre? What type of

organizations would you like to have a data centre? At what levels are

redundancies created in a data centre? Explain with help of examples.

18) Introduce the organization of your field study and discuss the following

aspects of this study:

a. Major Applications



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b. Major databases

c. IT Manpower

19) What do you understand by the term computer system setup?Discuss its major elements? Discuss its relevance in planning the

computerization of an organization.

20)Discuss the significance of Data Tables in data processing activity taking the

following examples:

a. Sales Accounting System for a departmental store

b. Leave accounting system for a 200 employee company.

21)Trace the growth of Indian IT Industry and comment on its status in view of the

global scenario. How has the implementation of IT based solutions grown in

Indian Economy?

22)Utility Of ms Office facilities:

a. Goal Seeking

b. Mail merge

c. Data Filtering

d. Styles

23)Short Note:

a. Internet and business

b. I-P-O Cycle

c. Online data processing

d. Software Development Process



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24)a) What do you understand by the term Operating System?

b) What are the essentials of an Operating System?

c) Draw a comparison between any two operating systems.

d) What are Applications? And how do they differ from System Software?

25)What are the advantages of Computer Networks? How do these help in

managerial decision making?

26)Discuss various phases of development of modern computing. How has this

affected the way business s is conducted?

27)At what levels are redundancies created in a data center? Explain with the help

of examples.

28)What is the difference between Primary and Secondary storage? Use example

of a financial application to illustrate your answer.

29)Why are certain types of databases called relation DBs?

30)What do you understand by the term I-P-O cycle? How does it help understand

the functioning of Data Processing Systems? Illustrate with the help of a few

examples.

31) Discuss the relevance of master and transaction data tables in

data processing activity taking the following examples:

a. Inventory Accounting Systems for a Hospital.

b. Payroll accounting system for a 200 employee company.

32)Explain the following MS Office commands:



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a. Goal Seek analysis

b. Track Changes

c. Name range

d. “IF” function

33)Short notes on:

a. Indian Computing environment

b. World Wide Web

c. Embedded Systems

d. URL

e. Internet and Business

f. Software Development Process



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What do you mean by SDLC? Steps in SDLC. Error encountered while

developing software?

Software Development life cycle is a process of building an application through

different phases. Here. The phases are 5 types, they are: - Requirement Analysis,Design, Coding, Testing and Maintenance.

SDLC Model is also known as Classic Life Cycle Model (or) Linear Sequential Model (or)Waterfall Method. This model has the following activities.

1. System/Information Engineering and Modeling

Work begins by establishing the requirements for all system elements and thenallocating some subset of these requirements to software. This system view isessential when the software must interface with other elements such as hardware,

people and other resources. If the system is not in place, the system should beengineered and put in place. In some cases, to extract the maximum output, thesystem should be re-engineered and spruced up. Once the ideal system is engineeredor tuned, the development team studies the software requirement for the system.

2. Software Requirement Analysis

This process is also known as feasibility study. In this phase, the development teamvisits the customer and studies their system. They investigate the need for possiblesoftware automation in the given system. By the end of the feasibility study, the teamfurnishes a document that holds the different specific recommendations for thecandidate system. It also includes the personnel assignments, costs, project

schedule, target dates etc.... The requirement gathering process is intensified andfocused specially on software. To understand the nature of the program(s) to be built,the system engineer or "Analyst" must understand the information domain for thesoftware, as well as required function, behavior, performance and interfacing. Theessential purpose of this phase is to find the need and to define the problem thatneeds to be solved.

3. System Analysis and Design

In this phase, the software development process, the software's overall structure andits nuances are defined. In terms of the client/server technology, the number of tiersneeded for the package architecture, the database design, the data structure design

etc... are all defined in this phase. A software development model is thuscreated. Analysis and Design are very crucial in the whole development cycle.Any glitch in the design phase could be very expensive to solve in the laterstage of the software development. Much care is taken during this phase. The logicalsystem of the product is developed in this phase.

4. Code Generation



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The design must be translated into a machine-readable form. The code generationstep performs this task. If the design is performed in a detailed manner, codegeneration can be accomplished without much complication. Programming toolslike compilers, interpreters, debuggers etc... are used to generate the code.Different high level programming languages like C, C++, Pascal, Java are used forcoding. With respect to the type of application, the right programming language is

chosen.

5. Testing

Once the code is generated, the software program testing begins. Different testing

methodologies are available to unravel the bugs that were committed during the

previous phases. Different testing tools and methodologies are already available.

Some companies build their own testing tools that are tailor made for their own

development operations. Types of testing:

• Data set testing.

• Unit testing

• System testing

• Integration testing

• Black box testing

• White box testing

•

Regression testing

• Automation testing

• User acceptance testing

• Performance testing

• Operations and maintenance

6. Maintenance

The software will definitely undergo change once it is delivered to the customer. There can be many reasons for this change to occur. Change could happen becauseof some unexpected input values into the system. In addition, the changes in thesystem could directly affect the software operations. The software should bedeveloped to accommodate changes that could happen during the postimplementation period.

Basic Roles and responsibilities



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In the analysis phase, the Company level people and Client or Customer side people

will participate in a meeting called Kickoff meeting. The Client provides the

information and The Company side people (Business Analyst) will participate to

gather the information from the client. The Business Analyst who is well in DomainSkills, Technical Skills and Functionality Skills.

By the Gathered information the Business Analyst will prepare the BRS Document

which is also called as Business Requirement Specification. Then later the same

document is also called as FRD document. That's Functional Requirement Document.

Project Manager will prepare SRS Document i.e.,: System Requirement Specification

Document.

Test Lead will prepare the Test Plan Document.

Later all these documents are verified by Quality Analyst. Here the quality Analyst will

check the gaps or loopholes in between the document to map the client Specification

document and Business Requirement Specification Document.

Again Business Analyst will be involved to prepare the Use Case Document and later

these all documents are maintained as baseline Document, The Base line Document

which is called called as Stable document.

But It Doesn't Work!

The waterfall model is well understood, but it's not as useful as it once was. In a 1991Information Center Quarterly article, Larry Runge says that SDLC "works very wellwhen we are automating the activities of clerks and accountants. It doesn't worknearly as well, if at all, when building systems for knowledge workers -- people at helpdesks, experts trying to solve problems, or executives trying to lead their companyinto the Fortune 100."

Another problem is that the waterfall model assumes that the only role for users is inspecifying requirements, and that all requirements can be specified in advance.Unfortunately, requirements grow and change throughout the process and beyond,

calling for considerable feedback and iterative consultation. Thus many other SDLCmodels have been developed.

The fountain model recognizes that although some activities can't start beforeothers -- such as you need a design before you can start coding -- there's aconsiderable overlap of activities throughout the development cycle.

The spiral model emphasizes the need to go back and reiterate earlier stages anumber of times as the project progresses. It's actually a series of short waterfallcycles, each producing an early prototype representing a part of the entire project.



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This approach helps demonstrate a proof of concept early in the cycle, and it moreaccurately reflects the disorderly, even chaotic evolution of technology.

Build and fix is the crudest of the methods. Write some code, then keep modifying ituntil the customer is happy. Without planning, this is very open-ended and can byrisky.

In the rapid prototyping (sometimes called rapid application development)model, initial emphasis is on creating a prototype that looks and acts like the desiredproduct in order to test its usefulness. The prototype is an essential part of therequirements determination phase, and may be created using tools different fromthose used for the final product. Once the prototype is approved, it is discarded andthe "real" software is written.

The incremental model divides the product into builds, where sections of theproject are created and tested separately. This approach will likely find errors in userrequirements quickly, since user feedback is solicited for each stage and becausecode is tested sooner after it's written.

Strengths and weaknesses of SDLCFew people in the modern computing world would use a strict waterfall model fortheir Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC) as many modern methodologies havesuperseded this thinking. Some will argue that the SDLC no longer applies to modelslike Agile computing, but it is still a term widely in use in Technology circles. TheSDLC practice has advantages in traditional models of software development thatlends itself more to a structured environment. The disadvantages to using the SDLCmethodology is when there is need for iterative development or (i.e. webdevelopment or e-commerce) where stakeholders need to review on a regular basisthe software being designed. Instead of viewing SDLC from a strength or weaknessperspective, it is far more important to take the best practices from the SDLC modeland apply it to whatever may be most appropriate for the software being designed.

A comparison of the strengths and weaknesses of SDLC

Strength and Weaknesses of SDLC [11]

Strengths Weaknesses

Control. Increased development time.

Monitor Large projects. Increased development cost.

Detailed steps. Systems must be defined up front.

Evaluate costs and completiontargets.

Rigidity.

Documentation.Hard to estimate costs, projectoverruns.

Well defined user input. User input is sometimes limited.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Systems_Development_Life_Cycle#cite_note-Post.2C_G._2006-10

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Systems_Development_Life_Cycle#cite_note-Post.2C_G._2006-10



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Ease of maintenance.

Development and designstandards.

Tolerates changes in MISstaffing.

Errors while developing software

Not understanding the user’s needs. Lack of user input, or not even asking.Underestimating the size of the project.Rushing through the planning stage, or avoiding the planning all together.Not testing early enough, often, or at all!Choosing the “Cool” methodology at the time, vs. one that has worked in the past OR

not using a methodology at all.Letting a software developer run the software development project.

Bored, unmotivated team!Planning on catching up later.Non Source Control!Deciding to switch your development tools when you’re already into the project.Allowing feature creep. Don’t entertain just any request.Omitting necessary tasks to shorten the project plan.Insufficient management controls in the development project.Adding people at the end of the project to “speed things up”.No unit testing.Lack of error handling. Typos…No naming style or code conventions.

Using global variables everywhere.Not asking for help at all during the software development process.Not commenting your code.Hogging all information to yourself.Performing database operations at the application layer instead of the database layer.

Not only is this putting the processing juice on your application instead of yourserver, but you have put your database at risk of data integrity issues, andgetting bad data

Not validating your data!

PROGRAMMING

Computer programming (often shortened to programming or coding) is the process of writing, testing, debugging/troubleshooting, and maintaining the source code of computer programs. This source code is written in a programming language. Thecode may be a modification of an existing source or something completely new. Thepurpose of programming is to create a program that exhibits a certain desiredbehavior (customization). The process of writing source code often requires expertisein many different subjects, including knowledge of the application domain, specializedalgorithms and formal logic.



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Overview

Within software engineering, programming (the implementation) is regarded as onephase in a software development process. There is an ongoing debate on the extent

to which the writing of programs is an art, a craft or an engineering discipline. Ingeneral, good programming is considered to be the measured application of all three,with the goal of producing an efficient and evolvable software solution. The disciplinediffers from many other technical professions in that programmers, in general, do notneed to be licensed or pass any standardized (or governmentally regulated)certification tests in order to call themselves "programmers" or even "softwareengineers." However, representing oneself as a "Professional Software Engineer"without a license from an accredited institution is illegal in many parts of the world

Another ongoing debate is the extent to which the programming language used inwriting computer programs affects the form that the final program takes. Differentlanguage patterns yield different patterns of thought.

Modern programming

1) Quality requirementsWhatever the approach to software development may be, the final program mustsatisfy some fundamental properties. The following properties are among the mostrelevant:a) Efficiency/performance: the amount of system resources a program consumes

(processor time, memory space, slow devices such as disks, network bandwidthand to some extent even user interaction): the less, the better. This also includescorrect disposal of some resources, such as cleaning up temporary files and lackof memory leaks.

b) Reliability: how often the results of a program are correct. This depends onconceptual correctness of algorithms, and minimization of programming mistakes,such as mistakes in resource management (e.g., buffer overflows and raceconditions) and logic errors (such as division by zero).

c) Robustness: how well a program anticipates problems not due to programmererror. This includes situations such as incorrect, inappropriate or corrupt data,unavailability of needed resources such as memory, operating system servicesand network connections, and user error.

d) Usability: the ease with which a person can use the program for its intendedpurpose, or in some cases even unanticipated purposes.

e) Portability: the range of computer hardware and operating system platforms onwhich the source code of a program can be compiled/interpreted and run.

f) Maintainability: the ease with which a program can be modified by its present orfuture developers in order to make improvements or customizations, fix bugs andsecurity holes, or adapt it to new environments. This quality may not be directlyapparent to the end user but it can significantly affect the fate of a program overthe long term.

2) Algorithmic complexity



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The academic field and the engineering practice of computer programming are bothlargely concerned with discovering and implementing the most efficient algorithmsfor a given class of problem. For this purpose, algorithms are classified into ordersusing so-called Big O notation, O(n), which expresses resource use, such as executiontime or memory consumption, in terms of the size of an input. Expert programmersare familiar with a variety of well-established algorithms and their respective

complexities and use this knowledge to choose algorithms that are best suited to thecircumstances.

The first step in most formal software development projects is requirements analysis,followed by testing to determine value modeling, implementation, and failureelimination (debugging). There exist a lot of differing approaches for each of thosetasks.a) One approach popular for requirements analysis is Use Case analysis. Popular

modeling techniques include Object-Oriented Analysis and Design (OOAD) andModel-Driven Architecture (MDA). The Unified Modeling Language (UML) is anotation used for both the OOAD and MDA.

b) A similar technique used for database design is Entity-Relationship

Modeling (ER Modeling). Implementation techniques include imperativelanguages (object-oriented or procedural), functional languages, and logiclanguages.

c) Measuring language usage: It is very difficult to determine what are the mostpopular of modern programming languages. Some languages are very popular forparticular kinds of applications (e.g., COBOL is still strong in the corporate datacenter, often on large mainframes, FORTRAN in engineering applications, scriptinglanguages in web development, and C in embedded applications), while somelanguages are regularly used to write many different kinds of applications.Methods of measuring programming language popularity include: counting thenumber of job advertisements that mention the language, the number of booksteaching the language that are sold (this overestimates the importance of newerlanguages), and estimates of the number of existing lines of code written in thelanguage (this underestimates the number of users of business languages such asCOBOL).

3) Debugging

Debugging is a very important task in the software development process, because anincorrect program can have significant consequences for its users. Some languagesare more prone to some kinds of faults because their specification does not requirecompilers to perform as much checking as other languages. Use of a static analysistool can help detect some possible problems. Debugging is often done with IDEs likeVisual Studio, NetBeans, and Eclipse. Standalone debuggers like gdb are also used,and these often provide less of a visual environment, usually using a command line.

4) Programming languages

Different programming languages support different styles of programming (calledprogramming paradigms). The choice of language used is subject to manyconsiderations, such as company policy, suitability to task, availability of third-partypackages, or individual preference. Trade-offs from this ideal involve finding enough



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programmers who know the language to build a team, the availability of compilers forthat language, and the efficiency with which programs written in a given languageexecute. The details look different in different languages, but a few basic instructions appear in just about every language:

• input: Get data from the keyboard, a file, or some other device.• output: Display data on the screen or send data to a file or other device.• arithmetic: Perform basic arithmetical operations like addition and

multiplication.• conditional execution: Check for certain conditions and execute the

appropriate sequence of statements.• repetition: Perform some action repeatedly, usually with some variation.

Many computer languages provide a mechanism to call functions provided bylibraries. Provided the functions in a library follow the appropriate runtimeconventions (eg, method of passing arguments), then these functions may be writtenin any other language.

5) Programmers

Computer programmers are those who write computer software. Their jobs usuallyinvolve:

• Coding• Compilation• Documentation• Integration• Maintenance• Requirements analysis• Software architecture• Software testing• Specification• Debugging

BASIC FUNDAMENTALS OF PROGRAMMING

• Programming is like any other language, say, English.

• In English, we have Language – Character Sets (A-Z, 0-9, Special characters) –

Words – Statements (Clauses/Phrases) – Sentences – Paragraphs – Part 1, 2, 3 –Chapter – Book – Shelf - Library.

• Each programming language will have Character Set – Words – Clauses – Sentence

– Paragraph – Sections - Program – Module (Say Payroll Module) – Sub Systems

(Compensation Sub system) – Systems (HR Systems) – Software Base.



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• Each system will have a no of programs. Each program will have its own objective,

scope, IPO Process etc.

• When we choose a programming language which human beings can edit, and

understand, it is called Source Code/Program.

• Object Program/Code: Machine understands in Object Program.

• Source Code/Program (Editable Program): translates Object/Program Code

(Executable Program). Each Source Code/program has assembler, translator and

compiler.

o Translator: analyses s/w programs and eliminates syntax error.

o Interpreter: X Base kind of programming languages 3 1/2 generation

interprets each line of code one by one.

o Compiler: compiles the typed code into a form that system wouldunderstand.

• Developing Software Development Life Cycle

o Start with Objective/Scope

o Analysis of I-P-O

o Processing Logic

o Create a pseudo code/flow chart prototyping

o Coding using Programming Languages

o Source Code/Program

o Translate (If Error – it is called Type 1 error, go back to last step and do

debugging). If no error, move to next step.

o Create Object Program/Code.

o Test the object program (If Error Type 2, go do debugging again)

o If OK, Program is ready to use.

Error Type 1: Syntax

Error Type 2: Semantics (Logical Mistake).

• Processing Logic: Each program works as follows:



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o Initiation of program

o Process

o Termination

• Programming: A set of commands in a chosen programming language bunched upin a sequential manner so as to build up a processing logic for a business problem.

It makes use of following constructs:

o A sequence

o A selection

o A loop

o Exact syntax will depend upon the available phrases, clauses etc of the

chosen language and the transaction programming rules.

• Traditional Flow Chart (Draw them as flow charts)

o A Sequence:

Total = A+B+C

Discount = Total * 0.12

NET = Total – Discount

o A selection (If/Then/Else)

If Salary > 100, Bonus: Yes; Else No

o A Loop

Make a flow chart showing a loop.

o Draw a complete flow chart with sequence, selection and loop

Assume a salary and bonus example.

This flow chart will be called Program/Logic flow chart.

o Another flow chart called system flow chart would be required that would

tell which data tables and programs are getting impacted and what

programs updates which tables.



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DIFFERENCE BETWEEN Master and Transaction Files

A file is an organized collection of data. The term file may be used in referenceto a database – where a file is equivalent to a table – although any data can bestored in a file.

When data processing takes place, generally two types of files are used;transaction files and master files.

File is of two types:

1) Master file.

2) Transaction file.

Master file: It contains records of permanent data types. Master files arecreated at the time when you install your business. If you wish to convert yourcompany into computerized one you need to create master file which can becreated by using your manual file folder and keying data onto storage devicesfor example the name of customer , dob , gender etc, these are permanentdata types. Master files contain descriptive data, such as name and address,as well as summary information, such as amount due and year-to-date sales

Following are the kinds of fields that make up a typical master record in abusiness information system. There can be many more fields depending onthe organization. The "key" fields below are the ones that are generallyindexed for matching against the transaction records as well as fast retrievalfor queries.

EMPLOYEE MASTER RECORDkey Employee account numberkey Name (last)

Name (first)Address, city, state, zipHire dateBirth date

TitleJob classPay rateYear-to-date gross pay

CUSTOMER MASTER RECORDkey Customer account numberkey Name



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Bill-to address, city, state, zipShip-to address, city, state, zipCredit limitDate of first orderSales-to-date

Balance due

VENDOR MASTER RECORDkey Vendor account numberkey Name

Address, city, state, zipTermsQuality ratingShipping method

PRODUCT MASTER RECORD

key Product numberkey Name

DescriptionQuantity on handLocationPrimary vendorSecondary vendor

Transaction file: The data in transaction files is used to update the masterfiles, which contain the data about the subjects of the organization(customers, employees, vendors, etc.). Transaction files also serve as audittrails and history for the organization. Where before they were transferred tooffline storage after some period of time, they are increasingly being keptonline for routine analyses

There is no fast rule to distinguish the two. In application programming, a file

used to store transactions prior to posting to a summary for a general ledger,

for example, would be called a transaction file.

In application programming where data entry is separated from the main

actors, that is, done by data entry operators rather than accounting clerks,then the transactions entered are stored in a transaction file and are subjected

to manual and automated checks for accuracy before being committed to a

master file.



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Following are the kinds of fields that make up a typical transaction record in a

business information system. There can be many more fields depending on

the organization. The "key" fields below are the ones that are generally

indexed for fast matching against the master record.

EMPLOYEE PAYROLL RECORDkey Employee account number

Today's date

Hours worked

ORDER RECORDkey Customer account number

Today's dateQuantityProduct number

PAYMENT RECORDkey Customer number

Today's date

Invoice numberAmount paidCheck number

PURCHASE ORDERkey Purchase order number

Today's dateDepartmentAuthorizing agentVendor account numberQuantity

Product numberDue dateTotal cost

WAREHOUSE RECEIPTkey Purchase order numberkey Invoice number

Today's date



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QuantityProduct number

I-P-O Cycle (For Insurance Company), Difference between I-P-O

for On-line and batch processing

• In case of an Insurance company, following information would need

to be covered for I-P-O Cycle:

o Policyholder’s Information: Name, Age, Sex, Address etc.

o Policy Master: Policy No, Policy Type, Branch, Policyholder’s

information, Maturity, Surrender Value, Total Premiums paid,

Policy Frequency etc.

o Investments

o Premium Payments

• For Insurance Company, policy table would be the master table.

Another master would be Portfolio master (is called Term Table

Reference, in case of LIC of India Ltd.)

• Key is to identify “Engine Application” which can be developed first

as it can grow into various business opportunities. For Instance, PFApplication is not an engine application whereas Payroll is an engine

application.

• Master and Transaction Tables in case of, say, LIC

POLICY MASTER

Data Name Data Type Width Decimal

POLICY_NO N 20 0

FNAME C 30 0

LNAME C 30 0

GENDER C 6 0



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DOB D 10 0

ADD_1 C 30 0

ADD_2 C 30 0

ADD_3 C 30 0

CELL_NO N 12 0

LANDLINE_NO N 12 0

OFFICE_CODE N 6 0

AGENT_CODE N 8 0

TT_REF (Term table

ref)N 5

0

SUM_ASSRD N 15 2

INST_AMT N 15 2

INST_MO N 2 0

LAST_INST N 15 2

FUP_INST (First

unpaid premium)N 15

2

BONUS_ACCR N 15 2

NOMINEE C 300

REL_NOMINEE C 10 0

POLICY TRANSACTION (for a period)


TXN_ID N 12 0

POLICY_NO N 12 0

TXN_DATE D 8 0

TXN_MODE C 1 0

TXN_AMT N 10 2

INST_AMT N 10 2



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INST_LATE N 10 2

TXN_DETAIL N 30 0

UPDATE_FLAG C 1 0



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• I-P-O Cycle for On-Line Transaction Processing (e.g., Railway

Inquiry)

For railway inquiry, after one railway ticket booking, “updated master”

becomes “unupdated master, before your next transaction is received.

• I-P-O Cycle for Batch Processing (e.g., Electricity Bill Billing)

DATA FILES

(Master as on

1/4/2010)

DATA FILE(S)

(are generally

master data

files)

DATA FILES

(are updated

master data files)

Keyboard Input

(Transaction

data)

Soft Copy

(On Screen – Inquiry Result)

PROGRAM

REPORT (hardcopy)

REPORT (hard

copy)

DATA FILE(S)

(Master as on

1/1/2010)DATA

FILE(S)

Data File

(1/1/2010 – 31/3/2010)

(Data collected over 1-2 months’

period)

PROGRAM



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In case of batch processing, every transaction is different, no concept

of regular master update.

Difference between Online and Batch Processing

S.No. Online Processing Batch Processing

1 Huge Infrastructure: 24*7 Shared Infrastructure

2 Status of master data always up-to-

date.

Status of master data up-to-dat

only till last process run.

3. Some applications are best suited

for Online Processing. For Ex. Ticket

Booking

Some Applications are best

suited for Batch Processing. For

Ex. NDPL Billing.

However, some applications are

hybrid as well.

4. Used where there is high customer

interaction.

Used when customer interactio

is not required.

•

In 1950, start of computerization, everything was batch processing.

• In 1970s, 6-7% of online processing.

• 1n 1980s, 40% of online processing.

• In 1990s, 70-85% of online processing.

• In 2010, 75-85% of online processing.

Some batch processing may always be needed.



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INDIAN IT SCENARIO

IT industry: on a steady growth track

• The total revenues for the Indian IT industry were estimated to touch US$ 71.7

billion in 2008-09.

• The Indian IT industry has been growing at a compound annual growth rate

(CAGR) of 27 per cent for the last five years.

• India maintains lead in ITeS-BPO

o Indian IT/ITeS sector has matured considerably with its

expansion into varied verticals

well differentiated service offerings

increasing geographic penetration

o India’s importance among emerging economies, both as a supply and

demand centre, is fuelling further IT/ITeS growth



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o Continues to be one of the fastest growing industries in India; while India

maintains its leading position as a strategic off-shoring destination for

multinationals worldwide

o The Indian ITeS-BPO (domestic and exports) revenues are estimated at US$

14.7 billion and the sector grew at a rate of 18.9 per cent in 2008-09

o India, the primary global off-shoring destination for low-end back-office

services earlier, is now emerging as an innovation and research hub.

o India is estimated to continue attracting substantial investments in the

sector, with the cost arbitrage factor expected to prevail for another 10-15

years.

o The ITeS segment is expected to leverage on the penetration of the IT

segment, complementing and completing end-to-end customer

requirements with the aid of offshore and onshore service offerings.



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INVENTORY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

• Inventory Management – INVENTORY ACCOUNTING (+) INVENTORY CONTROL

ITEM MASTER (As on a date, balance always a part of master)


Item_Code N 10 0

Item_Description C 30 0

Units N 10 0

MaxLimit N 10 0

MinLimit N 10 0

Safety_Stock N 10 0

EOQ N 10 0

ROL N 10 0



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Location_Code N 5 0

Category C 10 0

Balance N 10 0

ITEM TRANSACTION (for a period)


Item_Code N 10 0

Txn_Id N 10 0

Txn_Date D 8 0

Txn_Party C 20 0

Description C 30 0

Ref_No N 10 0

Transaction_Qty N 10 0

Transaction_Type C 1 0



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• Inventory Reports

Status OR “As-On” Reports “For the Period” Reports

STOCK STATUS REPORT STOCK REGISTER

STOCK VALUATION REPORT CONSUMPTION REPORT

OVERSTOCKED VALUATION REPORT RECEIPT REPORT

UNDER STOCKED VALUATION REPORT COSTING REPORT

GOODS – ON – ORDER REPORT

PHYSICAL STOCK VERIFICATION REPORT

STOCK STATUS REPORT

Office Date

Page

S.No. Item Code Item Description Unit StockLocation Remarks (Under/Over

Stock)



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STOCK VALUATION REPORT

Office Date

Page

S.No. Item Code Item Description Unit StockRate Location Remarks

Sub Total

Total



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UNDER STOCKED ITEMS REPORT

Office Date

Page

S.No. Item Code Item Description Unit StockMin Stock ROL Remarks

Sub Total

Sub Total

Total



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OVER STOCKED ITEMS REPORT

Office Date

Page

S.No. Item Code Item Description Unit StockMax Stock Equal No Days

Inventory Remarks

Sub Total

Sub Total

Total



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GOODS ON ORDER REPORT

Office Date

Page

S.No. Item Code Item Description Unit Stock Stock ROL (For Ref Only)

ROQ Remarks

Sub Total

Sub Total

Total



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PHYSICAL STOCK VERIFICATION REPORT

Office Date

Page

S.No. Item Code Item Description Unit Stock (Records) Stock (Physical)

Variance Location Code

Sub Total

Sub Total

Total



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• Leave Accounting System

• LEAVE MASTER (As on a date, balance always a part of master)


Emp_Id N 10 0

Leave_Cat C 3 0

Leave_Bal

(Gets Updated)

N3

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Emp_Name C 40 0

Emp_Add1 C 40 0

Emp_Add2 C 40 0

Emp_AddCity C 15 0

Emp_Add_PINCODE N 6 0

Emp_Workloc C 40 0

Emp_DOJ D 10 0

Emp_Designation C 20 0

Leave_CFBal N 3 0

Emp_Mgr N 10 0

Emp_BU (Code) N 10 0

Max_Allowed N 3 0

LEAVE TRANSACTION (for a period)


Txn_Id N 10 0

Emp_Id N 10 0

Leave_Cat C 3 0

From Date D 10 0



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To Date D 10 0

No of days N 2 0

Status

(Applied/Approved/Reject

ed)

C 3 0

Approval Date D 10 0

DATA MINING

Data that has relevance for managerial decisions is accumulating at an incredible ratedue to a host of technological advances. Electronic data capture has becomeinexpensive and ubiquitous as a by-product of innovations such as the internet, e-

commerce, electronic banking, point-of-sale devices, bar-code readers, and intelligentmachines.

Such data is often stored in data warehouses and data marts specificallyintended for management decision support. Data mining is a rapidlygrowing field that is concerned with developing techniques to assistmanagers to make intelligent use of these repositories.

A number of successful applications have been reported in areas such as creditrating, fraud detection, database marketing, customer relationship management, andstock market investments.

The field of data mining has evolved from the disciplines of statistics and artificialintelligence.

Definition

Term for confluence of ideas from statistics and computer science (machinelearning and database methods) applied to large databases in science,engineering and business.

Gartner Group - “Data mining is the process of discovering meaningful newcorrelations, patterns and trends by sifting through large amounts of datastored in repositories, using pattern recognition technologies as well asstatistical and mathematical techniques.”

Drivers

• Market: From focus on product/service to focus on customer

• IT: From focus on up-to-date balances to focus on patterns in transactions -Data Warehouses -OLAP

• Dramatic drop in storage costs : Huge databases – e.g Walmart: 20 million



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transactions/day, 10 terabyte database, Blockbuster: 36 million households

• Automatic Data Capture of Transactions – e.g. Bar Codes , POS devices,Mouse clicks, Location data (GPS, cell phones)

• Internet: Personalized interactions, longitudinal Data



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Process

1. Develop understanding of application, goals2. Create dataset for study (often from Data Warehouse)3. Data Cleaning and Preprocessing4. Data Reduction and projection

5. Choose Data Mining task6. Choose Data Mining algorithms7. Use algorithms to perform task8. Interpret and iterate thru 1-7 if necessary

Data mining: step 4-89. Deploy: integrate into operational systems.

SEMMA Methodology

• Sample from data sets, Partition into Training, Validation and Test datasets• Explore data set statistically and graphically

• Modify: Transform variables, Impute missing values• Model: fit models e.g. regression, classfication tree, neural net• Assess: Compare models using Partition, Test datasets

Customer Relationship Management

• Target Marketing• Attrition Prediction/Churn Analysis• Fraud Detection• Credit Scoring

Target marketing

• Business problem: Use list of prospects for direct mailing campaign• Solution: Use Data Mining to identify most promising respondents combining

demographic and geographic data with data on past purchase behavior• Benefit: Better response rate, savings in campaign cost• Example: Fleet Financial Group• Redesign of customer service infrastructure, including $38 million investment in

data warehouse and marketing automation• Used logistic regression to predict response probabilities to home-equity

product for sample of 20,000 customer profiles from 15 million customer base• Used to predict profitable customers and customers who would be unprofitable

even if they respond

Churn Analysis: Telcos

• Business Problem: Prevent loss of customers, avoid adding churn-prone customers• Solution: Use neural nets, time series analysis to identify typical patterns of

telephone usage of likely-to-defect and likely-to-churn customers• Benefit: Retention of customers, more effective promotions• Example: IDEA CELLULAR



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• CHURN/Customer Profiling System implemented as part of major custom datawarehouse solution

• Preventive action based on customer characteristics and known cases of churningand non-churning customers identify significant characteristics for churn

• Early detection Customer Profiling Systems based on usage pattern matching withknown cases of churn customers.

Fraud Detection

• Business problem: Fraud increases costs or reduces revenue• Solution: Use logistic regression, neural nets to identify characteristics of

fraudulent cases to prevent in future or prosecute more vigorously• Benefit: Increased profits by reducing undesirable customers

Risk Analysis

• Business problem: Reduce risk of loans to delinquent customers

• Solution: Use credit scoring models using discriminant analysis to createscore functions that separate out risky customers

• Benefit: Decrease in cost of bad debts

Finance

• Business problem: Pricing of corporate bonds depends on several factors, riskprofile of Company , seniority of debt, dividends, prior history, etc.

• Solution Approach: Through Data Mining , develop more accurate models of

predicting prices.

Recommendation Systems

• Business opportunity: Users rate items (Amazon.com, CDNOW.com,MovieFinder.com) on the web. How to use information from other usersto infer ratings for a particular user?

• Solution: Use of a technique known as collaborative filtering

• Benefit: Increase revenues by cross selling, up selling

Clicks to Customers

• Business problem: 50% of Dell’s clients order their computer through the web.However, the retention rate is 0.5%, i.e. of visitors of Dell’s web page become

customers.• Solution Approach: Through the sequence of their clicks, cluster customers

and design website, interventions to maximize the number of customerswho eventually buy.

• Benefit: Increase revenues

Emerging Major Data Mining applications

• Spam



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• Bioinformatics/Genomics

• Medical History Data – Insurance Claims

• Personalization of services in e-commerce

• RF Tags

• Security : Container Shipments, Network Intrusion Detection

DATA STORAGE

Core Concepts

• Types of Data: Numeric, Continuous – ratio and interval, Discrete• Need for Binning: Categorical – order and unordered, Binary• Over fitting and Generalization• Regularization: Penalty for model complexity• Distance• Curse of Dimensionality•

Random and stratified sampling, resampling• Loss Functions

Typical characteristics of mining data

• “Standard” format is spreadsheet: Row=observation unit, Column=variable• Many rows, many columns• Many rows moderate number of columns (e.g. tel. calls)• Many columns, moderate number of rows (e.g. genomics)• Opportunistic (often by-product of transactions): Not from designed experiments,

Often has outliers, missing data

Techniques

• Supervised Techniqueso classification: k-Nearest Neighbors, Naïve Bayes, Classification Trees,

Discriminant Analysis, Logistic Regression, Neural Netso Prediction (Estimation): Regression, Regression Trees, k-Nearest Neighbors

• Unsupervised Techniqueso Cluster Analysis, Principal Componentso Association Rules, Collaborative Filtering

IT SOLUTIONS

Should help



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• Cost decrease to u, to customer and to overall business

• Speed increase

• Quality increase

For an organization to implement IT (5Cs):

• Conviction

• Courage

• Clarity

• Capability

• Commitment and Continuity

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN Primary and secondary storage devices

Computer data storage, often called storage or memory, refers to computer

components, devices, and recording media that retain digital data used for computing

for some interval of time. Computer data storage provides one of the core functions

of the modern computer, that of information retention. It is one of the fundamental

components of all modern computers, and coupled with a central processing unit

(CPU, a processor), implements the basic computer model used since the 1940s.

In contemporary usage, memory usually refers to a form of semiconductor storageknown as random-access memory (RAM) and sometimes other forms of fast but

temporary storage. Similarly, storage today more commonly refers to mass storage —

optical discs, forms of magnetic storage like hard disk drives, and other types slower

than RAM, but of a more permanent nature.



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Historically, memory and storage were respectively called main memory and

secondary storage. The terms internal memory and external memory are also used.

Purpose of storage

Many different forms of storage, based on various natural phenomena, have been

invented. So far, no practical universal storage medium exists, and all forms of

storage have some drawbacks. Therefore a computer system usually contains several

kinds of storage, each with an individual purpose.

A digital computer represents data using the binary numeral system. Text, numbers,

pictures, audio, and nearly any other form of information can be converted into astring of bits, or binary digits, each of which has a value of 1 or 0. The most common

unit of storage is the byte, equal to 8 bits. A piece of information can be handled by

any computer whose storage space is large enough to accommodate the binary

representation of the piece of information, or simply data.

Traditionally the most important part of every computer is the central processing unit

(CPU, or simply a processor), because it actually operates on data, performs any

calculations, and controls all the other components.

Without a significant amount of memory, a computer would merely be able to

perform fixed operations and immediately output the result. It would have to be

reconfigured to change its behavior.

In practice, almost all computers use a variety of memory types, organized in a

storage hierarchy around the CPU, as a trade-off between performance and cost.

Generally, the lower a storage is in the hierarchy, the lesser its bandwidth and the

greater its access latency is from the CPU. This traditional division of storage toprimary, secondary, tertiary and off-line storage is also guided by cost per bit.

Hierarchy of storage



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Primary storage: Primary storage (or main memory or internal memory), often

referred to simply as memory, is the only one directly accessible to the CPU. The CPU

continuously reads instructions stored there and executes them as required. Any data

actively operated on is also stored there in uniform manner.

Random-access memory (RAM) is small-sized, light, but quite expensive at the same

time.

Main memory is directly or indirectly connected to the CPU via a memory bus. It is

actually two buses: an address bus and a data bus. The CPU firstly sends a number

through an address bus, a number called memory address that indicates the desired

location of data. Then it reads or writes the data itself using the data bus.

Additionally, a memory management unit (MMU) is a small device between CPU and

RAM recalculating the actual memory address, for example to provide an abstractionof virtual memory or other tasks.

As the RAM types used for primary storage are volatile, a computer containing only

such storage would not have a source to read instructions from, in order to start the

computer. Hence, non-volatile primary storage containing a small startup program

(BIOS) is used to bootstrap the computer, that is, to read a larger program from non-

volatile secondary storage to RAM and start to execute it. A non-volatile technology

used for this purpose is called ROM, for read-only memory.

Secondary Storage: Secondary storage is a hard disk drive with protective cover

removed.

Secondary storage (or external memory) differs from primary storage in that it is not

directly accessible by the CPU. The computer usually uses its input/output channels to

access secondary storage and transfers the desired data using intermediate area in

primary storage. Secondary storage does not lose the data when the device is

powered down—it is non-volatile. Per unit, it is typically also an order of magnitude

less expensive than primary storage. Consequently, modern computer systemstypically have an order of magnitude more secondary storage than primary storage

and data is kept for a longer time there.

In modern computers, hard disk drives are usually used as secondary storage. The

time taken to access a given byte of information stored on a hard disk is typically a



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few thousandths of a second, or milliseconds. By contrast, the time taken to access a

given byte of information stored in random access memory is measured in billionths

of a second, or nanoseconds. Rotating optical storage devices, such as CD and DVD

drives, have longer access times. With disk drives, once the disk read/write head

reaches the proper placement and the data of interest rotates under it, subsequent

data on the track are very fast to access. As a result, in order to hide the initial seektime and rotational latency, data are transferred to and from disks in large contiguous

blocks.

Some other examples of secondary storage technologies are: flash memory (e.g. USB

flash drives or keys), floppy disks, magnetic tape, paper tape, punched cards,

standalone RAM disks, and Iomega Zip drives.

The secondary storage is often formatted according to a file system format, whichprovides the abstraction necessary to organize data into files and directories,

providing also additional information (called metadata) describing the owner of a

certain file, the access time, the access permissions, and other information.

Tertiary storage

Tertiary storage or tertiary memory, provides a third level of storage. Typically itinvolves a robotic mechanism which will mount (insert) and dismount removable

mass storage media into a storage device according to the system's demands; this

data is often copied to secondary storage before use. It is primarily used for archival

of rarely accessed information since it is much slower than Secondary storage (e.g. 5–

60 seconds vs. 1-10 milliseconds). This is primarily useful for extraordinarily large

data stores, accessed without human operators. Typical examples include tape

libraries and optical jukeboxes.

When a computer needs to read information from the tertiary storage, it will first

consult a catalog database to determine which tape or disc contains the information.

Next, the computer will instruct a robotic arm to fetch the medium and place it in a

drive. When the computer has finished reading the information, the robotic arm will

return the medium to its place in the library.

Off-line storage



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Off-line storage is computer data storage on a medium or a device that is not under

the control of a processing unit. The medium is recorded, usually in a secondary or

tertiary storage device, and then physically removed or disconnected. It must be

inserted or connected by a human operator before a computer can access it again.Unlike tertiary storage, it cannot be accessed without human interaction.

Off-line storage is used to transfer information, since the detached medium can be

easily physically transported. Additionally, in case a disaster, for example a fire,

destroys the original data, a medium in a remote location will probably be unaffected,

enabling disaster recovery. Off-line storage increases general information security,

since it is physically inaccessible from a computer, and data confidentiality or

integrity cannot be affected by computer-based attack techniques. Also, if the

information stored for archival purposes is accessed seldom or never, off-line storageis less expensive than tertiary storage.

In modern personal computers, most secondary and tertiary storage media are also

used for off-line storage. Optical discs and flash memory devices are most popular,

and to much lesser extent removable hard disk drives. In enterprise uses, magnetic

tape is predominant. Older examples are floppy disks, Zip disks, or punched cards.

PRIMARY STORAGE DEVICES SECONDARY STORAGE DEVICES

1.These devices are temporary. 1. These devices are permanent.2.These devices are expensive. 2. These are cheaper.3.These devices are faster, therefore expensive. 3. These devices Computers via cables, and thusslow and cheaper4.These devices have less storage capacity 4.These devices have high storage capacity.5.These devices refer to RAM. 5.These devices refer to FDD



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DIFFERENCE BETWEEN System and application software

The software is divided into two main categories i.e system software and application

software. System software includes all the programs and softwares designed by the

manufacturers to run the system. A computer system can't run without theinstallation of system software in the computer. System software includes operating

system, windows, DOS etc. Application software in contrast to system software are

user written applications and user defined programs for example Microsoft power

point, word, excel, games, note pad and other applications. The functions and

instruction are written by the user in the case of application software whereas

instructions are pre-coded by the manufacturers in the case of system software. Both

of them are integral parts of computer system.

The software hierarchy is:

End User

Application program

Utilities

Operating System

Hardware

Both Utilities and Operating System are system software.

Actually, a system software is any computer software which manages and controls

computer hardware so that application software can perform a task. Operating

systems, such as Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X or Linux, are prominent examples of

system software. System software contrasts with application software, which are

programs that enable the end-user to perform specific, productive tasks, such as

word processing or image manipulation.

System software performs tasks like transferring data from memory to disk, or

rendering text onto a display device. Specific kinds of system software include

loading programs, operating systems, device drivers, programming tools, compilers,

assemblers, linkers, and utility software.

Software libraries that perform generic functions also tend to be regarded as system

software, although the dividing line is fuzzy; while a C runtime library is generally



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agreed to be part of the system, an OpenGL or database library is less obviously so.

If system software is stored on non-volatile memory such as integrated circuits, it is

usually termed firmware while an application software is a subclass of computer

software that employs the capabilities of a computer directly and thoroughly to a task

that the user wishes to perform. This should be contrasted with system softwarewhich is involved in integrating a computer's various capabilities, but typically does

not directly apply them in the performance of tasks that benefit the user. In this

context the term application refers to both the application software and its

implementation.

A simple, analogy in the world of hardware would be the relationship of an electric

light bulb (an application) to an electric power generation plant (a system). The power

plant merely generates electricity, not itself of any real use until harnessed to an

application like the electric light that performs a service that benefits the user.

Typical applications include:

• industrial automation

• business software

• video games

• quantum chemistry and solid state physics software

• telecommunications (i.e., the Internet and everything that flows on it)

• databases

• educational software

• medical software

• military software

• molecular modeling software

• image editing

• spreadsheet

• simulation software

• Word processing

• Decision making software



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Multiple applications bundled together as a package are sometimes referred to as an

application suite. Microsoft Office and OpenOffice.org, which bundle together a word

processor, a spreadsheet, and several other discrete applications, are typical

examples. The separate applications in a suite usually have a user interface that hassome commonality making it easier for the user to learn and use each application..

In some types of embedded systems, the application software and the operating

system software may be indistinguishable to the user, as in the case of software used

to control a VCR, DVD player or Microwave Oven.



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Difference between Front-End and Back-end computing

Back end storage is the most basic way to understand the back end. When you wantto have a picture displayed on a webpage or in an online auction or wherever, it sits

waiting on a back end server until the file is requested then for the moment or time itis viewed on the front end.

Front-end and back-end are generalized terms that refer to the initial and the end

stages of a process. The front-end is responsible for collecting input in various forms

from the user and processing it to conform to a specification the back-end can use.

The front-end is a kind of interface between the user and the back-end.

In software architecture there are many layers between the hardware and end-user.

Each can be spoken of as having a front- and back-end. The "front" is an abstraction,

simplifying the underlying component by providing a user-friendly interface.

In software design, the separation of software systems into "front-ends" and "back-

ends" simplifies development and separates maintenance.

For major computer subsystems, the front-end faces the user and the back-end

launches the programs of the operating system in response.

Using the CLI (command-line interface ) feature requires the acquisition of special

terminology and the memorization of the commands, and so a GUI ( graphical user

interface ) acts as a front-end desktop environment instead.

In compilers, the front-end translates a computer programming source language into

an intermediate representation, and the back-end works with the internal

representation to produce code in a computer output language. The back-end usuallyoptimizes to produce code that runs faster. The front-end/back-end distinction can

separate the parser section that deals with source code and the back-end that does

code generation and optimization.



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In speech synthesis, the front-end refers to the part of the synthesis system that

converts the input text into a symbolic phonetic representation, and the back-end

converts the symbolic phonetic representation into actual sounds.

In the context of WWW applications, a mediator is a service that functionssimultaneously as a server on its front end and as a client on its back end.



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How is on-line processing different from batch processing? Illustrate

different characteristics of these two types of processing systems and their

suitability for different areas of applications. Give two examples of each.

---CHECK EXAMPLE FOR INVENTORY IN OM BOOK.

Batch processing is execution of a series of programs ("jobs") on a computer without

manual intervention. Batch jobs are set up so they can be run to completion

without manual intervention, so all input data is preselected through scripts

or command-line parameters. This is in contrast to "online" or interactive

programs which prompt the user for such input. A program takes a set of data files as

input, process the data, and produces a set of output data files. This operating

environment is termed as "batch processing" because the input data are collected

into batches on files and are processed in batches by the program.

Benefits

Batch processing has these benefits:

• It allows sharing of computer resources among many users and programs,

• It shifts the time of job processing to when the computing resources are lessbusy,

• It avoids idling the computing resources with minute-by-minute manual

intervention and supervision,

• By keeping high overall rate of utilization, it better amortizes the cost of a

computer, especially an expensive one.

History

Batch processing has been associated with mainframe computers since the earliest

days of electronic computing in the 1950s. Because such computers were enormously

costly, batch processing was the only economically-viable option of their use. In those

days, interactive sessions with either text-based computer terminal interfaces or



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graphical user interfaces were not widespread. Initially, computers were not even

capable of having multiple programs loaded into the main memory.

Batch processing has grown beyond its mainframe origins, and is now frequently used

in UNIX environments and Microsoft Windows too. UNIX systems use shells and other

scripting languages. DOS systems use batch files powered by COMMAND.COM,Microsoft Windows has cmd.exe, Windows Script Host and advanced Windows

PowerShell.

Modern Systems

Despite their long history, batch applications are still critical in most organizations.

While online systems are now used when manual intervention is not desired, they are

not well suited to the high-volume, repetitive tasks. Therefore, even new systemsusually contain a batch application for cases such as updating information at the end

of the day, generating reports, and printing documents.

Modern batch applications make use of modern batch frameworks such as Spring

Batch, which is written for Java, to provide the fault tolerance and scalability required

for high-volume processing. In order to ensure high-speed processing, batch

applications are often integrated with grid computing solutions to partition a batch job

over a large number of processors.

Common batch processing usage

• Data processing

• A typical batch processing procedure is End of day-reporting (EOD),

especially on mainframes. Historically systems were designed to have a

batch window where online subsystems were turned off and system

capacity was used to run jobs common to all data (accounts, users or

customers) on a system. In a bank, for example, EOD jobs include interest

calculation, generation of reports and data sets to other systems, print

(statements) and payment processing.

• Printing



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• A popular computerized batch processing procedure is printing. This

normally involves the operator selecting the documents they need printed

and indicating to the batch printing software when, where they should be

output and priority of the print job. Then the job is sent to the print queue

from where printing daemon sends them to the printer.

• Databases

• Batch processing is also used for efficient bulk database updates and

automated transaction processing, as contrasted to interactive online

transaction processing (OLTP) applications.

• Images

• Batch processing is often used to perform various operations with digital

images. There exist computer programs that let one resize, convert,

watermark, or otherwise edit image files.

• Converting

• Batch processing is also used for converting a number of computer files

from one format to another. This is to make files portable and versatile

especially for proprietary and legacy files where viewers are not easy tocome by.

Online transaction processing

Online transaction processing, or OLTP, refers to a class of systems that facilitate and

manage transaction-oriented applications, typically for data entry and retrieval

transaction processing. OLTP has also been used to refer to processing in which the

system responds immediately to user requests. An automatic teller machine (ATM) fora bank is an example of a commercial transaction processing application.

The technology is used in a number of industries, including banking, airlines, mail

order, supermarkets, and manufacturing. Applications include electronic banking,

order processing, employee time clock systems, e-commerce, and eTrading. The most

widely used OLTP system is probably IBM's CICS.



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Requirements

Online transaction processing increasingly requires support for transactions that spana network and may include more than one company. For this reason, new OLTP

software uses client/server processing and brokering software that allows

transactions to run on different computer platforms in a network.

In large applications, efficient OLTP may depend on sophisticated transaction

management software (such as CICS) and/or database optimization tactics to

facilitate the processing of large numbers of concurrent updates to an OLTP-oriented

database.

For even more demanding Decentralized database systems, OLTP brokering programs

can distribute transaction processing among multiple computers on a network. OLTPis often integrated into SOA service-oriented architecture and Web services. Because

there is a need for transactions you will need online processing.

Benefits

Online Transaction Processing has two key benefits: simplicity and

efficiency. Reduced paper trails and the faster, more accurate forecasts for revenues

and expenses are both examples of how OLTP makes things simpler for businesses.

Disadvantages

As with any information processing system, security and reliability are considerations.

Online transaction systems are generally more susceptible to direct attack

and abuse than their offline counterparts. When organizations choose to

rely on OLTP, operations can be severely impacted if the transaction systemor database is unavailable due to data corruption, systems failure, or

network availability issues. Additionally, like many modern online information

technology solutions, some systems require offline maintenance which further affects

the cost-benefit analysis.

Another way of analyzing the difference b/w Online and Batch Processing



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Compared to on-line processing, batch processing is much slower. A complete payroll,

from balancing to preparation of checks, can be done in 3 hours by batch processing

methods. An on-line application, which handles individual transactions, is measured in

seconds. An inquiry as to the availability of a seat on an airline flight can be

completed in 2 seconds. There is a fundamental trade-off between serial /sequentialprocessing with magnetic tape and direct on-line processing with magnetic disk. On-

line processing provides extremely fast access to relatively small amounts of data on

a random basis. Batch processing provides an efficient and economical way to

process relatively large amounts of information. Many contemporary applications

have both batch and on-line processing components.



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Advantages of Spreadsheet Programs

A spreadsheet is a computer application that simulates a paper, accounting

worksheet. It displays multiple cells that together make up a grid consisting of rows

and columns, each cell containing either alphanumeric text or numeric values. Aspreadsheet cell may alternatively contain a formula that defines how the content of

that cell is to be calculated from the contents of any other cell (or combination of

cells) each time any cell is updated. Spreadsheets are frequently used for financial

information because of their ability to re-calculate the entire sheet automatically after

a change to a single cell is made.

Spreadsheets have evolved to use powerful programming languages like VBA;

specifically, they are functional, visual, and multiparadigm languages.

Many people find it easier to perform calculations in spreadsheets than by writing the

equivalent sequential program. This is due to two traits of spreadsheets.

• They use spatial relationships to define program relationships. Like all

animals, humans have highly developed intuitions about spaces, and of

dependencies between items. Sequential programming usually requires typing

line after line of text, which must be read slowly and carefully to be understood

and changed.

• They are forgiving, allowing partial results and functions to work. One

or more parts of a program can work correctly, even if other parts are

unfinished or broken. This makes writing and debugging programs much

easier, and faster. Sequential programming usually needs every program lineand character to be correct for a program to run. One error usually stops the

whole program and prevents any result.

Spreadsheets usually attempt to automatically update cells when the cells on which

they depend have been changed.

A spreadsheet allows users to enter and calculate numerical data. Using a

spreadsheet greatly increases productivity for anyone who needs to manage receipts,

create budgets, generate financial reports or even keep track of inventories and

similar lists. A spreadsheet combines the features of a general ledger with the

flexibility of powerful data analysis and reporting. Here are just a few of the uses forExcel:

• Number crunching: Create budgets, analyze survey results, and perform just about

any type of financial analysis you can think of.

• Creating charts: Create a wide variety of highly customizable charts.



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• Organizing lists: Use the row-and-column layout to store lists efficiently.

• Accessing other data: Import data from a wide variety of sources.

• Creating graphics and diagrams: Use Excel AutoShapes to create simple (and not-

so-simple) diagrams.

• Automating complex tasks: Perform a tedious task with a single mouse click with

Excel’s macro capabilities functions.

Evaluation: spreadsheet is a useful tool for data management. It is easy to use andaccessible to many people because it is part of the Microsoft Office software package.Excel spreadsheets and spreadsheets created with other software can becomecomplicated quickly when the data being analyzed is very complex in nature.spreadsheet also has problems dealing with multiple variables describing the samesubject. When detail becomes to great for excel to effectively handle, spreadsheetsshould be abandoned in favor of databases.

Shortcomings

While spreadsheets are a great step forward in quantitative modeling, they have

deficiencies as mentioned below:

1) Spreadsheets have significant reliability problems. Research studies estimate

that roughly 94% of spreadsheets deployed in the field contain errors, and

5.2% of cells in unaudited spreadsheets contain errors.

2) The practical expressiveness of spreadsheets is limited. Authors have difficulty

remembering the meanings of hundreds or thousands of cell addresses thatappear in formulas.

3) Collaboration in authoring spreadsheet formulas is difficult because such

collaboration must occur at the level of cells and cell addresses.

4) Some sources advocate the use of specialized software instead of

spreadsheets for some applications.

5) Many spreadsheet software products, such as Microsoft Excel (versions prior to

2007) and OpenOffice.org Calc, have a capacity limit of 65,536 rows by 256

columns. This can present a problem for people using very large datasets, andmay result in lost data.

6) Lack of auditing and revision control. This makes it difficult to determine who

changed what and when. This can cause problems with regulatory compliance.

Lack of revision control greatly increases the risk of errors due the inability to

track, isolate and test changes made to a document.



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7) Lack of security. Generally, if one has permission to open a spreadsheet, one

has permission to modify any part of it. This, combined with the lack of

auditing above, can make it easy for someone to commit fraud.

8) Because they are loosely structured, it is easy for someone to introduce an

error, either accidentally or intentionally, by entering information in the wrongplace or expressing dependencies among cells (such as in a formula)

incorrectly.

9) Trying to manage the sheer volume of spreadsheets which sometimes exists

within an organization without proper security, audit trails, the unintentional

introduction of errors and other items listed above can become overwhelming.

While there are built-in and third-party tools for desktop spreadsheet applications that

address some of these shortcomings, awareness and use of these is generally low. A

good example of this is that 55% of Capital market professionals "don't know" how

their spreadsheets are audited; only 6% invest in a third-party solutionAdvantages of Text Processing software system

A word processor (more formally known as document preparation system) is a

computer application used for the production (including composition, editing,

formatting, and possibly printing) of any sort of printable material.

Word processor may also refer to an obsolete type of stand-alone office machine,popular in the 1970s and 80s, combining the keyboard text-entry and printing

functions of an electric typewriter with a dedicated computer for the editing of text.

Although features and design varied between manufacturers and models, with new

features added as technology advanced, word processors for several years usually

featured a monochrome display and the ability to save documents on memory cards

or diskettes. Later models introduced innovations such as spell-checking programs,

increased formatting options, and dot-matrix printing.

Word processors are descended from early text formatting tools (sometimes called

text justification tools, from their only real capability). Word processing was one of the

earliest applications for the personal computer in office productivity.



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Although early word processors used tag-based markup for document formatting,

most modern word processors take advantage of a graphical user interface providing

some form of What You See Is What You Get editing. Most are powerful systems

consisting of one or more programs that can produce any arbitrary combination of

images, graphics and text, the latter handled with type-setting capability.

Microsoft Word is the most widely used computer word processing system; Microsoft

estimates over five hundred million people use the Office suite, which includes Word.

Open-source applications such as OpenOffice.org Writer are rapidly gaining in

popularity. Online word processors such as Google Docs are a relatively new

category.

Characteristics

1) Word processing typically implies the presence of text manipulation functions

that extend beyond a basic ability to enter and change text, such as automatic

generation of:

2) Batch mailings using a form letter template and an address database (also

called mail merging);

3) Indices of keywords and their page numbers;

4) Tables of contents with section titles and their page numbers;

5) Tables of figures with caption titles and their page numbers;

6) Cross-referencing with section or page numbers;

7) Footnote numbering;

8) Other word processing functions include "spell checking" (actually checks

against wordlists), "grammar checking" (checks for what seem to be simple

grammar errors), and a "thesaurus" function (finds words with similar or

opposite meanings).

9) Other common features include collaborative editing, comments and

annotations, support for images and diagrams and internal cross-referencing.

10)Most current word processors can calculate various statistics pertaining to a

document. These usually include: Character count, word count, sentence



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count, line count, paragraph count, page count, Word, sentence and paragraph

length, Editing time ETC.

Typical usage

Word processors have a variety of uses and applications within the business world,

home, and education.

1) Business: Within the business world, word processors are extremely useful

tools. Typical uses include:

•

legal copies

• letters and letterhead

• memos

• reference documents

Businesses tend to have their own format and style for any of these. Thus, versatile

word processors with layout editing and similar capabilities find widespread use in

most businesses.

2) Education: Many schools have begun to teach typing and word processing to

their students, starting as early as elementary school. Typically these skills are

developed throughout secondary school in preparation for the business world.

Undergraduate students typically spend many hours writing essays. Graduate and

doctoral students continue this trend, as well as creating works for research and

publication.

3) Home: While many homes have word processors on their computers, word

processing in the home tends to be educational, planning or business related, dealing

with assignments or work being completed at home, or occasionally recreational, e.g.

writing short stories. Some use word processors for letter writing, résumé creation,

and card creation. However, many of these home publishing processes have been

taken over by desktop publishing programs specifically oriented toward home use

such as The Print Shop, which is better suited for these types of documents



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Other advantages are:

• It allows easy and near-instant textual input.• There is a large variety of formatting options, including a variety of colour

choices, the ability to change font-weight (bold/regular), underlining, etc.• Images can be 'drag-and-dropped' into the application, inserted manually, or

imported from the word-art galleries.• Lists can be easily created and formatted.• Content is displayed using the standard HTML formatting, allowing great

compatability and creating a standardised, easy-to-control layout.• Compatible with a large number of standard document formats.• Extensive help documentation.• Self-explanatory dialogue boxes and menu options.• The biggest advantage to MS Word is its ubiquity. You will find it installed on

most business computers and a large percentage of home computers. This also

means that there are a lot of people who know how to use it, and if you send

someone a Word document they will have the tools to open it.

Few Downsides

• High Cost and the fact that it has a lots of extra features that most people

won't use and that can sometimes get in the way of getting things done.

• Importing pictures, tables, graphs, etc is very unpredictable, and users often

can't get an imported graphic to look how you would want it.



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• The grammar/spelling check is tricky –sometimes it tells you to change a word

to something else, which once you do, would ask you to change it back to what

you had the first time!



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ADVATAGES OF Presentation graphics software system

A presentation program is a computer software package used to display information,

normally in the form of a slide show. It typically includes three major functions:

an editor that allows text to be inserted and formatted, a method for

inserting and manipulating graphic images and a slide-show system to

display the content.

It is a type of business software that enables users to create highly stylized images

for slide shows and reports. The software includes functions for creating various types

of charts and graphs and for inserting text in a variety of fonts. Most systems enable

you to import data from a spreadsheet application to create the charts and graphs.

Presentation software (sometimes called "presentation graphics") is a category of

application program used to create sequences of words and pictures that tell a story

or help support a speech or public presentation of information. Presentation software

can be divided into business presentation software and more general multimedia

authoring tools, with some products having characteristics of both. Business

presentation software emphasizes ease- and quickness-of-learning and use.

Multimedia authoring software enables you to create a more sophisticated

presentation that includes audio and video sequences. Business presentation

software usually enables you to include images and sometimes audio and video

developed with other tools.

Some very popular presentation software, such as Microsoft's PowerPoint and Lotus's

Freelance Graphics, are sold stand-alone or can come as part of office-oriented suites

or packages of software. Other popular products include Adobe Persuasion, Astound,

Asymetrix Compel, Corel Presentations, and Harvard Graphics. Among the most

popular multimedia authoring tools are Macromedia Director and Asymetrix's

Multimedia Toolbook. These authoring tools also include presentation capability as

well. Most if not all of these products come in both PC and Mac versions.



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Database manager

Database is a software program, used to store, delete, update and retrieve data. A

database can be limited to a single desktop computer or can be stored in large server

machines, like the IBM Mainframe. There are various database management systems

available in the market. Some of them are Sybase, Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle

RDBMS, PostgreSQL, MySQL, etc.

The commonly used database management system is called relational database

management system (RDBMS). The data is stored as tuples (read: rows) in a RDBMS.

Database management systems have brought about systematization in data storage,

along with data security.

The advantages of the database management systems can be enumerated asunder:

1) Warehouse of Information



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The database management systems are warehouses of information, where large

amount of data can be stored. The common examples in commercial applications are

inventory data, personnel data, etc. It often happens that a common man uses a

database management system, without even realizing, that it is being used. The best

examples for the same would be the address book of a cell phone, digital diaries, etc.

Both these equipments store data in their internal database.

2) Defining Attributes

The unique data field in a table is assigned a primary key. The primary key helps in

the identification of data. It also checks for duplicates within the same table, thereby

reducing data redundancy. There are tables, which have a secondary key in addition

to the primary key. The secondary key is also called 'foreign key'. The secondary key

refers to the primary key of another table, thus establishing a relationship between

the two tables.

3) Systematic Storage

The data is stored in the form of tables. The tables consist of rows and columns. The

primary and secondary key help to eliminate data redundancy, enabling systematic

storage of data.

4) Changes to Schema The table schema can be changed and it is not platform dependent. Therefore, the

tables in the system can be edited to add new columns and rows without hampering

the applications, that depend on that particular database.

5) No Language Dependence

The database management systems are not language dependent. Therefore, they can

be used with various languages and on various platforms.

6) Table Joins

The data in two or more tables can be integrated into a single table. This enables to

reduce the size of the database and also helps in easy retrieval of data.



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7) Multiple Simultaneous Usage

The database can be used simultaneously by a number of users. Various users can

retrieve the same data simultaneously. The data in the database can also be

modified, based on the privileges assigned to users.

8) Data Security

Data is the most important asset. Therefore, there is a need for data security.

Database management systems help to keep the data secured.

9) Privileges

Different privileges can be given to different users. For example, some users can edit

the database, but are not allowed to delete the contents of the database.

10)Abstract View of Data and Easy Retrieval

DBMS enables easy and convenient retrieval of data. A database user can view only

the abstract form of data; the complexities of the internal structure of the database

are hidden from him. The data fetched is in user friendly format.

11)Data Consistency

Data consistency ensures a consistent view of data to every user. It includes the

accuracy, validity and integrity of related data. The data in the database must satisfy

certain consistency constraints, for example, the age of a candidate appearing for an

exam should be of number datatype and in the range of 20-25. When the database is

updated, these constraints are checked by the database systems.



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“What if” analysis

• One of the most appealing aspects of Excel is its ability to create dynamic models.

A dynamic model uses formulas that instantly recalculate when you change valuesin cells to which the formulas refer. When you change values in cells in a

systematic manner and observe the effects on specific formula cells, you’re

performing a type of what-if analysis.

• What-if analysis is the process of asking such questions as “What if the interest

rate on the loan changes to 7.5 percent rather than 7.0 percent?” or “What if we

raise our product prices by 5 percent?”

• If you set up your spreadsheet properly, answering such questions is simply a

matter of plugging in new values and observing the results of the recalculation.

Excel provides useful tools to assist you in your what-if endeavors.

A What-If Example

Figure shows a spreadsheet that calculates information pertaining to a mortgage

loan. The worksheet is divided into two sections: the input cells and the result cells

(which contain formulas).



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With this worksheet, you can easily answer the following what-if questions:

• What if I can negotiate a lower purchase price on the property?

• What if the lender requires a 20-percent down payment?

• What if I can get a 40-year mortgage?

• What if the interest rate increases to 7.0 percent?



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Types of What-If Analyses

• As you may expect, Excel can handle much more sophisticated models than

the preceding example. To perform a what-if analysis using Excel, you have

three basic options:

• Manual what-if analysis: Plug in new values and observe the effects on formula

cells.

• Data tables: Create a table that displays the results of selected formula cells as

you systematically change one or two input cells.

• Scenario Manager: Create named scenarios and generate reports that use

outlines or pivot tables.

Manual What-If Analysis

This method doesn’t require too much explanation. In fact, the example that opens

this chapter demonstrates how it’s done. Manual what-if analysis is based on the idea

that you have one or more input cells that affect one or more key formula cells. You



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change the value in the input cells and see what happens to the formula cells. You

may want to print the results or save each scenario to a new workbook. The term

scenario refers to a specific set of values in one or more input cells.

This is how most people perform what-if analysis. Manual what-if analysis certainly

has nothing wrong with it, but you should be aware of some other techniques.

What-if analysis is the process of changing the values in cells to see how those

changes will affect the outcome of formulas on the worksheet. For example, you can

use a data table to vary the interest rate and term length that are used in a loan to

determine possible monthly payment amounts.

Three kinds of what-if analysis tools come with Excel: scenarios, data tables, and Goal

Seek.

Scenarios and data tables take sets of input values and determine possible results. A

data table works only with one or two variables, but it can accept many different

values for those variables. A scenario can have multiple variables, but it can

accommodate only up to 32 values. Goal Seek works differently from scenarios and

data tables in that it takes a result and determines possible input values that produce

that result.

In addition to these three tools, you can install add-ins that help you perform what-if

analysis, such as the Solver add-in. The Solver add-in is similar to Goal Seek, but itcan accommodate more variables. You can also create forecasts by using the fill

handle and various commands that are built into Excel. For more advanced models,

you can use the Analysis Pack add-in.

Creating Data Tables

A data table is a range of cells that shows how changing one or two variables in your

formulas (formula: A sequence of values, cell references, names, functions, oroperators in a cell that together produce a new value. A formula always begins with

an equal sign (=).) will affect the results of those formulas. Data tables provide a

shortcut for calculating multiple results in one operation and a way to view and

compare the results of all the different variations together on your worksheet.



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Like scenarios, data tables help you explore a set of possible outcomes. Unlike

scenarios, data tables show you all the outcomes in one table on one worksheet.

Using data tables makes it easy to examine a range of possibilities at a glance.

Because you focus on only one or two variables, results are easy to read and share in

tabular form.

A data table cannot accommodate more than two variables. If you want to analyze

more than two variables, you should instead use scenarios. Although it is limited to

only one or two variables (one for the row input cell and one for the column input

cell), a data table can include as many different variable values as you want. A

scenario can have a maximum of 32 different values, but you can create as many

scenarios as you want.

Data table basics

You can create one-variable or two-variable data tables, depending on the number of

variables and formulas that you want to test.

Use a one-variable data table if you want to see how different values of one variable

in one or more formulas will change the results of those formulas. For example, you

can use a one-variable data table to see how different interest rates affect a monthlymortgage payment by using the PMT function. You enter the variable values in one

column or row, and the outcomes are displayed in an adjacent column or row.

A one-variable data table



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Two-variable data tables

Use a two-variable data table to see how different values of two variables in one

formula will change the results of that formula. For example, you can use a two-

variable data table to see how different combinations of interest rates and loan terms

will affect a monthly mortgage payment.

In the following illustration, cell C2 contains the payment formula, =PMT(B3/12,B4,-

B5), which uses two input cells, B3 and B4.

Create a one-variable data table

A one-variable data table has input values that are listed either down a column

(column-oriented) or across a row (row-oriented). Formulas that are used in a one-

variable data table must refer to only one input cell (input cell: The cell in which each

input value from a data table is substituted. Any cell on a worksheet can be the input

cell. Although the input cell does not need to be part of the data table, the formulas in

data tables must refer to the input cell.).

1) Type the list of values that you want to substitute in the input cell either down one

column or across one row. Leave a few empty rows and columns on either side of the

values.

2) Do one of the following:



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• If the data table is column-oriented (your variable values are in a column), type

the formula in the cell one row above and one cell to the right of the column of

values. The one-variable data table illustration shown in the Overview section

is column-oriented, and the formula is contained in cell D2.

• If you want to examine the effects of various values on other formulas, type

the additional formulas in cells to the right of the first formula.

• If the data table is row-oriented (your variable values are in a row), type the

formula in the cell one column to the left of the first value and one cell below

the row of values.

If you want to examine the effects of various values on other formulas, type the

additional formulas in cells below the first formula.

3) Select the range of cells that contains the formulas and values that you want to

substitute. Based on the first illustration in the preceding Overview section, this range

is C2:D5.

4) On the Data tab, in the Data Tools group, click What-If Analysis, and then click Data

Table.

5) Do one of the following:

If the data table is column-oriented, type the cell reference (cell reference: The set of

coordinates that a cell occupies on a worksheet. For example, the reference of the

cell that appears at the intersection of column B and row 3 is B3.) for the input cell in

the Column input cell box. Using the example shown in the first illustration, the input

cell is B3.

If the data table is row-oriented, type the cell reference for the input cell in the Row

input cell box.

Note: After you create your data table, you might want to change the format of the

result cells. In the illustration, the result cells are formatted as currency.



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Create a two-variable data table

A two-variable data table uses a formula that contains two lists of input values. The

formula must refer to two different input cells.

• In a cell on the worksheet, enter the formula that refers to the two input cells.

•

In the following example, in which the formula's starting values are entered incells B3, B4, and B5, you type the formula =PMT(B3/12,B4,-B5) in cell C2.

• Type one list of input values in the same column, below the formula. In this

case, type the different interest rates in cells C3, C4, and C5.

• Enter the second list in the same row as the formula, to its right.

• Type the loan terms (in months) in cells D2 and E2.

• Select the range of cells that contains the formula (C2), both the row and

column of values (C3:C5 and D2:E2), and the cells in which you want the

calculated values (D3:E5).

• In this case, select the range C2:E5.

• On the Data tab, in the Data Tools group, click What-If Analysis, and then click

Data Table.

• In the Row input cell box, enter the reference to the input cell for the input

values in the row.

• Type cell B4 in the Row input cell box.

• In the Column input cell box, enter the reference to the input cell for the input

values in the column.

• Type B3 in the Column input cell box.

• Click OK.



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• Example: A two-variable data table can show how different combinations of

interest rates and loan terms will affect a monthly mortgage payment. In the

following illustration, cell C2 contains the payment formula, =PMT(B3/12,B4,-

B5), which uses two input cells, B3 and B4.



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GOAL SEEK ANALYSIS IN EXCEL

Goal Seek

Goal Seek is used when you know what answer you want, but don't know the exactfigure to input for that answer. For example, you're quite certain that 8 multiplied bysomething equals 56. You just not sure what that missing number is. Is it 8 multipliedby 6? Or Is it 8 multiplied by 7? Goal Seek will tell you the answer.

We'll test that example out right now. So start a new spreadsheet, and create one thesame as in the image below:

Before you can use Goal Seek, Excel needs certain things from you. First it needssome sort of formula to work with. In the image above we have the simple formula=B1 * B2. We've put this in cell B3. But the answer is wrong for us. We had a Goal of 56 (8 times something). We want to know which number you have to multiply 8 by inorder to get the answer 56. We tried 8 times 6, and that gave the answer of 48. So wehave to try again.

Instead of us puzzling the answer out, we can let Goal Seek handle it. So do thefollowing:

• From the Excel menu bar, click on Tools• From the drop down menu, click on Goal Seek • A dialogue box pops up like the one below:

The dialogue box needs a little explaining. "Set cell" is the answer you're looking for,this is the Goal. Set cell needs a formula or function to work with. Our formula is incell B3, so if your "Set cell" text box does not say B3, click inside it and type B3.



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"To Value" is the actual answer you're looking for. With "Set cell", you're just tellingExcel where the formula is. With "To Value" you have to tell Excel what answer you'relooking for. We wanted an answer of 56 for our formula. So click inside the "To Value"text box and type 56.

"By Changing Cell" is the missing bit. This is the part of the formula that needs tochange in order to get the answer you want. In our formula we have an 8 and a 6.Clearly, the 6 is the number that has to go. So the cell that needs to change is B2. Sogo ahead and enter B2 in the "By Changing Cell" text box. Your dialogue box shouldnow look like this:

Click OK when your dialogue box looks like the one above. Excel will then Set the cellB3 to the Value of 56, and change the figure in cell B2. You'll also get a dialogue boxlike the one below:

Click OK on the dialogue box. Your new spreadsheet will look like this one:



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So Goal Seek has given us the answer we wanted: it is 7 that when times by 8 equals 56.



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Another Solution

Consider the following what-if question: “What is the total profit if sales increase by

20 percent?” If you set up your worksheet properly, you can change the value in one

cell to see what happens to the profit cell. Goal seeking takes the opposite approach.If you know what a formula result should be, Excel can tell you the values that you

need to enter in one or more input cells to produce that result. In other words, you

can ask a question such as “How much do sales need to

Increase to produce a profit of $1.2 million?” Excel provides two tools that are

relevant:

• Goal seeking: Determines the value that you need to enter in a single input cell

to produce a result that you want in a dependent (formula) cell.

• Solver: Determines the values that you need to enter in multiple input cells toproduce a result that you want.

Use Goal Seek to find out how to get a desired result

If you know the result that you want from a formula, but you are not sure what inputvalue the formula requires to get that result, you can use the Goal Seek feature. Forexample, suppose that you need to borrow some money. You know how much moneyyou want, how long a period you want in which to pay off the loan, and how much you

can afford to pay each month. You can use Goal Seek to determine what interest rateyou must secure in order to meet your loan goal.

NOTE Goal Seek works with only one variable input value. If you want todetermine more than one input value, for example, the loan amount and the

monthly payment amount for a loan, you should instead use the Solver add-

in.



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MAIL MERGE

Sometimes the term “mail merge” can be a little misleading. We assume from thetitle that the intent of mail merge is to produce letters for mass mailing purposes.

That's not necessarily the case.Mail merge is for simplifying repetitive documents and tasks. Mail merge can be usedfor creating many documents at once that contain identical formatting, layout, text,graphics, etc., and where only certain portions of each document varies. Mail mergeis also used for generating mailing labels, envelopes, address lists, personalizedtraining handouts, etc. As well as hard copy mailshots, it can be used to generatemultiple emails and electronic faxes. And it can even be used to create a “friendly”front-end to spreadsheet or database information.

Whenever you need to assemble similar data, mail merge is the answer!

Mail merge primarily consists of two files, the Main Document and the Data

Source. The Main Document contains the information that will remain the same ineach record, and the Data Source contains all the variable information, in the form of fields. This is the information that will change in the Main Document when the mergeis completed. Along with the information that remains the same, the Main Documentalso contains merge fields, which are references to the fields in the Data Source.

When the Main Document and Data Source are merged, Microsoft Word replaces eachmerge field in the Main Document with the data from the respective field contained inthe Data Source. The end result is a third document, a combination of the MainDocument and Data Source – although you can also mail merge directly to theprinter; (or fax or email) – you don't need to create a merged document on screen;and you can also “preview” the mail merge without actually merging (using theViewMergedData button).

Start a mail merge

Start a mail merge. To do this, follow these steps, as appropriate for the version of Word that you are running.

Microsoft Word 2002

On the Tools menu, click Letters and Mailings, and then click Mail MergeWizard.

Microsoft Office Word 2003

On the Tools menu, click Letters and Mailings, and then click Mail Merge.

Microsoft Office Word 2007

On the Mailings tab, click Start Mail Merge, and then click Step by Step MailMerge Wizard.



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Select document type

• In the Mail Merge task pane, click Letters. This will allow you to send lettersto a group of people and personalize the results of the letter that each personreceives.

• Click Next: Starting document.

Select the starting document

1. Click one of the following options:o Use the current document: Use the currently open document as your

main document.o Start from a template: Select one of the ready-to-use mail merge

templates.o Start from existing document: Open an existing document to use as

your mail merge main document.2. In the Mail Merge task pane, click Next: Select recipients.

Select recipients

When you open or create a data source by using the Mail Merge Wizard, you aretelling Word to use a specific set of variable information for your merge. Use one of the following methods to attach the main document to the data source.

Method 1: Use an existing data source

To use an existing data source, follow these steps:

1. In the Mail Merge task pane, click Use an existing list.2. In the Use an existing list section, click Browse.3. In the Select Data Source dialog box, select the file that contains the

variable information that you want to use, and then click Open.Note If the data source is not listed in the list of files, select the appropriatedrive and folder. If necessary, select the appropriate option in the All DataSources list. Select the file, and then click Open.Word displays the Mail Merge Recipients dialog box. You can sort and edityour data if you want to.

4. Click OK to return to the main document.5. Save the main document.

When you save the main document at this point, you are also saving the datasource and attaching the data source to the main document.

6. Type the name that you want to give to your main document, and thenclick Save.

Method 2: Use names from a Microsoft Outlook Contacts List

To use an Outlook Contact List, follow these steps:

1. In the Mail Merge task pane, click Next: Select recipients.2. Click Select from Outlook contacts.3. In the Select from Outlook contacts section, click Choose Contacts

Folder.



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4. In the Select Contact List Folder dialog box, select the Outlook contactsfolder that you want, and then click OK .Word displays the Mail Merge Recipients dialog box. You can sort and edityour data if you want.

5. Click OK to return to the main document.

Method 3: Create a database of names and addresses

To create a new database, follow these steps:

1. In the Mail Merge task pane, click Next: Select Recipients.2. Click Type a new list.3. Click Create.

The New Address List dialog box appears. In this dialog box, enter theaddress information for each record. If there is no information for a particularfield, leave the box blank.By default, Word skips blank fields. Therefore, the merge is not affected if blank entries are in the data form. The set of information in each form makes

up one data record.4. After you type the information for a record, click New Entry to move to thenext record. To delete a record, click Delete Entry. To search for a specific record,click Find Entry. To customize your list, click Customize. In the CustomizeAddress List dialog box, you can add, delete, rename, and reorder the mergefields.

5. In the New Address List dialog box, click OK . In the Save AddressList dialog box, type the name that you want to give to your data source inthe File name box, and then click Save.

6. In the Mail Merge Recipients dialog box, make any changes that you want,and then click OK .

7. Click Next: Write your letter to finish setting up your letter.8. Save the main document. When you save the main document at this point, youare also saving the data source and attaching the data source to the maindocument.

9. Type the name that you want to give to your main document, and thenclick Save.

To proceed to the next step, click Next: Write your letter.

Write your letter

In this step, you set up your main document.

1. Type or add any text and graphics that you want to include in your letter.2. Add the field codes where you want the variable information to appear. In

the Mail Merge task pane, you have four options:o Address block : Use this option to insert a formatted address.o Greeting line: Use this option to insert a formatted salutation.o Electronic postage: Use this option to insert electronic postage.

Note This option requires that you have a postage softwareprogram installed on your computer.



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o More items: Use this option to insert individual merge fields. When youclickMore Items, the Insert Merge Field dialog box appears.Note Make sure that your cursor is where you want to insert theinformation from your data source before you click More Items.In the Insert Merge Field dialog box, click the merge field that youwant to use, and then click Insert.

Note You can insert all of your fields and then go back and add anyspaces or punctuation. Alternatively, you can insert one field at a time,close the Insert Merge Fields dialog box, add any spaces orpunctuation that you want, and then repeat this step for each additionalmerge field that you want to insert. You can also format (apply bold oritalic formatting to) the merge fields, just like regular text.

3. When you finish editing the main document, click Save or Save As onthe File menu.

Note In Word 2007, click the Microsoft Office Button, and thenclick Save or Save As.Name the file, and then click Save. To proceed to the next step, click Next:

Preview your letters.

Preview your letters

This step allows you to preview your merged data, one letter at a time. You can alsomake changes to your recipient list or personalize individual letters.

To proceed to the next step, click Next: Complete the merge.

Complete the merge

This step merges the variable information with the form letter. You can output themerge result by using either of the following options:

• Print: Select this option to send the merged document directly to the printer. You will not be able to view the document on your screen.When you click Print, the Merge to Printer dialog box appears. In the Mergeto Printer dialog box, you can choose which records to merge. When youclick OK , the Print dialog box appears. Click Print to print the mergedocument.

• Edit individual letters: Select this option to display the merged document onyour screen.When you click Edit individual letters, the Merge to New Document dialog

box appears. In the Merge to New Document dialog box, you can choosewhich records to merge. When you click OK , the documents are merged to anew Word document. To print the file, on the File menu, click Print.Note In Word 2007, click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Print.

Glossary



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Address list: An address list is a file that contains the data that varies in each copy

of a merged document. For example, a data source can include the name and

address of each recipient of a form letter.

Boilerplate: Generic information that is repeated in each form letter, mailing label,

envelope, or directory (catalog).

Data field: A category of information in a data source. A data field corresponds to

one column of information in the data source. The name of each data field is listed in

the first row (header row) of the data source. "PostalCode" and "LastName" are

examples of data field names.

Data record: A complete set of related information in a data source. A data record

corresponds to one row of information in the data source. All information about one

client in a client mailing list is an example of a data record.

Delimited file: A text file that has data fields separated (or delimited) by tab

characters or commas, and data records delimited by paragraph marks.

Header row: The first row (or record) in a mail merge data source. The header row

contains the field names for the categories of information in the data source; for

example, "Name" and "City." The header row can also be stored in a separate

document called the header source.

Main document: In a mail merge operation, the document that contains the text and

graphics that remain the same for each version of the merged document; for

example, the return address and body of a form letter.

Merge field: A placeholder that you insert in the main document. Merge fields tell

Microsoft Word where to insert specific information from the data source. For

example, insert the merge field "City" to have Word insert a city name, such as

"Paris," that is stored in the City data field.

Merged document: The document that is created by merging the data from the

data source into the main document.



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SLIDE TRANSITION

What is a Slide Transition?

A slide transition is the visual motion when one slide changes to the next during a

presentation. By default, one slide simply replaces the previous one on screen, much

the same way that a slide show of photographs would change from one to the next.

Most presentation software programs provide many different transition effects that

you can use to liven up your slide show.

Slide Transition Choices

Transitions range from a simple Cover Down, where the next slide covers the current

one from the top of the screen, to a Wheel Clockwise where the new slide spins in like

spokes on a wheel to cover the previous one. You can also have slides dissolve into

each other, push each other off the screen, or open up like horizontal or vertical

blinds.

Common Mistakes When Using Slide Transitions

While all this choice may seem like a great thing, common mistakes made are to use

too many transitions, or to use one that doesn’t fit well with the subject matter. In

most cases, find one transition that doesn’t detract from the presentation

and use it throughout the show.

Add a Different Slide Transition to Slides Needing Special Emphasis

If there is a slide that needs special emphasis, you might consider using a separatetransition for it, but don’t choose a separate transition for each slide. Your slide show

will look amateurish and your audience will quite likely be distracted from the

presentation itself, as they wait and watch for the next transition.



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Slide Transitions are one of the many finishing touches to a presentation. Wait until

you have the slides edited and arranged in the preferred order before setting

animations

Slide Transition Effects

It includes Blinds, Box, Checkerboard, Dissolve, Random, Split, Strips, and Wipe.

There are four other effects for slide transitions:

• Cover – brings the next slide over the current one from a direction you specify

• Cut – this is similar to the Appear effect where the slide appears over the

previous slide

• Fade – this is similar to the Dissolve effect except that it starts with an all black

screen before dissolving the new slide on the screen

• Uncover – takes away the previous slide to reveal the new slide underneath

Many of the transitions have a choice of what speed the transition should

happen at and you can choose whether the transition should happen on the

slide advance or at a certain time. There is also an option to randomly

choose the transition effect from the list of possibilities. You can choose to

apply the transition to one slide only or to all the slides in the slide show.

It is important not to let special effects have a detrimental effect on your

presentation. Just because sound and motion are available to you, they should not

necessarily be used. More often than not, these features are used inappropriately

and become more of a focus than the content of the presentation. Beware of this as

you create your presentation. Used sparingly, these effects can have a greater

impact on audience attention when they do appear.

To apply a transition, select "Slide Transition" from the "Slide Show" menu shownbelow:



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The following pop-up window will appear.

• From the "Effect" section of this window, you will be able to select a transitionform the drop-down menu (shown above with "No Transition" selected).

• Click on the downward arrow to view the various options. When a transition isselected, you will be able to choose the speed of the transition by clicking on the

radio button for slow, medium, or fast.• On this window, you will also be able to determine how you advance to the next

slide. The default is a mouse click (see checked box above in the "Advance"section). You may also choose to automatically have your presentation move ontothe next slide after a number of seconds.

• There is also an option to play a sound when moving between slides. Again,beware of using too many special effects. They can all too easily make yourpresentation turn tacky and distracting.



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• When you have set your transition preferences, click the "Apply" button to set thepreferences for just the slide you have selected or click "Apply to All" to apply thistransition to all of the slides in your presentation.

Another way to set slide transitions is to go to the "Slide Sorter" view. To select thisview, go to the "View" menu and select "Slide Sorter" as follows:

There are also shortcut buttons for each viewing option. These are located in thelower left corner of the PowerPoint window and look like the following.

In the "Slide Sorter" view, all of the slides are viewed at once. Drop-down menus willappear at the top of the window that will allow you select slide transition effects andtext animation effects easily. These menus will also display the chosen special effectfor a selected slide. You can select a slide by clicking on it. More than one slide canbe selected by holding down the Shift button on your keyboard as you click onadditional slides.



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In 2007

• Transition View

•

Slide Sorter



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DATA QUERY

A database "query" is basically a "question" that you ask the database. The results of

the query is the information that is returned by the database management system.

Queries are usually constructed using SQL (structured query language) whichresembles a high-level programming language. SQL is originally based upon

Relational Algebra. Its scope includes data query and update, schema creation and

modification, and data access control.

Queries

The most common operation in SQL is the query, which is performed with thedeclarative SELECT statement. SELECT retrieves data from one or more tables, or

expressions. Standard SELECT statements have no persistent effects on the database.

Some non-standard implementations of SELECT can have persistent effects, such as

the SELECT INTO syntax that exists in some databases.

A query includes a list of columns to be included in the final result immediately

following the SELECT keyword. An asterisk ("*") can also be used to specify that the

query should return all columns of the queried tables. SELECT is the most complex

statement in SQL, with optional keywords and clauses that include:

• The FROM clause which indicates the table(s) from which data is to be retrieved.

The FROM clause can include optional JOIN sub clauses to specify the rules for

joining tables.

• The WHERE clause eliminates all rows from the result set for which the

comparison predicate does not evaluate to True.

• The GROUP BY clause is used to project rows having common values into a smaller

set of rows. The WHERE clause is applied before the GROUP BY clause.

• The HAVING clause includes a predicate used to filter rows resulting from the

GROUP BY clause.

• The ORDER BY clause identifies which columns are used to sort the resulting data,

and in which direction they should be sorted (options are ascending or



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descending). Without an ORDER BY clause, the order of rows returned by an SQL

query is undefined.

Data manipulation

The Data Manipulation Language (DML) is the subset of SQL used to add, update and

delete data:

• INSERT adds rows to an existing table, e.g.,:

INSERT INTO My_table

(field1, field2, field3)

VALUES

('test', 'N', NULL);

• UPDATE modifies a set of existing table rows, e.g.,:

UPDATE My_table

SET field1 = 'updated value'

WHERE field2 = 'N';

• DELETE removes existing rows from a table, e.g.,:

DELETE FROM My_table

WHERE field2 = 'N';

• TRUNCATE deletes all data from a table in a very fast way. It usually implies a

subsequent COMMIT operation.

• MERGE is used to combine the data of multiple tables. It combines the INSERT

and UPDATE elements. It is defined in the SQL:2003 standard.

Transaction controls

Transactions, if available, wrap DML operations:

• COMMIT causes all data changes in a transaction to be made permanent.



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• ROLLBACK causes all data changes since the last COMMIT or ROLLBACK to be

discarded, leaving the state of the data as it was prior to those changes.

• Once the COMMIT statement completes, the transaction's changes cannot be

rolled back.

• COMMIT and ROLLBACK terminate the current transaction and release data

locks.

Data definition

The Data Definition Language (DDL) manages table and index structure. The most

basic items of DDL are the CREATE, ALTER, RENAME, DROP and TRUNCATE

statements:

• CREATE creates an object (a table, for example) in the database.

• DROP deletes an object in the database, usually irretrievably.

• ALTER modifies the structure of an existing object in various ways—for

example, adding a column to an existing table.

Data types

Each column in an SQL table declares the type(s) that column may contain. ANSI SQL

includes the following data types.

• Character strings

CHAR(n) — fixed-width n-character string, padded with spaces as needed

VARCHAR(n) — variable-width string with a maximum size of n characters

• Bit strings

BIT(n) — an array of n bits

• Numbers



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INTEGER and SMALLINT

FLOAT, REAL and DOUBLE PRECISION

• Date and Time

DATE

TIME

TIMESTAMP

INTERVAL

Data control

• The Data Control Language (DCL) authorizes users and groups of

users to access and manipulate data. Its two main statements are:

GRANT authorizes one or more users to perform an operation or a set of

operations on an object.

REVOKE eliminates a grant, which may be the default grant.

Criticisms of SQL

• Implementations are inconsistent and, usually, incompatible between vendors.

• The language makes it too easy to do a Cartesian join (joining all possible

combinations), which results in "run-away" result sets when WHERE clauses are

mistyped.

• It is also possible to misconstruct a WHERE on an update or delete, thereby

affecting more rows in a table than desired.

• The grammar of SQL is perhaps unnecessarily complex

Alternatives to SQL



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• D is a query language for truly relational database management systems

(TRDBMS);

• DMX is a query language for Data Mining models;

• LDAP is an application protocol for querying and modifying directory services

running over TCP/IP.

• MDX is a query language for OLAP databases;

• XQuery is a query language for XML data sources;

• XPath is a language for navigating XML documents;

COMPUTER NETWORKS

A computer network can be divided into a small segments called Local Area Network

(LAN), networking between computers in a building of a office, medium sized

networks (MAN), communication between two offices in a city and wide area networks

(WAN) networking between the computers, one is locally placed and the other can be

thousands of miles away in another city or another country in the world.

Networking is the practice of linking two or more computers or devices with each

other. The connectivity can be wired or wireless. A computer network can be

categorized in different ways, depends on the geographical area as mentioned above.

WAN connectivity is achieved by a device known as “Router”. The internet is the

world’s largest WAN, where millions of computers from all over the globe and

connected with each other.

There are two main types of the computer networking client-server and peer to peer.



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In the client server computing, a computer plays a major role known as server, where

the files, data in the form of web pages, docs or spread sheet files, video, database &

resources are placed. All the other computers in the client/server networks are called

clients and they get the data from the server. In the peer to peer networks all the

computers play the same role and no computer act as a centralized server. In the

major businesses around the world client-server networks model is in major use.

A network topology defines the structure, design or layout of a network .

There are different topologies like bus, ring, star, mesh, hybrid etc. The star

topology is most commonly used topology. In the star topology, all the computers in

the network are connected with a centralized device such as hub or switch. Thus

forms a star like structure. If the hubs/switch fails to work for any reason then all the

connectivity and communication between the computers will be halted.

A common communication language is used by the computers and the

communication devices, known as protocols. The most commonly used and popular

protocol on the internet and in the home and other networks is called TCP/IP. TCP/IP is

not a single protocol but it is a suite of several protocols. A computer network can be

a wired or wireless and TCP/IP protocol can work in both types of network. Data flow

or communication can be divided into seven logical layers called OSI layers

model that was developed by Intel and Xerox Corporation and was

standardized by ISO.

1. Application layer

2. Presentation layer

3. Session layer

4. Transport layer

5. Network layer

6. Data Link layer

7. Physical layer

A Computer Network or simply Network is a collection of computers and devices

connected by communications channels that facilitates communications among users

and allows users to share resources with other users.



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Purpose

a. Facilitating communications: Using a network, people can communicateefficiently and easily via e-mail, instant messaging, chat rooms, telephony,

video telephone calls, and videoconferencing.

b. Sharing hardware: In a networked environment, each computer on a network

can access and use hardware on the network. Suppose several personal

computers on a network each require the use of a laser printer. If the personal

computers and a laser printer are connected to a network, each user can then

access the laser printer on the network, as they need it.

c. Sharing files, data, and information: In a network environment, any authorized

user can access data and information stored on other computers on the

network.

d. Sharing software. Users connected to a network can access application

programs on the network.

Network classification

The following list presents categories used for classifying networks.

Connection method

Computer networks can be classified according to the hardware and software

technology that is used to interconnect the individual devices in the network, such as

optical fiber, Ethernet, Wireless LAN, HomePNA, Power line communication or G.hn,Ethernet, Wired technologies, Wireless technologies, Terrestrial Microwave ,

Communications Satellites, Cellular and PCS Systems, Wireless LANs, Bluetooth

Scale



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Networks are often classified as local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN),

metropolitan area network (MAN), personal area network (PAN), virtual private

network (VPN), campus area network (CAN), storage area network (SAN), and others,

depending on their scale, scope and purpose. Usage, trust level, and access right

often differ between these types of network.

Functional relationship (network architecture)

Computer networks may be classified according to the functional relationships which

exist among the elements of the network, e.g., active networking, client-server and

peer-to-peer (workgroup) architecture.

Network topology

Computer networks may be classified according to the network topology upon which

the network is based, such as bus network, star network, ring network, mesh network,

star-bus network, tree or hierarchical topology network. Network topology is the

coordination by which devices in the network are arrange in their logical relations to

one another, independent of physical arrangement. Even if networked computers are

physically placed in a linear arrangement and are connected to a hub, the network

has a star topology, rather than a bus topology. In this regard the visual and

operational characteristics of a network are distinct.

Types of networks

Common types of computer networks may be identified by their scale.

Personal area network

A personal area network (PAN) is a computer network used for communication among

computer and different information technological devices close to one person. Someexamples of devices that are used in a PAN are personal computers, printers, fax

machines, telephones, PDAs, scanners, and even video game consoles. A PAN may

include wired and wireless connections between devices.

Local area network



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A local area network (LAN) is a network that connects computers and devices in a

limited geographical area such as home, school, computer laboratory, office building,

or closely positioned group of buildings. Each computer or device on the network is a

node.

Home area network

A home area network (HAN) or home network is a residential local area network. It is

used for communication between digital devices typically deployed in the home,

usually a small number of personal computers and accessories, such as printers and

mobile computing devices.

Campus area network

A campus area network (CAN) is a computer network made up of an interconnection

of local area networks (LANs) within a limited geographical area. It can be considered

one form of a metropolitan area network, specific to an academic setting. In the case

of a university campus-based campus area network, the network is likely to link a

variety of campus buildings including; academic departments, the university library

and student residence halls. A campus area network is larger than a local area

network but smaller than a wide area network (WAN) (in some cases).

A CAN may be considered a type of MAN (metropolitan area network), but is generallylimited to a smaller area than a typical MAN. This term is most often used to discuss

the implementation of networks for a contiguous area. A metropolitan area network

(MAN) is a network that connects two or more local area networks or campus area

networks together but does not extend beyond the boundaries of the immediate

town/city. Routers, switches and hubs are connected to create a metropolitan area

network.

Wide area network

A wide area network (WAN) is a computer network that covers a large geographicarea such as a city, country, or spans even intercontinental distances, using a

communications channel that combines many types of media such as telephone lines,

cables, and air waves. A WAN often uses transmission facilities provided by common

carriers, such as telephone companies..

Global area network



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A global area network (GAN) is a model for supporting mobile communications across

an arbitrary number of wireless LANs, satellite coverage areas, etc.

Virtual private network

A virtual private network (VPN) is a computer network in which some of the links

between nodes are carried by open connections or virtual circuits in some larger

network (e.g., the Internet) instead of by physical wires. The data link layer protocols

of the virtual network are said to be tunneled through the larger network when this is

the case. A VPN allows computer users to appear to be editing from an IP address

location other than the one which connects the actual computer to the Internet.

Internetwork

An Internetwork is the connection of two or more distinct computer networks via a

common routing technology.

Internet

The Internet is a global system of interconnected governmental, academic, public,

and private computer networks. It is based on the networking technologies of the

Internet Protocol Suite. The Internet is also the communications backbone underlying

the World Wide Web (WWW). The 'Internet' is most commonly spelled with a capital 'I'

as a proper noun, for historical reasons and to distinguish it from other genericinternetworks.

Intranets and extranets

Intranets and extranets are parts or extensions of a computer network, usually a local

area network. An intranet is a set of networks, using the Internet Protocol and IP-

based tools such as web browsers and file transfer applications, that is under the

control of a single administrative entity. That administrative entity closes the intranet

to all but specific, authorized users. Most commonly, an intranet is the internalnetwork of an organization. A large intranet will typically have at least one web server

to provide users with organizational information.

An extranet is a network that is limited in scope to a single organization or entity and

also has limited connections to the networks of one or more other usually, but not

necessarily, trusted organizations or entities. Technically, an extranet may also be

categorized as a CAN, MAN, WAN, or other type of network, although, by definition, an



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extranet cannot consist of a single LAN; it must have at least one connection with an

external network.



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IPO Cycle

The IPOS Cycle is how a computer intakes data, processes the data, outputsinformation, and then saves the information.

1. Input

Computer receives data from input device.

2. Processing

Computer's central processing unit (CPU) processes the data into information.

3. Output

Meaningful information displayed on monitor or printed out.

4. Storage

Saves results to computers hard drive or other types of secondary storage.

IPO Cycle in Detail

1. Input Devices

Devices which transfer data, programs, or signals into a computer systems are called

input devices. These devices are used to give raw data to the computer to perform

the specific tasks. Firstly, the data, programs, a signals are fed into the input devices

in a suitable form, and are then converted by the device into electrical signals from

human-readable format that are transmitted to the central processing unit of the

computer.

2. The Processing Device



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The main unit inside the computer is the CPU, the processor. This unit is responsible

for all events inside the computer. It controls all internal and external devices,

performs arithmetic and logic operations. The CPU (Central Processing Unit) is the

device that interprets and executes instructions. The operations, a microprocessor

performs are called the instruction set of this processor. Processors differ from one to

another by the instruction set.

Today’s single chip central processing units, called microprocessors, make personal

computers and workstations possible. By definition, the CPU is the chip that functions

as the brain of a computer. In some instances, however, the term encompasses both

the processor and the computer’s memory or, even more broadly, the main computer

console.

The CPU is composed of several units:

• The Control Unit (CU) directs add controls the activities of the internal and

external devices. It interprets the instructions obtained into the computer,

determines what data are needed, where it is stored, where to stored the results

of the operations, and sends the control signal to the devices involved in the

execution of the instructions.

• The Arithmetic and Logic Unit (ALU) is the part where actual computations

take place. It consists of circuits, which perform arithmetic operations (e.g.

Addition, subtraction, multiplication, division) over data receive from memory and

capable to compare numbers.

3. Output Devices

Output devices are used to get final result from the computer. Firstly, output isdisplayed on monitor. Then we can print out these outputs on a paper with the help of

printer. The purpose of the output devices is to translate data and information from

electrical impulses to human-readable format. The output device, which is necessary

for the computer to display messages to the user, is a monitor. If we want to keep the

copy of the work on paper, we used printers. Plotters are devices that are more



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suitable for the large scale outputs like engineering drawings and high quality

graphics.

Linkage to Batch Processing

Batch jobs can be stored up during working hours and then executed during theevening or whenever the computer is idle. Batch processing is particularly useful foroperations that require the computer or a peripheral device for an extended period of time. Once a batch job begins, it continues until it is done or until an error occurs.Note that batch processing implies that there is no interaction with the user while theprogram is being executed.

An example of batch processing is the way that credit card companies process billing. The customer does not receive a bill for each separate credit card purchase but onemonthly bill for all of that month’s purchases. The bill is created through batch

processing, where all of the data are collected and held until the bill is processed as abatch at the end of the billing cycle.

The opposite of batch processing is transaction processing or interactive processing. In interactive processing,the application responds to commands as soon as you enter them.

Linkage to Online Processing

Online transaction processing increasingly requires support for transactions that span

a network and may include more than one company.



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GENERATION OF LANGUAGES

Programming languages have evolved tremendously since early 1950's and this

evolution has resulted in over hundreds of different languages being invented andused in the industry.

1) We start out with the first and second generation languages during the

period of 1950-60, which to many experienced programmers will say are machine

and assembly languages. Computers then were programmed in binary notation

that was very prone to errors. A simple algorithm resulted in lengthy code. This

was then improved to mnemonic codes to represent operations.

2) Symbolic assembly codes came next in the mid 1950's, the second

generation of programming language like AUTOCODER, SAP and SPS.Symbolic addresses allowed programmers to represent memory locations,

variables and instructions with names. This kind of programming is still considered

fast and to program in machine language required high knowledge of the CPU and

machine's instruction set. This also meant high hardware dependency and lack of

portability.

3) Throughout the early 1960's till 1980 saw the emergence of the third

generation programming languages. Languages like ALGOL 58, 60 and

68, COBOL, FORTRAN IV, ADA and C are examples of this and were

considered as high level languages. Most of these languages had compilers and

the advantage of this was speed. Independence was another factor as these

languages were machine independent and could run on different machines. The

advantages of high level languages include the support for ideas of abstraction so

that programmers can concentrate on finding the solution to the problem rapidly,

rather than on low-level details of data representation. The comparative ease of

use and learning, improved portability and simplified debugging, modifications

and maintenance led to reliability and lower software costs. These languages

were mostly created following von Neumann constructs which had sequential

procedural operations and code executed using branches and loops. Although the

syntax between these languages were different but they shared similar constructs

and were more readable by programmers and users compared to assemblylanguages. COBOL (COmmon Business-Oriented Language), a business data

processing language is an example of a language constantly improving over the

decades. The new COBOL 97 has included new features like Object Oriented

Programming to keep up with current languages. One good possible reason for

this is the fact that existing code is important and to totally develop a new



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language from start would be a lengthy process. This also was the rationalisation

behind the developments of C and C++.

4) Third generation languages often followed procedural code, meaning the language

performs functions defined in specific procedures on how something is done. In

comparison, most fourth generation languages are nonprocedural. Adisadvantage with fourth generation languages was they were slow compared to

compiled languages and they also lacked control. Features evident in fourth

generation languages quite clearly are that it must be user friendly, portable and

independent of operating systems, usable by non-programmers, having intelligent

default options about what the user wants and allowing the user to obtain results

fasts using minimum requirement code generated with bug-free code from high-

level expressions (employing a data-base and dictionary management which

makes applications easy and quick to change), which was not possible using

COBOL or PL/I. Examples of this generation of languages are IBM's ADRS2, APL,

CSP and AS, Power Builder, Access.

5) The 1990's saw the developments of fifth generation languages like

PROLOG, referring to systems used in the field of artificial intelligence,

fuzzy logic and neural networks. This means computers can in the future have

the ability to think for themselves and draw their own inferences using

programmed information in large databases.

6) What does the next generation of languages hold for us? The sixth generation?

The current trend of the Internet and the World Wide Web could cultivate a whole

new breed of radical programmers for the future, now exploring new boundaries

with languages like HTML and Java. What happens next is entirely dependent on

the future needs of the whole computer and communications industry.

Another explanation

1GL or first-generation language was (and still is) machine language or the level of instructions and data that the processor is actually given to work on (which in

conventional computers is a string of 0s and 1s).2GL or second-generation language is assembler (sometimes called "assembly")language.

3GL or third-generation language is a "high-level" programming language, suchas PL/I, C, or Java.

A compiler converts the statements of a specific high-level programming languageinto machine language. (In the case of Java, the output is called bytecode, which is



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converted into appropriate machine language by a Java virtual machine that runs aspart of an operating system platform.) A 3GL language requires a considerableamount of programming knowledge.

4GL or fourth-generation language is designed to be closer to natural language thana 3GL language. Languages for accessing databases are often described as 4GLs. A

4GL language statement might look like this:EXTRACT ALL CUSTOMERS WHERE "PREVIOUS PURCHASES" TOTAL MORE THAN$1000

5GL or fifth-generation language is programming that uses a visual or graphicaldevelopment interface to create source language that is usually compiled with a 3GLor 4GL language compiler. Microsoft, Borland, IBM, and other companies make 5GLvisual programming products for developing applications in Java, for example. Visualprogramming allows you to easily envision object-orientedprogramming class hierarchies and drag icons to assemble program components.

INTERNET BASED COMPUTING

Internet computing is a model for enabling convenient, on-demand network access to

a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g., networks, servers, storage,

applications, and services) that can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal

management effort or service provider interaction. This Internet model promotes

availability and is composed of five essential characteristics, three service

models, and four deployment models.

Essential Characteristics:

1) On-demand self-service: A consumer can unilaterally provision computing

capabilities, such as server time and network storage, as needed automatically

without requiring human interaction with each service’s provider.



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2) Broad network access: Capabilities are available over the network and accessed

through standard mechanisms that promote use by heterogeneous thin or thick

client platforms (e.g., mobile phones, laptops, and PDAs).

3) Resource pooling: The provider’s computing resources are pooled to serve

multiple consumers using a multi-tenant model, with different physical and virtualresources dynamically assigned and reassigned according to consumer demand.

Examples of resources include storage, processing, memory, network bandwidth,

and virtual machines.

4) Rapid elasticity: Capabilities can be rapidly and elastically provisioned, in some

cases automatically, to quickly scale out and rapidly released to quickly scale in.

To the consumer, the capabilities available for provisioning often appear to be

unlimited and can be purchased in any quantity at any time.

5) Measured Service: Internet systems automatically control and optimize resource

use by leveraging a metering capability at some level of abstraction appropriate tothe type of service (e.g., storage, processing, bandwidth, and active user

accounts). Resource usage can be monitored, controlled, and reported providing

transparency for both the provider and consumer of the utilized service.

Service Models:

1. Internet Software as a Service (SaaS). The capability provided to the

consumer is to use the provider’s applications running on a Internet infrastructure.

The applications are accessible from various client devices through a thin client

interface such as a Internet browser (e.g., Internet-based email). The consumerdoes not manage or control the underlying Internet infrastructure including

network, servers, operating systems, storage, or even individual application

capabilities, with the possible exception of limited user-specific application

configuration settings.

2. Internet Platform as a Service (PaaS). The capability provided to the

consumer is to deploy onto the Internet infrastructure consumer-created or

acquired applications created using programming languages and tools supported

by the provider. The consumer does not manage or control the underlying Internetinfrastructure including network, servers, operating systems, or storage, but has

control over the deployed applications and possibly application hosting

environment configurations.



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3. Internet Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS). The capability provided to the

consumer is to provision processing, storage, networks, and other fundamental

computing resources where the consumer is able to deploy and run arbitrary

software, which can include operating systems and applications. The consumer

does not manage or control the underlying Internet infrastructure but has control

over operating systems, storage, deployed applications, and possibly limitedcontrol of select networking components (e.g., host firewalls).

Deployment Models:

1. Private Internet: The Internet infrastructure is operated solely for an

organization. It may be managed by the organization or a third party and may

exist on premise or off premise.

2. Community Internet: The Internet infrastructure is shared by several

organizations and supports a specific community that has shared concerns (e.g.,

mission, security requirements, policy, and compliance considerations). It may be

managed by the organizations or a third party and may exist on premise or off

premise.

3. Public Internet: The Internet infrastructure is made available to the general

public or a large industry group and is owned by an organization selling Internet

services.

4. Hybrid Internet: The Internet infrastructure is a composition of two or moreInternets (private, community, or public) that remain unique entities but are

bound together by standardized or proprietary technology that enables data and

application portability (e.g., Internet bursting for load-balancing between

Internets).



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DATA CONSOLIDATION IN EXCEL

To summarize and report results from multiple worksheets, you can consolidate data

from each worksheet into a master worksheet. The worksheets can be in the same

workbook or other workbooks. When you consolidate data, you are assembling data

so you can more easily update and aggregate it on a regular or ad hoc basis.

For example, if you have a worksheet of expense figures for each of your regional

offices, you might use a consolidation to roll up these figures into a corporate

expense worksheet. This master worksheet might contain sales totals and averages,

current inventory levels, and highest selling products for the entire enterprise.

To consolidate data, you use the Consolidate command from the Data menu to

display the Consolidate dialog box. You can use this dialog box in several ways to

consolidate your data:

1. Consolidate by Position: Use this approach when the data in all worksheets is

arranged in identical order and location.

2. Consolidate by Category: Use this approach when each worksheet organizes the

data differently, but has the same row and column labels, which you can use to

match the data.

3. Consolidate by using 3-D formulas: Use this approach when the worksheets do not

have a consistent pattern you can rely on. You can create formulas that refer to

cells in each range of data that you're combining. Formulas that refer to cells on

multiple worksheets are called 3-D formulas.

4. Other ways to combine data.

How to do: If you have two or more Microsoft Excel worksheets that are identical toeach other (except the values are different), you can have Excel's Data Consolidatefeature consolidate the worksheets into a summary report.

For example, suppose you have a workbook that consists of two worksheets. Oneworksheet has your students' names in A1:A20 and their corresponding midtermgrades in B1:B20. The second worksheet lists the students' names in column A andtheir final grades in column B.



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To create a worksheet listing the students' average grade, follow these steps:

1.Create a new worksheet and click A1.

2.Go to Data | Consolidate.

3.Select Average from the Function drop-down list.

4.Click the Collapse dialog button.5.Select A1:B20 in Midterm Grades Sheet.

6.Click the Collapse dialog button and click Add.

7.Click the Collapse dialog button and Select A1:B20 in Final Grades Sheet.

8.Click the Collapse dialog button and click Add.

9.Under Use Labels In: select the Left Column check box. Click OK.

The students' average grades are now listed in the new worksheet.

Data Consolidation for Excel is an Excel add-in which allows to consolidate

spreadsheets data from one or several sheets from one or many open workbooks

quickly and easily.

Key Features of Data Consolidation for Excel include:

1. Data Consolidator - This useful tool makes easy the process of consolidating

information proceeding from a different workbook but from the same range.

a. Consolidator (Creating models) - This utility is contained within the

Consolidator tool. It is useful for the need to often create and execute the

same model with the same data. The consolidation tool allows to save those

models and simply execute them the next time required.

b. Consolidator (Existing Models) - After a model has been saved, it can be

executed using this tool.

c. Consolidator (Copy models) - Enables to copy consolidation models from a

workbook to another. For this objective, the workbooks that contain the

consolidation models must to be open.

d. Multi-Sheet Consolidator - This tool copies the selected sheets from eachchosen workbook to a existing workbook or to a new workbook. Afterward,

it consolidates the same range from each sheet in a new sheet (in the case

of a new workbook) or in the selected sheet (in the case of a open

workbook). The process of data consolidation can also be automated.



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2. Detailed Consolidation - This type of consolidation is appropriate to see the

detail along with the consolidation totals.

3. Export sheets - This tool allows the exporting of chosen sheets from a workbook

with options such as converting formulas to values, keeping colors, and ordering.

4. Toggle settings - This tool saves time by saving settings that can be recuperated

and utilized for repetitive tasks.

5. Freeze or Divide panes - This tool can help in the process of creating,

navigating through, editing excessively long models and keeping an eye on them



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REPORT CREATION IN MS-ACCESS

The sample images in this tutorial were created using Access 2000. If you are

running an earlier version of Access, your screen images may appear slightlydifferent. However, the same general principles still apply and you should be able tofollow along. Once again, we're going to use the Northwind sample database (FOR THAT MATTER ANY DATABASE CAN BE USED). Before we get started, open upMicrosoft Access and then open the Northwind database.

1. Choose the Reports menu. Once you've opened Northwind, you'll be presentedwith the main database menu shown below. Go ahead and click on the "Reports"selection and you'll see a list of the various reports Microsoft included in thesample database.

2. Create a new report. Click on the "New" button and we'll begin the process of creating a report from scratch.

Create a new report

3. Select the Report Wizard. The next screen that appears will ask you to selectthe method you wish to use to create the report. We're going to use the Report

Wizard which will walk us through the creation process step-by-step. After you'vemastered the wizard, you might want to return to this step and explore theflexibility provided by the other creation methods.

4. Choose a table or query. Before leaving this screen, we want to choose thesource of data for our report. If you want to retrieve information from a singletable, you can select it from the drop-down box below. Alternatively, for morecomplex reports, we can choose to base our report on the output of a query that



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we previously designed. For our example, all of the data we need is containedwithin the Employees table, so choose this table and click on OK.

Select a creation method

Next, we'll select exactly which table data to include in the report and learn how toapply formatting to our finished product

5. Select the fields to include. Use the ‘>’ button to move over the desiredfields. Note that the order you place the fields in the right column determines thedefault order they will appear in your report. Remember that we're creating anemployee telephone directory for our senior management. Let's keep theinformation contained in it simple -- the first and last name of each employee,their title and their home telephone number. Go ahead and select thesefields. When you are satisfied, click the Next button.

6. Select the grouping levels. At this stage, you can select one or more groupinglevels to refine the order in which our report data is presented. For example, wemay wish to break down our telephone directory by department so that all of themembers of each department are listed separately. However, due to the smallnumber of employees in our database, this is not necessary for our report. Goahead and simply click on the Next button to bypass this step. You may wish toreturn here later and experiment with grouping levels.



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Select the fields to include

Choose the grouping levels

7. Choose your sorting options. In order to make reports useful, we often want tosort our results by one or more attributes. In the case of our telephone directory,the logical choice is to sort by the last name of each employee. Select thisattribute from the first drop-down box and then click the Next button to continue.



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Choose the sorting options

8. Choose the formatting options. In the next screen, we’re presented with someformatting options. We’ll accept the default tabular layout but let’s change the

page orientation to landscape to ensure the data fits properly on the page. Onceyou’ve completed this, click the Next button to continue.

9. Select a report style. The next screen asks you to select a style for yourreport. Click on the various options and you’ll see a preview of your report in thatstyle in the left portion of the screen. We’ll use the corporate style for this report.Select this option and then click the Next button to move on.

Chose Formatting Options



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Select a Report Style

10.Add the title. Finally, we need to give the report a title. Access will

automatically provide a nicely formatted title at the top of the screen, with theappearance shown in the report style you selected during the previous step. Let’scall our report “Employee Home Phone List.” Make sure that the “Preview thereport” option is selected and click on Finish to see our report!

Adding a Title



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Our Finished Product

Congratulations, you've successfully created a report in Microsoft Access! The finalreport you see should appear similar to the one presented above. When you closethis report, you'll once again see the main database menu illustrated below. Noticethat your report now appears in the list (I've added a red box to the figure below foryour viewing convenience, this won't appear on your screen.) In the future, you cansimply double-click on the report title and a new report will instantly be generatedwith up-to-date information from your database.

Updated Reports Menu



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ANIMATION IN POWER POINT

Animations in Microsoft PowerPoint refer to the way that items, such as text boxes,bullet points or images move onto a slide during a slide show.

There are two types of animations available in PowerPoint –

a) Preset Animation Schemes, that affect all of the content on a slide, andb) Custom Animations, which allow you to apply a variety of animation effects to

individual items on a slide.

Note - All versions of PowerPoint have the Custom Animations feature, but AnimationSchemes are specific to PowerPoint 2003.

While PowerPoint animations can certainly add variety and interest to yourpresentation, be careful in how you use them. The most common mistake in usinganimations, is in applying too many, which can overwhelm and distract youraudience. Stick to one, or at most, two different animations throughout the show.Choose animations that are appropriate to subject matter.

Animations are one of the finishing touches to a presentation. Wait until you have theslides edited and arranged in the preferred order before setting animations.

Custom Animation

• Custom Animation is a set of effects which can be applied to objects in PowerPointso that they will animate in the Slide Show. They can be added under the CustomAnimation function (Slide Show | Custom Animation) or through the use of VisualBasic for Applications (VBA).

PowerPoint 2000 and earlier versions introduced basic effects such as Appear,Dissolve, Fly In and so forth.• In PowerPoint 2002/XP and later versions, the Custom Animation feature was

improved, adding new animation effects grouped into four categories: Entrance,Emphasis, Exit and Motion Paths.

• Entrance effects can be set to objects so that they enter with animations duringSlide Show.

• Emphasis effects animate the objects on the spot.• Exit effects allow objects to leave the Slide Show with animations.• Motion Paths allow objects to move around the Slide Show.• Each effect contains variables such as start (On click, With previous, After

previous), delay, speed, repeat and trigger. This makes animations more flexible

and interactive.• Animation Trigger: Animation Trigger is another feature introduced in Microsoft

PowerPoint 2002/XP and the later versions. This feature allows animators to applyeffects that can be triggered when a specific object on the Slide Show is clicked. This feature is the basis for the majority of PowerPoint games, which usuallyinvolve clicking objects to advance in the game.



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• While PowerPoint offers various distribution formats, notably in PowerPoint Show(.pps, .ppsx) and web page (.html), it should be noted that not all animationfunctions work accurately when saved as a web page or executed with aPowerPoint Viewer.

• Standalone EXE is also an alternate way for a creator to distribute his work withPowerPoint Viewer embedded. This allows for the audience without access toPowerPoint to view these works, as well.

• A screen capture can also be used to manually convert a PowerPoint movie into amore viable format (e.g. WMV).

Drawbacks

• It may be much more tedious to complete a project in PowerPoint than inprofessional animation programs such as Adobe Flash due to the absence of keyframes and tweening.

• When effects such as Emphasis Grow/Shrink and Spin are applied to objects, theymay appear to be jagged or pixelated when previewing in the slide show.

•

In addition, excessive use of these effects may degrade the slide show'sperformance. (PowerPoint's built in Hardware Graphics Acceleration feature doeshelp in minimizing these set-backs, however which requires a video card thatsupports Microsoft Direct3D.)

• PowerPoint 2000 and later versions introduced macro security to help protectcomputers from malicious code within a PowerPoint presentation. This led todisabling all VBA or macro code by default, causing presentations containingcodes unable to run properly. This complication can be easily fixed by adjustingthe macro security settings to Low. Security Warning in PowerPoint 2007 alerts theuser of macros in a presentation as soon as it is opened, giving the option to runthe presentation with or without the macros enabled.



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E-Commerce

E-commerce (electronic commerce or EC) is the buying and selling of goods andservices on the Internet. In practice, this term and e-business are often usedinterchangeably. For online retail selling, the term e-tailing is sometimes used.

Aspects of e-commerce include:

• Websites with online catalogs.• The gathering and use of demographic data through Web contacts.• Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), the business-to-business exchange of data.• Email, instant messaging, and social networking as media for reaching

prospects and established customers.• Business-to-business buying and selling.• The security of business transactions.

As a place for direct retail shopping, with its 24-hour availability, a global reach, theability to interact and provide custom information and ordering, and multimediaprospects, the Web is a multi-billion dollar source of revenue for the world'sbusinesses. As early as the middle of 1997, Dell Computers reported orders of amillion dollars a day. By early 1999, projected e-commerce revenues for businesswere in the billions of dollars and the stocks of companies deemed most adept at e-commerce were skyrocketing. Web retailing continues to grow.

The Internet is now a flourishing industry. With the technology advancing at a fastrate, more and more people are open to computers and internet. Increasingly theyare learning to utilize the Internet for their day to day needs. Here Ecommerce

websites take a front seat, moving out to the millions of people searching for yourkind of product or services online.

Electronic commerce that is conducted between businesses is referred to as business-to-business or B2B. B2B can be open to all interested parties (e.g. commodityexchange) or limited to specific, pre-qualified participants (private electronic market).Electronic commerce that is conducted between businesses and consumers, on theother hand, is referred to as business-to-consumer or B2C. This is the type of electronic commerce conducted by companies such as Amazon.com.Electronic commerce is generally considered to be the sales aspect of e-business. Italso consists of the exchange of data to facilitate the financing and payment aspectsof the business transactions.

Evolution of E-Business, E-Commerce, and E-Governance

1) Presence of Internet (e.g., Access a portal)2) Interaction with visitors (e.g., Download a form)3) Transaction (e.g., Buy Something, E-Business becomes E-Commerce from this

point)4) Transformation



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5) Concept of B2B E-Commerce (e.g., Inter organizational)6) Concept of B2C E-Commerce (e.g., Amazon.com)7) Concept of C2C E-Commerce8) Concept of B2G E-Governance (e.g., Central, Excise Taxes)9) Concept of C2G E- Governance (e.g., Income Tax Online, Tax Refunds)10)Concept of G2G E- Governance (e.g., One state interacting with other state, Centre

to Centre, Country to Country etc.)

Ecommerce-is it for you?

Putting it simply, Ecommerce or Electronic Commerce means buying and selling of goods and services on the Internet. Before making any decision in business, it isworth taking into consideration the benefits, the company would reap onimplementation of the new strategy of Ecommerce. So, the first and foremost thingthat you need to know is whether your kind of business needs an ecommerce featureenabled website?

The arrival of ecommerce websites has brought upheaval in the process of purchasing

and selling goods. In this regard, it is important to consider websites like ebay,amazon etc. They have largely used the ecommerce procedure to make salesrevenue.

So, whether you have an existing business or launching a brand new business,whether the volume of your business is large or small, you can always generate profitby demonstrating your products or services online, thereby acquiring a large amountof viewer exposure. In a nutshell, just any selling/buying business can profit by theecommerce method.

The benefits of having an ecommerce website are many.

a) Revealation - Your products showcased on your website, provides a hugeexposure to the millions of visitors on the web. For example, if you have acomputer showroom in a city, the visitors that you would get, will only be peoplefrom the city itself and possibly some from in and around the city. Once in a whilethere will be visitors from places outside your city. Thus your product exposure islimited. On the contrary, if your products are demonstrated on a website, itconnects you to the plentifull people who access the internet and looking forsimilar product as that of yours.

b) Time and Convenience - Time is one of the crucial factor in our lives now-a-days. A customer may find it difficult to visit your store physically everytime. Onthe other hand, if you have your store put on view on the Internet, anyone can paya visit to your online store at their convenient time. Your store shuts down at somepoint of time. But your e-store works 24X7 for you to bring in customers.Moreover, with all your product images and descriptions provided on your estore,the customer gets a detailed idea about your product and you do not have tosquander time briefing the same thing to each and every visitor to your store. Itfurther saves time per transaction. Any sales executive will definitely take sometime to illustrate your product to each customer. Your ecommerce website does



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the same task to hundreds and thousands of your likely customers at the sametime.

c) Cost Effective - Sustaining a store in a primary locality is not highlyexpensive. On the contrary using the ecommerce is a whole lot easier technique of demonstrating and providing information about your products. Moreover

promotion of your store and its products should be carried out from time-to-time.Web advertisement expenses are also less compared to print or other audio-visualmedias, like radio or TV.

Business applications

Some common applications related to electronic commerce are the following:a) Emailb) Enterprise content managementc) Instant messagingd) Newsgroupse) Online shopping and order tracking

f) Online bankingg) Online office suitesh) Domestic and international payment systemsi) Shopping cart software j) Teleconferencingk) Electronic tickets

Electronic commerce or e-commerce refers to a wide range of online businessactivities for products and services. It also pertains to “any form of businesstransaction in which the parties interact electronically rather than by physicalexchanges or direct physical contact.” E-commerce is usually associated with buyingand selling over the Internet, or conducting any transaction involving the transfer of ownership or rights to use goods or services through a computer-mediated network. Though popular, this definition is not comprehensive enough to capture recentdevelopments in this new and revolutionary business phenomenon. A more completedefinition is: E-commerce is the use of electronic communications and digitalinformation processing technology in business transactions to create, transform, andredefine relationships for value creation between or among organizations, andbetween organizations and individuals.

International Data Corp (IDC) estimates the value of global e-commerce in 2000 atUS$350.38 billion. This is projected to climb to as high as US$3.14 trillion by 2004.

Is e-commerce the same as e-business?

While some use e-commerce and e-business interchangeably, they are distinctconcepts. In e-commerce, information and communications technology (ICT) is usedin inter-business or inter-organizational transactions (transactions between andamong firms/organizations) and in business-to-consumer transactions (transactionsbetween firms/organizations and individuals). In e-business, on the other hand, ICT isused to enhance one’s business. It includes any process that a business organization



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(either a for-profit, governmental or non-profit entity) conducts over a computer-mediated network. A more comprehensive definition of e-business is: “Thetransformation of an organization’s processes to deliver additional customer valuethrough the application of technologies, philosophies and computing paradigm of thenew economy.”

Three primary processes are enhanced in e-business:

1. Production processes, which include procurement, ordering and replenishment of stocks; processing of payments; electronic links with suppliers; and production controlprocesses, among others;2. Customer-focused processes, which include promotional and marketing efforts,selling over the Internet, processing of customers’ purchase orders and payments,and customer support, among others; and

3. Internal management processes, which include employee services, training,internal information-sharing, video-conferencing, and recruiting. Electronicapplications enhance information flow between production and sales forces.

What are the different types of e-commerce?

The major different types of e-commerce are: business-to-business (B2B); business-to-consumer (B2C); business-to-government (B2G); consumer-to-consumer (C2C);and mobile commerce (m-commerce).

What is B2B e-commerce?

B2B e-commerce is simply defined as e-commerce between companies. This is thetype of e-commerce that deals with relationships between and among businesses.About 80% of e-commerce is of this type, and most experts predict that B2Becommerce will continue to grow faster than the B2C segment.

The B2B market has two primary components: e-frastructure and e-markets. E-frastructureis the architecture of B2B, primarily consisting of the following:• logistics - transportation, warehousing and distribution (e.g., Procter and Gamble);• application service providers - deployment, hosting and management of packaged

software from a central facility (e.g., Oracle and Linkshare);• outsourcing of functions in the process of e-commerce, such as Web-hosting,

security and customer care solutions (e.g., outsourcing providers such as eShare,NetSales, iXL Enterprises and Universal Access);

•

auction solutions software for the operation and maintenance of real-time auctionsin the Internet (e.g., Moai Technologies and OpenSite Technologies);• content management software for the facilitation of Web site content

management and delivery (e.g., Interwoven and ProcureNet); and• Web-based commerce enablers (e.g., Commerce One, a browser-based, XML

enabled purchasing automation software).• Most B2B applications are in the areas of supplier management (especially

purchase order processing), inventory management (i.e., managing order-ship-bill



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cycles), distribution management (especially in the transmission of shippingdocuments), channel management (i.e., information dissemination on changes inoperational conditions), and payment management (e.g., electronic paymentsystems or EPS).

What is B2C e-commerce?

• Business-to-consumer e-commerce, or commerce between companies andconsumers, involves customers gathering information; purchasing physical goods(i.e., tangibles such as books or consumer products) or information goods (orgoods of electronic material or digitized content, such as software, or e-books);and, for information goods, receiving products over an electronic network.

• It is the second largest and the earliest form of e-commerce. Its origins can betraced to online retailing (or e-tailing).13 Thus, the more common B2C businessmodels are the online retailing companies such as Amazon.com, Drugstore.com,Beyond.com, Barnes and Noble and ToysRus. Other B2C examples involvinginformation goods are E-Trade and Travelocity.

• The more common applications of this type of e-commerce are in the areas of purchasing products and information, and personal finance management, whichpertains to the management of personal investments and finances with the use of online banking tools (e.g., Quicken).

What is B2G e-commerce?

Business-to-government e-commerce or B2G is generally defined as commercebetween companies and the public sector. It refers to the use of the Internet forpublic procurement, licensing procedures, and other government-related operations.

This kind of e-commerce has two features: first, the public sector assumes apilot/leading role in establishing e-commerce; and second, it is assumed that thepublic sector has the greatest need for making its procurement system moreeffective.Web-based purchasing policies increase the transparency of the procurement process(and reduces the risk of irregularities). To date, however, the size of the B2Gecommerce market as a component of total e-commerce is insignificant, asgovernment e-procurement systems remain undeveloped.

What is C2C e-commerce?

• Consumer-to-consumer e-commerce or C2C is simply commerce between private

individuals or consumers. This type of e-commerce is characterized by the growthof electronic marketplaces and online auctions, particularly in vertical industrieswhere firms/businesses can bid for what they want from among multiple suppliers.It perhaps has the greatest potential for developing new markets.

• This type of e-commerce comes in at least three forms:o auctions facilitated at a portal, such as eBay, which allows online real-time

bidding on items being sold in the Web;o peer-to-peer systems, such as the Napster model (a protocol for sharing

files between users used by chat forums similar to IRC) and other file



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exchange and later money exchange models; and classified ads at portalsites such as Excite Classifieds and eWanted (an interactive, onlinemarketplace where buyers and sellers can negotiate and which features“Buyer Leads & Want Ads”).

o There is little information on the relative size of global C2C e-commerce.However, C2C figures of popular C2C sites such as eBay and Napster

indicate that this market is quite large. These sites produce millions of dollars in sales every day.

What is m-commerce?

• M-commerce (mobile commerce) is the buying and selling of goods and servicesthrough wireless technology-i.e., handheld devices such as cellular telephones andpersonal digital assistants (PDAs). Japan is seen as a global leader in m-commerce.As content delivery over wireless devices becomes faster, more secure, andscalable, some believe that m-commerce will surpass wireline e-commerce as themethod of choice for digital commerce transactions. This may well be true for the

• Asia-Pacific where there are more mobile phone users than there are Internetusers.

• Industries affected by m-commerce include:o Financial services, including mobile banking (when customers use their

handheld devices to access their accounts and pay their bills), as well asbrokerage services (in which stock quotes can be displayed and tradingconducted from the same handheld device);

o Telecommunications, in which service changes, bill payment and accountreviews can all be conducted from the same handheld device;

o Service/retail, as consumers are given the ability to place and pay fororders on-the-fly; and Information services, which include the delivery of entertainment, financial news, sports figures and traffic updates to a single

mobile device.

What forces are fueling e-commerce?

There are at least three major forces fuelling e-commerce: economic forces,marketing and customer interaction forces, and technology, particularly multimediaconvergence.

• Economic forces: One of the most evident benefits of e-commerce iseconomic efficiency resulting from the reduction in communications costs, low-cost technological infrastructure, speedier and more economic electronictransactions with suppliers, lower global information sharing and advertising costs,

and cheaper customer service alternatives. Economic integration is either externalor internal. External integration refers to the electronic networking of corporations,suppliers, customers/clients, and independent contractors into one communitycommunicating in a virtual environment (with the Internet as medium). Internalintegration, on the other hand, is the networking of the various departmentswithin a corporation, and of business operations and processes. This allows criticalbusiness information to be stored in a digital form that can be retrieved instantlyand transmitted electronically. Internal integration is best exemplified by



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corporate intranets. Among the companies with efficient corporate intranets areProcter and Gamble, IBM, Nestle and Intel.

• Market forces: Corporations are encouraged to use e-commerce in marketingand promotion to capture international markets, both big and small. The Internetis likewise used as a medium for enhanced customer service and support. It is alot easier for companies to provide their target consumers with more detailedproduct and service information using the Internet.

• Technology forces: The development of ICT is a key factor in the growth of ecommerce. For instance, technological advances in digitizing content,compression and the promotion of open systems technology have paved the wayfor the convergence of communication services into one single platform. This inturn has made communication more efficient, faster, easier, and more economicalas the need to set up separate networks for telephone services, televisionbroadcast, cable television, and Internet access is eliminated. From the standpointof firms/businesses and consumers, having only one information provider meanslower communications costs.

How can government use e-commerce?

Government can use e-commerce in the following ways:

• E-procurement: Government agencies should be able to trade electronically withall suppliers using open standards-through ‘agency enablement’ programs,‘supplier enablement’ programs, and e-procurement information systems.

• Customs clearance: With the computerization of customs processes andoperations (i.e., electronic submission, processing and electronic payment; andautomated systems for data entry to integrate customs tables, codes and pre

assessment), one can expect more predictable and more precise information onclearing time and delivery shipments, and increased legitimate revenues.• Tax administration: This includes a system for electronic processing and

transmission of tax return information, online issuances of tax clearances, permits,and licenses, and an electronic process registration of businesses and newtaxpayers, among others. More often than not, the e-commerce initiatives of government are a barometer indicating whether or not the infrastructure supportse-commerce use by private firms. This means that if government is unable toengage in e-procurement, secure records online, or have customs fees remittedelectronically, then the private sector will also have difficulties in e-commerceuptake. Virtually, the benefits from e-commerce accrue to the government, as theexperiences of some countries reflect.

• E-Government: Government should be the lead-user of e-commerce if variousbusiness and private-sector related activities are to be prompted to move online.In effect, government becomes a positive influence. E-government can take theform of various online transactions such as company registration, taxation,applications for a variety of employee- and business-related requirements, and thelike.



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FLOW CHARTING

INTRODUCTION

The flowchart is a means of visually presenting the flow of data through aninformation processing systems, the operations performed within the system and thesequence in which they are performed.. The program flowchart can be likened to theblueprint of a building. As we know a designer draws a blueprint before startingconstruction on a building. Similarly, a programmer prefers to draw a flowchart priorto writing a computer program. As in the case of the drawing of a blueprint, theflowchart is drawn according to defined rules and using standard flowchart symbolsprescribed by the American National Standard Institute, Inc.

MEANING OF A FLOWCHART

A flowchart is a diagrammatic representation that illustrates the sequence of

operations to be performed to get the solution of a problem. Flowcharts are generallydrawn in the early stages of formulating computer solutions. Flowcharts facilitatecommunication between programmers and business people. These flowcharts play avital role in the programming of a problem and are quite helpful in understanding thelogic of complicated and lengthy problems. Once the flowchart is drawn, it becomeseasy to write the program in any high level language. Often we see how flowchartsare helpful in explaining the program to others. Hence, it is correct to say that aflowchart is a must for the better documentation of a complex program.

GUIDELINES FOR DRAWING A FLOWCHART

Flowcharts are usually drawn using some standard symbols; however, some special

symbols can also be developed when required. Some standard flowchart symbols,which are frequently required for flowcharting many computer programs are shown inFigure below.

http://www.edrawsoft.com/flowchart.php

http://www.edrawsoft.com/flowchart-symbols.php

http://www.edrawsoft.com/flowchart.php




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Types of flowcharts

High-Level Flowchart

A high-level (also called first-level or top-down) flowchart shows the major steps in aprocess. It illustrates a "birds-eye view" of a process, such as the example in thefigure entitled High-Level Flowchart of Prenatal Care. It can also include theintermediate outputs of each step (the product or service produced), and the sub-steps involved. Such a flowchart offers a basic picture of the process and identifiesthe changes taking place within the process. It is significantly useful for identifying

appropriate team members (those who are involved in the process) and fordeveloping indicators for monitoring the process because of its focus on intermediateoutputs.

Most processes can be adequately portrayed in four or five boxes that represent themajor steps or activities of the process. In fact, it is a good idea to use only a fewboxes, because doing so forces one to consider the most important steps. Other stepsare usually sub-steps of the more important ones.

Detailed Flowchart

The detailed flowchart provides a detailed picture of a process by mapping all of thesteps and activities that occur in the process. This type of flowchart indicates thesteps or activities of a process and includes such things as decision points, waitingperiods, tasks that frequently must be redone (rework), and feedback loops. This typeof flowchart is useful for examining areas of the process in detail and for looking forproblems or areas of inefficiency. For example, the Detailed Flowchart of PatientRegistration reveals the delays that result when the record clerk and clinical officerare not available to assist clients.




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Deployment or Matrix Flowchart

A deployment flowchart maps out the process in terms of who is doing the steps. It isin the form of a matrix, showing the various participants and the flow of steps amongthese participants. It is chiefly useful in identifying who is providing inputs or servicesto whom, as well as areas where different people may be needlessly doing the sametask.

Which Flowchart Should be Used

Each type of flowchart has its strengths and weaknesses; the high-level flowchart isthe easiest to construct but may not provide sufficient detail for some purposes. Inchoosing which type to use, the group should be clear on their purpose forflowcharting.

Types of flowcharts

Four general types:• Document flowcharts, showing controls over a document-flow through a

system• Data flowcharts, showing controls over a data flows in a system• System flowcharts showing controls at a physical or resource level• Program flowchart, showing the controls in a program within a system

Notice that every type of flowchart focusses on some kind of control, rather than onthe particular flow itself.

Software to make flowcharts

• Manual: Some tools offer special support for flowchart drawing, e.g., Visio,OmniGraffle.

• Automatic: Many software packages exist that can create flowchartsautomatically, either directly from source code, or from a flowchart descriptionlanguage.

• Web-based: Recently, online flowchart solutions have become available, e.g.,Creately.

DEVELOPMENT OF MODERN COMPUTING

Computer History

• Early forms of computers, called "microcomputers" were downright expensive andcost-prohibitive for the masses.

• It's no surprise, though, that the personal computer revolution really launchedwith the introduction of the Apple Computer Company and its 1977 Apple II model. The Apple II was the first computer to offer color graphics, sported 4kb or RAM andsold for around $1300.



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• In 1981 IBM introduced its IBM PC - featuring an operating system known as "DOS"made by a small, 32-person company known as Microsoft. This marked thecompetitive development of the modern day computer. From this point on, theworld of computers took two sides. On one side was Apple Computer and itsMacintosh line of computers. On the other, the army of personal computers whoseranks included not only IBM, but eventually names like Gateway, Dell, HP, SonyVaio and Compaq.

• Shortly after the first mass-produced calculator (1820), Charles Babbagedevelops difference engine by 1842.

• In 1856, George Boole, while professor of Mathematics at Cork University, writesAn Investigation of the Laws of Thought (1854), and is generally recognized as thefather of computer science.

• The 1890 census, Developed by Herman Hollerith of MIT, used electric power(non-mechanical).

• In 1892, William Burroughs, a sickly ex-teller, introduces a commerciallysuccessful printing calculator.

• In 1925, unaware of the work of Charles Babbage, Vannevar Bush of MIT builds

a machine he calls the differential analyzer. Using a set of gears and shafts, muchlike Babbage, the machine can handle simple calculus problems, but accuracy is aproblem.

• In 1935, Konrad Zuse, a German construction engineer, builds a mechanicalcalculator to handle the math involved in his profession. Also completes aprogrammable electronic device in 1938.

• In 1943 development begins on the Electronic Numerical Integrator AndComputer (ENIAC) in earnest at Penn State. Designed by John Mauchly and J.Presper Eckert of the Moore School, they get help from John von Neumann andothers.

• In 1944, the Havard Mark I is introduced. Mark I computes complex tables forthe U.S. Navy.

• In 1945, Von Neumann proposes the concept of a "stored program" in a paperthat is never officially published.

• Scientists employed by Bell Labs complete work on the transistor (JohnBardeen, Walter Brattain and William Shockley receive the Nobel Prize inPhysics in 1956).

• IBM introduces the 701. It is the first commercially successful computer.• In 1956 FORTRAN is introduced.• In 1961 Fairchild Semiconductor introduces the integrated circuit. Within

ten years all computers use these instead of the transistor. Formally building sizedcomputers are now room-sized, and are considerably more powerful.

• On April 7, 1964, IBM introduces the System/360. While a technical marvel,

the main feature of this machine is business oriented...IBM guarantees the"upward compatibility" of the system, reducing the risk that a business wouldinvest in outdated technology.

• In 1969 Bell Labs, unhappy with the direction of the MIT project, leavesand develops its own operating system, UNIX.

• One of the many precursors to today's Internet, ARPANet, is quietly launched. AlanKeys, who will later become a designer for Apple, proposes the "personalcomputer."



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• Also in 1969, unhappy with Fairchild Semiconductor, a group of technicians begin discussing forming their own company. This company,formed the next year, would be known as Intel.

• In 1971, Texas Instruments introduces the first "pocket calculator." Itweighs 2.5 pounds.

• In 1973, Xerox introduces the mouse. Proposals are made for the first localarea networks.

• In 1975 the first personal computer is marketed in kit form. The Altairfeatures 256 bytes of memory. Bill Gates, with others, writes a BASIC compiler forthe machine. The next year Apple begins to market PC's, also in kit form. Itincludes a monitor and keyboard.

• During the next few years the personal computer explodes on the Americanscene. Microsoft, Apple and many smaller PC related companies form (and somedie). By 1977 stores begin to sell PC's. Continuing today, companies strive toreduce the size and price of PC's while increasing capacity. Entering the fray, IBMintroduces it's PC in 1981. Time selects the computer as its Man of the Year in1982. Tron, a computer-generated special effects extravaganza is released the

same year.



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FACTORS AFFECTING THE PERFORMANCE OF ADESKTOP COMPUTER

The three top factors that can slow a computer down are Spyware, acluttered registry and unwanted desktop items.

Spyware is one of the leading causes of a slow computer. These spyware programsare known as malicious programs that attach themselves to the back of yourcomputer, so that its maker can monitor your internet activity. It would definitely helpif you could invest in a good anti-spyware program to prevent this from happening. This usually comes with an anti-virus program which scans your system to removethe spyware and all other viruses.

Having a cluttered system registry can really slow one's computer down as it ispacked with unnecessary registry files. Registry files are very important to acomputer as they contain preferences and settings for your computer. However,unwanted files get added into the system's registry each time you add a newsoftware or hardware into your computer. Unfortunately, they will clutter yoursystem's registry even after you remove or delete the software or hardware. This isbecause they usually remain in your registry long after you remove and delete theprograms, and you might not even be aware of its existence. Nonetheless, you can fixthis problem by using a registry cleaner software. A registry cleaner scans yourcomputer and removes these unnecessary registry files. When a scan is done, it willgenerate a list of unneeded registry files for you to delete.

The last cause of a slow running computer can be found on your desktop. Many findthat they love the convenience of having shortcuts on their desktops as well as high-resolution wallpaper and animated cursors. Unfortunately, all of these things can slowdown your computer as it uses up valuable system resources. It is better to shutthese items off and not use them when you are working on the computer. This willfree up some memory space in your computer, letting it run more smoothly andefficiently

In nutshell, be careful with:

-Computer viruses-Spyware and adware-Too many installed programs (programs running in the background)-Hard drive that is too full-Software conflicts-Hardware conflicts-Not performing regular routine maintenance

Even the process of adding and deleting programs can affect your PC's performance.When you install and uninstall Windows programs, they leave behind parts orapplications that can slow down your computer. You may even unknowingly delete afile needed for other software applications. This can result in a minor glitch or acomplete failure with some programs or even your whole system



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a) What do you understand by the term Operating

System?

b) What are the essentials of an Operating System?

c) Draw a comparison between any two operatingsystems.

d) What are Applications? And how do they differ from

System Software?

Meaning of an Operating System

• The operating system is a set of services which simplifies development of

applications. Executing a program involves the creation of a process by theoperating system. The kernel creates a process by assigning memory and otherresources, establishing a priority for the process (in multi-tasking systems),loading program code into memory, and executing the program. The programthen interacts with the user and/or other devices and performs its intendedfunction.

• In computing, an operating system (OS) is an interface between hardware anduser, which is responsible for the management and coordination of activities andthe sharing of the resources of a computer, that acts as a host for computingapplications run on the machine.

• One of the purposes of an operating system is to handle the resource allocationand access protection of the hardware. This relieves the application programmers

from having to manage these details.• Operating systems offer a number of services to application programs and users.

Applications access these services through application programming interfaces(APIs) or system calls. By invoking these interfaces, the application can request aservice from the operating system, pass parameters, and receive the results of theoperation.

• Users may also interact with the operating system with some kind of software userinterface like typing commands by using command line interface (CLI) or using agraphical user interface.

• For hand-held and desktop computers, the user interface is generally consideredpart of the operating system. On large systems such as Unix-like systems, the userinterface is generally implemented as an application program that runs outside

the operating system.• While servers generally run Unix or some Unix-like operating system, embedded

system markets are split amongst several operating systems, although theMicrosoft Windows line of operating systems has almost 90% of the client PCmarket.

Essentials of on Operating System



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1) Interrupts: Interrupts are central to operating systems, as they provide anefficient way for the operating system to interact with and react to itsenvironment. Interrupt-based programming is directly supported by most modernCPUs. Interrupts provide a computer with a way of automatically saving localregister contexts, and running specific code in response to events. Even very basiccomputers support hardware interrupts, and allow the programmer to specify code

which may be run when that event takes place. When an interrupt is received, thecomputer's hardware automatically suspends whatever program is currentlyrunning, saves its status, and runs computer code previously associated with theinterrupt; this is analogous to placing a bookmark in a book in response to a phonecall. In modern operating systems, interrupts are handled by the operatingsystem's kernel. Interrupts may come from either the computer's hardware orfrom the running program.

2) Protected mode and supervisor mode: Modern CPUs support something calleddual mode operation. CPUs with this capability use two modes: protected modeand supervisor mode, which allow certain CPU functions to be controlled andaffected only by the operating system kernel. When a computer first starts up, it is

automatically running in supervisor mode. The first few programs to run on thecomputer, being the BIOS, bootloader and the operating system have unlimitedaccess to hardware - and this is required because, by definition, initializing aprotected environment can only be done outside of one. However, when theoperating system passes control to another program, it can place the CPU intoprotected mode. In protected mode, programs may have access to a more limitedset of the CPU's instructions. A user program may leave protected mode only bytriggering an interrupt, causing control to be passed back to the kernel. In this waythe operating system can maintain exclusive control over things like access tohardware and memory.

3) Memory management: Among other things, a multiprogramming operatingsystem kernel must be responsible for managing all system memory which iscurrently in use by programs. This ensures that a program does not interfere withmemory already used by another program. Since programs time share, eachprogram must have independent access to memory.

4) Virtual memory: The use of virtual memory addressing (such as paging orsegmentation) means that the kernel can choose what memory each programmay use at any given time, allowing the operating system to use the samememory locations for multiple tasks. In modern operating systems, memory whichis accessed less frequently can be temporarily stored on disk or other media tomake that space available for use by other programs.

5) Multitasking: Multitasking refers to the running of multiple independentcomputer programs on the same computer; giving the appearance that it isperforming the tasks at the same time. Since most computers can do at most oneor two things at one time, this is generally done via time-sharing, which meansthat each program uses a share of the computer's time to execute. An operatingsystem kernel contains a piece of software called a scheduler which determineshow much time each program will spend executing, and in which order executioncontrol should be passed to programs.

6) Virtual file system: Access to data stored on disks is a central feature of alloperating systems. Computers store data on disks using files, which are structuredin specific ways in order to allow for faster access, higher reliability, and to make



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better use out of the drive's available space. The specific way in which files arestored on a disk is called a file system, and enables files to have names andattributes. It also allows them to be stored in a hierarchy of directories or foldersarranged in a directory tree.

7) Device driver: A device driver is a specific type of computer software developedto allow interaction with hardware devices. It is a specialized hardware-dependent

computer program which is also operating system specific that enables anotherprogram, typically an operating system or applications software package orcomputer program running under the operating system kernel, to interacttransparently with a hardware device, and usually provides the requisite interrupthandling necessary for any necessary asynchronous time-dependent hardwareinterfacing needs.

8) Computer network: Currently most operating systems support a variety of networking protocols, hardware, and applications for using them. This means thatcomputers running dissimilar operating systems can participate in a commonnetwork for sharing resources such as computing, files, printers, and scannersusing either wired or wireless connections. Networks can essentially allow acomputer's operating system to access the resources of a remote computer to

support the same functions as it could if those resources were connected directlyto the local computer. This includes everything from simple communication, tousing networked file systems or even sharing another computer's graphics orsound hardware. Client/server networking involves a program on a computersomewhere which connects via a network to another computer, called a server.Servers offer (or host) various services to other network computers and users.

9) Computer security: A computer being secure depends on a number of technologies working properly. A modern operating system provides access to anumber of resources, which are available to software running on the system, andto external devices like networks via the kernel. The operating system must becapable of distinguishing between requests which should be allowed to beprocessed, and others which should not be processed. While some systems maysimply distinguish between "privileged" and "non-privileged", systems commonlyhave a form of requester identity, such as a user name. To establish identity theremay be a process of authentication. Often a username must be quoted, and eachusername may have a password. Other methods of authentication, such asmagnetic cards or biometric data, might be used instead. In some cases,especially connections from the network, resources may be accessed with noauthentication at all (such as reading files over a network share).

10) File system support in modern operating systems: Support for file systemsis highly varied among modern operating systems although there are severalcommon file systems which almost all operating systems include support anddrivers for. Operating systems vary on file system support and on the disk formatsthey may be installed on.

11)Graphical user interfaces: Most of the modern computer systems supportgraphical user interfaces (GUI), and often include them. In some computersystems, such as the original implementations of Microsoft Windows and the MacOS, the GUI is integrated into the kernel. While technically a graphical userinterface is not an operating system service, incorporating support for one into theoperating system kernel can allow the GUI to be more responsive by reducing thenumber of context switches required for the GUI to perform its output functions.Many computer operating systems allow the user to install or create any user



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interface they desire. The X Window System in conjunction with GNOME or KDE isa commonly-found setup on most Unix and Unix-like (BSD, Linux, Solaris) systems.A number of Windows shell replacements have been released for MicrosoftWindows, which offer alternatives to the included Windows shell, but the shellitself cannot be separated from Windows.

12) Various OS:

a. Windowsb. Linux/Unixc. Ubuntud. Mac OS Xe. Google Chrome OSf. Plan 9g. Real-time operating systems (RTOS)

COMPARISON BETWEEN MS-WINDOWS AND LINUX

Both Linux and Windows are operating systems. An operating system is the mostimportant program that runs on a computer. Every general-purpose computer must

have an operating system to run other programs. Operating systems perform basictasks, such as recognizing input from the keyboard, sending output to the displayscreen, keeping track of files and directories on the disk, and controlling peripheraldevices such as disk drives and printers.



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Other differences between Linux and Windows:

1) Linux is customizable in a way that Windows is not.2) For desktop or home use, Linux is very cheap or free, Windows is expensive. For

server use, Linux is very cheap compared to Windows. Microsoft allows a singlecopy of Windows to be used on only one computer. Starting with Windows XP, they

use software to enforce this rule (activation). In contrast, once you havepurchased Linux, you can run it on any number of computers for no additionalcharge.

3) You have to log on to Linux with a userid and password. This is not true of Windows.

4) Linux has a reputation for fewer bugs than Windows5) Windows must boot from a primary partition. Linux can boot from either a primary

partition or a logical partition inside an extended partition.



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6) Windows uses a hidden file for its swap file. Linux uses a dedicated partition forits swap file

7) Windows uses FAT12, FAT16, FAT32 and/or NTFS with NTFS almost always beingthe best choice. Linux also has a number of its own native file systems. Thedefault file systeAll the file systems use directories and subdirectories. Windowsseparates directories with a back slash, Linux uses a normal forward slash.

Windows file names are not case sensitive. Linux file names are.8) Windows and Linux use different concepts for their file hierarchy. Windows uses a

volume-based file hierarchy, Linux uses a unified scheme. Windows uses letters of the alphabet to represent different devices and different hard disk partitions.Under Windows, you need to know what volume (C:, D:,...) a file resides on toselect it, the file's physical location is part of it's name. In Linux all directories areattached to the root directory, which is identified by a forward-slash, "/".

9) Both support the concept of hidden files. Linux implements this with a filenamethat starts with a period. Windows tracks this as a file attribute in the filemetadata (along with things like the last update date). Windows allows programsto store user information (files and settings) anywhere. This makes it impossiblyhard to backup user data files and settings and to switch to a new computer. In

contrast, Linux stores all user data in the home directory making it much easier tomigrate from an old computer to a new one. If home directories are segregated intheir own partition, you can even upgrade from one version of Linux to anotherwithout having to migrate user data and settings.

10)Full access vs. no access11)Licensing freedom vs. licensing restrictions12)Online peer support vs. paid help-desk support13)Full vs. partial hardware support14)Command line vs. no command line15)Automated vs. non-automated removable media16)Multilayered run levels vs. a single-layered run level



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What do you understand by the concept of a data centre?

What type of organizations would you like to have a data

centre? At what levels are redundancies created in a data

centre? Explain with help of examples.

A data center or datacenter, also called a server farm, is a facility used to house

computer systems and associated components, such as telecommunications and

storage systems. It generally includes redundant or backup power supplies,

redundant data communications connections, environmental controls (e.g., air

conditioning, fire suppression) and security devices.

Requirements for modern data centers



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1) One of the main concerns is business continuity; companies rely on their

information systems to run their operations. If a system becomes unavailable,

company operations may be impaired or stopped completely. It is necessary to

provide a reliable infrastructure for IT operations, in order to minimize any

chance of disruption.

2) Information security is also a concern, and for this reason a data center has to

offer a secure environment which minimizes the chances of a security breach.

A data center must therefore keep high standards for assuring the integrity

and functionality of its hosted computer environment. This is accomplished

through redundancy of both fiber optic cables and power, which includes

emergency backup power generation.

Data center classification

The higher the tier, the greater the accessibility. The levels are:

Tier I - Basic site infrastructure guaranteeing 99.671% availability

Tier II - Redundant site infrastructure capacity components guaranteeing 99.741%

availability

Tier III - Concurrently maintainable site infrastructure guaranteeing 99.982%

availability

Tier IV - Fault tolerant site infrastructure guaranteeing 99.995% availability

Physical layout



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• A typical server rack, commonly seen in colocation. A data center can

occupy one room of a building, one or more floors, or an entire building.

Most of the equipment is often in the form of servers mounted in 19 inch

rack cabinets, which are usually placed in single rows forming corridors

between them. This allows people access to the front and rear of each

cabinet. Very large data centers may use shipping containers packed with

1,000 or more servers each; when repairs or upgrades are needed, wholecontainers are replaced (rather than repairing individual servers). Local

building codes may govern the minimum ceiling heights.

• The physical environment of a data center is rigorously controlled.

Air conditioning is used to control the temperature and humidity in the

data center. Recommends a temperature range is 16–24 °C (61–75 °F) and

humidity range of 40–55% with a maximum dew point of 15°C as optimal

for data center conditions.

• The electrical power used heats the air in the data center. Unless the heat

is removed, the ambient temperature will rise, resulting in electronic

equipment malfunction. By controlling the air temperature, the server

components at the board level are kept within the manufacturer's specified

temperature/humidity range. Air conditioning systems help control humidity



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by cooling the return space air below the dew point. Too much humidity,

and water may begin to condense on internal components.

• Modern data centers try to use economizer cooling, where they use

outside air to keep the data center cool. Washington state now has a few

data centers that cool all of the servers using outside air 11 months out of

the year. They do not use chillers/air conditioners, which creates potential

energy savings in the millions.

• Backup power consists of one or more uninterruptible power supplies

and/or diesel generators. To prevent single points of failure, all elements of

the electrical systems, including backup system, are typically fully

duplicated. This arrangement is often made to achieve N+1 Redundancy in

the systems. Static switches are sometimes used to ensure instantaneous

switchover from one supply to the other in the event of a power failure.

• Data cabling is typically routed through overhead cable trays in modern

data centers. But some are still recommending under raised floor cabling

for security reasons and to consider the addition of cooling systems above

the racks in case this enhancement is necessary.

• Data centers feature fire protection systems, including passive and

active design elements, as well as implementation of fire prevention

programs in operations. Smoke detectors are usually installed to provide

early warning of a developing fire by detecting particles generated by

smoldering components prior to the development of flame. A fire

sprinkler system is often provided to control a full scale fire if it develops.

Clean agent fire suppression gaseous systems are sometimes installed to

suppress a fire earlier than the fire sprinkler system. Passive fire protection

elements include the installation of fire walls around the data center, so a

fire can be restricted to a portion of the facility for a limited time in the

event of the failure of the active fire protection systems, or if they are not

installed.

• Physical security also plays a large role with data centers. Physical access

to the site is usually restricted to selected personnel. Video camera

surveillance and permanent security guards are almost always present if



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the data center is large or contains sensitive information on any of the

systems within. The use of finger print recognition man traps is starting to

be commonplace.

Network infrastructure

• Communications in data centers today are most often based on networks

running the IP protocol suite. Data centers contain a set of routers and

switches that transport traffic between the servers and to the outside

world. Redundancy of the Internet connection is often provided by using two

or more upstream service providers.

• Some of the servers at the data center are used for running the basic

Internet and intranet services needed by internal users in the

organization, e.g., e-mail servers, proxy servers, and DNS servers.

• Network security elements are also usually deployed: firewalls, VPN

gateways, intrusion detection systems, etc. Also common are monitoring

systems for the network and some of the applications. Additional off site

monitoring systems are also typical, in case of a failure of communications

inside the data center.

Applications

• The main purpose of a data center is running the applications that handle the

core business and operational data of the organization. Such systems may be

proprietary and developed internally by the organization, or bought from

enterprise software vendors. Such common applications are ERP and CRM

systems.

Other Services

• A data center may be concerned with just operations architecture or it may

provide other services as well.



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• Data centers are also used for off site backups. Backups can be taken of

servers locally on to tapes., however tapes stored on site pose a security threat

and are also susceptible to fire and flooding. Larger companies may also send

their backups off site for added security. This can be done by backing up to a

data center. Encrypted backups can be sent over the Internet to another data

center where they can be stored securely.



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Need for Date Centers

• Every organization is under pressure to accomplish more with less resources

(financial, technologically, and human capital)

• Many are finding that specific targets for reduction have been set, especially

in the near term.

• Server and storage growth do not appear to be keeping pace with economic

times – in some cases, the needs for technology are on the rise

• Server sprawl continues in a lot of cases – even with virtualized servers.

• The impact of storage growth is stressing backup and recovery subsystems

and the frequency of missed backup windows remains for many.

• The typical data center will run out of power and cooling – many already have

o Facilities and IT continue to struggle with an integrated capacity

planning approach

• Disaster recovery is something most organizations “hope” they can achieve,

but wouldn’t want to test it

Companies likely to have a data center

• A typical example of a company that almost certainly has a data center is a

bank or other kind of financial institution. A bank's data center will have a

mainframe or other kind of computer network, on which customers' account

information and other data are stored.

• A university will also have a data center, which includes not only personal

information about the university's employees and students, but also

information on the university's buildings, construction projects, and physical

and intellectual history.

• These kinds of data centers contain information that is critical to the continued

operation of the bank, university, or other business.

• Other kinds of data centers can be found in government institutions;

companies that have multiple headquarters; and providers of electronic

services such as television, mobile phones, and the like.



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• A data center can also be a single computer, storing and accessing one

company's or one person's critical data. Smaller data centers usually have less

complicated forms of data protection. No matter the size, all data centers serve

the same function: to compile and protect the data of a person or company.

Data Center Infrastructure

Data Centers are valuable resources as they get close to capacity those resources

must be carefully managed. Their infrastructure includes

• Racks

• Switches and switch ports

• VLANs

• Patch panels and cables (of all types)

• Power utilization and monitoring

• Generators

• High voltage power components

• HVAC components

By accurately tracking the usage of systems and their placement in the data

center we can ensure that overload conditions do not occur

Features of a data center



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Disaster Recovery



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Virtualization (e.g., Cloud Computing)

LEVELS AT WHICH REDUNDANCIES ARE CREATED IN A DATA CENTER

• Redundancy in the data center industry is regarded as “computer or networksystem components, such as fans, hard disk drives, servers, operating systems,switches, and telecommunication links that are installed to back up primaryresources in case they fail,” according to techtarget.com. One can clearly deducethat the more redundant a data center, the better it is for the consumer.

• Cooling or power interruptions can dramatically affect a data center'senvironment. Because system failure can be prohibitively expensive, reliabilityand redundancy are vital. Redundancy in cooling systems minimizes risk of system failure and increases system performance by decreasing downtime formaintenance and repairs. The main advantage of redundancy is that it increasessystem reliability.

• Running a data center is a tricky business. Operational controls and efficiencesare paramount. From the customer perspective though, the key word is: uptime.While the day to day operations are important, its the operations that result inmaintaining customer uptime as the most critical.



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• Many data centers tout uptime statistics. In fact, the Uptime Institute is anorganization that has developed standards surrounding levels of redundancywithin data centers and the types of uptime that is to be expected. Most datacenters strive to achieve what is known as Tier IV, or the highest tier. To getthere, a data center must have multiple active systems (cooling, electrical, etc)

such that failure of any single system goes unnoticed. This allows the data centerto target 99.995% uptime.

• Because of the expense, most data centers choose to build to Tier III, or close toit. They sacrifice some of the inherent redundancies for operational and capitalcost.

• Types of redundancy:o Cooling Redundancy: One major aspect of data center redundancy is in

the cooling systems. Most data centers employ multple CRAC (ComputerRoom Air Conditioner) units to keep the data center area cool. Generally,an extra unit is installed such that failure of any single unit will gounnoticed to the end user. This is generally known as an N+1 setup,

meaning N is the number of units needed to operate, and +1 denotes anextra unit is running as a backup. While this design is sound, the CRAC unitsare not the only part of the entire cooling system that is critical. The CRACunits themselves must be serviced by another piece of the HVAC chain, beit a refrigerant based system or a chilled water based system. Thus, thereshould also be some redundancy in those servicing systems as well.

o Electrical Redundancy: Most data centers will offer redundant electrical

circuits, commonly called A+B feeds. Again, it is necessary to follow thedistribution chain of these circuits back to the source. Do they go toseparate power distribution units? If not, there is a single point of failure.Do they go back to separate UPS units? If not, there is a single point of failure. Does the power come in from two separate transformers? If not,

there is a single point of failure. Furthermore, what happens during a poweroutage? Just about every critical data center will have backup generatorcapacity, but is it just a single generator? What happens if the generatorfails to start? What happens if the service department is performing an oilchange on the generator when the power goes out? Again, this is anothersingle point of failure risk that must be analyzed.

o Data Redundancy: RAID (redundant array of independent disks;originally redundant array of inexpensive disks) is a way of storingthe same data in different places (thus, redundantly) on multiple harddisks. By placing data on multiple disks, I/O (input/output) operationscan overlap in a balanced way, improving performance. Since

multiple disks increase the mean time between failures (MTBF),storing data redundantly also increases fault tolerance. There are atleast nine types of RAID plus a non-redundant array (RAID-0): RAID-0,RAID-1, RAID-2, RAID-3, RAID-4, RAID-5, RAID-6, RAID-7, RAID-10,RAID-50(or RAID-5+0), RAID-53 (or RAID-5+3), RAID-S.

DATA FILTERING (Filtering Data in MS Excel)



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• A single data list may contain records that fall into several categories orgroups. Depending on the size of the data list, it may be difficult to focus on all of the records that belong to a specific group.

• Data filtering in MS Excel enables the user to work with a subset of data withinthe data list. When a filter is created, only the records that contain the valuesspecified are displayed. Other records in the data list are hidden temporarily.

• AutoFilter is an automated filtering tool included in Excel. When AutoFilter isapplied to a data list, the column headings change to drop-down list boxes. Eachdrop-down list contains all of the unique values that are found within a data field.Selecting a value from the drop-down list box will automatically filter the data todisplay only the rows or records matching the field value you have specified. Datacan be filtered using filter values in multiple fields.

• In order to use the AutoFilter tool, the data list must be organized according to

Excel data list guidelines. AutoFilter assumes that the top row of the worksheet isthe header row. If that is not the case, select the header row before activatingAutoFilter.

• Follow the steps below to use the AutoFilter feature:

o Position the active cell anywhere within the data list or within the headerrow.

o Choose Data |Filter |AutoFilter.

o Drop down arrows now appear along the top row of the list.

o Select a field value to filer from any AutoFilter drop-down list. Selectadditional filter values from other fields, if you desire. When additional filtervalues are selected from other fields in the data list, the additional filtercriteria are combined with the original filter value.

o The drop-down arrows of filtered fields become highlighted in blue, aswell as the record number of filtered records.

• To remove a filter, follow the steps below:

o Choose All from the AutoFilter drop-down list in the desired column.o Repeat the above step to remove any additional filters.o You can also use Data | Filter | Show | All.o When the filter is removed, all of the records in the data list are displayed.

Apply the Excel Advanced Filter

1. Select a cell in the database.



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2. From the Data menu, choose Filter, Advanced Filter. (In Excel 2007, click theData tab on the Ribbon, then click Advanced Filter.)

3. You can choose to filter the list in place, or copy the results to another location.4. Excel should automatically detect the list range. If not, you can select the cells

on the worksheet.5. Select the criteria range on the worksheet

6. If you are copying to a new location, select a starting cell for the copyNote: If you copy to another location, all cells below the extract rangewill be cleared when the Advanced Filter is applied.

7. Click OK



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Filter Unique Records

You can use an Excel Advanced Filter to extract a list of unique items in thedatabase. For example, get a list of customers from an order list, or compile alist of products sold:

Note: The list must contain a heading, or the first item may beduplicated in the results.

1. Select a cell in the database.2. From the Data menu, choose Filter, Advanced Filter.(In Excel 2007, click

the Data tab on the Ribbon, then click Advanced Filter.)3. Choose 'Copy to another location'.4. For the List range, select the column(s) from which you want to extract

the unique values.5. Leave the Criteria Range blank.6. Select a starting cell for the Copy to location.7. Add a check mark to the Unique records only box.8. Click OK.



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MS OFFICE STYLES

Styles are arguably the most important feature in Microsoft Word. Why? Becauseeverything that you do in Word has a style attached. The definition of a style is two-

fold. First, you can think of a style as a set of pre-defined formatting instructions thatyou can use repeatedly throughout the document. Let's say each heading in adocument must be centered, uppercase, bold, and a slightly larger font size. Eachtime you need to apply formatting to the heading, you have to go through the entireprocess to get the text the way you want it. If you store the formatting commands ina style, you can apply that style any time you need it without having to do all of thereformatting.

Possibly more important however is that styles are used to "tag" or identify parts of adocument. An example of this is whether text is part of a heading, a footnote, ahyperlink, or body text. These are all examples of styles in Word.

Styles are the architecture upon which Word is based. Just about everything in Wordis style-driven. In fact, many people in the industry refer to Word as a "style-driven"program.

Styles allow for quick formatting modifications throughout the document and can betied into numbering to make working with outline numbered lists easier.

Microsoft recommends that you use numbering linked to styles to get the best result.

There are several reasons for using styles in a document:

• Consistency — When you use styles to format your document, each section isformatted the same and therefore, provides a professional, clean-lookingdocument.

• Easier to Modify — If you use styles in your document consistently, you only needto update a given style once if you want to change the characteristics of all textformatted in that style.

• Efficiency — You can create a style once, and then apply it to any section in thedocument without having to format each section individually.

• Table of Contents — Styles can be used to generate a table of contents quickly.• Faster Navigation — Using styles lets you quickly move to different sections in a

document using the Document Map feature.• Working in Outline View — Styles allow you to outline and organize your

document's main topics with ease.• Legal Outline Numbering – Numbering, when linked to styles, allows you to

generate and update consistent outline numbering in legal documents, even oneswith complicated numbering schemes like municipal law, tax law, and mergersand acquisitions documents.

• Efficiency of Word — Files which are predominantly manually formatted are lessefficient than those which have formatting that has been imposed by styles.



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• HTML AND XML —A fully structured, styled document will move into HTML andXML incredibly well.

Styles are an essential part of Microsoft Word. In fact, everything you type into adocument has a style attached to it, whether you design the style or not.

When you start Microsoft Word, the new blank document is based on the Normaltemplate, and text that you type uses the Normal style. This means that when youstart typing, Word uses the font name, font size, line spacing, indentation, textalignment, and other formats currently defined for the Normal style. The Normal styleis the base style for the Normal template, meaning that it's a building block for otherstyles in the template. Whenever you start typing in a new document, unless youspecify otherwise, you are typing in the Normal style.

Paragraph vs. Character Styles

There are two types of styles in Microsoft Word; character and paragraph. Paragraph

styles are used more frequently than character styles, and they are easier to create.It's important to understand both, however, since understanding styles is soimportant.

• Character styles can be applied to individual words — even (you guessed it) singlecharacters. Character formatting is built from the formatting options availablefrom the Format menu, by selecting Font; settings from the Tools menu, byselecting Language, and then selecting Set Language; and in certain cases fromthe Format menu by selecting Borders and Shading, and looking on the Bordersand Shading tabs of the Borders and Shading dialog box.

• A paragraph style contains both font and paragraph formatting which makes itmore flexible than a character style. When you apply a paragraph style the

formatting affects the entire paragraph. For example, when you center text, youcannot center a single word. Instead, the entire paragraph is centered. Othertypes of paragraph-level formats that styles control are line spacing (single-space,double-space, etc.), text alignment, bullets, numbers, indents, tabs and borders.

There are actually four style types in Word. Each has an icon that appears next to it inthe Styles and Formatting task pane. When you use the New Style dialog box tocreate a new style, the types are available on the Style type list.

Paragraph . Applies to all the text within the end paragraph mark of where yourpointer is positioned.

Character . Applies at the character level—to blocks of words and letters.

List . Provides a consistent look to lists.

Table . Provides a consistent look to tables.



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Applying Styles

• The same rules that apply to direct formatting of text apply to style formatting of text. If you want to apply a text attribute to a single word, you can click anywherein the word and select a formatting option such as bold, italics or underline —Word applies the selected format to the entire word. Similarly, if you want toformat multiple words you must first select the multiple words. The same is truefor applying character styles. To apply a character style, you can click in themiddle of any word and select the character style to format the entire word. If youwant to change a group of words you must first select the text before applying thecharacter style.

• Applying formatting to paragraphs is a little different. Just click anywhere in aparagraph and apply direct formats such as dragging the ruler to change

indentation — since paragraph formats affect an entire paragraph, you don'thave to select the paragraph. If you want to affect multiple paragraphs, youmust first select the multiple paragraphs. And, similar to applying textformatting and character styles, to apply a paragraph style, click within theparagraph and apply the paragraph style. Or, select multiple paragraphs toapply the same style to each of the selected paragraphs.

Display Paragraph Style Names in Normal View

Sometimes it's useful to see what style has been applied to text within a document. You can turn on Word's Style Area feature to see what paragraph styles have been

applied throughout the document. The Style Area is a re-sizeable pane on the left sideof the window that lists the paragraph style applied to each paragraph. It is onlyavailable in Normal View.

Replacing Styles

Let's say you just finished applying styles to a long agreement only to find that youapplied the Heading 2 style where you should have applied the Heading 1 style. This



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can easily be remedied by using Word's Find and Replace feature. Instead of searching for text, however, you can tell Word to search and replace text formattedwith a specific style.

Create a New Style

The easiest way to create a new style is to format text with the attributes that youwant to apply to the style. It doesn't matter what you type, only what type of paragraph and character formatting that you have applied to the text. Formatting isthe only thing that is applied when you apply a style.

Modifying Existing Styles

There are two ways to modify an existing style. One of these methods is through theStyle dialog box. However, an easier method is by changing the style by exampleusing the Style drop-down toolbar button. The Style drop-down is useful if changeshave already been manually made to a paragraph formatted in the style to be

changed. If this is not the case, styles can be changed using the Style dialog box.



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INTERNET AND BUSINESS

How Internet started affecting businesses

• Fifteen years ago, the early pioneers who launched the world wide web were not

aiming to make money. But within a few years, the streets around Palo Alto,California, the home of Stanford University, were buzzing with venture capitalistsand dot.com entrepreneurs.

• An extraordinary group of entrepreneurs emerged who convinced US investorsthat the pot of internet gold was just around the corner. The first internet companyto attract widespread stock market attention was Netscape, led by Jim Clark andMarc Andreessen, who had originally developed the Mosaic browser.

• When its shares were offered for sale to the public on 9 August 1995, they tripledin value on the first day of trading. Netscape soon fell victim to Microsoft's rivalInternet Explorer browser (precipitating a long-running anti-trust case), but othercompanies in turn attracted investor attention. Portals like Yahoo, Lycos, andAltaVista, were the next big thing. Then there were the companies that provided

the internet's backbone, like MCI and WorldCom.• The company that made the switching gear for the internet, Cisco Systems, briefly

overtook Microsoft to become the world's largest company by marketcapitalisation, worth over $400bn in March 2000. At its peak, one billion dollars aweek was flowing into Silicon Valley and its venture capital firms were desperatelysearching for dot.com investments with viable business plans.

• Retailers found backing to launch websites to sell everything from toys (eToys) topet food (pets.com) to medical advice (webMD.com). The culmination of thedot.com boom was the takeover by AOL, the biggest internet service provider inthe US, of Time Warner, the biggest media company, for more than $200bn in January 2000.

• In the five years from 1995 to 2000, the main US tech stock index, the Nasdaq,rose five-fold.

The crash - and its effects

• The speed of the boom - which soon led to excesses among advisers and thosehyping internet shares - made some sort of correction inevitable. And in the springof 2000 the stock prices of many internet firms - and other high-tech companies -plunged.

• Many firms with weak cash flow went bust or were forced into mergers. Thestronger who survived generally consolidated their position -with companies likeAmazon, Yahoo, eBay and Google emerging as the dominant players in their class.

It soon became clear that the "network effects" of the internet led to a greater,rather than a lesser degree of concentration online, despite the openness of theinternet's formal structure.

• From the point of view of the economy as a whole, the internet was dramaticallylowering the cost of transactions, especially in the services sector.

• And even the over-investment in networks laid the basis for the broadbandrevolution, which made the internet faster and prepared the ground for the nextround of internet expansion.



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The quiet revolution

• The growth of outsourcing, which led to manufacturing companies moving much of their production to cheaper, overseas locations, could not have happened withoutthe internet.

• Indeed, almost every Silicon Valley firm - from Apple to Cisco - outsourced theirproduction to locations abroad, mainly in Asia.

• And many back-office service functions, from data processing to personnel, werealso moving offshore, particularly to India, where new offshore business servicescentres were emerging in Bangalore and Hyderabad.

Global - and local

• Six years into the new century, it is clear that the internet has becomemainstream. Today few big businesses can afford not to have an internet site toadvertise and sell their wares. And it has become second nature for many peopleto check out products, prices and availability online before buying.

•

China is growing even faster, and may have more internet users than the US bythe end of the decade.

Benefits of Internet for Businesses

People discover various benefits of the Internet for business. Unlike grassroots

companies that don't use the Internet, firms that do have the potential to grow their

business, earn greater revenue and save money by opting to do a large percentage of

their business online. New businesses and established companies also increase their

visibility because of the accessibility of the web.

• Small Businesses: One of the benefits of the Internet for small businesses is that

the Internet creates a competitive marketplace in which small businesses have the

opportunity to grow as much as larger companies.

• Marketing and Advertising: Creating a website benefits businesses because

people can market their products and services without using traditional marketing

techniques such as fliers, mailings and newspaper ads. Online marketing saves

the company money that would otherwise be spent on traditional means of

advertising.

• Larger Customer Base: A key benefit of the Internet for business is the potential

for customer growth. A small business without a website may be able to compete

only with other local businesses. However, people conducting business on the

Internet have the potential to gain customers from around the world because

Internet companies are open 24 hours a day.



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• Networking: Another benefit of the Internet for business includes the availability

to network with other businesspeople and organizations. Many Internet

businesspeople have created organizations with others in their field in which they

can talk about the challenges and rewards of Internet business. This interchange

of encouragement often helps new businesses experience growth.

• Saves Money on Office Supplies: Businesses that use the Internet for

transactions save money on paper and other office supplies. Instead of mailing or

faxing multiple letters to clients and other businesses, they can correspond via

email or set up paperless eFax accounts (see Resources).

• Affiliate Programs: Internet businesses that participate in affiliate programs

gain extra income by marketing the products and services of other companies on

their websites. Many companies that regularly do business with certain companies

join these programs, which help both companies gain more customers and

revenue.

Difference between system software and applicationsoftware

• The Operating System is the System Software that makes the Computer work. Wecan say that an Operating System (OS) is Software that acts as an interfacebetween you and the hardware. It not only contains drivers used to speak thehardware's language, but also offers you a very specific graphical user interface(GUI) to control the computer. An OS can also act as an interface (from thehardware) to the other software. A complex OS like Windows or Linux or Mac OSoffers the services of an OS, but also has applications built in. Solitaire, Paint,

Messenger, etc. Are all applications. Application software is the software that youinstall onto your Operating System. It consists of the programs that actually letyou do things with your computer. These Applications are written to run under thevarious Operating Systems. These include things like your word processingprograms, spread sheets, email clients, web browser, games, etc. Many programs,such as most of the Microsoft Office suite of programs, are written in both Mac andWindows versions, but you still have to have the right version for your OS. So, theOperating system of a Computer is the Software that allows the Computer work. Itprovides the framework under which the Applications run. An operating system isthe type of Computer system you have such as Window XP or Window 95, 98, Mac,etc. The Applications are the Software that actually allows the user to dosomething with the Computer. Without the applications, all you can do is change

settings and navigate among the folders.

• A system software is any computer software which manages and controlscomputer hardware so that application software can perform a task. Operatingsystems, such as Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X or Linux, are prominent examplesof system software. System software contrasts with application software, whichare programs that enable the end-user to perform specific, productive tasks, suchas word processing or image manipulation.



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• System software performs tasks like transferring data from memory to disk, orrendering text onto a display device. Specific kinds of system software includeloading programs, operating systems, device drivers, programming tools,compilers, assemblers, linkers, and utility software.

• If system software is stored on non-volatile memory such as integrated circuits, itis usually termed firmware while an application software is a subclass of computersoftware that employs the capabilities of a computer directly and thoroughly to atask that the user wishes to perform. This should be contrasted with systemsoftware which is involved in integrating a computer's various capabilities, buttypically does not directly apply them in the performance of tasks that benefit theuser.

• A simple, if imperfect analogy in the world of hardware would be the relationshipof an electric light bulb (an application) to an electric power generation plant (asystem). The power plant merely generates electricity, not itself of any real useuntil harnessed to an application like the electric light that performs a service thatbenefits the user.

• Typical examples of software applications are word processors, spreadsheets, andmedia players. Multiple applications bundled together as a package aresometimes referred to as an application suite. Microsoft Office and OpenOffice.org,which bundle together a word processor, a spreadsheet, and several otherdiscrete applications, are typical examples. The separate applications in a suiteusually have a user interface that has some commonality making it easier for theuser to learn and use each application. And often they may have some capabilityto interact with each other in ways beneficial to the user. For example, a

spreadsheet might be able to be embedded in a word processor document eventhough it had been created in the separate spreadsheet application.

• In some types of embedded systems, the application software and the operatingsystem software may be indistinguishable to the user, as in the case of softwareused to control a VCR, DVD player or Microwave Oven.

• System software is an essential part of computer operations. The function of thesystems software is to manage the resources of the computer, automate itsoperation and facilitate program development. It is generally provided by the

computer manufacturer or a specialized programming firm (for example: Microsoftis a company that specializes in system software). While, the Application softwareare designed to perform specific data processing or computational tasks for theuser. These programs are specifically designed to meet end-user requirements.(e.g: spreadsheets, word processors, media players and database applications).

• Application software is a set of one or more programs, designed to solve a specificproblem or do a specific task.



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• DIFFERENCE:o System software makes the physical machine do work.o Application software makes the system software do work.

• An operating system (OS) is software that acts as an interface between you andthe hardware. It not only contains drivers used to speak the hardware's language,but also offers you a very specific graphical user interface (GUI) to control thecomputer. An OS can also act as an interface (from the hardware) to the othersoftware. A complex OS like Windows or Linux or Mac OS offers the services of anOS, but also has applications built in. Solitaire, Paint, Messenger, etc. are allapplications. As others have said, an application is software that serves a specificfunction. It allows you to communicate, create and modify documents, playgames, etc.

What are the advantages of Computer Networks? Howdo these help in managerial decision making?

Advantages of Computer Networks

Following are some of the advantages of computer networks.

• File Sharing: The major advantage of a computer network is that is allows filesharing and remote file access. A person sitting at one workstation of anetwork can easily see the files present on the other workstation, provided heis authorized to do so. It saves the time which is wasted in copying a file fromone system to another, by using a storage device. In addition to that, manypeople can access or update the information stored in a database, making itup-to-date and accurate.

• Resource Sharing: Resource sharing is also an important benefit of acomputer network. For example, if there are four people in a family, eachhaving their own computer, they will require four modems (for the Internetconnection) and four printers, if they want to use the resources at the sametime. A computer network, on the other hand, provides a cheaper alternativeby the provision of resource sharing. In this way, all the four computers can beinterconnected, using a network, and just one modem and printer canefficiently provide the services to all four members. The facility of sharedfolders can also be availed by family members.

•

Increased Storage Capacity: As there is more than one computer on anetwork which can easily share files, the issue of storage capacity getsresolved to a great extent. A standalone computer might fall short of storagememory, but when many computers are on a network, memory of differentcomputers can be used in such case. One can also design a storage server onthe network in order to have a huge storage capacity.

• Increased Cost Efficiency: There are many softwares available in the marketwhich are costly and take time for installation. Computer networks resolve this

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issue as the software can be stored or installed on a system or a server andcan be used by the different workstations.

Disadvantages of Computer Networks

Following are some of the major disadvantages of computer networks.

• Security Issues: One of the major drawbacks of computer networks isthe security issues involved. If a computer is a standalone, physical accessbecomes necessary for any kind of data theft. However, if a computer is on anetwork, a computer hacker can get unauthorized access by using differenttools. In case of big organizations, various network security softwares are usedto prevent the theft of any confidential and classified data.

• Rapid Spread of Computer Viruses: If any computer system in a networkgets affected by computer virus, there is a possible threat of other systemsgetting affected too. Viruses get spread on a network easily because of theinterconnectivity of workstations. Such spread can be dangerous if thecomputers have important database which can get corrupted by the virus.

• Expensive Set Up: The initial set up cost of a computer network can be highdepending on the number of computers to be connected. Costly deviceslike routers, switches, hubs, etc., can add up to the bills of a person trying toinstall a computer network. He will also have to buy NICs (Network InterfaceCards) for each of the workstations, in case they are not inbuilt.

• Dependency on the Main File Server: In case the main File Server of acomputer network breaks down, the system becomes useless. In case of bignetworks, the File Server should be a powerful computer, which often makes itexpensive.

How do networks help in managerial decision making?

----TBD

Why are certain types of databases called

relation DBs

• In simplest terms, a "database" is a collection of records. There are many types of

database models. Databases can be as simple as flat files. Databases can follow

the hierarchical model, the relational model, the object-oriented model or the XML

model.

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• A database is something that stores data. Using tools called DatabaseManagement Systems(like Oracle, Informix, Sybase, DB2), you can create, view,modify, and delete databases.

• Databases can be -Relational -Object Oriented -Object Relational

o Relational database stores data in tables (called relations). Thesetables are related to each other. Just like in our family, ourrelations are related with each other.

o In Object Oriented Databases, the information is stored in the form

of Objects as in Object Oriented Programming. OODBMS makesdatabase objects appear as programming language objects in oneor more programming languages.

o Object relational databases combine the features of both ObjectOriented as well as Relational databases. Here you can not onlystore simple data like text in relational, but you can also store

complex objects like images, audio and video in tables.

• A relational database is a collection of data items organized as a set of formally-

described tables from which data can be accessed or reassembled in many

different ways without having to reorganize the database tables. The relational

database was invented by E. F. Codd at IBM in 1970.

• The standard user and application program interface to a relational database is

the structured query language (SQL). SQL statements are used both for interactivequeries for information from a relational database and for gathering data for

reports. A relational database is a set of tables containing data fitted into

predefined categories. Each table (which is sometimes called a relation) contains

one or more data categories in columns. Each row contains a unique instance of

data for the categories defined by the columns. For example, a typical business

order entry database would include a table that described a customer with

columns for name, address, phone number, and so forth. Another table would

describe an order: product, customer, date, sales price, and so forth. A user of the

database could obtain a view of the database that fitted the user's needs. For

example, a branch office manager might like a view or report on all customers

that had bought products after a certain date. A financial services manager in the

same company could, from the same tables, obtain a report on accounts that

needed to be paid.

• When creating a relational database, you can define the domain of possible values

in a data column and further constraints that may apply to that data value. For



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example, a domain of possible customers could allow up to ten possible customer

names but be constrained in one table to allowing only three of these customer

names to be specifiable.

• The definition of a relational database results in a table of metadata or formal

descriptions of the tables, columns, domains, and constraints.

• Relational databases are currently the predominant choice in storing financial

records, manufacturing and logistical information, personnel data and much more.

• Terminology

Relations or Tables: A relation is usually described as a table, which is organized

into rows and columns. All the data referenced by an attribute are in the same

domain and conform to the same constraints. Relations can be modified using the

insert, delete, and update operators. New tuples can supply explicit values or be

derived from a query. Similarly, queries identify tuples for updating or deleting. It is

necessary for each tuple of a relation to be uniquely identifiable by some combination

(one or more) of its attribute values. This combination is referred to as the primary

key.

Base and derived relations: In a relational database, all data are stored and

accessed via relations. Relations that store data are called "base relations", and in

implementations are called "tables". Other relations do not store data, but are

computed by applying relational operations to other relations. These relations are

sometimes called "derived relations". In implementations these are called "views" or

"queries". Derived relations are convenient in that though they may grab information

from several relations, they act as a single relation.

Domain: A domain describes the set of possible values for a given attribute. Because

a domain constrains the attribute's values and name, it can be considered

constraints.



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Constraints: Constraints allow you to further restrict the domain of an attribute. For

instance, a constraint can restrict a given integer attribute to values between 1 and

10. Constraints provide one method of implementing business rules in the database.

SQL implements constraint functionality in the form of check constraints. Since every

attribute has an associated domain, there are constraints (domain constraints). The

two principal rules for the relational model are known as entity integrity andreferential integrity.

Primary Keys: A primary key uniquely defines a relationship within a database. In

order for an attribute to be a good primary key it must not repeat. While natural

attributes are sometimes good primary keys, Surrogate keys are often used instead.

A surrogate key is an artificial attribute assigned to an object which uniquely

identifies it (For instance, in a table of information about students at a school they

might all be assigned a Student ID in order to differentiate them). The surrogate key

has no intrinsic meaning, but rather is useful through its ability to uniquely identify atuple.

Another common occurrence, especially in regards to N:M cardinality is the composite

key. A composite key is a key made up of two or more attributes within a table that

(together) uniquely identify a record. (For example, in a database relating students,

teachers, and classes. Classes could be uniquely identified by a composite key of

their room number and time slot, since no other class could have that exact same

combination of attributes.)

Foreign keys: A foreign key is a reference to a key in another relation, meaning that

the referencing tuple has, as one of its attributes, the values of a key in the

referenced tuple. Foreign keys need not have unique values in the referencing

relation.

Stored procedures: A stored procedure is executable code that is associated with,

and generally stored in, the database. Stored procedures usually collect and

customize common operations, like inserting a tuple into a relation, gathering

statistical information about usage patterns, or encapsulating complex business logic

and calculations. Stored procedures are not part of the relational database model, but

all commercial implementations include them.

Indices: An index is one way of providing quicker access to data. Indices can be

created on any combination of attributes on a relation. Queries that filter using those

attributes can find matching tuples randomly using the index, without having to check



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each tuple in turn. Relational databases typically supply multiple indexing techniques,

each of which is optimal for some combination of data distribution, relation size, and

typical access pattern. Indices are usually not considered part of the database, as

they are considered an implementation detail, though indices are usually maintained

by the same group that maintains the other parts of the database.

Relational operations: For Ex: UNION, INTERSECT, MINUS, CROSS JOIN, INNER JOIN,

DISTINCT

Normalization: Normalization was first proposed by Codd as an integral part of the

relational model. It encompasses a set of best practices designed to eliminate the

duplication of data, which in turn prevents data manipulation anomalies and loss of

data integrity. Normalization is criticized because it increases complexity and

processing overhead required to join multiple tables representing what areconceptually a single item.

Relational database management systems

Relational databases, as implemented in relational database management systems,

have become a predominant choice for the storage of information in new databases

used for financial records, manufacturing and logistical information, personnel dataand much more. Relational databases have often replaced legacy hierarchical

databases and network databases because they are easier to understand and use,

even though they are much less efficient. However, relational databases have been

challenged by Object Databases, which were introduced in an attempt to address the

object-relational impedance mismatch in relational database, and XML databases. The

three leading commercial relational database vendors are Oracle, Microsoft, and IBM.

The three leading open source implementations are MySQL, PostgreSQL, and SQLite.

MICROSOFT WORD – TRACK CHANGES

o Track Changes is a way for Microsoft Word to keep track of the changes you

make to a document. You can then choose to accept or reject those changes. Let's

say Bill creates a document and emails it to his colleague, Lee, for feedback. Lee



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can edit the document with Track Changes on. When Lee sends the document

back to Bill, Bill can see what changes Lee had made.

o Track Changes is also known as redline, or redlining. This is because some

industries traditionally draw a vertical red line in the margin to show that some

text has changed.

o To use Track Changes, you need to know that there are three entirely separate

things that might be going on at any one time:

o First, at some time in the past (last week, yesterday, one millisecond ago),

Word might have kept track of the changes you made. It did this because youturned on Track Changes. Word then remembered the changes you made to your

document, and stored the changes in your document.

o Second, if Word has stored information about changes you've made to your

document, then you can choose to display those changes, or to hide them. Hiding

them doesn't make them go away. It just hides them from view. (The only way to

remove the tracked changes from your document is to accept or reject them.)

o Third, at this very moment in time, Word may be tracking the changes you

make to your document.

o How to turn track changes on and off

o In Word 2002 and 2003: Tools > Track Changes.

o In Word 2000 and earlier versions: Tools > Track Changes > Highlight

Changes. Tick Track Changes while editing. Look at the TRK text in the

Status Bar at the bottom of the screen. If it's black, Word is tracking changes. If

it's dimmed, Word is not tracking changes.

o How to display the tracked changes

o There are several ways to do this, depending on what you need: In Word 2002

and 2003, on the Reviewing toolbar, choose Final with Markup or Original with



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Markup. This will show you what changes have been made. In Word 2000 and

earlier, Tools > Track Changes > Highlight Changes. Tick Highlight Changes on

Screen.

o How do I control how Word displays tracked changes?

o Tools > Options. Click the Track Changes tab. Here you choose how to display

tracked changes when you are displaying tracked changes.

o How to hide (but not delete) track changes

o In Word 2002 and 2003, on the Reviewing toolbar, choose Final. This displays

your document as if you had accepted all the tracked changes in the

document. It hides (but does not remove) the tracked changes. In Word 2002

and 2003, on the Reviewing toolbar, choose Original. This displays your

document as if you had rejected all the tracked changes in the document. It

hides (but does not remove) the tracked changes.

o In earlier versions of Word, Tools > Track Changes > Highlight Changes. Un-

tick Highlight Changes on Screen. This displays your document as if you had

accepted all the tracked changes. It hides (but does not remove) the tracked

changes.

o How to remove tracked changes

o To delete a tracked change, either accept it or reject it.

o To accept one tracked change in Word 2002 or Word 2003, click within the

change and then on the Reviewing toolbar, click the Accept Change button (it'sthe one with the blue tick). Or, right-click on the tracked change and choose

Accept Insertion or Accept Deletion or Accept Format Change etc.

o To reject (ie delete) one tracked change in Word 2002 or Word 2003, on the

Reviewing toolbar, click the Reject Change button (it's the one with the red

cross). Or, right-click on the tracked change and choose Reject Insertion or

Reject Deletion or Reject Format Change etc.



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o In Word 2000 and earlier, Tools > Track Changes > Accept or Reject Changes.

Click one of the Find buttons (with the green arrow) to go through the changes

one by one. Accept or reject the change.

o How do I accept or reject all tracked changes in the document in one

step?

o To accept all changes in Word 2002 or Word 2003: on the Reviewing toolbar,

hover over the Accept Change button (the one with the blue tick). Click on the

arrow you see to the right of the button. Choose Accept all Changes in

Document.

o To reject (or delete) all changes in Word 2002 or Word 2003: on the Reviewing

toolbar, hover over the Reject Change button (the one with the red cross). Click

on the arrow you see to the right of the button. Choose Reject all Changes in

Document.


You can choose to accept or reject all the changes in the document.

o Printing tracked changes

o

Word 2002 and 2003: File > Print. In the "Print What" box, choose Documentshowing Markup.



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o Word 2002 and before: Tools > Track Changes > Highlight Changes. Tick

Highlight Changes in Printed Document.

o How do I print out my document without showing the tracked changes?

o Word 2002 and 2003: File > Print. In the "Print What" box, choose Document.

o Word 2002 and before: Tools > Track Changes > Highlight Changes. Un-tick

Highlight Changes in Printed Document

o How can I tell if there are Tracked Changes in my document?

o In Word 2002 and Word 2003, on the Reviewing toolbar, click the Next button

(it's the one with the blue arrow). If the message box says "The document

contains no comments or tracked changes", then there are no comments or

tracked changes. Otherwise, the cursor will move to the first tracked change in

the document.


Click one of the Find buttons (with the green arrow).

o How can I make sure that Word always displays tracked changes when I

open a document?

o In Word 2003, Tools > Options > Security. Tick "Make hidden markup visible

when opening or saving."

o This functionality isn't available in earlier versions of Word.



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NAME RANGE

You can create Excel names that refer to cells, a range of cells, a constant value, or a

formula.

After you define the Excel names, you can use those names in formulas, to replace

values or cell references.

If Excel names refer to cells or a range of cells, you can use the names for navigation,

to quickly select the Excel named range.

Name a Range - Excel Name Box

You can create an Excel named range quickly by typing in the Excel Name Box.

1. Select the cell(s) to be named2. Click in the Excel Name box, to the left of the formula bar3. Type a one-word name for the list, e.g. FruitList.

4. Press the Enter key.

Use Excel Names

After creating Excel names that refer to a range, you can select an Excel name in theName Box dropdown list, to select the Excel named range on the worksheet.



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You can also use Excel names in formulas. For example, you could have a group of cells with sales amounts for the month of January. Name those cells JanSales, thenuse this formula to calculate the total amount:

=SUM(JanSales)

More Explanation:

Instead of using something like = SUM(A2:A5) to add up a column of numbers, youcan replace the A2:A5 part of the function with a more descriptive name. This isknown as a Named Range. Examine the spreadsheet below:

In the Results Row, cell B5 is a result of adding up cells B2 to B4. The formula used is just this:

=Sum(B2:B4)

Now examine the same spreadsheet, but with a Named Range used:

This time, cell B5 doesn't have in it the formula = Sum(B2:B4). As you can see, it has=SUM(Monthly_Totals). This is the label from B1. We have created a Named Range. The formula in cell B5 is now more descriptive. We can tell at a glance what it is we're

adding up. Excel has replaced the B2:B4 part with the name we gave it. Behind thescenes, though, we're still adding up the numbers in cells B2 to B4. Excel has justhidden the cell references behind our descriptive name.

You'll now see how to create your own Named Ranges.



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Creating a Named Range

Start a new spreadsheet, and enter the same data as in the image below:

Make sure you have the same formula in cell B5 =Sum(B2:B4). We're going to createa Named Range, and then pop it in cell B5. To create a Named Range then, do thefollowing:

• Highlight the B column, from B2 to B4 (Don't include the formula when you're

highlighting. Just highlight the same cells as the ones in the function)• From the menu bar, click on Insert• From the drop-down menu select Name• A sub menu appears like the one below:

There's a two-step process involved with setting up a Named Range. The fist thing todo is Define the name. You then Apply the name to your formula.

• So select Define from the sub menu• The Define Name dialogue box pops up. This one:



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With the B column highlighted, Excel will use your label at the top as the name(Monthly_Totals for us). But you can change it if you want. Notice the narrow text box

at the bottom, "Refers to". This is showing the highlighted cells.

Click OK on the dialogue box.

You are returned to your spreadsheet. Nothing will happen. This is because we havehaven't done step two of the two-step process - Applying the name.

To apply your new name to a formula, do this:

• Click inside the cell where your formula is, B5 in our case• Click on Insert from the menu bar• From the drop down menu, select Name• From the sub menu that appears, click on Apply• A dialogue box will appear showing a list of all the Names you have set up

You'll have only one Name set up , so there's not much to do except click the OK button.

When you click OK, Excel should adapt your formula in cell B5. If you've done it right,your spreadsheet should look like the one below:

As you can see, the cell B5 now reads =SUM(Monthly_Totals). Excel has hidden thecell references behind the Name we defined.



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Advantages of using Named Ranges

In addition to providing an alternative to repeatedly typing in cell addresses and cellranges, using named ranges have several other advantages.

1) They improve readability and make your formulas much easier to understandmeaning there is less chance of errors.

2) Moving or shifting cells that have a named range means that the formulas areadjusted automatically. There is no need to worry about whether the formulas useabsolute or relative references.

3) Inserting and deleting cells, rows or columns will not change the location of yournamed ranges. Moving cells, rows or columns will though.

4) Typing a descriptive name is much easier than remembering a specific celladdress, therefore simplifying your formulas.

5) You can quickly move to particular areas of your workbook (or worksheet) veryquickly by either using the Name Box or the (Edit > Goto) dialog box.

6) You can also create 3-D named ranges that represent the same cell or range of cells across multiple worksheets.

7) Allows you to define Named Constants which are single, frequently used values.

8) Allows you to define Named Formulas which are common frequently used formulas(save re-typing them).

WORLD WIDE WEB

• The World Wide Web, abbreviated as WWW and commonly known as The Web, is

a system of interlinked hypertext documents contained on the Internet. With a

web browser, one can view web pages that may contain text, images, videos, and

other multimedia and navigate between them by using hyperlinks.

• "The World-Wide Web (W3) was developed to be a pool of human knowledge,

which would allow collaborators in remote sites to share their ideas and all aspects

of a common project." If two projects are independently created, rather than have

a central figure make the changes, the two bodies of information could form into

one cohesive piece of work.



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• The terms Internet and World Wide Web are often used in every-day speech

without much distinction. However, the Internet and the World Wide Web are not

one and the same. The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer

networks. In contrast, the Web is one of the services that runs on the Internet. It is

a collection of interconnected documents and other resources, linked by

hyperlinks and URLs. In short, the Web is an application running on the Internet.

• Viewing a web page on the World Wide Web normally begins either by typing the

URL of the page into a web browser, or by following a hyperlink to that page or

resource. The web browser then initiates a series of communication messages,

behind the scenes, in order to fetch and display it.

• First, the server-name portion of the URL is resolved into an IP address using the

global, distributed Internet database known as the domain name system, or DNS.

This IP address is necessary to contact the Web server. The browser then requests

the resource by sending an HTTP request to the Web server at that particular

address. In the case of a typical web page, the HTML text of the page is requested

first and parsed immediately by the web browser, which then makes additional

requests for images and any other files that form parts of the page.

• Statistics measuring a website's popularity are usually based either on the number

of 'page views' or associated server 'hits' (file requests) that take place.

• While receiving these files from the web server, browsers may progressively

render the page onto the screen as specified by its HTML, CSS, and other web

languages. Any images and other resources are incorporated to produce the on-

screen web page that the user sees.

• Most web pages will themselves contain hyperlinks to other related pages and

perhaps to downloads, source documents, definitions and other web resources.

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS



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An embedded system is a computer system designed to perform one or a few

dedicated functions often with real-time computing constraints. It is embedded as

part of a complete device often including hardware and mechanical parts. By

contrast, a general-purpose computer, such as a personal computer (PC), is designed

to be flexible and to meet a wide range of end-user needs. Embedded systems control

many devices in common use today.

Physically, embedded systems range from portable devices such as digital watches

and MP3 players, to large stationary installations like traffic lights, factory controllers,or the systems controlling nuclear power plants.

Characteristics

Embedded systems are designed to do some specific task, rather than be a general-

purpose computer for multiple tasks. Some also have real-time performanceconstraints that must be met, for reasons such as safety and usability; others may

have low or no performance requirements, allowing the system hardware to be

simplified to reduce costs.



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Embedded systems are not always standalone devices. Many embedded systems

consist of small, computerized parts within a larger device that serves a more general

purpose. An embedded system in an automobile provides a specific function as a

subsystem of the car itself.

The program instructions written for embedded systems are referred to as firmware,

and are stored in read-only memory or Flash memory chips. They run with limited

computer hardware resources: little memory, small or non-existent keyboard and/or

screen.

• User interface: Embedded systems range from no user interface at all —

dedicated only to one task — to complex graphical user interfaces that resemble

modern computer desktop operating systems. Simple embedded devices use

buttons, LEDs, graphic or character LCDs with a simple menu system. A more

sophisticated devices use graphical screen with touch sensing or screen-edge

buttons provide flexibility while minimizing space used: the meaning of the

buttons can change with the screen, and selection involves the natural behavior of

pointing at what's desired. Handheld systems often have a screen with a "joystick

button" for a pointing device.

• Processors in embedded systems: Embedded processors can be broken into

two broad categories: ordinary microprocessors and microcontrollers, which have

many more peripherals on chip, reducing cost and size.

URL

• In computing, a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) is a subset of the Uniform

Resource Identifier (URI) that specifies where an identified resource is availableand the mechanism for retrieving it.

• Every URL consists of some of the following: the scheme name (commonly

called protocol), followed by a colon, then, depending on scheme, a hostname

(alternatively, IP address), a port number, the path of the resource to be fetched



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or the program to be run, then, for programs such as Common Gateway Interface

(CGI) scripts, a query string, and with HTML documents, an anchor (optional) for

where the page should start to be displayed.

• The combined syntax is

resource_type://username:password@domain:port/path?query_string#anchor

• The scheme name, or resource type, defines its namespace, purpose, and the

syntax of the remaining part of the URL.. For example, a Web browser will usually

dereference the URL http://example.org:80 by performing an HTTP request to the

host example.org, at the port number 80. Other examples of scheme names

include https: gopher:, wais:, ftp:. URLs that specify https as a scheme (such as

https://example.com/) denote a secure website.

• The registered domain name or IP address gives the destination location for

the URL. The domain google.com, or its IP address 72.14.207.99, is the address of

Google's website. The hostname and domain name portion of a URL are case-

insensitive since the DNS is specified to ignore case. http://en.wikipedia.org/ and

HTTP://EN.WIKIPEDIA.ORG/ both open the same page.

• The port number is optional; if omitted, the default for the scheme is used. For

example, if http://myvncserver.no-ip.org:5800 is typed into the address bar of a

browser it will connect to port 5800 of myvncserver.no-ip.org; this port is used by

the VNC remote control program and would set up a remote control session. If the

port number is omitted a browser will connect to port 80, the default HTTP port.

• The path is used to find the resource specified. It is case-sensitive, though it

may be treated as case-insensitive by some servers, especially those based on

Microsoft Windows. If the server is case sensitive andhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/URL is correct, http://en.wikipedia.org/WIKI/URL/ or

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/url/ will display an HTTP 404 error page.

• The query string contains data to be passed to web applications such as CGI

programs. The query string contains name/value pairs separated by ampersands,



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with names and values in each pair being separated by equal signs, for example

first_name=John&last_name=Doe.

• The anchor part when used with HTTP specifies a location on the page. For

example, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/URL#Syntax addresses the beginning of the

Syntax section of the page.

IT APLICATION LANDSCAPE IN A COMPANY

1. Applications at HO = Applications in all Regional Offices + Applications at HO

2.Applications at a R.O. = Applications in one regional office + Applications at allBranches

3. Applications at a branch

Applications at Branch:

1. Invoicing Accounting System

2. Sales Accounting System

3. Cash/Bank Accounting System

4. Stock Accounting System

5. Attendance Accounting System

Applications at RO

1. Applications at branches getting consolidated at RO Level , PLUS

2. Regional warehousing accounting system

3. Payroll accounting system



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Applications at HO

• Applications at ROs getting consolidated at HO Level , PLUS

• Purchase accounting system

• Payroll accounting system

• Inventory Management Systems

• Financial Accounting Systems



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VALUE CHAIN ANALYSIS 1980

The value chain is a systematic approach to examining the development of

competitive advantage. It was created by M. E. Porter in his book, Competitive

Advantage (1980). The chain consists of a series of activities that create and build

value. They culminate in the total value delivered by an organization. The

organization is split into 'primary activities' and 'support activities.'

Primary Activities.

• Inbound Logistics: Here goods are received from a company's suppliers. They

are stored until they are needed on the production/assembly line. Goods aremoved around the organization.

• Operations: This is where goods are manufactured or assembled. Individual

operations could include room service in an hotel, packing of books/videos/games

by an online retailer, or the final tune for a new car's engine.

• Outbound Logistics: The goods are now finished, and they need to be sent along

the supply chain to wholesalers, retailers or the final consumer.

• Marketing and Sales: In true customer orientated fashion, at this stage the

organization prepares the offering to meet the needs of targeted customers. Thisarea focuses strongly upon marketing communications and the promotions mix.

• Service: This includes all areas of service such as installation, after-sales service,

complaints handling, training and so on.

Support Activities.

• Procurement: This function is responsible for all purchasing of goods, servicesand materials. The aim is to secure the lowest possible price for purchases of the

highest possible quality. They will be responsible for outsourcing (components or

operations that would normally be done in-house are done by other organizations),

and ePurchasing (using IT and web-based technologies to achieve procurement

aims).



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• Technology Development: Technology is an important source of competitive

advantage. Companies need to innovate to reduce costs and to protect and

sustain competitive advantage. This could include production technology, Internet

marketing activities, lean manufacturing, Customer Relationship Management

(CRM), and many other technological developments.

• Human Resource Management (HRM): Employees are an expensive and vital

resource. An organization would manage recruitment and s election, training and

development, and rewards and remuneration. The mission and objectives of the

organization would be driving force behind the HRM strategy.

• Firm Infrastructure: This activity includes and is driven by corporate or strategic

planning. It includes the Management Information System (MIS) and other

mechanisms for planning and control such as the accounting department.



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KAUSHIK FIRST CLASS DEFINITIONS

1) Definition of Universal Computer: The defining feature of a “universal

computer” is programmability, which allows the computer to emulate any other

calculating machine by changing a stored sequence of instructions.

2) Definition of Programme: An organized list of instructions, that when executed,

cause the computer to behave in a pre-determined manner.

Program ME

Storage of program and data

Calculation

Logic

Data Storage

Data Retrieval

3) Counting and calculation devices:

Tally Stick

Phoenician Clay

Abacus

Slide Rule

Analog Computers

Antikythera Mechanism: Punch Card

Multiplicative and Repetitive addition: By John Napier

Father of modern computing: Wilhelm schickard built the first

mechanical calculator and this became the father of the computing era.

Mark I: The IBM Automatic Sequence Controlled Calculator (ASCC),

called the Mark I by Harvard University, was the first large-scale automatic

digital computer in the USA. The electromechanical ASCC was devised by

Howard H. Aiken, built at IBM and shipped to Harvard in February 1944. It



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began computations for the U.S. Navy Bureau of Ships in May and was

officially presented to the university on August 7, 1944. The main

advantage of the Mark I was that it was fully automatic—it didn't need any

human intervention once it started. It was the first fully automatic computer

to be completed. It was also very reliable, much more so than early

electronic computers. It is considered to be "the beginning of the era of themodern computer" and "the real dawn of the computer age".

IBM 701: The 701 was formally announced on May 21, 1952. It was

the unit of the overall 701 Data Processing System in which actual

calculations was performed. That activity involved 274 assemblies

executing all the system's computing and control functions by means of

electronic pulses emitted at speeds ranging up to one million a second. The

701 contained the arithmetic components, the input and output control

circuitry, and the stored program control circuitry. Also mounted on the 701

was the operator's panel. The arithmetic section contained the memory

register, accumulator register and the multiplier-quotient register. Eachregister had a capacity of 35 bits and sign. The accumulator register also

had two extra positions called register overflow positions. The control

section decoded the stored programs and directed the machine in

automatically performing its instructions. Instructions could only be entered

into the control section through electrostatic storage or manually from the

operator's panel. The entire machine could be manually controlled from the

operator's panel through various buttons, keys, switches and signal lights.

The operator could manually control the insertion of information into

electrostatic storage or the various registers. The contents of the various

registers could also be displayed in neon lights for the operator to observe. The operator's panel was used primarily when beginning an operation on

the 701 and when initially testing a program for a new operation. Also

included with the Analytical Control Unit were the IBM 736 Power Frame #1,

741 Power Frame #2 and the 746 Power Distribution Unit. Those three

power units supplied the power for all units in the 701 system. The

functional machine cycle of the 701 was 12 microseconds; the time

required to execute an instruction or a sequence of instructions was an

integral multiple of this cycle or 456 microseconds were required for the

execution of a multiply or divide instruction. The 701 could execute 33

different operations. The monthly rental for a 701 unit was approximately

$8,100. The 701 was withdrawn from marketing on October 1, 1954.

Integrated Circuits: Our world is full of integrated circuits. You find

several of them in computers. For example, most people have probably

heard about the microprocessor. The microprocessor is an integrated circuit

that processes all information in the computer. It keeps track of what keys

are pressed and if the mouse has been moved. It counts numbers and runs



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programs, games and the operating system. Integrated circuits are also

found in almost every modern electrical device such as cars, television sets,

CD players, cellular phones, etc. The integrated circuit is nothing more than

a very advanced electric circuit. An electric circuit is made from different

electrical components such as transistors, resistors, capacitors and diodes,

that are connected to each other in different ways. These components havedifferent behaviors. The transistor acts like a switch. It can turn electricity

on or off, or it can amplify current. It is used for example in computers to

store information, or in stereo amplifiers to make the sound signal stronger.

The resistor limits the flow of electricity and gives us the possibility to

control the amount of current that is allowed to pass. Resistors are used,

among other things, to control the volume in television sets or radios. The

capacitor collects electricity and releases it all in one quick burst; like for

instance in cameras where a tiny battery can provide enough energy to fire

the flashbulb. The diode stops electricity under some conditions and allows

it to pass only when these conditions change. This is used in, for example,

photocells where a light beam that is broken triggers the diode to stop

electricity from flowing through it. These components are like the building

blocks in an electrical construction kit. Depending on how the components

are put together when building the circuit, everything from a burglar alarm

to a computer microprocessor can be constructed. Of the components

mentioned above, the transistor is the most important one for the

development of modern computers. Before the transistor, engineers had to

use vacuum tubes. Integrated circuits were an essential breakthrough in

electronics -- allowing a large amount of circuitry to be mass-produced in

reusable components with high levels of functionality. Without integrated

circuits, many modern things we take for granted would be impossible: thedesktop computers are a good example -- building one without integrated

circuits would require enormous amounts of power and space, nobody's

home would be large enough to contain one, never mind carrying one

around like a notebook.

Third Generation Computers (1964-1971): Although transistors

were great deal of improvement over the vacuum tubes, they generated

heat and damaged the sensitive areas of the computer. The Integrated

Circuit(IC) was invented in 1958 by Jack Kilby. It combined electronic

components onto a small silicon disc, made from quartz. More advancement

made possible the fittings of even more components on a small chip or a

semi conductor. Also in third generation computers, the operating systems

allowed the machines to run many different applications. These applications

were monitored and coordinated by the computer's memory. Third

generation computer is a computer built with small-scale integration

integrated circuits, designed after the mid-1960s. Third generation

computers use semiconductor memories in addition to, and later instead of,



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ferrite core memory. The two main types of semiconductor memory are

Read-Only Memory (ROM) and read-and-write memories called random-

access memory (RAM). A technique called microprogramming became

widespread and simplified the design of the CPUs and increased their

flexibility. This also made possible the development of operating systems as

software rather than as hard-wiring. A variety of techniques for improvingprocessing efficiency were invented, such as pipelining, (parallel operation

of functional units processing a single instruction), and multiprocessing

(concurrent execution of multiple programs). As the execution of a program

requires that program to be in memory, the concurrent running of several

programs requires that all programs be in memory simultaneously. Thus the

development of techniques for concurrent processing was matched by the

development of memory management techniques such as dynamic memory

allocation, virtual memory, and paging, as well as compilers producing

relocatable code. The LILLIAC IV is an example of a third generation

computer. The CTSS (Compatible Time-Sharing System) was developed at

MIT in the early 1960s and had a considerable influence on the design of

subsequent timesharing operating systems. An interesting contrasting

development in this generation was the start of mass production of small

low-cost "minicomputers".

Von Neumann Architecture: All computers share the same basic

architecture, whether it is a multi-million dollar mainframe or a Palm Pilot.

All have memory, an I/O system, and arithmetic/logic unit, and a control

unit. This type of architecture is named Von Neumann architecture after the

mathematician who conceived of the design.

Memory: Computer Memory is that subsystem that serves as

temporary storage for all program instructions and data that are being

executed by the computer. It is typically called RAM. Memory is divided

up into cells, each cell having a unique address so that the data can be

fetched.

Input / Output: This is the subsystem that allows the computer to

interact with other devices and communicate to the outside world. It

also is responsible for program storage, such as hard drive control.



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Arithmetic/Logic Unit: This is that subsystem that

performs all arithmetic operations and comparisons for

equality. In the Von Neumann design, this and the Control Unit

are separate components, but in modern systems they are

integrated into the processor . The ALU has 3 sections, the register,

the ALU circuitry, and the pathways in between. The register is basically a storage cell that works like RAM and holds the results of the

calculations. It is much faster than RAM and is addresses differently. The

ALU circuitry is that actually performs the calculations. and it is

designed from AND, OR, and NOT gates just as any chip. The pathways

in between are self-explanatory – pathways for electrical current within

the ALU.

Control Unit: The control unit has the responsibility of (1) fetching

from memory the next program instruction to be run, (2) decode it todetermine what needs to be done, then (3) issue the proper command

to the ALU, memory and I/O controllers to get the job done. These steps

are done continuously until the last line of a program is done, which is

usually QUIT or STOP.

At the machine level, the instructions executed by the computer

are expressed in machine language. Machine Language is in binary code

and is organized by op code and address fields. Op codes are special

binary codes that tell the computer what operations to carry out. Theaddress fields are locations in memory on which that particular op code

will act. All machine language instructions are organized with the op

code first, then the memory addresses following. The set of all

operations a processor can do is called its instruction set.

4) Personal Computers:

A single user computer. A computer built around a microprocessor for use

by an individual, as in an office or at home or school.. The term was very

popular in the 1980s when individuals began to purchase their own

computers for the first time in history. "Microcomputer" was another



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popular term. Today, the terms PC, desktop, laptop and just plain

"computer" are synonymous with personal computer.

Personal Computer Timeline: The industry began in 1977, when Apple,

Radio Shack and Commodore introduced the first off-the-shelf computers asconsumer products. The first machines used an 8-bit microprocessor with a

maximum of 64K of memory and floppy disks for storage. The Apple II, Atari

500, and Commodore 64 became popular home computers, and Apple was

successful in companies after the VisiCalc spreadsheet was introduced.

However, the business world was soon dominated by the Z80 processor and

CP/M operating system, used by many vendors in the early 1980s, such as

Vector Graphic, NorthStar, Osborne and Kaypro. By 1983, hard disks began

to show up, but CP/M was soon to be history.

• Goodbye CP/M, Hello DOS

• Early 1980s - dBASE, Lotus and the Clones

• Mid-1980s - Apple's Lisa and Mac

• Late 1980s - The Mac Gained Ground

• The 1990s - The Winner Is Windows: In the early 1990s, Gateway and

other mail-order vendors began to slash hardware prices. All the

others followed, and the PC price wars began.

•

The End of the 1990s - Dot-Com Fever

• The 21st Century - The Smartphone



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When personal computers were introduced in the late 1970s and early

1980s, they were bought to solve individual problems, such as automating

a budget or typing a letter. Within a few years, an entire industry sprang up

to support them. All of sudden, so it seemed, the personal computer

became a desktop appliance in every office throughout the developed

world. Networked with the organization's mainframes and departmentalcomputers, it became an integral part of the technology infrastructure of

every company, small, medium and large. Evolving into an indispensable

appliance in almost every home in the developed world, no single

technology has impacted more people than the personal computer.

5) Bits: A bit is the basic unit of information in computing and

telecommunications; it is the amount of information that can be stored by a

device or other physical system that can normally exist in only two distinct

states. These may be the two stable positions of an electrical switch, twodistinct voltage or current levels allowed by a circuit, two distinct levels of

light intensity, two directions of magnetization or polarization, etc. In

computing, a bit can also be defined as a variable or computed quantity

that can have only two possible values. These two values are often

interpreted as binary digits and are usually denoted by the Arabic numerical

digits 0 and 1. Indeed, the term "bit" is a contraction of binary digit. The two

values can also be interpreted as logical values (true/false, yes/no).

algebraic signs (+/−), activation states (on/off), or any other two-valued

attribute. In several popular programming languages, numeric 0 is

equivalent (or convertible) to logical false, and 1 to true. The

correspondence between these values and the physical states of the

underlying storage or device is a matter of convention, and different

assignments may be used even within the same device or program.

6) QDOS: QDOS was the forerunner of DOS (Disk Operating System), the first

widely-used personal computer operating system. In 1980, when IBM was

making plans to enter the personal computer market, it asked Bill Gates,

the young owner of a small company called Microsoft, if they could locate

an operating system for the new PC that IBM was developing. Microsoft,

which had previously furnished IBM with a BASIC language product for the

IBM PC, looked around and found an operating system called 86-DOS at a

small company called Seattle Computer Products.

86-DOS - often referred to as QDOS, or Quick and Dirty Operating

System - was written in six weeks by Tim Paterson, based on ideas in

CP/M (Control Program for Microcomputers), an operating system



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popular with early personal computer users. 86-DOS was designed

for use with Seattle Computer's Intel 8086-based computers. It

contained about 4,000 lines of assembler language code. Microsoft

bought 86-DOS from Seattle Computer Products for $50,000, revised

it, renaming it MS-DOS, and then delivered it to IBM for its new PC.

IBM rewrote MS-DOS after finding 300 bugs in it and renamed it PC-

DOS, which is why both IBM and Microsoft hold a copyright for it. Bill

Gates saw the potential for MS-DOS and persuaded IBM to let

Microsoft sell it separately from IBM's PC projects. The initial IBM PC

actually offered the user a choice of one of three operating systems:

PC-DOS, CP/M 86, and UCSD p-System, a Pascal-based system. PC-

DOS, which was cheaper, proved the most popular and began to

come bundled with the IBM PC in its second product release. The IBM

PC brought personal computing to the business world for the first

time and was successful beyond IBM's imaginings. In 18 months, IBM

introduced the PC-XT, which included a hard drive loaded with anewer version of DOS. Microsoft promised a multitasking DOS, but

that never happened. Instead, Microsoft developed Windows with

multitasking features.

7) Operating System Functions: The operating system is the core software

component of your computer. It performs many functions and is, in very

basic terms, an interface between your computer and the outside world. In

the section about hardware, a computer is described as consisting of

several component parts including your monitor, keyboard, mouse, andother parts. The operating system provides an interface to these parts using

what is referred to as "drivers". This is why sometimes when you install a

new printer or other piece of hardware, your system will ask you to install

more software called a driver.

A driver is a specially written program which understands the operation of

the device it interfaces to, such as a printer, video card, sound card or CD

ROM drive. It translates commands from the operating system or user into

commands understood by the the component computer part it interfaces

with. It also translates responses from the component computer part back

to responses that can be understood by the operating system, application

program, or user. The below diagram gives a graphical depiction of the

interfaces between the operating system and the computer component.

Other Operating System Functions



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The operating system provides for several other functions including:

System tools (programs) used to monitor computer performance,

debug problems, or maintain parts of the system.

A set of libraries or functions which programs may use to perform

specific tasks especially relating to interfacing with computer system

components.

The operating system makes these interfacing functions along with

its other functions operate smoothly and these functions are mostly

transparent to the user.

Operating System Concerns

As mentioned previously, an operating system is a computer program.

Operating systems are written by human programmers who make mistakes.

Therefore there can be errors in the code even though there may be some

testing before the product is released. Some companies have better

software quality control and testing than others so you may notice varying

levels of quality from operating system to operating system.

Errors in operating systems cause three main types of problems:

System crashes and instabilities - These can happen due to a

software bug typically in the operating system, although computer

programs being run on the operating system can make the system

more unstable or may even crash the system by themselves. This

varies depending on the type of operating system. A system crash is

the act of a system freezing and becoming unresponsive which would

cause the user to need to reboot.

Security flaws - Some software errors leave a door open for the

system to be broken into by unauthorized intruders. As these flaws

are discovered, unauthorized intruders may try to use these to gain

illegal access to your system. Patching these flaws often will help

keep your computer system secure. How this is done will be

explained later.



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Sometimes errors in the operating system will cause the computer

not to work correctly with some peripheral devices such as printers.

Operating System Types

There are many types of operating systems. The most common is the

Microsoft suite of operating systems. They include from most recent to the

oldest:

Windows XP Professional Edition - A version used by many

businesses on workstations. It has the ability to become a member of

a corporate domain. Windows XP Home Edition - A lower cost version of Windows XP

which is for home use only and should not be used at a business.

Windows 2000 - A better version of the Windows NT operating

system which works well both at home and as a workstation at a

business. It includes technologies which allow hardware to be

automatically detected and other enhancements over Windows NT.

Windows ME - A upgraded version from windows 98 but it has been

historically plagued with programming errors which may be

frustrating for home users.

Windows 98 - This was produced in two main versions. The first

Windows 98 version was plagued with programming errors but the

Windows 98 Second Edition which came out later was much better

with many errors resolved.

Windows NT - A version of Windows made specifically for businesses

offering better control over workstation capabilities to help network

administrators.

Windows 95 - The first version of Windows after the older Windows3.x versions offering a better interface and better library functions for

programs.

There are other worthwhile types of operating systems not made by

Microsoft. The greatest problem with these operating systems lies in the

fact that not as many application programs are written for them.



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However if you can get the type of application programs you are looking

for, one of the systems listed below may be a good choice.

Unix - A system that has been around for many years and it is very

stable. It is primary used to be a server rather than a workstation and

should not be used by anyone who does not understand the system.It can be difficult to learn. Unix must normally run an a computer

made by the same company that produces the software.

Linux - Linux is similar to Unix in operation but it is free. It also

should not be used by anyone who does not understand the system

and can be difficult to learn.

Apple MacIntosh - Most recent versions are based on Unix but it has

a good graphical interface so it is both stable (does not crash often or

have as many software problems as other systems may have) and

easy to learn. One drawback to this system is that it can only be runon Apple produced hardware.



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CPU

o CPU is the “The brain of the computer” that takes care of all the computations and

processes.

o The component of CPU include,

o CU: Control Unit Directs and manages the activities of the processor.

o ALU: Arithmetic and Logic Unit. Performs Arithmetic and Logical operations.

(+, -, x, /, >,<, =)

o FPU: Floating Point Unit. Performs division and large decimal operations.

o Cache Memory: Predicts and anticipates the data that the processor

needs.

o

I/O Unit: Input Output unit. The gateway for the processor.

o Register : Which hold temporary data for a specific purpose of function

o Microprocessors Speed

o Microprocessor speeds can be measured in a variety of ways:

o Megahertz

o MIPS

o Megaflops

o Fsb

o Types of Processors

o Hyper threading



o A technology developed by Intel that enables multithreaded(current of

data) software applications to execute threads in parallel on a single

processor instead of processing threads in a linear fashion. Older systems

took advantage of dual-processing threading in software by splitting

(dividing) instructions into multiple streams so that more than one

processor could act upon (on)them at once.

o Load Balancing

o Load balancing is a technique to distribute workload evenly across two or

more computers, network links, CPUs, hard drives, or other resources, in

order to get optimal resource utilization maximize throughput minimize