Hardware and Software Chapter 4. This Could Happen to You: “We Called It Strangle and Cram” 4-2 Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as.

Hardware and Software

Chapter 4

This Could Happen to You: “We Called It Strangle and Cram”

4-2Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall

FlexTime scenario video

“Strangle and cram”

•Cut off support to an older version of a product (strangle) and tell your customers that to get support they have to upgrade to the new version (cram)

Neil suggest going to a thin client/server architecture using open source software

Study Questions


Q1: What Do Business Professionals Need to Know About Computer Hardware?


Other Components


Scantron Scanner

Special Function Card

• Binary digits (bits)―Used to represent data―Bit is either 0 or 1

Computer Data


• Sizing Computer Data―Bytes―8-bit chunk = 1 byte

• Important storage capacity terminology

Computer Data (cont’d)


How Does a Computer Work?


How Does a Computer Work? (cont’d)(click here for more info)


CPU (Central Processing Unit)

Transfers program or data from disk to main memory

Moves instruction from main memory via data channel or bus

Has small amount of fast memory called cache

How Does a Computer Work? (cont’d)


• Program instructions• Operating system

instructions

Main memory

contains

• Program that controls computer’s resources and blocks of data

• Provides services to application programs and users

Operating system

(OS)

Occurs when RAM is too small to hold all open programs and data

CPU loads new program segments into unused memory

• If none available, operating system swaps out existing instructions, or data, to a disk and copy requested program, or data, to freed space

• Swapping slows down your computer

Memory Swapping


Why Should a Manager Care How a Computer Works?


•Too little means constant memory swapping

•Need more memory for processing many programs or large files

Main memory

size•Expressed in hertz (Hz): Electrical voltage that changes from

low to high and back again at regular intervals.

•Need more speed if handling large spreadsheets or database files

•32-bit CPU 4 GB RAM•64-bit CPU almost unlimited RAM

CPU speed

Cache and main memory are “volatile”

•Contents lost when power is cut off

Stores frequently used instructions

Large cache makes computer fast, but more expensive

Why Should a Manager Care How a Computer Works? (cont’d)


Magnetic and optical disks are “nonvolatile”―Saved contents survive after power is off―Used for secondary storage

• Client computers used for word processing, spreadsheets, database access

• Servers provide services to clients

Q2: What’s the Difference Between a Client and a Server?


• Large collection of coordinated servers

• Amazon can process 110 order items per second

• Google Data sites• Inside a Google D

ata Center (video)

Server farm


Operating systems

Run only on particular types of hardware

Must conform to instruction set of CPU

Windows works only on Intel instruction set CPUs

Application programs

Written for a particular operating system

Q3: What Do Business Professionals Need to Know About Software?


Four major operating systems

• Windows (95% of business users)• Mac OS (graphic arts)• Unix (scientific & engineering

applications)• Linux (open source community)

What a Manager Needs to Know about Software


What a Manager Needs to Know about Software (cont’d)


Right to use specified number

of copies of a program

Limits vendor’s liability

Flat fee payment for right to install software product on all company computers or computers at specific site

Own vs. License


License Site License

CLOUD computing

Cloud Computing and Virtualization


VirtualizationGuest

Operating Systems

Windows Linux

IBM

Oracle

Google docs and

spreadsheets

Facebook

Server virtualization makes cloud computing feasible

What Types Of Applications Exist and How Do Organizations Obtain Them?


Computer software installed into hardware devices

• Printers, print servers, communication devices

• Coded like other software• Installed into read-only memory• Can be changed and upgraded

What Is Firmware?


Form a team to identify most appropriate computer for three different scenarios. For each scenario, determine hardware and software requirements: size and type of computer, processor speed, size of main memory and disk, operating system, application programs, maintenance and support agreements, and any other factors you deem appropriate.• Scenario 1: Political science major asks you to help her purchase a

new laptop computer. Wants to use computer for email, Internet access, and for note-taking in class, and spend less than $1,000.

• Scenario 2: Father: email, Internet access, downloading pictures from digital camera, uploading pictures to a shared photo service, and creating documents for members of his antique auto club.

• Scenario 3: You and a group of five students have decided to replace campus newspaper with your own newspaper. Should you buy three offered by university?

Experiencing MIS InClass Exercise 4: Purchasing a Computer


Thin client• Requires nothing more than browser• Does not require installation and

administration of client software

Thick client• Has more code to run on it• More features and functions• More expense and administration

Q4: Why Are Thin Clients Preferred to Thick Clients?


Thin and Thick Clients


GNU general public license (GPL) agreement•Standard for open source software

Successful open source projects• OpenOffice (a Microsoft Office look-alike)• Firefox (a browser)• MySQL (a DBMS, see Chapter 5)• Apache (a web server, see Chapter 8)• Ubuntu (a Windows-like desktop operating system)• Android (a mobile-device operating system)

Q5 Is Open Source Software a Viable Alternative?


Programming intense combination of art and logic

Freedom to choose projects work on

Exercise creativity working on interesting and fulfilling projects

Exhibit one’s skill in order to get a job

Start a business selling services to support an open source product

Why Do Programmers Volunteer Their Services Open Source Projects?


Software

Source code:

Human readabl

e computer code

Machine code:

Source code is

compiled into

instructions executed

directly by a computer’

s CPU

How Does Open Source Work?


Closed-source or proprietary software. Source code is not available to users or public. Only available to trusted employees and carefully vetted contractors.

Open-source software available to users in source code form.

Source Code Sample


So, Is Open Source Viable?


FlexTime wants to examine all of its value-generating activities and determine if there isn’t some way to reduce costs without reducing value generated.

How Does the Knowledge in This Chapter Help Kelly and You?


Knowing process for tracing development from analysis of industry structure through to requirements for information systems is important to ensure all activities in firm facilitate organization’s competitive strategy.

Mark suggests a conspiracy between hardware and software vendors

Ethics Guide: Churn and Burn


Products have defects• Viruses an example• Vendors turn these into a sales advantage

Should users accept these problems?

Should they rise up in protest?

What should vendors do?

Ethics Guide: Churn and Burn (cont’d)


Guide: Keeping up to Speed


Guide: Keeping up to Speed (cont’d)


Active Review


Case Study 4: Dell Leverages the Internet, Directly, but for How Long?


Dell Case Study (cont’d)


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Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall

Hardware and Software Chapter 4. This Could Happen to You: “We Called It Strangle and Cram” 4-2 Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as.

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