Week Twelve: Clear

I found this week's lesson about information system development to be understandable and enjoyable in a way since it is more relate-able. What I mean by the topic being more relate-able is that even though not everyone may be a system analyst, a programmer, or a project manager, most people have had to complete some kind of group project that required them to use some of the same skills that project managers user. The idea of planning a project can be a strenuous process, but having to be in charge of a group of people as well can be a difficult task. 
Even though not every project requires a large amount of work, nor does it demand too many hours, the stages of planning are similar to those mentioned in the text for the system development life cycle (SDLC). The stages are: 1) planning, 2) analysis, 3) design, 4) implementation, and 5) operation, support, and security. Granted, not all real world projects are going to go into that much detail for some stages, if they are even a part of the project, but in the world of information systems, they are very important. Each of the stages is constantly going through a rotation because that is the only way to make the system run smoothly and efficiently. The system will usually be dealt with through a project team, which is assigned a project manager. It is the manager's duty to keep on top of the project and make sure that everything is going as planned, and that the project will be done on time. 
One of the ways that the project manager can create an organized system for their team is by using a project management software such as the one pictured above, a Gantt chart, which was developed by Henry L. Gantt. This chart is used to show the activities that need to be done for the project and the times which they need to be done. Another tool, which is pictured in the textbook (Figure 12-3), is a PERT chart, short for Program Evaluation and Review Technique. This chart was developed by the U.S. Department of Defense, and is used to "analyze the time required to complete a task and identifies the minimum time required for and entire project" (Discovering Computers 2010, 624). The role of being a project manager doesn't end there, they must always be watching the budget of the project and the company, how the team is managing their time, and if there are any setbacks, such as additional steps that they did not foresee. The link below did a good job in explaining more on being a project manager. 
http://management.about.com/cs/projectmanagement/a/PM101.htm

Database Project

After working on the database project, I learned a wide range of new skills since I have never used Microsoft Access before. Although the project had its tough points, it wasn't as bad as I thought it was originally going to be. I found Access to actually be an interesting new tool for preparing reports and forms. I like how it allows users to create a multitude of information and store it all together. It is also useful for when a user only needs/wants to display or report certain information about a customer, for example. Microsoft Access allows the user to still keep the data within the database, but to hide it so that other users who don't need the information, won't be able to see it. The designs also make Access a little more fun and quirky, so that the forms and reports aren't just plain and white like any other document. All of the features of Access were new to me, so the fact that you could build new data off of older data was also really interesting. It also helps that Access allows for an easy way to import and export data.
Although I really enjoyed using Microsoft Access, and many of its parts were fairly simple and straight forward for the most part, there were some confusing points. Since there are so many features and ways to tweak the forms, queries, reports and tables, it can get a bit overwhelming, not to mention difficult to find certain things. For example, when completing the report activity portion of the project, the last step of putting the footer was a little bit difficult since there is a text box option and a label option as well. Not only that, but since there were about twenty little buttons in the group, it made it a little bit difficult to find. I also thought that the import function was wonderful, but a little confusing the first couple of times around, especially trying to append the imported information to the already existing information. Other than those minor setbacks, I liked trying out Microsoft Access and now view it as a potentially useful tool in the future. 

Extra Credit: Avatar

I used the TizMe avatar created to create my avatar featured above. The tools were really fun to use because the site offered a wide variety of clothes, hairstyles, and accessories to personalize your avatar. I enjoyed going though the different tops and bottoms of the clothes, mixing and matching the styles. I ended up going with a white top and gray sweatpants because it is more my style, and it was one of the more conservative options. I chose a dog as one of my accessories because even though I don't have a dog, I love dogs. I also chose an iPod because I love listening to music on my iPod. Overall, I really liked this avatar creation program.

Week Eleven: Clear

This week we learned about database management. Although most of this information seems fairly straight forward (along with the face that I haven't yet completed the Database project), it just seemed like there was an overwhelming amount of information. Especially since there are different models of database management systems (DBMS). 
The general concept of what a database does is simple to understand, since it is basically the storing of information with the ability to modify, add and delete certain entries. As I was reading the textbook, databases did seem quite similar to the functions of Excel. But after reading the FAQ 10-2 box "When should I use a database instead of a spreadsheet?" I understood the difference between the two programs. Basically, databases, such as Microsoft Access should be used when information needs to be manipulated in a quick manner, such as updating, adding, modifying, or deleting. Whereas Microsoft Excel's spreadsheets should be used when information needs to be manipulated as far as the user having to do calculations with the data, create charts, or review any of the statistics given. 
I also never realized how prevalent databases are in our society. They are used to store student information for schools, in doctor's offices to store records, and even as a way for marketers to find a target market for their product. Although databases, for the most part seem to be fairly simple to manipulate as far as creating certain fields depending on the database, and entering information about users, not everything should be done be an individual; unless of course, they are a computer programmer. A computer programmer should be used for such instances as sharing data from multiple files so as to create one file. 

Week Ten: Clear

Networks:

This week we learned about Networks as well as several communication concepts. This topic was actually really informative because when a user uses a laptop, desktop, the internet, or the world wide web, they don't necessarily think about where the information is coming from and how it is getting to their screen. Or at least I don't. This topic opened my eyes to the realization that networks are spread across LAN, WLAN, MAN, and WAN. 
LAN is a local area network which is usually used to connect only a limited area such as a home, school or office. Essentially, each house that has an internet connection has a LAN network. WLAN is a wireless LAN; basically a LAN connection that doesn't use any wires. WLAN will often work from a connected LAN, so these too can be featured in the home and other small environments. MAN, a metropolitan area network brings LAN connections together that are close by to one another. Usually within a city, a MAN network will take place, or as an example given in lecture, a group of schools that are close by to one another, who want to keep their networks together. Even bigger than the MAN network is the WAN network, which is a wide area network. This covers very large geographic areas, which can include a city, a state, a country, or even the world! 
In order for home computers, company computers, or any computer really to have access to any of the above listed networks, the computer must be connected somehow to a router. A router is used to communicate data from one location to another, no matter how far the computers may be from one another. A router is also used for sending and receiving data for multiple users. In order to reach a certain websites front page, a request goes through the router in order to gain access to that webpage.
(I found this web page really helpful in clarifying a few things: http://compnetworking.about.com/od/basicnetworkingconcepts/a/network_types.htm).   

Excel Project

This week I worked on the Excel Project. To be honest, I thought that this project was going to be a lot more difficult and time-consuming than it actually was. Of course, there were several times when my frustration got the better of me, but I think this project was extremely useful. Not only did it require the manipulation of a "normal" table of data, (that which was featured in the "Raw Data" sheet), it also required the creation of not just one, but two(!) pivot tables. 
For me, the pivot tables were probably the most challenging since you had to place certain categories in either the row or the column, and then having to change from the defaulted sum to the average, or the count of the numbers. As I read through the discussion boards, I came upon the same problem as several other students where the percentages featured in the "Average Increase" pivot table (featured above) were in the thousands. After playing with the decimal places and the number formats for several minutes, I realized that I was using "sum" instead of "average." After switching, my numbers fixed themselves and I simply changed the percentages to one decimal place. I also decided to add a little color to the pivot table by using the "Pivot Style Dark 9" option under design. I thought this made the table a little more appealing and user friendly instead of being all white like the "raw data" table.
One reason that this project didn't seem that difficult was because a large portion of it was adding and manipulating a basic excel table. I actually found this part kind of fun because it included the usage of formulas. The formulas function of excel made calculating the data so much simpler, especially considering that there were about 500 rows of data! Also, the fact that this project was displayed as a real-life situation with the gym owner made me realize how useful Excel really is for a multitude of reasons. 

Week Nine: Clear

With the use of Microsoft Excel, the creation of spreadsheets is made simple. Not only does Excel allow the user to create one spreadsheet, but to create multiple spreadsheets together in a workbook. This week, learning about some of the basic functions of Excel, has been a review for me. Although I don't regularly use Excel, it is true that it is a very powerful tool. I originally learned the basics of Excel, along with some of its other functions in another computer class. Through ISM3004, more emphasis was put onto some of the functions that Excel is capable, one of which was the formulas ability.

The availability of formulas makes creating spreadsheets easier for users, especially when there are large amounts of data being used. Such formulas as =AVERAGE(), allows the user to average together a small, or a large amount of numbers. For example, if a user has 267 rows of data that they have to average together, instead of adding all the numbers together, and then dividing it by 267, they simply enter the formula =AVERAGE(A1:A267), and Excel will immediately give the answer. 
Along with the average formula, a user has the ability to add together data, subtract, multiply, divide, even look up data from a specific chart located on the spreadsheet. This can be an especially useful to a teacher who wants to see the letter grade for their students based on the total number of points received in the class. The can be down by using the =VLOOKUP() function. With the VLOOKUP function, the user enters the values which make the statement either true or false. In the case of a teacher, given in the example in the lecture, if they wish to record a students grade as unsatisfactory or satisfactory, the user only enters which value is to be marked as satisfactory and all that is not, will be marked as unsatisfactory.