Information Technologies Describe the Three

Information Technologies

Describe the three types of it assets that must be well managed since businesses have an increased dependence on it.

The three dominant types of it assets include hardware, software, and the networks that connect them. The synchronization of all three of these elements is critical for an organization being able to fulfill its business objectives. The future of managing these assets in fact need to be focused on enabling business processes first and foremost. This fundamental transformation of it and the management of assets are now increasingly aligning with the business processes than enable strategies more than ever before. CIOs are now more focused on owning strategies and the processes that enable them over and above being custodians of it.

All these dynamics are forcing the management of all it assets as enablers of strategic change, and as a result their integration is more critical than ever. This high level of integration correlates to a higher than ever responsibility of it departments to look not at software, hardware, network systems and integration points in isolation or as it assets, but as part of a strategic process-centric workflow to accomplish objectives. Of specific focus are customer-facing strategies that are critical for companies to attain the highest level of customer satisfaction possible, and with that attainment, higher and more consistent profits.

Provide a brief history of the computer by discussing the different generations of computers, starting in the 1940s and continuing to today.

The first generation of computers is typically referred to as the Vacuum Tube Generation, which by many computer historians' standards was form the years 1940 to 1956. This first generation of computers were massive in size, taking up often entire rooms while also consuming a very high amount of electricity and generating a high level of heat. The vacuum tubes where used as the equivalent of today's integrated circuits, and large, rotating magnetic drums were used as storage. In addition, these first computers were used predominantly for completing calculations, as the UNIVAC, the first commercially available computer, was sold to the U.S. Census Bureau in 1951. The language used to program this first generation computer was called machine language, and was quite primitive compared to today's programming languages.

The second generation of computers occurred from 1956 to 1963 and is often referred to as the Age of Transistors. The transistor revolutionized the development of computers, leading to systems that were smaller, more powerful and generated less heat. Programming languages changed as a result of the development of the transistor as well, shifting from binary programming in the Era of Vacuum Tubes to assembly language programming becoming prevalent in this generation. The programming languages of FORTRAN and COBOL were designed during this era of computing and are still in use today.

The third generation of computing, the Integrated Circuit Era, from 1964-1971, redefined the approach to how people would interact with computers from this point forward in the history of computing. Instead of just punched cards for inputting programs and data, systems invented and used in this era could support inputs from keyboards, teletype and monitors. This era also is marked by the number of operating systems that emerged, and as a result, a wider variety of applications for using computers as well.

The fourth generation, the era of the Microprocessor, began in 1971 and continues on to today. This era is named for the creation of the microprocessor, which is the Central Processing Unit (CPU) of any computer, and is comprised of a series of silicon layers. Intel's delivery of the 4004 chip in 1971 is considered by many historians to be the start of this era. In 1981 when IBM introduced the IBM PC and in 1984 when Apple introduced the Macintosh the pervasive availability and use of computers by consumers began. Since that time literally hundreds of operating systems have been created and millions of software programs. This era continues today with the integration of Internet browsers with operating systems, allowing users to gain access to the World Wide Web.

Compare and contrast midrange systems to mainframes.

There are many differences between midrange systems and mainframes, driven primarily by the organizations' information needs these two specific types of systems have been designed and programmed to meet. Midrange systems are most often used specifically for keeping small and medium-sized businesses up and running, and act as file, print, and web servers in smaller companies. Further, midrange systems can support a few thousands users, and often have operating systems more focused on distributing resources throughout a network vs. being a computing-intensive system. While there is increasingly a focus in midrange systems to provide both distributive support for networks and computing power, the predominant use of these systems is in synchronizing the many databases a small to mid-size organization up to a few thousand users need. Mid-range systems have also become pervasively used throughout a variety of specialized uses, sometimes called vertical markets. The IBM as/400, one of the most popular midrange systems, has literally hundreds of thousands of applications that have been created just for a specific vertical market need.

Mainframes on the other hand are used for much more compute-intensive tasks including the completion of massive transaction sets and database calculations. A mainframe is typically used for also managing the entire array of integration points within a company has well, often acting as the integration hob across five or more systems. These integration hubs are often anchored by an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system which is responsible for coordinating production. Further, mainframes are built to support tens or even hundreds of thousands of application users at the same time while completing complex calculation tasks. While industry experts claim the mainframe may someday disappear, the reality is that there are unmet needs for serving tens of thousands of users while completing complex tasks, and as a result the market needs met by a mainframe demand this level of performance.

What is a database management system (DBMS)? How does the DBMS assist the programmer?

Database Management System (DBMS) is a complex software application that acts to coordinate and synchronize the many activities of working with databases. Increasingly database management systems are being used for the creation, maintenance and growth of an organizations' Enterprise Content Management (ECM) and structured content initiatives as the structure of databases allows for a single system if record to be created for organizations. This is particularly true in organizations that have grown quickly through acquisitions, as for example many auto companies have. A DBMS can unify disparate databases that may have been isolated, or as industry experts call it, siloed in one area of the organization. The DMBS then acts as a synchronization platform in the context of an organization creating an ECM strategy.

The DBMS assists the programmer in literally thousands of ways, from the specific SQL, file, record, and attribute commands to the ability to interlink or integrate specific databases with one another. Programmers also rely on a DBMS to create entire tables, which are X by Y representations of data, entirely in the computer, so that queries and transactions can be done. This is especially true in order management, where take for example Amazon.coms' approach to managing incoming book shipments and routing them to the best warehouse is accomplished.