Q) 1) In what ways will use of IT and internet can enhance your job function as middle manger.

Discuss with examples, with respect to either !D function or mar"eting function of finance function. !D# As an HRD manager, the functions would be in relation to recruitment, induction, payroll, industrial relations etc. Information about whether a particular candidate has appeared for an interview earlier, his other personal details etc can be stored together and can be retrieved easily and fast, avoiding delays. In Wipro and other top companies, the candidate is required to fill up a form stating all these details so that when a particular candidate appears for an interview the ne t time, time is not lost in filling up the entire form once again and processing ta!es place faster. Details such as the employee"s salary, bonus, the dearness allowance etc, can be fed into the computer one single time and the salary and attendance statements can be generated every month without delay and calculations. #here are special software pac!ages available for this purpose. $ayroll thus becomes a lot easier by simply specifying the percentage of deductions etc. Appointment %etters, &emos etc can be issued 'ust by drafting a sample copy. $I%&%'(# As a (inance &anager, the functions would be in relation to )alance *heets, )an! Reconciliation *tatements, $etty cash statements etc. $ac!ages such as #ally etc are really helpful as once the entries are fed on daily basis, they can be retrieved as and when required in the form of single statements or consolidated statements without much of a hassle. #his gives the manager a complete view in totality about the e penses incurred by the company during a particular period and whether they can be reduced or not. )alance *heets, )an! Reconciliation *tatements +)R*, etc can be compared with the previous year"s figures and the profits and losses can be determined easily without delay. #his would give us accurate information about the actual standing of the company in the current year as compared to the previous year. )&!*(TI%+# As a (inance &anager, the functions would be in relation to *ales, #urnover, -lient details, purchases etc. Information about the purchase and sale of goods etc would give information as to how much stoc! is currently available with us, the outstanding amounts to be received from debtors and amounts to be given to creditors etc. *ales figures can be compared to !now the e act status of the current year.

Q) ,) Differentiate any $our#1) .nline /rocessing and batch /rocessing 0atch /rocessing ., Applicable for high volume transactions / payroll 0 invoicing. 1, Data is collected in time periods and processed in batches. 2, 3o direct access to system for the user. 4, (iles are online only when processing ta!es place (iles are always online. .nline /rocessing ., *uitable for business control application / railway reservation 1, Random data input as event occurs. 2, All users have direct access to the system 4, (iles are always online. ,) Internet and Intranet Internet / today Internet is a constant in the lives of millions of people around the world. #his has changed the way many people wor! and do business. #he internet has enabled us to access nearly any !ind of information form a $-. Internet is a huge co5operative community with no central ownership. #he lac! of ownership is important as no single person owns the internet. Any person who can access the internet can use it to carry out a variety of transactions and also create his own set of resources for others to use. As a business tool, the internet has many uses. 6lectronic mail is an efficient and in e pensive way to send and receive messages and documents around the world in minutes. Internet is becoming an important medium of advertising, distributing software and information services. It is a space where in people with similar interest can share data on various topics. When business organi7ations connect parts of their networ! to the internet, they allow users to wor! on the networ! from virtually anywhere in the world. 8n doing this the internet can be used to sell goods, trac! inventory, order products, send invoices and receive payments in a very cost effective manner. #his means the world is the mar!et place for today"s organi7ations. #hey can buy and sell any where in the world today. Intranet / It is a %A3 or WA3 that uses #-$0I$ protocol but belongs e clusively to a corporation. #he intranet is accessible e clusively to an organisation and its employees. It has all the relevant data that can be shared and used for day to day functioning of the organisation li!e attendance muster, leave records, leave and other application forms, daily production records, policies, brochures of the company that can be used by sales teams etc. it can also be connected to the internet through proper security features li!e firewalls. 1) )ain )emory and 2econdary )emory )ain3 /rimary )emory .. 9sed to store a variety of critical information required for processing by -$9. 1. 6.:. #wo types of memory in the Immediate Access *tore of the computer, RA& and R8& 2. &ade up of number of memory locations or -ells. 4. &easured in terms of capacity and speed ;. *torage capacity of main memory is limited. <. -ost is high for high5speed storage and hence high for primary storage. =. #he main memory stores the program instructions and the data in binary machine code. >. 8ffers temporary storage of data +?olatile,

2econdary )emory .. 6ssential to any computer system to provide bac!up storage 1. 6.g. #he two main ways of storing data are serialaccess and direct-access. %i!e economical storage of large volumes of data on magnetic media, (loppy Dis!, &agnetic dis!. 2. &ade up of sectors and trac!s. 4 &easured in terms of storage space ;. *torage capacity of *econdary memory is huge. <. -ost is comparatively low for secondary memory and hence secondary storage. =. #he secondary memory stores data in the form of bytes made up of bits. >. 8ffers permanent storage of data. +3on ?olatile, 4) 'entralised Data /rocessing3 Distributed /rocessing 'entralised Data /rocessing Historically mainframe computers were widely used in business data processing. In this !ind of a system, several dumb terminals are attached to the central mainframe computer. Dumb terminals are the machines which users can input data and see the results of processed data. However no processing ta!es place at the dumb terminals. In earlier days individual organisations processed large amount of data usually at the head office. #he main advantage of such systems was that design was much straight forward and the organisation can have tighter control on the main database. In such systems one or more processors handle the wor!load of several distant terminals. #he central processor switches from one terminal to another and does a part of each 'ob in a time5phased mode. #his switching from tas! of one terminal to another continues till all tas!s are completed. Hence such systems are also called time sharing systems. #he biggest disadvantage of such a system is if the main computer fails, the whole system fails. All remotes have to stop wor!ing. Also all end users have to format data based on the format of central office. #he cost of communication of data to the central server is high as even the minutest of processes have to be done centrally. Distributed /rocessing It is a system of computers connected together by a communication networ!, in a true distributed data processing system. 6ach computer is chosen to handle its local wor!load and the networ! is designed to support the system as a whole. Distributed data processing system enable sharing of several hardware and significant software resources among several users who may be located far away from each other. &d5antages 8f both a centralised and a decentralised system each computer can be used to process data li!e a Decentralised system. In addition, a computer at one location can also transfer data and processing 'obs to and from computers at other location. a) Flexibility: :reater fle ibility in placing true computer power at locations where it is needed. b) Better utilisation of resources: -omputer resources are easily available to the end users. c) Better accessibility: @uic! and better access to data on information especially where distance is a meager factor. d) Lower cost of communication: #elecommunication costs can be lower when much of the local processing is handled by on5sit mini and microcomputers rather than by distant central mainframe computers. Disad5antages %ac! of proper security controls for protecting the confidentiality and integrity of the user programs and data that are stored on5line and transmitted over networ! channels +its easy to tap a data communication line, Linking of different systems / due to lac! of adequate computing 0communication standards it is not possible to lin! different items of equipment"s produced by different vendors. #hus several good resources may not be available to users of a networ!. Maintenance difficulty / due to decentralisation at resources at remote sites, management from a central control point becomes very difficult. #his normally results in increased comple ity, poor documentation and non availability of s!illed computer0communication specialists at the various sites for proper maintenance of the system.

6) +raphical user interface 3 'haracter 7ser Interface +raphical user interface .. :enerally used in &ultimedia 1. It lies in its graphical control features such as toolbars, buttons or icons 2. 9sed to create animations or pictures 4. ?ariety of input devices are used to manipulate te t A images as visually displayed ;. 6mploys graphical interface 6.: web pages, Image maps which helps user navigate any sites. 6.g.B Windows, &ac programming <. $rove to get affected by virus 'haracter 7ser Interface .. :enerally used in programming %anguages 1. It lies in its -haracter control features such as te tual elements or characters. 2. 9sed to create word and sentences. 4. 6nables to give users the ability to specify desired options through function !eys. ;. -an -reate popup 0 pull down menus scrolling any te t is possible. 6.g. 9ni , -obol, (o $ro <. $rove less affected by virus. 8) .perational $easibility 3 (conomic $easibility .perational $easibility. o 8perational feasibility determines if the human resources are available to operate the system once it has been installed. o Whether the system will be used if it is developed and implementedC 8r will there be resistance from usersC o 9sers that do not want a new system , may prevent it from becoming operationally feasible It could be an individual constraint, or any combination of the three that prevents a pro'ect from being developed any further. When a pro'ect is both desirable and feasible for the organi7ation the &nalysis /hase is implemented (conomic $easibility. o It e amines the benefits in creating the system to ma!e it costs acceptable. It refers to having a pro'ect that can be completed based on considering the financial costs of completing the pro'ect versus the benefits of completing it. o It determines whether the time and money are available to develop the system o Includes the purchase of 3ew equipment, Hardware ,*oftware

Q) 1 ) Describe the features and merits of Database management system o5er con5entional file system. A database management system +D)&*,, sometimes 'ust called a database manager, is a program that lets one or more computer users create and access data in a database. #he D)&* manages user requests +and requests from other programs, so that users and other programs are free from having to understand where the data is physically located on storage media and, in a multi5user system, which else may also be accessing the data. In handling user requests, the D)&* ensures the integrity of the data +that is, ma!ing sure it continues to be accessible and is consistently organi7ed as intended, and security +ma!ing sure only those with access privileges can access the data,.A Database is a collection of interrelated D(ilesE. DA#A)A*6 is a system where all data are !ept in one large lin!ed set of files and allow access to different applications. -omputer &anufacturer produces D)&* for use on their own systems 8r by Independent -ompanies for use over a wide range of machines. #here are three main features of a database management system that ma!e it attractive to use a D)&* in preference to more conventional software. #hese features are centrali7ed data management, data independence, and systems integration. In D)&*, all files are integrated into one system thus reducing redundancies and ma!ing data management more efficient. In addition, D)&* provides centrali7ed control of the operational data. *ome of the advantages of data independence, integration and centrali7ed control areB 1. !edundancies and inconsistencies can be reduced In conventional data systems, an organi7ation often builds a collection of application programs created by different programmers. #he data in conventional data systems is often not centrali7ed. *ome applications may require data to be combined from several systems. #hese several systems could well have data that is redundant as well as inconsistent +that is, different copies of the same data may have different values,. Data inconsistencies are often encountered in everyday life. (or e ample, we have all come across situations when a new address is communicated to an organi7ation that we deal with +e.g. a ban!,, we find that some of the communications from that organi7ation are received at the new address while others continue to be mailed to the old address. -ombining all the data in a database would involve reduction in redundancy as well as inconsistency. It also is li!ely to reduce the costs for collection, storage and updating of data. With D)&*, data items need to be recorded only once and are available for everyone to use. ,. 0etter ser5ice to the 7sers A D)&* is often used to provide better service to the users. In conventional systems, availability of information is often poor since it normally is difficult to obtain information that the e isting systems were not designed for. 8nce several conventional systems are combined to form one centrali7ed data base, the availability of information and its up5to5datedness is li!ely to improve since the data can now be shared and the D)&* ma!es it easy to respond to unforeseen information requests. -entrali7ing the data in a database also often means that users can obtain new and combined information that would have been impossible to obtain otherwise. Also, use of a D)&* should allow users that do not !now programming to interact with the data more easily. #he ability to quic!ly obtain new and combined information is becoming increasingly important. An organi7ation running a conventional data processing system would require new programs to be written +or the information compiled manually, to meet every new demand. 1. $lexibility of the system is impro5ed -hanges are often necessary to the contents of data stored in any system. #hese changes are more easily made in a database than in a conventional system in that these changes do not need to have any impact on application programs. #hus data processing becomes more fle ible and enables it to respond more quic!ly to the e panding needs of the business. 4. -ost of developing, implementation and maintaining systems is lower It is much easier to respond to unforeseen requests when the data is centrali7ed in a database than when it is stored in conventional file systems. Although the initial cost of setting up of a database can be large, the input0output +file definition an file maintenance, routines normally coded by the programmers are now handled through the D)&*, the amount of time and money spent writing an application program is reduced. *ince the programmer spends less time writing applications, the amount of time required to implementing implement new applications is reduced. 6. 2tandards can be enforced

*ince all access to the database must be through the D)&*, standards are easier to enforce. *tandards may relate to the naming of the data, the format of the data, the structure of the data etc. 8. 2ecurity can be impro5ed In conventional systems, applications are developed in an ad hoc manner. 8ften different system of an organi7ation would access different components of the operational data. In such an environment, enforcing security can be quite difficult. *etting up of a database ma!es it easier to enforce security restrictions since the data is now centrali7ed. It is easier to control who has access to what parts of the database. However, setting up a database can also ma!e it easier for a determined person to breach security. We will discuss this in the ne t section. 9. Integrity can be impro5ed *ince the data of the organi7ation using a database approach is centrali7ed and would be used by a number of users at a time, it is essential to enforce integrity controls. Integrity may be compromised in many ways. (or e ample, A student may be shown to have borrowed boo!s but has no enrolment. *alary of a staff member in one department may be coming out of the budget of another department. If a number of users are allowed to update the same data item at the same time, there is a possibility that the result of the updates is not quite what was intended. -ontrols therefore must be introduced to prevent such errors to occur because of concurrent updating activities. However, since all data is stored only once, it is often easier to maintain integrity than in conventional systems. :. Data model must be de5eloped $erhaps the most important advantage of setting up a database system is the requirement that an overall data model for the enterprise be built. In conventional systems, it is more li!ely that files will be designed as needs of particular applications demand. #he overall view is often not considered. )uilding an overall view of the enterprise data, although often an e pensive e ercise is usually very cost5effective in the long term.

Q 4 &) 0riefly (xplain different generations of programming languages. +eneration of /rogramming ;anguages A proper understanding of computer software requires a basic !nowledge of programming languages. #hese allow programmers and end users to develop the program of instructions that are e ecuted by a computer. #o be ac!nowledgeable end uses one should !now the basic categories of programming languages. 6ach generation of programming language has it an unique vocabulary, grammar and uses. 1. $irst +eneration - )achine ;anguage #hey are the most basic level of programming languages. In the early stages of computer development all program instructions had to be written using binary codes unique to each computers. #his involved the difficult tas! of writing instructions in the form of strings of binary digits +ones and 7eros,or other number system. $rogrammers had to write long series of detailed instruction even to accomplish simple processing tas!s. $rogramming in machine language sequences specifying the storage locations for every instruction and item of data used. Instruction must be included for every switch and indicator used by the program. All these abovementioned requirements ma!e it difficult and error prone. Instructions in a machine language, programming consists of An operation code, which specifies what is to be done and An operand, which specifies the address of the data or device to be operated upon. ,. &ssemble languages <2econd +eneration) #hey were developed to reduce the difficulties in writing language programs. 9se of these languages require language translator programs called assemblers which allow a computer to convert the instructions of such languages into machine instructions Assembly languages are !nown as *ymbolic languages became symbols are used to represent operation code and storage locations. -onvenient alphabetic abbreviations called mnemonics +memory aids, and others symbols are used. &d5antages Alphabetic abbreviations are easier to remember are used in the place of numerical addresses of the data. *implifies programming Disad5antages Assembler language is machine oriented because assembler language instructions correspond closely to the machine language instructions of the particular computer model used. 1. igh le5el languages <Third +eneration ;anguages) H%% are also !nown as compiler languages. Instructions of H%% are called statements and closely resemble human language or standard notation of mathematics. Individuals high level language statements are actually macro instructions that is each individual statement generates several machine instructions when translated into machine language by H%% translator programs called compilers or interpreters. &d5antages 6asy to learn and understand have less rigid rules forms $otential for error is reduced &achine are independent

Disad5antages %ess efficient than assembler language programs Require greater amount of time for translation into machine instruction. e.g. H%%, -8)8%, (8R#RA3, Ada etc. 4. $ourth +eneration ;anguages - <4 +;) #he term 4gl is used to describe a variety of programming languages that are more %A3 procedural and coversational than prior languages. 3atural languages are 4gl that are very close to 6nglish or other human languages While using a 4gl the end users and programmers only need to satisfy the resulting they want, while the computer determines the sequence of instructions that will accomplish those results. etc. (8F$R8, 8RA-%6, Dbase. &d5antages 6ase of use and technical sophistication 3atural query languages that impose no rigid grammatical rules. &ore useful in end user and Departmental applications without a high volume of transactions to process. Disad5antages 3ot very fle ible Difficult for an end user to override some of the pre5specified formats or procedures of a 4gl. &achine language code generated by a program developed by a 4gl is frequently much less efficient than a programme written in a language li!e -8)8%. 9nable to provide reasonable response times when faced with large amount of real time transaction processing and end user inquiries. $ourth generation languages 9se natural and non5procedural languages igh-le5el languages 9se 6nglish li!e statements and arithmetic notations. &ssembler languages 9se symbolic coded instructions &achine languages use binary coded instructions. 6. $ifth +eneration ;anguage %anguages using artificial intelligence techniques. Artificial Intelligence +AI, is a science and technology based on discipline such as 5 -omputer *ciences 5 )iology 5 $sychology 5 %inguistics 5 &athematics 5 6ngineering &a'or thrust of AI vi7 to development of computer functions normally associated with human intelligence such as reasoning, inference, problem solving. #erm AI was coined by Gohn &c-arthy at &I# in .H;<. Domains of AI are 5 -ognitive *cience 5 -omputer *cience 5 Robotics 3atural %anguage Q 4 0) (xplain the functions of operating system.

An operating system provides the environment within which programs are e ecuted. )esides hardware and high5level language translators, many other routines, which enable a user to efficiently use the computer, is provided by the operating system. #o construct such an environment, the system is partitioned into small modules with a well5defined interface. A system as large and comple as an operating system can only be created by partitioning it into smaller pieces. 6ach of these pieces should be a well5defined portion of the system with carefully defined inputs, outputs, and function. operating systems share the system components outlined below. 1. /rocess )anagement #he -$9 e ecutes a large number of programs. While its main concern is the e ecution of user programs, the -$9 is also needed for other system activities. #hese activities are called processes. A process is a program in e ecution. #ypically, a batch 'ob is a process. A time5shared user program is a process. A system tas!, such as spooling, is also a process. (or now, a process may be considered as a 'ob or a time5shared program, but the concept is actually more general. In general, a process will need certain resources such as -$9 time, memory, files, I08 devices, etc., to accomplish its tas!. #hese resources are given to the process when it is created. In addition to the various physical and logical resources that a process obtains when its is created, some initiali7ation data +input, may be passed along. We emphasi7e that a program by itself is not a processI a program is a passive entity. It is !nown that two processes may be associated with the same program, they are nevertheless considered two separate e ecution sequences. #he operating system is responsible for the following activities in connection with processes managed. J#he creation and deletion of both user and system processes J#he suspension is resumption of processes. J#he provision of mechanisms for process synchroni7ation J#he provision of mechanisms for deadloc! handling. ,. )emory )anagement &emory is central to the operation of a modern computer system. &emory is a large array of words or bytes, each with its own address. Interaction is achieved through a sequence of reads or writes of specific memory address. #he -$9 fetches from and stores in memory. In order for a program to be e ecuted it must be mapped to absolute addresses and loaded in to memory. In order to improve both the utili7ation of -$9 and the speed of the computerKs response to its users, several processes must be !ept in memory. #he operating system is responsible for the following activities in connection with memory management. JLeep trac! of which parts of memory are currently being used and by whom. JDecide which processes are to be loaded into memory when memory space becomes available. JAllocate and de5allocate memory space as needed. &emory management techniques will be discussed in great detail in section >. 1. 2econdary 2torage )anagement #he main purpose of a computer system is to e ecute programs. #hese programs, together with the data they access, must be in main memory during e ecution. *ince the main memory is too small to permanently accommodate all data and program, the computer system must provide secondary storage to bac!up main memory. &ost modem computer systems use dis!s as the primary on5line storage of information, of both programs and data. &ost programs, li!e compilers, assemblers, sort routines, editors, formatters, and so on, are stored on the dis! until loaded into memory, and then use the dis! as both the source and destination of their processing. Hence the proper management of dis! storage is of central importance to a computer system. #here are few alternatives. &agnetic tape systems are generally too slow. In addition, they are limited to sequential access. #hus tapes are more suited for storing infrequently used files, where speed is not a primary concern. #he operating system is responsible for the following activities in connection with dis! management J(ree space management J*torage allocation JDis! scheduling. 4. Input .utput 2ystem 8ne of the purposes of an operating system is to hide the peculiarities of specific hardware devices from the 9ser. (or e ample, in 93IF, the peculiarities of Input08utput devices are hidden from the bul! of the operating system itself by the I3$9#089#$9# system. #he Input08utput system consists ofB JA buffer caching system JA general device driver code

JDrivers for specific hardware devices. 8nly the device driver !nows the peculiarities of a specific device. 6. $ile )anagement (ile management is one of the most visible services of an operating system. -omputers can store information in several different physical formsI magnetic tape, dis!, and drum are the most common forms. 6ach of these devices has it own characteristics and physical organi7ation. (or convenient use of the computer system, the operating system provides a uniform logical view of information storage. #he operating system abstracts from the physical properties of its storage devices to define a logical storage unit, the file. (iles are mapped, by the operating system, onto physical devices. A file is a collection of related information defined by its creator. -ommonly, files represent programs +both source and ob'ect forms, and data. Data files may be numeric, alphabetic or alphanumeric. (iles may be free form, such as te t files, or may be rigidly formatted. In general a files is a sequence of bits, bytes, lines or records whose meaning is defined by its creator and user. It is a very general concept. #he operating system implements the abstract concept of the file by managing mass storage device, such as tapes and dis!s. Also files are normally organi7ed into directories to ease their use. (inally, when multiple users have access to files, it may be desirable to control by whom and in what ways files may be accessed. #he operating system is responsible for the following activities in connection with file managementB J#he creation and deletion of files J#he creation and deletion of directory J#he support of primitives for manipulating files and directories J#he mapping of files onto dis! storage. J)ac!up of files on stable +non volatile, storage. 8. /rotection 2ystem #he various processes in an operating system must be protected from each other"s activities. (or that $urpose, various mechanisms which can be used to ensure that the files, memory segment, -$9 and other resources can be operated on only by those processes that have gained proper authori7ation from the operating system. $rotection refers to a mechanism for controlling the access of programs, processes, or users to the resources defined by a computer controls to be imposed, together with some means of enforcement. An unprotected resource cannot defend against use +or misuse, by an unauthori7ed or incompetent user. 9. %etwor"ing A distributed system is a collection of processors that do not share memory or a cloc!. Instead, each processor has its own local memory, and the processors communicate with each other through various communication lines, such as high5speed buses or telephone lines. Distributed systems vary in si7e and function. #hey may involve microprocessors, wor!stations, minicomputers, and large general5purpose computer systems. #he processors in the system are connected through a communication networ!, which can be configured in the number of different ways. #he networ! may be fully or partially connected. #he communication networ! design must consider routing and connection strategies, and the problems of connection and security. A distributed system provides the user with access to the various resources the system maintains. Access to a shared resource allows computation speed5up, data availability, and reliability. :. 'ommand Interpreter 2ystem 8ne of the most important components of an operating system is its command interpreter. #he command interpreter is the primary interface between the user and the rest of the system. &any commands are given to the operating system by control statements. When a new 'ob is started in a batch system or when a user logs5 in to a time5shared system, a program that reads and interprets control statements is automatically e ecuted.

Q) 6) 2hort %otes#a) )odem# &odems differ in design, set5up aids, essential hardware performance, and service and support policies. )e it for sending electronic mail, for data transfer, or for Internet surfing, a small, Wal!man5si7e gadget called a DmodemE now accompanies the $-. #ill recently part of the corporate des!top only, modems are now becoming part of home $- configurations too, as Internet usage at home is growing considerably. A modem is a device that allows computers to transmit data over regular copper telephone lines. -omputers store, send, receive and process data in digital format. #his means that the data in your computer is stored as a series of binary digits, or bits. $hone lines however, transmit data in a continuous analogue wave. A modem converts the signal from digital format to analogue format for transmission to a remote modem 5 this is called modulation. #he growth in the modem mar!et is a fallout of the growth in Internet usage, increased telecommuting, use of 65mail for communication, setting up of WA3s +Wide Area 3etwor!s, and implementation of intranets and e tranets. -onnectivity can be established through analog lines, leased lines, I*D3 lines and satellite. )asically there are three types of modems, which facilitate connectivityE dial5up, leased line and I*D3 +Integrated *ervice Digital 3etwor!,. #he system is so programmed that billings ta!e place accordingly. Dial5up modems could be e ternal, internal and $- -ard. An e ternal or des!top modem is a small bo , equipped with a set of indicator lights, connected to the computer using a serial cable. 6 ternal modems are more prevalent in India, primarily because internal modems are difficult to configure and install, while an e ternal modem is easier to troubleshoot or replace in case of failure and further the %6D indicators on an e ternal modem helps the user to visually monitor and troubleshoot. #here are two ways by which modems could be configuredE as data0fa modems or data0fa 0 voice modems. Data0fa modems provide only these two facilities while voice capability in a modem acts as an answering machine. Irrespective of type, all modems are designed to comply with the international standards. #o communicate with another computer over copper phone lines, both the sending and receiving computers must be connected to a modem. Data is sent from your computer to your modem as a digital signal. Mour modem converts the digital signal into an analogue signal +modulation, then transmits the data to the receiving +remote, modem. #he remote modem converts the analogue signal into a digital signal +demodulation, then transmits the data to the receiving computer for processing. #he data that you sent to the remote computer may then be forwarded to another computer for processing 5 as is the case when you connect to 8ptus3et. b) +enerations of 'omputers 8perating systems and computer architecture have a great deal of influence on each other. #o facilitate the use of the hardware, operating systems were developed. As operating system were designed and used, it became obvious that changes in the design of the hardware could simplify the operating system. In this short historical review, notice how the introduction of new hardware features is the natural solution to many operating system problems. 8perating systems have been evolving over the years. *ince operating systems have historically been closely tied to the architecture of the computers on which they run, we will loo! at successive generations of computers to see what their operating systems were li!e The =eroth +eneration #he term 7eroth generation is used to refer to the period of development of computing, which predated the commercial production and sale of computer equipment. #he period might be dated as e tending from the mid5 .>NNs. In particular, this period witnessed the emergence of the first electronics digital computers on the A)-. *ince it was the first to fully implement the idea of the stored program and serial e ecution of instructions. #he development of 6D?A- set the stage for the evolution of commercial computing and operating system software. #he hardware component technology of this period was electronic vacuum tubes. #he actual operation of these early computers too! place without be benefit of an operating system. 6arly programs were written in machine language and each contained code for initiating operation of the computer itself. #his system was clearly inefficient and depended on the varying competencies of the individual programmer as operators.

The $irst +eneration, 1>61-1>68 #he first generation mar!ed the beginning of commercial computing. #he first generation was characteri7ed by high5speed vacuum tube as the active component technology. 8peration continued without the benefit of an operating system for a time. #he mode was called Dclosed shopE and was characteri7ed by the appearance of hired operators who would select the 'ob to be run, initial program load the system, run the user"s program, and then select another 'ob, and so forth. $rograms began to be written in higher level, procedure5oriented languages, and thus the operator"s routine e panded. #he operator now selected a 'ob, ran the translation program to assemble or compile the source program, combined the translated ob'ect program along with any e isting library programs that the program might need for input to the lin!ing program, loaded and ran the composite lin!ed program, and then handled the ne t 'ob in a similar fashion. Application programs were run one at a time, and were translated with absolute computer addresses. #here was no provision for moving a program to different location in storage for any reason. *imilarly, a program bound to specific devices could not be run at all if any of these devices were busy or bro!en. At the same time, the development of programming languages was moving away from the basic machine languagesI first to assembly language, and later to procedure oriented languages, the most significant being the development of (8R#RA3. The second +eneration, 1>68-1>84 #ransistors replacing vacuum tubes as the hardware component technology most notably characteri7ed the second generation of computer hardware. In addition, some very important changes in hardware and software architectures occurred during this period. (or the most part, computer systems remained card and tape5 oriented systems. *ignificant use of random access devices, that is, dis!s, did not appear until towards the end of the second generation. $rogram processing was, for the most part, provided by large centrali7ed computers operated under mono5programmed batch processing operating systems. #he most significant innovations addressed the problem of e cessive central processor delay due to waiting for input0output operations. Recall that programs were e ecuted by processing the machine instructions in a strictly sequential order. As a result, the -$9, with its high5speed electronic component, was often forced to wait for completion of I08 operations that involved mechanical devices +card readers and tape drives, that were order of magnitude slower. #hese hardware developments led to enhancements of the operating system. I08 and data channel communication and control became functions of the operating system, both to relieve the application programmer from the difficult details of I08 programming and to protect the integrity of the system to provide improved service to users by segmenting 'obs and running shorter 'obs first +during Dprime timeE, and relegating longer 'obs to lower priority or night time runs. *ystem libraries became more widely available and more comprehensive as new utilities and application software components were available to programmers. #he second generation was a period of intense operating system development. Also it was the period for sequential batch processing. Researchers began to e periment with multiprogramming and multiprocessing. The Third +eneration, 1>84-1>9> #he third generation officially began in April .H<4 with I)&"s announcement of its *ystem02<N family of computers. Hardware technology began to use integrated circuits +I-s, that yielded significant advantages in both speed and economy. 8perating system development continued with the introduction and widespread adoption of multiprogramming. #his mar!ed first by the appearance of more sophisticated I08 buffering in the form of spooling operating systems. #hese systems wor!ed by introducing two new systems programs, a system reader to move input 'obs from cards to dis!, and a system writer to move 'ob output from dis! to printer, tape, or cards. #he spooling operating system in fact had multiprogramming since more than one program was resident in main storage at the same time. %ater this basic idea of multiprogramming was e tended to include more than one active user program in memory at time. #o accommodate this e tension, both the scheduler and the dispatcher were enhanced. In addition, memory management became more sophisticated in order to assure that the program code for each 'ob or at least that part of the code being e ecuted, was resident in main storage. 9sers shared not only the system" hardware but also its software resources and file system dis! space. #he third generation was an e citing time, indeed, for the development of both computer hardware and the accompanying operating system. During this period, the topic of operating systems became, in reality,a ma'or element of the discipline of computing.

The $ourth +eneration, 1>9> - /resent #he fourth generation is characteri7ed by the appearance of the personal computer and the wor!station. &iniaturi7ation of electronic circuits and components continued and large5scale integration +%*I,, the component technology of the third generation, was replaced by very large scale integration +?%*I,, which characteri7es the fourth generation. However, improvements in hardware miniaturi7ation and technology have evolved so fast that we now have ine pensive wor!station5class computer capable of supporting multiprogramming and time5sharing. Hence the operating systems that support today"s personal computers and wor!stations loo! much li!e those, which were available for the minicomputers of the third generation. 6 amples are &icrosoft"s D8* for I)&5compatible personal computers and 93IF for wor!station. However, many of these des!top computers are now connected as networ!ed or distributed systems. -omputers in a networ!ed system each have their operating system augmented with communication capabilities that enable users to remotely log into any system on the networ! and transfer information among machines that are connected to the networ!. #he machines that ma!e up distributed system operate as a virtual single processor system from the user"s point of viewI a central operating system controls and ma!es transparent the location in the system of the particular processor or processors and file systems that are handling any given program. 1) 2ystem Documentation /*ystem documentation describes the system"s functions and how they are implemented /&ost system documentation is prepared during the systems analysis and systems design phases /Documentation consists of OData dictionary entries OData flow diagrams O8b'ect models O*creen layouts O*ource documents OInitial systems request 4) 2ystem &nalyst A system analyst needs to possess strong people s!ills and strong technical s!ills. $eople s!ills will assist in wor! with clients to help the team define requirements and resolve conflicting ob'ectives. Interpersonal *!ills helps in -ommunication, understanding and identifying problems, having a grasp of company goal and ob'ectives and selling the system to the user . #echnical s!ills will help document these requirements with process, data, and networ! models. It helps to focus on procedure and techniques for operations and computeri7ation. At the end of this phase, the !e?uirements 2tatement should be in developmentB this provides details about what the program should do. A requirement document includes )usiness 9se -ases , $ro'ect -harter 0 :oals, Inputs and 8utput details to the system and the broad process involved in the system. It can easily form the basis of a contract between the customer and the developer. #he Requirements *tatement should list all of the ma'or details of the program. 6) $ile Design #he design of files include decisions about nature and content of files such as o Whether it is to be used for storing transaction details, historical data, or reference information o Among design decisions we loo! into o Which data items to include in record format within the file o %ength of each record o #he arrangement of records within the file + the storage structure inde ed , sequential or relative,. 8) 7ser In5ol5ement 9sers + managers and employees in business, are highly involved in systems development asB o #hey have accumulated e perience wor!ing with applications developed earlier. #hey have better insight into what the information system should be. If they have e perienced systems failures they will have ideas about avoiding problems. o #he applications developed in organi7ations are often highly comple , hence systems analyst need continual involvement of user to understand the business functions being studied

o With better system development tools emerging user can design and develop applications without involving trained systems analysts.

Q 8) @hat are the stages in 2ystems de5elopment ;ife 'ycleA Describe the acti5ities in each stage. #he systems development life cycle +*D%-, method is an approach to developing an information system or software product that is characteri7ed by a linear sequence of steps that progress from start to finish without revisiting any previous step. #he *D%- is a methodology that has been constructed to ensure that systems are designed and implemented in a methodical, logical and step5by5step approach. #he *D%- method is one of the oldest systems development models and is still probably the most commonly used. #here *D%- consists of the following activitiesB 5 $reliminary Investigation 5 Determination of *ystems Requirements + Analysis $hase, 5 Design of the *ystem 5 Development 8f *oftware 5 *ystem #esting 5 Implementation and 6valuation 5 Review *ystem testing Implementation Determination 8 f Requirements $reliminary Investigation Design 8f *ystem Development 8f *ystem Review 1B The /reliminary In5estigation #he /reliminary In5estigation /hase may begin with a phone call from a customer, a memorandum from a ?ice $resident to the director of *ystems Development, a letter from a customer to discuss a perceived problem or deficiency, or a request for something new in an e isting system. #he purpose of the /reliminary In5estigation is not to develop a system, but to verify that a problem or deficiency really e ists, or to pass 'udgment on the new requirement. Refers to having a pro'ect that can be completed based on considering the financial costs of completing the pro'ect versus the benefits of completing it. #here are three factors, typically called $easibility 2tudyB
1. Technical

$easibility. o It assesses whether the current technical resources and s!ills are sufficient for the new system o If they are not available, can they be upgraded to provide the level of technology necessary for the new system o It centers around the e isting computer system and to what e tent it can support the proposed addition. o It refers to having a pro'ect that can be technically self reliant of completing the pro'ect having the right technology hardware , software and s!ill technicians to e ecute the system.
,. (conomic

$easibility. o It e amines the benefits in creating the system to ma!e it costs acceptable. It refers to having a pro'ect that can be completed based on considering the financial costs of completing the pro'ect versus the benefits of completing it. o It determines whether the time and money are available to develop the system o Includes the purchase of 3ew equipment, Hardware ,*oftware

2. .perational $easibility. o 8perational feasibility determines if the human resources are available to operate the system once it has been installed. o Whether the system will be used if it is developed and implementedC 8r will there be resistance from usersC o 9sers that do not want a new system , may prevent it from becoming operationally feasible It could be an individual constraint, or any combination of the three that prevents a pro'ect from being developed any further. When a pro'ect is both desirable and feasible for the organi7ation the &nalysis /hase is implemented ,B Determination of 2ystems !e?uirements < &nalysis /hase) *ystems analysis is the study of a current business information systems application and the definition of user requirements and priorities for a new or improved application. #he Analysts study the problem deficiency or new requirement in detail. Depending upon the si7e of the pro'ect being underta!en #he !ey to understanding the analysis phase gaining a rigorous understanding of the problem or opportunity which is driving development of the new application. He has to wor! closely with employees and managers to gather details about the business process and their opinions of why things happen as they do and their ideas of changing the process. *ystem analysts do more than study the current problemsI they should closely inspect the various documents available about the various operations and processes. #hey are frequently called upon to help handle the planned e pansion of a business. #hey assess the possible future needs of the business and what changes should be considered to meet they needs. He has to help the user visuali7e the system An analyst mostly recommends more than . alternatives for improving the situation. He ma!es a prototype and wal! through the prototype with the prospective user. A system analyst needs to possess strong people s!ills and strong technical s!ills. $eople s!ills will assist in wor! with clients to help the team define requirements and resolve conflicting ob'ectives. Interpersonal *!ills helps in -ommunication, understanding and identifying problems, having a grasp of company goal and ob'ectives and selling the system to the user. #echnical s!ills will help document these requirements with process, data, and networ! models. It helps to focus on procedure and techniques for operations and computeri7ation. At the end of this phase, the !e?uirements 2tatement should be in developmentB this provides details about what the program should do. A requirement document includes )usiness 9se -ases, $ro'ect -harter 0 :oals, Inputs and 8utput details to the system and the broad process involved in the system. It can easily form the basis of a contract between the customer and the developer. #he Requirements *tatement should list all of the ma'or details of the program . 1B Design of the 2ystem #he design of an information system produces the details that state how a system will meet the requirements identified during systems analysis. #his stage is !nown as logical design phase in contrast to the process of developing program software, which is referred to as physical design. Design in the *D%- encompasses many different elements. #he different components that are Pdesigned" in this phase are B Input , 8utput, $rocessing, (iles )y the end of the design phase, a formal Requirements *tatement for the program is made along with a rough s!etch of what the user interface will loo! li!e. #o understand the structure and wor!ing of the *D%- each phase is e amined in turn. &ost programs are designed by first determining the output of the program. If you !now what the output of the program should be, you can determine the input needed to produce that output more easily. 8nce you !now both the output from, and the input to the program, you can then determine what processing needs to be performed to convert the input to output. Mou will also be in a position to consider what information needs to be saved, and in what sort of file. While doing the 8utput and Input designs, more information will be available to add to the Requirements *tatement. It is also possible that a first screen design will ta!e shape and at the end of these designs, and a s!etch will be made of what the screen will loo! li!e. At this stage of the *D%- it isn"t necessary to discuss the Phow" or Pwhat" the program will do, 'ust to get the requirements down on paper. Designers are responsible for providing programmers with complete and clearly outlined software specifications. As programming starts , designers are available to answer questions, clarify fu77y areas, and handle problems that confront the programmers when using the design specifications. 4B De5elopment .f 2oftware During De5elopment /hase, computer hardware is purchased and the software is developed. #hat means that actual coding the program is initiated. In the Development phase, e amination and re5e amination of the

Requirements *tatement is needed to ensure that it is being followed to the letter. Any deviations would usually have to be approved either by the pro'ect leader or by the customer. #he Development phase can be split into two sections, that of /rototyping and /roduction !eady &pplication 'reation. $rototyping is the stage of the Development phase that produces a pseudo complete application, which for all intents and purposes appears to be fully functional. Developers use this stage to demo the application to the customer as another chec! that the final software solution answers the problem posed. When they are given the 8L from the customer, the final version code is written into this shell to complete the phase. 6B 2ystem Testing During systems testing, the system is used e perimentally to ensure that the software runs according to its specifications and in the way the user e pects. *pecial test data are input for processing , and the results e amined. If necessary, ad'ustments must be made at this stage. Although the programmer will find and fi many problems, almost invariably, the user will uncover problems that the developer has been unable to simulate. 8B Implementation and (5aluation In the Implementation /hase, the pro'ect reaches fruition. After the Development phase of the *D%- is complete, the system is implemented. Any hardware that has been purchased will be delivered and installed. #he designed software and programmed will be installed on any $-s that require it. Any person that will be using the program will also be trained during this phase of the *D%-. #he system is put into use. #his can be done in various ways. #he new system can phased in, according to application or location, and the old system gradually replaced. In some cases, it may be more cost5effective to shut down the old system and implement the new system all at once. #he implementation phase also includes training systems operators to use the equipment, diagnosis of malfunction and troubleshooting. (5aluation of the system is performed to identify the strengths and wea!nesses of the new system. #he actual evaluation can be any of the following 1. .perational (5aluation# Assessment of the manner in which the system functions , including ease of use , response time , suitability of information formats, overall reliability and level of utili7ation. ,. .rganiCational Impact# Identification and measurement of benefits to the organi7ation in such areas as financial concerns +cost, revenue and profit,, operational efficiency and competitive impact. Includes impact on internal and e ternal information flows. 1. 7ser )anager &ssessment# 6valuation of the attitudes of senior and user managers within the organi7ation, as well as end /users. 4. De5elopment /erformance# 6valuation of the development process in accordance with such yardstic!s as overall development time and effort, conformance to budgets and standards, other pro'ect management criteria. Includes assessment of development methods and tools. 9B !e5iew# After system implementation and evaluation, a review of the system is conducted by the users and the analysts to determine how well the system is wor!ing, whether it is accepted, and whether any ad'ustments are needed. Review is important to gather information for maintenance of the system .3o system is ever complete, it has to be maintained as changes are required because of internal developments such as new user or business activities, and e ternal developments such as industry standards or competition. #he post implementation review provides the first source of information for maintenance requirement. #he most fundamental concern during post implementation review is determining whether the system has met its ob'ectives. #he analysts assess if the performance level of the users has improved and whether the system is producing the results intended. #he systems output quality has to be optimum.

Q 9) &) 0enefits of %etwor"ing#A distributed system is a collection of processors that do not share memory or a cloc!. Instead, each processor has its own local memory, and the processors communicate with each other through various communication lines, such as high5speed buses or telephone lines. Distributed systems vary in si7e and function. #hey may involve microprocessors, wor!stations, minicomputers, and large general5purpose computer systems. #he processors in the system are connected through a communication networ!, which can be configured in the number of different ways. #he networ! may be fully or partially connected. #he communication networ! design must consider routing and connection strategies, and the problems of connection and security. A distributed system provides the user with access to the various resources the system maintains. Access to a shared resource allows computation speed5up, data availability, and reliability. Q 9) 0) &ny three types of %etwor"ing topologies#%etwor" Topologies -hoosing the best5fit topology for an Intranet is crucial, as rearranging computers from one topology to another is difficult and e pensive. A networ! configuration is also called a networ! topology. A networ! topology is the shape or physical connectivity of the networ!. #he networ! designer has three ma'or goals when establishing the topology of a networ!B .. $rovide the ma imum possible reliabilityB provide alternative routes if a node fails and be able to pinpoint the fault readily deliver user data correctly +without errors, and recover from errors or lost data in the networ!. 1. Route networ! traffic through the least cost path within the networ!B minimi7ing the actual length of the channel between the components and providing the least e pensive channel option for a particular application. 2. :ive the end users the best possible response time and throughput. #he topology of the networ! can be viewed in two waysB .. #he topology as seen from the layout of the cable, or the route followed by the electrical signals. #his is the physical topology. 1. #he connections between nodes as seen by data traveling from one node to another 5 reflects the networ!"s function, use, or implementation without regard to the physical interconnection of networ! elements. #his is the logical topology, and may be different from the physical topology. -ommon patterns for connecting computers include the star and bus topologies. 0us topology #he bus topology is the simplest networ! configuration. It uses a single transmission medium called a bus to connect computers together. -oa ial cable is often used to connect computers in a bus topology. It often serves as the bac!bone for a networ!. #he cable, in most cases, is not one length, but many short stand that use #5connectors to 'oin the ends. #5connectors allow the cable to branch off in a third direction to enable a new computer to be connected to the networ!. *pecial hardware has to be used to terminate both ends of the coa ial cable such that a signal traveling to the end of the bus would come bac! as a repeat data transmission. *ince a bus topology networ! uses a minimum amount of wire and minimum special hardware, it is ine pensive and relatively easy to install. In some instances, such as in classrooms or labs, a bus will connect small wor!groups. *ince a hub is not required in a bus topology, the set5up cost is relatively low. 8ne can simply connect a cable and #connector from one computer to the ne t and eventually terminate the cable at both ends. #he number of computers attached to the bus is limited, as the signal loses strength when it travels along the cable. If more computers have to be added to the networ!, a repeater must be used to strengthen the signal at fi ed locations along the bus. #he problem with bus topology is that if the cable brea!s at any point, the computers on each side will lose its termination. #he loss of termination causes the signals to reflect and corrupt data on the bus. &oreover, a bad networ! card may produce noisy signals on the bus, which can cause the entire networ! to function improperly. )us networ!s are simple, easy to use, and reliable. Repeaters can be used to boost signal and e tend bus. Heavy networ! traffic can slow a bus considerably. 6ach connection wea!ens the signal, causing distortion among too many connections.

!ing topology In a ring topology, the networ! has no end collection. It forms a continuous ring through which data travels from one node to another. Ring topology allows more computers to be connected to the networ! than do the other two topologies. 6ach node in the networ! is able to purify and amplify the data signal before sending it to the ne t node. #herefore, ring topology introduces less signal loss as data traveling along the path. Ring5topology networ! is often used to cover a larger geographic location where implementation of star topology is difficult. #he problem with ring topology is that a brea! anywhere in the ring will cause networ! communications to stop. A bac!up signal path may be implemented in this case to prevent the networ! from going down. Another drawbac! of ring topology is that users may access the data circulating around the ring when it passes through his or her computer. 2tar %etwor" A star 3etwor! is a %A3 in which all nodes are directly connected to a common central computer. 6very wor!station is indirectly connected to every other through the central computer. In some *tar networ!s, the central computer can also operate as a wor!station. #he star networ! topology wor!s well when the wor!stations are at scattered point. It is easy to add or remove wor!station. If wor!station is reasonably close to the vertices of a conve polygon and the system requirements are the modest. #he ring networ! topology may serve the intended purpose at lower cost than the star networ! topology. If the wor!station lie nearly along a straight line, the bus networ! topology may be best. In a star networ!, a cable failure will isolate the wor!station that is lin!ed to the central computer, while all other wor!station will continue to function normally, e cept that the other wor!stations will not be able to communicate with the isolated wor!station. If any of the wor!station goes down other wor!station won"t be affected, but if the central computer goes down the entire networ! will suffer degraded performance of complete failure. #he star topology can have a number of different transmission mechanisms, depending on the nature of the central hub. J)roadcast *tar 3etwor!B #he hub receives and resends the signal to all of the nodes on a networ!. J*witched *tar 3etwor!B #he hub sends the message to only the destination node. JActive Hub +&ulti5port Repeater,B Regenerates the electric signal and sends it to all the nodes connected to the hub. J$assive HubB Does not regenerate the signalI simply passes it along to all the nodes connected to the hub. JHybrid *tar 3etwor!B $lacing another star hub where a client node might otherwise go. *tar networ!s are easy to modify and one can add new nodes without disturbing the rest of the networ!. Intelligent hubs provide for central monitoring and managing. 8ften there are facilities to use several different cable types with hubs.

The (nd