James Morgan

02/04/2015
Dr. Wood
CINS 3050

Question 3 Review Q&A

1. Hardware is classified into what major types?

input
processing
output technologies

2. In one paragraph, explain how a computer works.

First the computers central processing unit loads the operating system with
formulas and transmits instructions. Next the input is received and digitized into a
binary code, which is handled by the CPU. The CPU uses a whole group of tiny
transistors, which uses temporary storage until it is either presented, permanently
stored, or the unit turned off.
3. Describe the difference between systems software and application software.

Systems software is used to manage and run the operation of the computer whereas
application software lets users perform specific tasks for home, school, and business use.
Most systems software is preloaded when a computer is purchased while application
software can be pre-loaded and most often purchased by the user for specific tasks.
4. How is quality in open source software ensured?

Answer:
A very large user base insures fixes to problems encountered and posted as well as
helping to maintain the integrity of the code provided. If posts are made that are not
accurate, there are usually many follow-up posts that correct the postings made.
5. Describe the different types of computers and their key distinguishing characteristics.

Information Systems Today, 5th Edition, Instructors Manual

1. Supercomputer- # of Simultaneous Users: One to many/ Physical Size: Like an

automobile to as large as multiple rooms/ Typical Use: Scientific
Research/Memory: 5,000+/Typical Cost Range: Low-$1,000,000-Higher$20,000,000
2. Mainframe-# of Simultaneous Users: 1,000+/ Physical Size: Like a refrigerator/
Typical Use: Large general-purpose business and government/Memory: Up to
1500+ GB/Typical Cost Range: Low-$500,000- High: $10,000,000
3. Server--# of Simultaneous Users: 10,000+/ Physical Size: Like a DVD player and
mounted in a rack to fitting on a desktop/Typical Use: Providing Web sites or
access to databases, applications, or files/ Memory: Up to 512 GB/Typical Cost
Range Low: $300- High: $50,000
4. Workstation-# of Simultaneous Users: Typically One/ Physical Size: Fitting on a
desktop to the size of a file cabinet/Typical Use: Engineering, medical, graphic
design / Memory: Up to 192 GB /Typical Cost Range Low:$750 High:$100,000
5. Microcomputer -# of Simultaneous Users: One/ Physical Size: Handheld to fitting
on a desktop/Typical Use Personal productivity / Memory: 512 MB to 4 GB
/Typical Cost Range Low: $200- High $5,000

6. For which purposes are data stored in organizations?

Answer:
Data and information are important assets of a business and must be protected. All
transactions of a business are recorded as data within a computer. Once recorded, this
data can be processed into useful information to allow businesses to make informed
business decisions to remain profitable. This also allows businesses to store this data in
safe places so that in the event of a disaster the business is able to recover any data
temporarily lost and continue operations.
7. How does computer networking work?

Answer:
All computer networks require the following:

Copyright 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall

Information Systems Today, 5th Edition, Instructors Manual

1.
2.
3.

Information is needed to share between a sender and receiver. This means you
must have both a sending device and a receiving device.
A transmission medium is needed. This is the physical pathway for the messages
to be sent (could be cable or wireless).
Rules or protocols (standards) must be followed that allow for those
communications to be passed.

8. What are the major types of networks?

Answer:
Type
Private Branch
Exchange (PBX)
Personal Area
Network (PAN)
Local Area
Network (LAN)
Campus Area
Network (CAN)
Metropolitan
Area Network
(MAN)
Wide Area
Network (WAN)

Usage
Telephone system serving a
particular location
Wireless communication
between devices, using
technologies such as Bluetooth
Sharing of data, software
applications, or other resources
between several users
Connect multiple LANs, used
by single organization
Connect multiple LANs, used
by single organization
Connect multiple LANs,
distributed ownership and
management

Size
Within a business
Under 10 meters
Typically within a
building
Spanning multiple
buildings, such as a
university or business
campus
Larger then LAN or
CAN, such as covering
the area of a city
Large physical distance,
up to worldwide
(Internet)

9. What is the World Wide Web, and what is its relationship to the Internet?

Answer:
The World Wide Web (WWW) is a system of interlinked documents on the Internet, or a
graphical user interface to the Internet that provides users with a simple, consistent
interface to a wide variety of information.
10. What are URLs, and why are they important to the World Wide Web?

Answer:
A Uniform Resource Locator (URL) is used to identify and locate a particular Web page.
URLs are important to the Web, as they give users an easy way to navigate to particular
Web pages, without having to remember numeric IP addresses.
11. What are the problems associated with software obsolescence?

Copyright 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall

Information Systems Today, 5th Edition, Instructors Manual

Answer:
Problems associated with software obsolescence include the need for new hardware at
times, incapability of older application software to the new system software, reluctance of
users in switching to new software, and products that may have been designed to certain
life spans without the capability to work with newer upgrades.
12. Describe the characteristics of the cloud computing model.

Characteristics of cloud computer include:

1. On demand self-services: computer services such as email, applications,
network or server service can be provided without requiring human
interaction with each service provider.
2. Rapid Elasticity Cloud services can be rapidly and elastically provisioned,
in some cases automatically, to quickly scale out and rapidly released to
quickly scale in.
3. Measured Service Cloud computing resource usage can be measured,
controlled, and reported providing transparency for both the provider and
consumer of the utilized service.
4. Resource Pooling The providers computing resources are pooled together
to serve multiple consumers using multiple-tenant model, with different
physical and virtual resources dynamically assigned and reassigned
according to consumer demand.
13. What is the difference between SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS?

Software as a Service is an application provided via a cloud infrastructure. Software

as a Service, software distribution model in which the software is hosted by a service
provider and licensed for the use by the user. The Platform as a Service allows the
user to run their own applications. Infrastructure as a Service is a form of cloud
computing that provides virtualized computing resources over the Internet, which
allows basic skills of processing, storage, and networking.

14

Define grid computing and describe its advantages and disadvantages.

Copyright 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall

Information Systems Today, 5th Edition, Instructors Manual

Grid computing is a collection of computers, often geographically dispersed, that

are coordinated to solve a common problem. The primary advantages of grid
computing are relatively low costs, and the flexibility to use a grid for large-scale
computing problems and for multiple, concurrent, smaller problems. A
disadvantage would be the difficulty of managing computing grids, but mainly
heterogeneous grids.
15. Describe what is meant by the term IP convergence.

IP convergence is the use of the Internet Protocol for transporting voice, video, fax,
and data traffic, which allows enterprises to make use of new forms of
communication and collaboration as well as outdated forms of communication at a
much lower costs.
16. Describe why green computing has become so important to modern organizations.

Green computing has become so important to modern organizations because of the

large increase in the demand for and cost of energy, which has been an influence on
public issues. Green computing can save money on energy usage, waste disposal,
and carbon taxes.

Copyright 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall