Lecture Management information systems - Chater 3: Computer hardware

The learning objectives for chapter 3 include: Understand the history and evolution of computer hardware; identify the major types and uses of microcomputer, midrange, and mainframe computer systems; outline the major technologies and uses of computer peripherals for input, output, and storage;...

1 Identify the major types and uses of

microcomputer, midrange, and

mainframe computer systems

2 Outline the major technologies and uses

of computer peripherals for input, output, and storage

Learning Objectives

Learning Objectives

3 Identify and give examples of the

components and functions of a

computer system

4 Identify the computer systems and

peripherals you would acquire or

recommend for a business of your

choice, and explain the reasons for your selections

What is a Computer?

Definition:

• All computers are systems of input,

processing, output, storage, and control components

Case #1: Mobile and Wireless Devices

• When it comes to wireless technologies

used to empower a mobile workforce, the ROI seems to be a minor issue

• Cost isn’t the issue – connectivity is.

• Companies can better manage their costs

by using wireless technology to its fullest

Case #1: Mobile and Wireless Devices

IT Department’s Challenge

• Ensure that business users have access

to solid, secure connections, no matter

where they’re working

• Must think through how to deliver

applications so they can be used on small LCD screens

Case #1: Mobile and Wireless Devices

1 What are some of the benefits that

organizations could realize by

connecting all of their employees with

mobile devices?

2 Are the CIOs in the case saying that ROI

is not important when deploying mobile computing devices? Explain your

position

Case #1: Mobile and Wireless Devices

3 The case suggests that an increasingly

popular mobile device is the Blackberry What

is it about the Blackberry that makes it so

popular? Check out the Research in Motion

website at www.rim.net to help with your

answer.

4 Should mobile wireless technologies be

bundled together in a generic fashion or

should manufacturers allow for customization

of mobile devices to be more industry or task specific? Explain.

Types of Computer Systems

Microcomputer Systems

• Personal Computer (PC) – microcomputer for use by an individual

• Professional Workstation – a powerful,

networked PC for business professionals

• Laptop – small, portable PC

Microcomputer Systems

• Network Server – more powerful

microcomputers that coordinate

telecommunications and resource sharing

in small local area networks and Internet and intranet websites

• Computer Terminals – depend on servers for software, storage and processing

power

Microcomputer Systems

• Network Computers – low-cost, sealed

microcomputers with no or minimal disk storage that are linked to the network

• Information Appliances – hand-held

microcomputer devices

PC Features

Midrange Systems

Definition:

• Primarily high-end network servers and

other types of servers that can handle the large-scale processing of many business applications

Mainframe Systems

Definition:

• Large, fast, and powerful computer

systems

Supercomputer Systems

Definition:

• Extremely powerful computer systems

specifically designed for scientific,

engineering, and business applications requiring extremely high speeds for

massive numeric computations

Hardware Organized by System Functions

• Input Devices convert data into electronic form for direct entry or through a

telecommunications network into a

computer system

• Processing Components primarily the

Central Processing Unit (CPU)

• Arithmetic-Logic Unit (ALU) - perform

arithmetic and logic functions required to execute software instructions

Hardware Organized by System Functions

• Output Devices convert electronic information

produced by the computer system into

human-intelligible form for presentation to end users

• Storage Devices store data and software

instructions needed for processing

• Control Components primarily the CPU’s

Control Unit which interprets software

instructions and transmits directions that control the activities of the other components of the

computer system

Computer Processing Speeds

• Millisecond – thousandth of a second

• Microsecond – millionth of a second

• Nanosecond – billionth of a second

• Picosecond – trillionth of a second

Computer Clock Speeds

• MIPS – million instructions per second

• Megahertz (MHz) – millions of cycles per second

• Gigahertz (GHz) – billions of cycles per

second

Definition:

• Ability of a microprocessor to perform useful

computation or data processing assignments

during a given period of time

Depends on:

• Buses – size of circuitry paths that interconnect microprocessor components

• Registers – that process instructions

• Cache – high-speed memory

• Specialized Processors

Case #2: Customer Self-Service Kiosks

Goal:

• For airline travelers, the best trips are fast and hassle-free, with limited time spent at the airport

• The goal is speeding travelers to their

destinations

Case #2: Customer Self-Service Kiosks

Self-Service Kiosks Uses:

• Check in for flights

• Get boarding passes for originating or connecting flights

• Select or change seats

• Request to stand by for an upgrade

Case #2: Customer Self-Service Kiosks

Benefits:

• Help customers shave 5 to 15 minutes off the time they have to stand in line

• Cornerstone of a broader airport strategy

to offer customers more control

Case #2: Customer Self-Service Kiosks

Technology:

• Input

• video touch screens as the primary user

interface

• magnetic stripe card reader

• Processing - networked special-purpose microcomputer terminals

• Output - built-in, high-speed thermal

printer

Case #2: Customer Self-Service Kiosks

1 What computer system technologies and

functions are included in self-service kiosks? What other technologies should be provided? Why? Visit the Kinetics USA website for more details.

2 What is the customer value of self-service

kiosks for airline check-ins? What other

services should be provided? Take the demo tour of the Delta check-in kiosk at

you answer.

Case #2: Customer Self-Service Kiosks

3 What is the business value of

self-service kiosk in the airline industry? Do self-service kiosks give airlines a

competitive advantage? Why or why

not?

4 What are several other present or

potential business applications for

self-service networked kiosks? What are

their business benefits and limitations? Give several examples

Computer Peripherals

Definition:

• Generic name given to all input, output, and secondary storage devices that are part of a computer system, but are not

part of the CPU

Peripherals Advice

Online vs Offline

• Online – devices are separate from but

can be electronically connected to and

controlled by a CPU

• Offline – devices are separate from and not under the control of the CPU

Graphical User Interface (GUI)

Definition:

• Icons, menus, windows, buttons, bars, etc used for user selection

Pointing Devices

• Electronic Mouse – Moving mouse on pad

moves cursor on screen Pressing buttons on mouse activates activities represented by

selected icons.

• Trackball – Stationary device with a roller ball

on top used to move cursor on screen.

• Pointing Stick – Small button-like device which moves cursor in direction of pressure placed on stick.

Pointing Devices

• Touchpad – Small rectangular

touch-sensitive surface which moves the cursor

in the direction of finger moves on the

pad

• Touch Screen – Video display screen that emits a grid of infrared beams, sound

waves, or a slight electric current that is

broken when the screen is touched

Pen-based Computing

Definition:

• Pressure-sensitive layer under slate-like liquid crystal display screen and software that digitizes handwriting, hand printing,

and hand drawing

Speech Recognition Systems

• Discrete – user must pause between each spoken word

• Continuous – software can recognize

conversationally-paced speech

Optical Scanning

Definition:

• Devices that read text or graphics and

convert them into digital input for your

computer

Optical Character Recognition (OCR)

Definition:

• The machine identification of printed

characters through the use of sensitive devices

light-Other Input Technologies

• Magnetic Stripe – devices that read data stored in the magnetic stripe on the back

of cards

• Smart Cards – devices that read a

microprocessor chip embedded in a card

Other Input Technologies

• Digital cameras – devices that allow you

to capture, store, and download still

photos and full motion pictures

• Magnetic Ink Recognition (MICR) –

devices that can read characters printed

on source documents with an iron based ink

Video Output

• Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) – similar to

vacuum tubes in television

• Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) – electronic visual displays that form characters by

applying an electrical charge to selected silicon crystals

Printed Output

• Inkjet Printers – spray ink onto the page

• Laser Printers – use an electrostatic

process similar to a photocopying

machine

Storage Trade-Offs

Binary Representation

Definition:

• Data are processed and stored in a

computer system through the presence or absence of electronic or magnetic signals

in the computer’s circuitry or in the media

it uses

Bit vs Byte

• Bit – binary digit, which can have a value

of either zero or one

• Byte – basic grouping of bits that the

computer operates as a single unit,

typically eight bits

Storage Capacities

• Kilobyte (KB) – one thousand bytes

• Megabytes (MB) – one million bytes

• Gigabytes (GB) – one billion bytes

• Terabytes (TB) – one trillion bytes

• Petabytes (PB) – one quadrillion bytes

ASCII Codes

Binary Number System

Definition:

• Number system used by computers to

perform computations since it has only

two digits

Binary Number System

Direct vs Sequential Access

• Direct (or Random) Access – Each

storage position has a unique address

Each storage position can be individually accessed without having to search

through other storage positions

• Sequential Access – Data are recorded

one after another in a predetermined

sequence Locating an individual item of data requires searching the recorded data until the desired item is located

Direct vs Sequential Access

RAM vs ROM

• Random Access Memory (RAM) – each

memory position can be both sensed and changed

• Read Only Memory (ROM) – can be read but not erased or overwritten

Definition:

• Frequently used programs which are

permanently burned into ROM during manufacture

Types of Magnetic Disks

• Floppy Disks – single disk inside a

Formatting Disks

Hard Disk Drives

Optical Disks

Optical Disks

Business Applications of Optical Disks

Business Applications of Optical Disks

• Long-term archival storage of historical files of document images

• Publishing medium for fast access to

reference materials in a convenient

compact form

• Computer video games, educational

videos, multimedia encyclopedias and

advertising presentations

Case #3: Speech Recognition Software

• Computerized speech has come a long way

since the early 1980s

• The technology has become smarter, easier to use, and more integrated with other

applications

• Such technical advances, plus product

introductions that facilitate the development of the technology by mainstream developers, are enabling new uses for automated speech

systems.

Case #3: Speech Recognition Software

• Despite the steady advancements to

bigger vocabularies, lower error rates,

and more natural interfaces, however,

speech products have remained

specialized tools for niche markets such

as PC navigation by the disabled, medical dictation, and tightly constrained customer service interactions

Case #3: Speech Recognition Software

• But now, previously stand-alone speech

systems are linking up with enterprise

systems to access other applications and spawn transactions

Case #3: Speech Recognition Software

1 What are the business benefits and

limitations of IVR at Verizon? How could their use of IVR be improved? Defend

your proposals

2 What types of business situations would

benefit most from IVR technology?

Which ones would benefit least?

Explain

Case #3: Speech Recognition Software

3 Given the advancements in voice

recognition software over the last 20

years, what types of new applications for IVR do you see in the next 20 years?

Give examples and explain

Case #4: Moving to Linux on the Mainframe

Linux Benefits:

• Low cost of licensing Linux

• Rely on a community of users to identify

and fix bugs

Mainframe Benefits:

• Reliability

• Management Tools

Case #4: Moving to Linux on the Mainframe

Server Consolidation:

• Leverage the mainframe’s reliability

• Keep support costs low

• Best Candidates – infrastructure

applications

• Worst Candidates – Windows

applications and others with complex GUIs or that perform complicated data analysis

Case #4: Moving to Linux on the Mainframe

Tasks:

• Identify applications to run on the

mainframe

• Migrate applications first to stand-alone

servers running Linux

• Train staff in mainframe Linux skills

Case #4: Moving to Linux on the Mainframe

1 How can a mainframe use Linux to

replace the equivalent of hundreds of

Unix or Windows servers?

2 What are the business benefits and

challenges of using Linux on a

mainframe to replace Windows or Unix servers? Use WPS and Winnebago to illustrate your answer

Case #4: Moving to Linux on the Mainframe

3 What business applications are best

suited to servers? To mainframes?

Explain your reasoning

• Major types of computers include

microcomputers, midrange computers,

mainframe computers and

supercomputers

• A computer is a system of information

processing components that perform

input, processing, output, storage, and

control functions