Chapter 5: Productivity Applications

Doug Engelbart Explores Hyperspace

One of the pioneers of the computer hardware and software

In 1968 he showed his Augment system,which were:

• Mouse


• Video display editing- movie making


• Mixed text and graphics, windowing


• Outlining


• Shared-screen video conferencing


• Computer conferencing


• Groupware


• Hypermedia

The Wordsmith's Toolbox
Working with a word processor involves several steps:

• Entering Text
  


• Editing Text



• Formattting the document



• Proofreading the document



• Saving the document on a disk



• Printing the document

Entering, Editing, and Formatting Text

• Entering Text
  


• Text is displayed onthe screen and stored in the computer's RAM
  


• Save your work periodically because RAM is not permanent memory
  
  Editing Text


• Navigate to different parts of document


• Insert or delete text at any point


• Move and copy text


• Search and replace words or phrases


• Word Processors and Other word tools

Formatting commands

• Formatting characters


• Characters are measured by the point size


• A font is a size and style typeface


• Serif fonts have serifs of fine lines at the ends of character


• You can use monospaced fonts of spaced fonts
  
  Formatting paragraphs involve:


• Margin settings


• Line spacing


• Indents


• Tabs


• Justification

Formatting the documents

• style sheets


• headers and footers


• multiple variable width columns


• graphics


• automatic editing features


• hidden comments


• table of contents and indexes


• coaching and helping feautures


• conversion to HTML
  
  
  Rules of Thumb: Word Processing Is Not Typing


• Use the return key only when you must


• Word wrap moves text to the next line


• Use tabs and margin guides, not the spacebar, to align columns


• WYSIWYG is a matter of degree


• Text that looks perfectly aligned onscreen may not line up on paper.


• Don't underline


• Use Italics and boldface for emphasis


• Use only one space after a period.


• Proportionally-spaced fonts look better without double space


• Take advantage of special characters


• bullets, dashes, curly or smart quotes

The Wordsmith's Toolbox

Outliners and Idea Processors are effective at:

• Arranging info into levels


• Rearranging ideas and levels


• Hiding and revealing of detail as needed.

Digital References

• Dictionaries, quotation books, atlases...


• The biggest advantage of the electronic form of speed.


• The biggest drawback is that

Synonym Finders

• A computerized thesarus that gives a variety of synonyms for a chosen

Spelling Checkers

• Compare words in your document with words in a disk-based dictionary.F7

Grammar and Style Checkers

• Analyze each word in context, checking for errors of content


• Check spelling


• Analyze prose complexity using measurements such as sentence length.

Form Letter Generators

• Mail merge capabilities produce personalized form letters.


• Create a datatbase with names


• Create a form letter


• Merge the database with the form letter to create personalized letter.


• Example: give info and email and your name comes up so that it's as if Muhammad Shareef is emailing you personally.


• You can incorporate custom paragraphs based n the recipient's personal data.


• Each letter looks ad of it were individually written.

Collaborative Writing Tools

• Groupware: software designed to be used by a workgroup


• Provides for collaborative writing and editing


• Example: Google documents


• Compares documents versions and highlights differences in documents

Emerging Word Tools

• Processing handwritten words


• Processing words with software that can reliably recognize human speech


• Anticipating a writer's needs, acting as a an electronic editor.

The Desktop Publishing Story

• The process of producing a book, magazine, or other publication includes several steps:





• Writing text





• Editing text





• Producing drawings, photos, and other grahics to accompany the text.





• Designing a basic format for the publication





• Typesetting text





• Arranging text and graphics on pages





• Typesetting and printing pages





• Binding pages into a finished publication





• With modern desktop publishing tech (DTP), the production process can be accomplished with sophisticated tools

Desktop publishing software:

Image-editing software

Page layout software combines ht evarious source docs into a coherent, visually appealing publication.

QuarkXpress

PageMaker

Adobe InDesign

Rules of Thumb:

Plan before you publlish

Use appropriate fonts.

Don;t go style crazy

View your document through your reader's eyes

Learn from the masters

Formulas can be:

Relative

Linking spreadsheets together

Financial management software: Quickbook - gives reliability

Mathematica

Statistical Software: Beyond Spreadsheets

Scientific Visualization

Scientific visualization software shape

Chapter 1: Our Digital Planet

• The computer is a versatile tool.

ex: compute taxes, deploy missile

• All computers take in information ca;;ed input and give out info called output.


• Hardware: the physical part


• Software the instructions that tell the software what to do.


• 1939: Konrad Zuse-first digital computer


• 1943: First electronic digital computer called Colossus by mathematician Alan Turing.


• 1939: Professor John Atanasoff developed possibly the first electronic digital computer, the Atanasoff-Berry Computer(ABC)


• 1944: Professor Howard Aiken developed the Mark I, by a one million dollar grant from IBM.


• John Mauchly and J. Presper Eckert helped the U.S effort in World War II by constructing a machine to calculate trajectory tables for new guns.


• After the war, John Mauchly and J. Presper Eckert started a private company called Sperry and created UNIVAC I, the first general-purose commercial computer.


• Vacum Tubes- were used in early computers


• ENIAC Electronical Numerical Integrator Computer


• Transistors replaced vacuum tubes starting in 1956


• By the mid-1960 transistors were replaced by integrated circuits.


• Integrated circuits brought:


• Increased reliability


• Smaller size


• Higher speed


• Higher effciency


• Lower cost


• 1971: The first microprocessor was invented by Intel engineers


• THe personal computer


• Desktop Computers


• Embedded Computers- perform specific tasks


• Special purpose computers


• controling the temperature and humidity


• Monitoring your heart rate


• Monitoring your house security system


• The program is etched on silicon so it cannot be altered . This is called firmware.


• Personal Computers


• PCs serve a single user at a time.


• Common applications include:


• word processing


• Workstations: high-end desktoop computers with massive computing power used for high-end interactive applications.


• Portable Computers: machines that are not tied to the desktop


• Notebooks-laptops


• Handheld Computers-PDA


• Servers: Computers designed to provide software and other resources to other computers over a network.


• Mainframes:


• Used by large organizations, such banks and airlines, for big computing jobs.


• Communicate with mainframe through terminals


• Multiple communications at one time through process of timesharing.


• Supercomputers: For power users who need access to the fastest, most powerful computers made.


• The Emergance of Networks


• Connect devices together.


• 1960s: Internet developed with backing of the U.S goverment.


• The Internet Explosion- Pver a billion people with Internet acceses by the end of 2005.


• Electronic mail- email


• World Wide Web


• Led the Internet's tranformation from a text-only environment into a multimedia


• Web Browsers: Programs that serve as navigable wilndows into the Web.
• explorer, firefox. chrome


• Hypertext links: millions of Web pages tied together created by different authors.


• Internet varied activities:


• eBay-international transactions


• Real-time multiplayer games


• In history we have had:


• Agricultural Age


• Industrial Age


• Now we are in the Information Age- people earn a living now by working with words, numbers, and ideas
• Social and Ethical issues
• personal privacy
• high-tech crime and keeping data secure
• defining and protecting intellectual property
• The threat of automation and the dehumanization of work
• The abuse of info as a tool of political and economic power
• The emergence of bio-digital technology
• The dangers of dependence on complex technology
• Bio-digital examples:
• Micro-chipping pets
• Prosthetic limbs
• Virtual Surgery
• Brain fused with PC chip
  

Chapter 4 Continued

Web Applications

• Web applications fall into several categories
• Some simple Web applications perform simple data-processing tasks that could also be performed by traditional programs running on stand-alone PCs. Ex: Blogs
• Most Web applications take advantage of the Web’s connectivity.
• Many Web applications leverage the Web’s strength as a huge repository of information.
• Some Web applications support online business transactions.
• News-oriented Web applications provide up-to-the-minute reports on a myriad of subjects.
• Other Web applications support a more traditional form of information broadcasting.
• Web applications take advantage of web connectivity

Integrated Applications and Suites: Software Bundles
Vertical -Market and Custom Software
• Very expensive compared to mass market applications
mass-market applications
• Job-specific software: Medical billings, Library cataloging, Legal reference software, Restaurant management, Single-client software needs

The Hardware-Software Connection
• System software: A class of software that includes the operating system and utility programs, handles these details, and hundreds of other tasks behind the scenes.
System Software:
The Hardware-Software Connection
• Operating system functions:
• Supports multitasking
• Manages virtual memory
• Maintains file system
• Responsible for authentication and authorization

Utility Programs and Device Driver
• Utility programs: Serve as tools for doing system maintenance and repairs that aren’t automatically handled by the operating system.
• Make it easier for users to:
• Copy files between storage devices
• Repair damaged data files
• Translate files so that different programs can read them
• Guard against viruses and other potentially harmful programs (as described in the chapter on computer security and risks)
• Compress files so they take up less disk space
• Perform other important, if unexciting, tasks

• Symantec Norton Utilities is a popular utility package that includes software tools for recovering damaged files, repairing damaged disks, and improving disk performance

Device drivers:

• Small programs that enable I/O devices—keyboard, mouse, printer, and others—to communicate with the computer.

• Included with the operating system or bundled with peripherals

Where the Operating System Lives
• Some computers store their operating system in ROM.
• Others include only part of it in ROM.
• The remainder of the operating system is loaded into memory in a process called booting, which occurs when you turn on the computer.
• Most of the time the operating system works behind the scenes.
• Interacting with the operating system, like interacting with an application, can be intuitive or challenging and it depends on something called the user interface.


The User Interface
The Human–Machine Connection

• User Interface: The interface defines the look and feel of the computing experience from a human point of view.
• Desktop Operating Systems
• MS-DOS ( Microsoft Disk Opening System)is a disk operating system in which the user interacts using characters:
• Letters
• Numbers
• Symbols

• Features include:

• Command-line interface (commands are typed)

• Menu-driven interface (commands are chosen from on-screen lists)

• Graphical User Interfaces (GUI)

• Mac OS was developed by Macintosh in 1984 using GUI.

• Microsoft Windows is now the most popular operating system.
Multiple User Operating Systems: UNIX and Linux
• UNIX was developed at Bell Labs before personal computers were available.
• Linux was created by Linus Torvalds and continues to be a work-in-progress.
• UNIX allows a timesharing computer to communicate with several other computers or terminals at once.
• Linux is free for anyone to use or improve.
• UNIX remains the dominant operating system for Internet servers.
• Some form of UNIX is available for personal computers, workstations, servers, mainframes, and supercomputers.
Hardware and Software Platforms
• Windows Vista
• Windows Server 2003
• Windows XP
• Windows ME
• Microsoft Windows CE
• Mac OS X (10)
• Mac OS 9
• Linux, Sun Solaris, and other UNIX variations

• Cross-platform applications, such as Microsoft Office and Adobe Photoshop, are programs that are available in similar versions for multiple platforms.

• Mac users can buy software emulation programs that:

• Create a simulated Windows machine in the Mac .

• Translate all Windows-related instructions Mac equivalents.



• Future applications may be more tied to networks than to desktop computer platforms.

• Microsoft .NET strategy

• Java, a platform-neutral computer language developed by Sun Microsystems for use on multiplatform networks.

Chapter 4 Questions

1. What is the the difference between authentication and authorization? Give Examples.

• An authentication system is to verify that the user is really who they are. For example, Password Based Authentication that requires the user to know a password.
• An authorization system is how the system decides what the user can do. For example, the difference between a normal user and the superuser on a unix system.
  

2. What does the operating system do?

• It manages the hardware and software resources of the system.
• It provides a good way for applications to deal with hardware without it being required to know the details of the hardware.
  

3. What is the difference between utility programs and device drivers?

A device driver is a small program that tells the operating system how to communicate with a device. A utility program help to control computer resources, such as protecting your computer from viruses.

Chapter 4: Software Basics: The Ghost in the Machine

Open Source-open to the public.

Non-open source- not open to the public.

Linus Torvalds and the Software Nobody Knows

• Linus Torvalds- a genius
  
• Created the Linux


• It is the best known example of open source software


• It powers Web servers, film and animation workstations, scientific supercomputers, and a handful of handhelds.


• Open source software: open for the public and it is reliable because of constant updates.


• means you can change the code behind the system or software.


• Three major categories of software:


• Compliers and other tranlator programs: enable programmers to create othe rsoftware.


• sees the syntax of your code if it's right or wrong.


• Example: Intel compliers like translator


• Software applications: serve as productivity tools to help computer users solve problems.


• Example: Microsoft Word like product


• System software : coordinates hardware operations and does behind-the-scenes work the computer user seldom sees.
  

Processing with Programs

• Food for thought


• The hardware in acomputer system is equipped to produce whatever output a user requests.


• Example: iIf you have a recipe for french toast- that is your input, then if you mix the ingreidients all together then- your result is the output.


• Set of rules to solve a pro


• A fast, stupid machine


• Programmers begin with an algorithm: a set of step-by-step instructions written in a natural languafe,e.g,English


• The steps are cpmplicated, long and error pone


• The steps are translated into the vocabulary

Sofware Applications: Tools for Users

• Consumer Applications


• Many software companies have replaced their printed documentation.


• Tutorials


• Reference Materials


• Help files


• On-line help


• Upgrading: Users can upgrade a program to the new version by paying an upgrade fee the the software manufacturer.


• Ex:Itunes


• Newer releases often have additional features and fewer bugs-an error.


• Compatibility


• It allows to function properly with the hardware, operating system, and peripherals.


• Programs written for one type of computer system may not work on another.


• Ex:Macintosh and Intel


• Disclaimers


• Software manufacturers limit their liability for software problems by selling software "as is"


• Created whether you like it or not; don't use it.


• Licensing: Commercial software is copyrightes so it can't be legally duplicated for distribution.


• Software license


• Volume license


• Distribution: Software is distributed via:


• Direct sale


• Retail stores


• Mail-order catalogs


• Web sites


• Not all software is copyrighted.


• Public domain software


• Shareware- search to make sure software isn't copyrighted.


• Web applications


• Web applications fall into several categories:


• Some simple Web applications perform simple data-processing tasks that could also be performed by traditional programs running on stand-alone PCs.


• Ex: Flashplayer,etc....


• Most Web applications take advantage of the Web's strength as a huge repository


• of information.


• Ex: pictures and outside info


• Many Web applications leverage the Web's strength as a huge repository of information.


• Some Web applications support online business transactions.


• News-oriented Web applications provide up-to-the minute reports on a myriad(countless)of subjects.


• Other Web applications support a more traditional form of information broadcasting.
  

Project Theory

Introduction to project cycle

A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product or service.

SDLC (Software Development Life Cycle)

Project Identification & Selection - Project Initiation & Planning - Analysis - Logical Design -
Physical Design - Implementation - Maintenance.

What is a project?

A project is a sequence of unique, complex, and connected activities having one goal or purpose and that must be completed by a specific time, within budget, and according to specifications.

Project Management Criteria

• Projects are oriented towards a goal.


• There is something unique about every project.


• Projects have a finite duration.- It ends.


• Projects require coordination of interrelated activities.

What is Project Management?

• Project management is a set of principles and tools for:


• Defining


• Planning


• Executing


• Controlling and..


• Completeing a PROJECT

Why is Project Management important?

• Organize your approach


• Generate a credible schdule


• Track progress and control your project


• Identify where to focus your efforts


• Identify problems early-before they are crises


• Saves you TIME..and MONEY.


• If you fail to plan, plan to fail.

Project Phases

1. Assessment


2. Planning


3. Implementation


4. Evaluation

Project Cycle Management (PCD)

Assessment (of needs, situation)

• Observing a problem


• Analysing it


• Defining the need


• Deciding on an action


• Answering W-questions (Laswell)
  

W-questions

•Who, for whom, with whom, etc.?
•What?
•Why?
•Where?
•When?
•How?

Planning

• Think the way the client is thinking .


• Know everything about theie business/occupation.


• Needs Analysis of the organization, its values, activities and relevancy.


• Own Motivation


• Definition of aims (general) and concrete objectives.


• Selection of methodology, activities


• Plan of activities – schedule


• Resources: human, financial, material, time


• Organization of the project: team, partners

• Outline of the project/project fiche

• Risks assessment strategy
  

Concrete Objectives

SMART:Specifc Measurable Achieveable Realistic Timed

Chapter 3:Hardware Basics:Peripherals

Hardware Basics: Peripherals
Chapter 3 Objectives

• List several examples of input devices and explain how they can make it easier to get different types of information into the computer.



• List several examples of output devices and explain the how they make computers more useful.



• Explain why a typical computer has different types of storage devices.



• Diagram how the components of a computer system fit together.
  
  Input: From Person to Processor
  
  
  Keyboard



• The most familiar input device



• Used to enter letters, numbers and special characters



• Standard keyboard



• Ergonomic keyboards



• To address possible medical problems



• Wireless keyboard



• Folding keyboards



• Used with palm-sized computers



• One-handed keyboards



• Keyboards printed on membranes

Pointing Devices

• Mouse



• Touchpad



• Pointing stick



• Trackball



• Joystick



• Graphics tablet



• Touch screen



• Stylus



• Reading Tools



• Read marks representing codes specifically designed for computer input
  



• Optical-mark readers



• Magnetic-ink character readers



• Bar-code readers



• Pen scanners



• Tablet PC



• Smart whiteboard



• Radio Frequency Identification Readers (RFID)
  
  Digitizing the Real World
  


• Scanners capture and digitize printed images.



• Flatbed



• Slide



• Drum



• Sheet-fed
  



• Digital camera



• Snapshots captured as digital images



• Digital images stored as bit patterns on disks or other digital storage media
  



• Video digitizer



• Capture input from a:



• Video camera



• Video cassette recorder or television



• Convert it to a digital signal



• Stored in memory and displayed on computer screens



• Videoconferencing



• People in diverse locations can see and hear each other



• Used to conduct long-distance meetings



• Video images transmitted through networks
  
• Audio digitizers
  
• Digitize sounds from Microphones


• Other input devices
  
• Digital signals can be stored


• A digital signal processing chip compresses the stream of bits before it is transmitted to the CPU.


• Speech recognition software


• Converts voice data into words that can be edited and printed
  
• Sensors


• Designed to monitor physical conditions


• Temperature, humidity, pressure


• Provide data used in:


• Robotics


• Environmental climate control


• Weather forecasting


• Medical monitoring


• Biofeedback
  
• Scientific research
  
  Output: From Pulses to People
  
• Screen Output


• A monitor or video display terminal (VDT) displays characters, graphics, photographic images, animation and video.


• Video adapter—connects the monitor to the computer.


• VRAM or video memory—a special portion of RAM to hold video images.


• The more video memory, the more picture detail is displayed.
  
  Color depth
  1-bit depth
  4-bit depth
  8-bit depth
  16-bit depth
  
• Monitor classes


• CRTs (cathode-ray tubes)


• LCDs (liquid crystal displays)
  • Overhead projection panels
  • Video projectors
  • Portable computers
  


• Paper Output


• Printers produce paper output or hard copy.


• Two basic groups of printers:


• Impact printers
  • Line printers
  • Dot-matrix printers
• Non-impact printers
  • Laser printers


• Laser beam reflected off a rotating drum to create patterns of electrical charges.


• Faster and more expensive than dot matrix printer.


• High-resolution output
  • Inkjet printers


• Sprays ink onto paper to produce printed text and graphic images.


• Prints fewer pages/minute than laser printer .


• High-quality color; costs less than laser printer.


• Multifunction printer or MFP combines a scanner, printer and a fax modem.


• A plotter can produce large, finely scaled engineering blueprints and maps.
  
• Fax Machines and Fax Modems


• Facsimile (fax) machine


• Sending:
  • scans each page as an image
  • converts the image into a series of electronic pulses
  • sends those signals over phone lines to another fax


• Receiving:
  • uses the signals to reconstruct the image
  • prints black-and-white facsimiles or copies of the originals


• Fax modem


• Connect from PC to fax machine via modem and phone line.


• Output You Can Hear


• Sound card


• Enables the PC to:
  • Accept microphone input
  • Play music and other sound through speakers or headphones
  • Process sound in a variety of ways


• Synthesizers


• Used to produce music, noise


• Controlling Other Machines


• Output devices take bit patterns and turn them into non-digital movements.
  


• Robot arms


• Telephone switchboards


• Transportation devices


• Automated factory equipment


• Spacecraft


• Force feedback joystick
  
  Rules of Thumb: Ergonomics and Health
  
  


• Choose equipment that’s ergonomically designed.


• Create a healthy workspace.


• Build flexibility into your work environment.


• Rest your eyes.


• Stretch to loosen tight muscles.


• Listen to your body.


• Seek help when you need it.
  
  Storage Devices: Input Meets Output
  
• Magnetic Tape


• Can store large amounts of information in a small space at a relatively low cost .


• Limitation: sequential data access


• Used mainly for backup purposes


• Magnetic Disks


• Random data access


• Flopy disks


• Provide inexpensive, portable storage


• Hard disks


• Non-removable, rigid disks that spin continuously and rapidly.


• Provide much faster access than a floppy disk


• Removable media (Zip & Jaz disks)


• Provides high-capacity portable storage
  


• Optical Disks


• Use laser beams to read and write bits of information on the disk surface


• Not as fast as magnetic hard disks


• Massive storage capacity


• Very reliable
  
• CD-ROM


• Optical drives that read CD-ROMs


• CD-R


• WORM media (write-once, read many)


• CD-RW


• Can read CD-ROMs and write, erase and rewrite data onto CD-R & CD-RW disks.


• DVD (Digital Versatile Disks)


• Store and distribute all kinds of data


• Hold between 3.8 and 17 gigabytes of information
• DVD-ROM drives
• Can play DVD movies, read DVD data disks
• Read standard CD-ROMs, and play audio CDs
• Read-only: can’t record data, music, or movies
• DVD-RAM drives
• Can read, erase, and write data (but not DVD video) on multi-gigabyte
• DVD-R (but not CD-R or CD-RW) media
• Solid-State Storage Devices
• Flash memory is an erasable memory chip:
• Sizes range from 16 MB to 1 GB
• Compact alternative to disk storage.
• Contains no moving parts.
• Designed for specific applications such as storing pictures in digital cameras.
• Likely to replace disk and tape storage.
  
  Computer Systems: The Sum of Its Parts
  
  Personal Computer Design Classes
• Tower systems
• Tall, narrow boxes, generally have more expansion slots and bays than other designs.
• Flat desktop systems
• Designed to sit under the monitor like a platform.
• All-in-one systems (like the iMac)
• Combine monitor and system unit into a single housing.
  
• Laptop computers
• Include all the essential components, including keyboard and pointing device, in one compact box.
  
• Ports and Slots Revisited
• The system or motherboard includes several standard ports:
• Serial Port for attaching devices that send/receive messages one bit at a time (modems).
• Parallel Port for attaching devices that send/receive bits in groups (printers).
• Keyboard/Mouse Port for attaching a keyboard and a mouse.
  
• Other ports are typically included on expansion boards rather than the system board:
• A video port is used to plug a color monitor into the video board.
• Microphones, speakers, headphones, MIDI ports are used to attach sound equipment.
• An SCSI port allows several peripherals to be strung together and attached to a single port.

• A LAN port uses faster connections to a local-area network (LAN).
• Expansion Made Easy
• With the PC open architecture and the introduction of new interfaces, you can hot swap devices.
• USB (Universal Serial Bus) transmits a hundred times faster than a PC serial port
• Firewire (IEEE 1394) can move data between devices at 400 or more megabits per second. The high speed makes it ideal for data-intensive work, like digital video.
• FireWire 800, which offers 800 Mbps transfer speeds, was recently introduced on high-end Macintosh systems.
  
  
• Putting It All Together
• A typical computer system might have several different input, output, and storage peripherals—the key is compatibility.
• Networks blur the boundaries between computers.
• Networked computers may have access to all the peripherals on a system.
• The computer is, in effect, just a tiny part of a global system of interconnected networks.
  
  Inventing the Future: Tomorrow’s Peripherals
  
  
• Tomorrow’s Storage
• Smaller disks that hold more
• A single electron memory chip the size of a thumbnail that can store all of the sounds and images of a full-length feature film.
• Tomorrow’s Output
• Flat-panel screens replacing desktop CRTs.
• Retinal displays that work without a screen.
• Tomorrow’s Input: Sensors
• More sophisticated devices will serve as eyes, ears, and other types of sense organs for computer networks.
  Chapter 3 Lesson Summary
  
  
• Peripherals allow computer to communicate with the outside world and store information for later use information.
• The most common input devices today are the keyboard and the mouse. A variety of other input devices can be connected to the computer.
• Output devices perform the opposite function: They accept strings of bits from the computer and transform them into a form that is useful or meaningful outside the computer.
• Storage devices are capable of two-way communication with the computer. Because of their high-speed random access capability, magnetic disks are the most common forms of storage on modern computers.
• Network connections make it possible for computers to communicate with one another directly.