MIS 303: Chapter 1

Examples of the power of business and technology

-Amazon - Not a technology company; primary business focus is selling books -Netflix - Not a technology company; primary business focus is renting videos -Zappos - Not a technology company; primary business focus is selling shoes

The core drivers of the information age

-Data -Information -Business intelligence -Knowledge

Management Information Systems (MIS)

A business function, like accounting and human resources, which moves information about people, products, and processes across the company to facilitate decision-making and problem-solving

Big data

A collection of large, complex data sets, including structured and unstructured data, which cannot be analyzed using traditional database methods and tools Snapshot: a view of data at a particular point in time

Report

A document containing data organized in a table, matrix, or graphical format allowing users to easily comprehend and understand information Static report: creating once based on data that does not change Dynamic report: changes automatically during creation

Byte

A group of eight bits representing one natural language character

Virtualization

A protected memory space created by the CPU allowing the computer to create virtual machines

Magnetic medium

A secondary storage medium that uses magnetic techniques to store and retrieve data on disks or tapes coated with magnetically sensitive materials

Hard drive

A secondary storage medium that uses several rigid disks coated with a magnetically sensitive material and housed together with the recording heads in a hermetically sealed mechanism

Cathode-ray tube (CRT)

A vacuum tube that uses an electron gun (cathode) to emit a beam of electrons that illuminates phosphors on a screen as the beam sweeps across the display repeatedly

Snapshot

A view of data at a particular point in time

Systems thinking

A way of monitoring the entire system by viewing multiple inputs being processed or transformed to produce outputs while continuously gathering feedback on each part

Internet of Things (IoT)

A world where interconnected Internet-enabled devices or "things" have the ability to collect and share data without human intervention

Touch screen

Allows the use of a finger to point at and touch a monitor to execute commands

Computer

An electronic device operating under the control of instructions stored in its own memory that can accept, manipulate, and store data.

Magnetic tape

An older secondary storage medium that uses a strip of thin plastic coated with a magnetically sensitive recording medium

Utility Software

Antivirus; screen savers; data recovery

Information Technology (IT)

Any computer-based tool that people use to work with information and support the information and information-processing needs of an organization.

Central processing unit

CPU, the computer's "brain", the actual hardware that interprets and executed the program (software) instructions

Liquid crystal display (LCD)

Low-powered displays used in laptop computers where rod-shaped crystal molecules change their orientation when an electrical current flows through them

Human resources

Maintains policies, plans, and procedures for the effective management of employees -Employee data -Promotion data -Vacation data

Operations management

Manages the process of converting or transforming resources into goods or services -Manufacturing data -Distribution data -Production data

Goods

Material items or products that customers will buy to satisfy a want or need -Cars -Groceries -Clothing

Spreadsheet Software

Microsoft Excel

Word Processing Software

Microsoft Word

Unstructured data

Not defined and does not follow a specified format

Mouse

One or more control buttons housed in a palm-sized case and designed so that one can move it about on the table next to the keyboard

Chief information officer (CIO)

Oversees all uses of IT and ensures the strategic alignment of IT with business goals and objectives

Arithmetic-logic unit (ALU)

Performs all arithmetic operations (for example, addition and subtraction) and all logic operations (such as sorting and comparing numbers)

Application Software

Performs specific information processing needs

Sales

Performs the function of selling goods or services -Potential customer data -Sales report data -Commission data -Customer support data

3-D printer

Printer that can produce solid, three-dimensional objects

Multifunction printer

Printer that can scan, copy, fax, and print all in one device

Laser printer

Printer that forms images using an electrostatic process, the same way a photocopier works

Ink-jet printer

Printer that makes images by forcing ink droplets through nozzles

Plotter

Printer that uses computer-directed pens for creating high-quality images, blueprints, schematics, etc

Keyboard

Provides a set of alphabetic, numeric, punctuation, symbol, and control keys

Services

Tasks people perform that customers will buy to satisfy a want or need -Teaching -Waiting tables -Cutting hair

Primary Storage

The computer's main memory, which consists of the random access memory (RAM), the cache memory, and the read-only memory (ROM) that is directly accessible to the central processing unit (CPU)

Fact

The confirmation or validation of an event or object

Gigahertz (GHz)

The number of billions of CPU cycles per second

Megahertz (MHz)

The number of millions of CPU cycles per second

Hardware

The physical devices associated with a computer system.

Read-only memory (ROM)

The portion of a computer's primary storage that does not lose its contents when one switches off the power

Information age

The present time, during which infinite quantities of facts are widely available to anyone who can use a computer

Output

The resulting information from the computer program

Analytics

The science of fact-based decision making -Descriptive analytics -Predictive analytics -Prescriptive analytics

Software

The set of instructions that the hardware executes to carry out specific tasks.

Software

The set of instructions the hardware executes to carry out specific tasks.

Binary digit (bit)

The smallest unit of information that a computer can process

Light-emitting diode (LED)

Tiny bulb used for backlight to improve the image on the screen

Finance

Tracks strategic financial issues including money, banking, credit, investments, and assets -Investment data -Monetary data -Reporting data

Complex instruction set computer (CISC) chip

Type of CPU that can recognize as many as 100 or more instructions, enough to carry out most computations directly

Operating System Software

Windows; Mac OS; Linux

Information

Data converted into a meaningful and useful context

Human-generated data

Data that humans, in interaction with computers, generate

Input

Data that is entered in a computer

Optical mark reader

Detects the presence or absence of a mark in a predetermined place (popular for multiple-choice exams)

Game controller

Devices used for games to obtain better control screen action

Pointing device

Devices used to navigate and select objects on a display screen

Digital still camera

Digitally captures still images in varying resolutions

Digital video camera

Digitally captures video

Webcam

Digitally captures video and uploads it directly to the Internet

Organic light-emitting diode (OLED)

Displays use many layers of organic material emitting a visible light and therefore eliminating the need for backlighting.

Secondary Storage

Equipment designed to store large volumes of data for long-term storage (diskette, CD, DVD, memory stick

Input device

Equipment used to capture information and commands. Keyboard; mouse; scanner

Output device

Equipment used to see, hear, or otherwise accept the results of information processing requests. Monitor; printer; headphones

Communication Device

Equipment used to send information and receive it from one location to another (modem, wireless card)

Touch pad

Form of a stationary mouse on which the movement of a finger causes the pointer on the screen to move; typically found below the space bar on laptops

Knowledge worker

Individual valued for their ability to interpret and analyze information

Business intelligence

Information collected from multiple sources such as suppliers, customers, competitors, partners, and industries that analyzes patterns, trends, and relationships for strategic decision making

Input, Process, Output Example

Input: Lettuce, tomatoes, patty, bun, ketchup Process: Cook the patty, put the ingredients together Output: Hamburger

Control Unit

Interprets software instructions and literally tells the other hardware devices what to do, based on the software instructions

Reduced instruction set computer (RISC) chip

Limit the number of instructions the CPU can execute to increase processing speed

Marketing

Supports sales by planning, pricing, and promoting goods or services -Promotion data -Sales data -Advertising data

Connecting device

Cables; USB port

Biometric scanner

Captures human physical attributes such as a fingerprint or iris for security purposes

Image scanner

Captures images, photos, graphics, and text that already exist on paper

Point-of-sale (POS)

Captures information at the point of a transaction, typically in a retail environment

Bar code scanner

Captures information that exists in the form of vertical bars whose width and distance apart determine a number

Microphone

Captures sounds such as a voice for voice-recognition software

Hardware components

Central processing unit (CPU) Primary storage Secondary storage Input device Output device Communication device

Process

Computer program that processes the data

Secondary storage

Consists of equipment designed to store large volumes of data for long-term storage

Hardware

Consists of the physical devices associated with a computer system.

System software

Controls how the various tools work together with application software

Feedback

Controls to ensure correct processing

Optical character reader

Converts text into digital format for computer input

Machine-generated data

Created by a machine without human intervention

Storage device

DVD; memory stick; hard drive

RAM

Random Access Memory, integrates circuits; works with the CPU; The computer's primary working memory, in which program instructions and data are stored so that they can be accessed directly by the CPU via the processor's high-speed external data bus. Includes the volatility and cache memory.

Data

Raw facts that describe the characteristics of an event or object

Accounting

Records, measures, and reports monetary transactions -Transactional data -Purchasing data -Payroll data -Tax data

Machine-to-Machine (M2M)

Refers to devices that connect directly to other devices

Chief knowledge officer (CKO)

Responsible for collecting, maintaining, and distributing the organization's knowledge

Gigabyte (GB)

Roughly 1 billion bytes

Megabyte (MB or M or Meg)

Roughly 1 million bytes

Terabyte (TB)

Roughly 1 trillion bytes

Knowledge

Skills, experience, and expertise coupled with information and intelligence that creates a person's intellectual resources

Structured data

Stored in a traditional system such as a relational database or spreadsheet -Machine-generated data: -Created by a machine without human intervention -Human-generated data: Data that humans, in interaction with computers, generate