Introduction to Business Chapter 13

Computer network definition.

A group of two or more computer systems linked together by communications channels to share data and information

Describe knowledge workers.

A worker who develops or uses knowledge, contributing to and benefiting from information used to perform planning, acquiring, searching, analyzing, organizing, storing, programming, producing, distributing, marketing, or selling functions

Ways to prevent problems

Backing up applications and data, security sites to keep safe, strong passwords

Management information systems defined.

Users, hardware, and software that support decision-making

Networks include

client (the application that runs on a personal computer) and servers (manages network resources or performs special tasks)

WAN

connects computers at different sites via telecommunications media such as phone lines, satellites, and microwaves.

Virtual private networks (VPN) connect two or more

private networks over a public network, such as the internet

Transaction processing system (TPS)

receives raw data from internal and external sources and prepares these data for storage in a database similar to a microcomputer database but way larger

Management support systems (MMS)

use the internal master database to perform high-level analysis that help managers make better decisions

Data security issues

Unauthorized access and security breaches, computer virus, worms (spreads from computer to computer), and trojan horses(programs that appear to be harmless and trick users into installing them)

How do intranets work?

Use radio frequency signals to transmit data (private corporate networks)

3 current trends in information technology

Digital forensics, shift to a distributed workforce (digital workforce), and increasing use of grid computing (way to divide the job into many smaller tasks and distribute them to a virtual supercomputer consisting of many small computers linked to a common network).

What is knowledge management?

Focuses on researching, gathering, organizing, and sharing an organizations collective knowledge to improve productivity, foster innovation, and gain competitive advantage.

Two basic types of networks and examples:

LAN and WAN

LAN

LAN lets people at one site exchange data and share the use of hardware and software from a variety of computer manufacturers

Management information systems provide managers with what?

The information they need to make decisions

Technology management and planning, why is it important?

Today's companies are cutting IT budgets so that managers are being asked to do more with less

Types of information systems and what they do:

Transaction processing system (TPS), Management support systems (MMS), Executive information systems (EIS), Expert system (DDS)

Executive information systems (EIS)

customized for an individual executive to provide specific information for strategic decisions

Expert system (DDS)

gives managers advice similar to what they would get from a human consultant.

Decision support system (DSS)

helps managers make decisions using interactive computer models that describe real-world processes.

Information technology (IT) includes

includes the equipment and techniques used to manage and process information