Week 14: clear

     The concepts of this week were about enterprise computing. Basically, the lectures handed out the ideas of how to tackle using computers in a large environment, and how to do it cheaply. First we talked about RAID and new technologies on it, such as RAID 5 and it's capabilities. Next we talked about different ways to store the data and efficiencies, such as HSM and SAN's, these ideas are of great use and are of the many options to tackle efficient storage. Next we talked about Virtual clients and thin clients. Both are similar enough, but with some major differences. I happen to have some experience with a virtual client, by owning a mac with parallels and VM.
     These concepts are very important for a computer engineer in the business environment. I'm not sure that most of this would be completely useful to the average person, but stuff on virtual computing and thin clients surly would. Thin clients are an awesome idea, yet this is the first I have ever heard of them. I could see them being a huge part of computing in the future.
     Here is a link to an article on thin clients. (http://www.hp.com/sbso/solutions/pc_expertise/article/thinclients_consider.html) This shows when a thin client would be necessary, or a good alternative. I think that this clearly shows that there is a large use for these clients and they are becoming more resonant in our daily life. I'm excited to see businesses switching over to use these clients, because it seems exponentially more efficient than to use a desktop for everyone.

Secure email

http://www.scmagazineuk.com/companies-look-to-work-with-secure-email-as-prediction-made-that-it-will-be-the-first-application-to-be-cloud-based/article/162905/

                This article is all about secure emails. Emails have always been a large part of our society, in the last twenty years, and they have very little protection. Gary Steele, an advocator of secure emails, thinks that because more and more companies are using it, it will become more accepted and even the norm.

            Secondly, with the invention of the internet, people are being more and more mobile with their work, and precautions need to be taken. New technology that will allow an ease of using a cloud is becoming more readily available and emails need to be secured. In the article, it stated that secure emails will grow rapidly as networking rises within companies. With emails being secure, this is just one aspect of keeping a cloud secure. 

           In summation, this article shows how secure emails are becoming a necessity in the work place. However, not only do we need this ability at work, but we need it at home to, like when we email doctors or Lawyers. Most of our things need to be kept private, and secure emails is the way to do it.

Week 13: Clear

     Well this week was a weird one. I didn't realize we had any assignments until Friday, which today is. The weeks lectures were on security and protection on computers. The first concept to note is that of threats to a system. There are many types of viruses and hackers that can infect your computer, and that there is a distinction between the lot of them. There are a few types of viruses, or as some may call it, malware, and there are differences between each. Another topic that was interesting was when we talked about "why do hackers do what they do?' This was particularly interesting because in most cases the hackers only do it for the fun and thrill of it. The next topic was on protection. There are many ways to keep your computer protected, and they are cheap and easy. The main thing to note, is to always keep your computer protected in one way or another.

     Knowledge of viruses is a very important skill; that most people don't have. I know, for myself, I haven't got a virus (that I know of, haha) in a few years. Having a good knowledge about websites and emails that could potentially have viruses is essential. Businesses don't usually train for stuff like this, but showing that you understand how to protect yourself and the company is highly attractive.

     Here is a link to computer viruses on Wikipedia. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_virus) This clearly explains the history of the virus and the many ways it has been used. This relates to the clear concept because understanding how to work around and with viruses is very easy, it just requires a little experience. I think also that this topic is very straight forward and relatable because most people have has a virus at least once in their life.

Second Life

    I wasn't really sure what to name this, so I went with Second Life. I have been acquainted with video games for a long time, so second life wasn't to shocking to me. I have played many games from xbox 360 to Nintendo, but I would say my most palatable, and regrettable, experience that is closest to this was World of Warcraft. I will never touch a game like that again because the demands on time are outrageous... I'll stick to my little games. Although I wasn't really quite sure what people do in the game. It seems as though most people just sit in the chat areas and talk, which I don't normally do. Later I saw the UF island, where they made scale replicas of some of the law buildings and others, it was pretty impressive. That being said, I could see how the building could be pretty fun.

     For the most part I spent my time editing my character. I had fun with this and made him interesting. I went with a cyborg outfit with a wolverine claw. Also I had a gun mounted on my right shoulder, so I could look like a predator. I was pretty pleased with the final product, even though he looks nothing like me. In summation, I don't think I will play second life that often, because I would need something a little more grasping and goal oriented to hold my attention.

Week 12: Clear

     This week we learned about servers and the interaction between people over the internet. The concepts were pretty basic because it was mostly just stuff to memorize and little actual theory and understanding. I enjoyed seeing some of the stuff I hadn't known before, such as the group software. Group software and other related things are programs designed to help people work together cohesively, which couldn't be done previously without computer. Other topics included how much bandwidth you would need for certain programs, which most people don't think of. Lastly, servers were another main topic, in which we learned the best ways to keep servers and have them be safe from hardware malfunctions as well as software.

     I think learning these things is quite important for business. Not to say that this is essential to get a job, but more than likely you will be using servers, group software or other things once in a while, if not daily. No matter where you are, you will have to use the internet once in a while if you are in a company, and understanding how it works, and proper procedure to make sure things run smoothly is essential. Lastly, having an idea of precautions with servers is a great tool too. There are millions of dollars worth of data on most corporate server, so spending an extra $4,000 to keep it safe is well worth it.

     For a web link, I found this link on Wikipedia about Lotus software (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lotus_Software). When I heard how early lotus software came out I was blown away. The idea behind group technologies is amazing, and the development of it was so fast, relative to other things on the internet. I think this provides a clear concept of what we learned because Lotus embodies a large portion of "what" can be done even with a limited internet, as it used to be. Lotus showed that using the correct software, servers and internet growth can be exponential.

Week 11: Clear

     Well, after using database to do this project, I have realized how much can be done with this software that I never knew. Initially I thought database meant like a server of some sorts but now I know what it really is. The data base project taught me that Access is like an evolved form of Excel, taking great features from it and also coming up with its own things, such as the use of external software. This project has also showed me how to relate this information for a presentation or to gain information about what is going on in a business.

     There are many ways to enhance the functionality of this database, but one thing comes to mind. Some sort of sort ability for users accessing the base. I know that there is a sort, but if there was some kind of button that would drop down on a report to make it able to be sorted easily so we can look at tenancies and patterns would make the data even more valuable. Only until data is organized does it become information.