Week 15 - Clear

Okay everything in this short week was very clear. This has been one of the clearest weeks. (And for me enjoyable that it had nothing to do with memory or storage!) I would have to say that the interviews were more interesting than what I expected. To get a little insight to each persons career was nice. So many times we don't have an understanding of all the things that occur in the IT department and that some people don't work directly with the IT department. It was interesting to see how they all felt that certification was not as necessary and knowledge but that it was good to have for more of backup reference. I also enjoyed how different they were or at least how some of them fell into their careers. Since this is our last blog I also wanted to say that I was pleasantly surprised with this course. In the beginning I was like why do we take this and WHY do I have to take this. I thought that the software knowledge I had was sufficient and why did I need to know more. I have learned more than I thought and many of the topics were quite interesting. I have to admit that I found having to keep up while working 50 hours a week and also taking 12 credits very daunting. If asked I will always tell future students to keep up from the beginning. Thanks for making this course interesting!

Project - Secure Email

In this project we learned to digitally sign an email and to encrypt email. Unfortunately I sent my encrypted email but with the wrong subject. I replied to the signed email and didn't change the subject so at the last minute I sent Professor Means another email hoping to get a reply but I do show that I did send two emails. (see pictures below) Another part of the project was to find an article about secure emails.

In this article (see link) it discusses how an employee of the NSA used secure emails to send information to a reporter. So it demonstrates how even when a company or the government agency has secured emails, that there are ways around it. The reporter and NSA source purchased premium Hushmail accounts that allowed the users to send and recieve emails without disclosing the sender or recipient's identity. The Justice Department states that the NSA employee volunteered to disclose classified information about the NSA that he was not authorized to possess or disclose. How does a company protect from this? The decision of the Obama's administration to prosecute might have an impact on whistleblowers but what kind of impact does it have on keeping information from "leaking" out.

If I receive a reply on the mistake I made I will update my blog. I thought it might be best to turn in the project and take a hit on a few points for having the wrong subject than taking 25% for being late.

To make it worse I fell asleep and just woke up at 12:35am!!!!

Week 14 - Muddy

This week left me totally CONFUSED!!!! I think this was on of the most difficult topics for me. Again (notice past blogs) I have confusion on storage and space and memory!!!!!! This week the discussion touched on RAID (Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks). (Yes it's like Chinese to me again...........) What I do know that its nothing like that red spray can........

I went on to look it up on the Internet to see if I got a better understanding of the concept but I think I am more perplexed than when I started the lectures this week. Wikepedia states that RAID distributes data across multiple disks, but the array is seen by the operating system and the user as one single disk. It also discussed "mirroring" which the writing of identical data to more than one disk (easy to understand... ). Another term was striping that is the splitting of data across more than one disk.

Week 13 - Clear

Prior to reading this chapter I thought that everyone who accessed computers illegally were hackers. That was an incorrect thought. A hacker is a person who breaks into a computer but does not intend harm. They usually do it for fun and curiosity. Unlike a hacker, the cracker, (sometimes called a black hat hacker) breaks into computers or networks to create havoc; destroy files, vandalism, credit card fraud, or other types of illegal activities. Another is script kiddie, they are usually the outcast of the hacker community, and they access network with prewritten hacking or cracking programs and they usually have little understanding and technical skills. The hacktivist uses website defacement to announce a political message. To the extreme hacktivism used for cyberterrorism.

So in the techie world there are social status also. I would say that hackers are on the top of the rung.

Assignment - Database project

Although I have used a Access based program that was created for my other company, this was the first time that I have used it from beginning to end for my own use. Everything we did was new to me. We had to create a table, import data, run queries and reports. In the system that we used all I ever had to do was to input information and run reports.
I can see the usefulness of Access over Excel. Due to prior experience I know that Access allows multiple users which for many companies is great. Access also allows for a larger data storage.
I found this project much harder than excel.

Week 12 - Clear

This week's subject was very clear to me. When starting my reading I was pretty clear and with the assigned reading and the lectures the topic became crystal clear. In my previous job I was the Executive Assistant to the CFO, VP of Finance and Administration. The Business Solutions and Analysis department fell under her realm. I was able to have first hand contact not only with our system analysts but with all project managers and developers. To watch as things were developed, tested and implemented was interesting. That I was able to be a tester for many of the systems that were put in place was another privilege since it enable me to be ahead of the pack when something was finally rolled out.

Extra Credit - Avatar

I had more fun than expected on this extra credit. When I first looked at which ones I would work on, "Create an Avatar" was not high on my list. I decided to open my horizons and try it out. I liked it so much that I actually went to a few of the sites to see what the avatars would look like. As you can see I like the ones that are more realistic. I found that you could get pretty close to your own look if you wanted to play more. I really did like that I was able to pick and choose the clothes on the avatar on the left. I was able to have the dog in the picture to represent my doxies (they are actually that same color). All in all this was an enjoyable task. The one on the right was my first attempt.

Extra Credit - VoIP

http://C:\Documents and Settings\Jessica\Desktop\2010-04-04_2011.swf

This was my first time using Skype. I found it very interesting. I think that I will go out and by a webcam this week so that I can get more benefits out of it. The friend that I was having the conversation with as been hounding me for years to do this for my long distance calls. My parents retired in Panama City, Panama and our international calling has been quite high at times. My father and I will be the ones using it the most. He and I use instant messaging every day to chat even for five minutes. My mother on the other hand might now like it. I think she might if she gets to see me. I talk to my mother everyday via telephone. Here in Miami there are alot of phone cards to Central and South America which make it very cheap to stay in touch. I think that I needed to take the headphones off since I just noticed that you can only hear my side of the conversation although you can tell I was on a call. Also I am not able to upload the recording since its in shockwave format. I will try to upload to e-learning site.

Week 11 - Clear

This week the concept was clear to me. As our notes state database is an organized collection of related information. The way information is organized is something that I enjoyed. I am all about organization and making my life easier. My previous workplace actually used an Access based program to maintain all information on loans and properties. As the company grew and they bought into more commercial mortgage backed securities the need for this program became greater. It permitted all departments to see the same information on a loan or a deal. It also allowed for information to be uploaded and all departments would have access instantly. Right now I say I am clear but as I work on the project I am sure that things are going to get muddy!

Week 10 - Muddy

This week's information was way too technical for me. All that information left me more confused than when I started the lectures. Again I am finding it difficult to wrap myself around the concept of speed. Now we are discussing "bits" over "bytes". Researching on the internet I found that a bit is the smallest unit of information and the largest unit of information a computer can manipulate. Bytes (bps) are measures of speed. Then later I read a byte is a sequence of bits; usually eight bits equal one byte. It's all Chinese to me, actually I think that learning Chinese would be easier for me!!!

Excel Project

This project was divided into two parts for me. The easy and routine part and the NEW and learning part. The first part of the project was to format and manipulate the raw data. This section was the easiest part of the project. I have worked with Excel and have taken various courses on working with Excel. The general formatting of the sheet was very easy. The manipulating of the data was a higher degree of difficulty but nothing that I found very hard. Working with equations is something I had to do almost daily in my previous job.

The second section of the project was to create two pivot tables. Although this topic has been covered in most of the Excel courses that I have taken, I feel that if you don't put this knowledge to practice you forget what you have learned. The first section I completed in much less than an hour. Creating the pivot tables took me more time. I encountered difficulties while working on the first pivot table. I keep looking at my numbers and they didn't look correct. I went round and round until I finally realized that I had to change it from sum to count. After that the second table was easier and quicker to complete.

Week 8-9: Clear

This week was very clear for me. I have been working with Excel for years. The first six videos were pretty elementary for me. What I found interesting was the videos on the pivot tables. The videos were easy to follow and the explanations were good. In my previous job I charged with first taking the E-learning classes provided by Microsoft for the Microsoft Office package then being the on site contact person for the E-learning training program. Our company moved to this format to improve the training that employees received for the Office package. There were pros and cons to this system depending on how you preferred to learn. Obviously for someone like me taking the E-learning classes was much more convenient. It allowed me to take it during my down time at the office and I didn't miss a day of work going to a site to take the class. I was able to go a my own personal pace which often it was faster than the others in the class and I would get frustrated because so much time would be spent on elementary topics instead of things like pivot tables. I was able to take almost all of the Microsoft 2007 courses. I have used excel in my work environment in various positions. I am very proficient in this program and used it greatly when working on presentations for my previous company. Since LNR deals in commercial backed securities you can see that the need to have high knowledge of Excel was needed. I would create complex graphs from the information provided to me for all the company's presentation.

Week 7 - Clear

After viewing the videos and reading the chapter, I am clear on the concept of utility programs. They are operating system programs that help manage, maintain and control computer resources. Some are built in and but you can also buy stand-alone utilities which can offer improvements to the ones included in the operating system. Utility programs help to keep your computer running at peak performance.

Some of the different utilities are: Disk storage, disk fragmentors, disk checkers, disk cleaners, disk space analyzers, disk partitions, back-up, disk compression, file managers, archive, system profilers, anti-virus, hex editors, data compression, cryptographic, launcher applications, registry cleaners, network utilities, CLI and GUI.

Project - Web 2.0

I know that I procrastinated but today I have spent the whole day trying to work with www.empressr.com and was not able to upload my presentation. I first worked in PowerPoint since the site said I would be able to upload it as if each slide was an image.
I was not able to figure it out.

Week 4 - Clear

After reading this chapter the differences in software became clear. Application software are programs that are designed to make us more productive and assist us with personal tasks.

In the my daily routine I am required to use many software applications. Without knowing it I touch on all four categories: business, graphics & media, home/personal/educational, and communications. In the business category, I am required to use Excel for spreadsheets and to work with Project to manage timeline for projects or assignments to be completed. When working on presentations and on our company directory in my previous job I was required to use many different software such as Powerpoint, Photoshop, and Illustrator. These all fall in the category of graphics & media. Daily we use our email and instant messaging to communicate through out the office and with outside vendors. And on a personal or educational basis, I use TurboTax and many others.

As I noted in a previous posting, I had not realized how much this class would add to my learning.

Week 5 - Muddy

Totally confused. I thought that I would read this chapter and have a better understanding on memory. This is not the case. Recently I have been having problems with my laptop and everyone keeps telling me that I need more memory and that this will add speed to it. So I diligently read the chapter and paid extra attention to the memory section.

I am clear on the memory size but when I got to memory type is when I became truly MUDDY.

RAM is volatile memory which means that when I turn off my computer I lose the contents. ROM on the other hand is nonvolatile and is permanent. This concept of volatile and losing the contents is murky for me. I don't understand why if I buy more RAM my computer will run quicker. Is it because RAM is the memory used to run the software on my computer and if I had more RAM this would allow the laptop to process the information at a higher speed? Totally dazed and confused!!

Searching online I see that its quite easy to purchase the RAM and actually they say its easy to install it. (I have my doubts about that!!! I think I will just have someone from our IT department do it for me. Note this is an example of why so many people agree with the title of my blog.) The site that I went to http://www.memorystock.com/ was very easy to use. I liked that I was able to pick my specific Dell and hopefully get the appropriate RAM for my computer. In the end I think that I will just ask one of the guys in IT take a look at it and let me know what to purchase; this going through the Internet and looking for something that baffles me is too complicated.

Week 1 - Clear

I think that many people would benefit from this section. The importance of netiquette in this age of communicating via email and text is great. It is difficult to gauge an person emotion or tone since you can not hear or see them. I think that the use of emoticons is helpful but I would only use them for more laxed communications. Obviously, I would not send our CFO a message with emoticons.

I currently work in FIU and part of my job is to deal with the HR issues of all departments that fall under the CFO. I do most of my work via email for many reasons. The most important is to be covered if anything happens. During these communications I need to be clear and concise. I need to convey my tone politely.

One of the rules is that a person should try to be courteous and respectful. I not sure if its my age or that I was brought up differently but this to me is just common knowledge and should be applied at all times.

It is very irritating to receive emails from other staff members either in all caps or all smalls. In general writing in all capital letters is considered SHOUTING and is very rude. (Go back to Golden Rule - always be polite and courteous). Another peeve is when they use exclamation points for EVERY sentence.

We should always remember that the words and content we write are a representation of ourselves and that what we post on the Internet is very public and can be seen by anyone including future employers, the government and even criminals.

Week 3 - Clear - "Types of Websites"

When I signed up for this class I didn't think I would need it. I have been in the workforce for over 12 years before I decided to return to UF to complete my education. But as I go through the material I find that there is so much to learn still.

As I search the Internet for information I need for class or for work I come up with Wiki and Blogs and was not totally sure what they were. This chapter describes 12 types of websites.

When you go into Wikipedia it states that a blog is a site usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentaries and descriptions of events. Before this class I don't think I had ever read a blog or paid much attention to them. I think my very first blog and the only one I had looked at in many years was one set up by a brother of a friend. My friend had had a serious accident that left her in a coma. The blog helped us all stay up to date with our friend's progress and to know the status of the case against the drunk driver that hit her. The one thing that I realize is that by having the blog the family was able to let us all know the status of things without having to call us or have us calling them to repeat the same information over and over.

It was also interesting to learn that the "wiki" websites allow users to modify or delete information. This brings me to the question of the accuracy of some the wiki sites.

Week 2- Clear "Data/Datum singular or plural"

Being bilingual I find the quirks of the English language funny. After reading the FAQ in the text book I went on to look into this irregularity. According to Common Errors in the English Language there are several words with Latin or Greek roots whose plural forms ending in "A" are often confused for singular ones. Data is the plural form of datum. Datum is so rare now that many confuse data as the singular form. As stated in the FAQ it is now common for us to use "data" for both the plural and singular form. Other examples of this oddity are criteria and media.

I wonder how many other words do we try to make plural and are already in thier plural form. ummmmmm!

Week 2 -Muddy - No book

I just recieved my boook today. It was ordered on the 4th of January but there was some complications. I will do my best to catch up this weekend even though I know I won't get credit for the blogs that I missed.