Chapter 10 Reading Questions Pt. 2

6. Describe several types of programs that can be used for software sabotage

Viruses, worms, trojan horses, and spyware are all programs used for software sabotage.

7. What are two inherent characteristics of computers that make security so difficult?

Computers are programmed to do things and are reprogrammed. Also, if it is not programmed to protect, than the computer will not protect.

9.)Every afternoon at closing time the First Taxpayer's Bank copies all the day's accumulated transaction information from disk to tape. Why?

Just in case anything happens to the information collected in the day, to be one step ahead of viruses, computer crashes, etc.

10. In what ways can computer security protect privacy of individuals? In what ways can computer security threaten the privacy of individuals?

Computer security can be used to protect users from viruses, hackers, etc. as well as making sure information that is meant to be kept anonymous stays in check. These can also backfire on the individual with the use of fake virus protectors, and also the government- who invades our privacy to protect us.

Intellectual Property and Control

- Laptops present information to the student via internet

- All information on the student's laptop is intellectual property

- With personal laptops, students are in control of the information they would like to research, type, etc

- Depending on laptop model and internet speed, students have access with quick speeds

- Teachers can set up websites that instruct students to do their work, which they check from their laptops

~ Hamzah & Oussama

Chapter 10 Reading Questions Pt. 1

1)Key terms

- access control Software: a software that only allows users to access according to the user's needs

- antivirus:a program designed to search for virus, alert the users, and destroy the virus

- authentication mechanism: a security measure that make sure only legitimate users have access to the system by asking potential users to identify themselves

- authorization mechanism: a security measure that guarantees that users have permission to perform a particular task

- autonomous system: a complex system that can assume almost complete responsibility for a task without human input

- back up:the process of saving data- especially for data recovery

- biometric: measurements of individual body characteristics

- computer crime: an crime accomplished though knowledge or use of computer technology

- encryption: a secret numerical code that can be used to scramble network transmission

- firewall: a tool used to keep internal networks secure while enabling communication with the rest of the Internet

- hacking: electronic trespassing and vandalism

- identity theft: the crime of obtaining enough information about a person to assume his or her identity

- passwords: the most common security tool used to restrict access to a computer system

- sabotage: a malicious attack on work, tools, or business

2) Why is it hard to estimate the extent of computer crimes?

Not all computer crimes are reported to the database, so it is impossible to estimate its' extent.

3)Describe the typical computer criminal. How does he or she differ from the media stereotype.

A typical computer criminal is struggling with something, for example, financial needs. He has no criminal record and commits crime due to these struggles. The stereotypical criminal is described as a young, white, and tech-savvy.

4) What is the most common computer crime? Who commits it? What is being done to stop it?

Theft by computer is the most common computer crime. Different people are involved with it such as employees, clerks, etc. People use more secure websites and in some cases even the FBI are involved to stop it from happening.

Chapter 9 Reading Questions Pt. 2

5.Explain the relationship between the client server models and the fact that different users might experience different interfaces while accessing the same information.

One computer is the server and other are the clients. The server has complex interfaces because it serves all the clients.

6. What do email addresses and URLs have in common?
They both use a specific address

9.Why is file compression important on the Internet?
It allows for faster transferring over slow internet.

11. How does push technology differ from standard Web page delivery techniques? How is it used?
Push technology is different from the standard Web page delivery because it delivers specifically to the needs of the client.

10 Different Top-Level Domains

1) .com - Commercial - Used for all types of entities including profit and non-profit organizations

2) .org - Organization - Used mainly for non-profit organizations

3) .edu - Education - Used specifically for educational institutions

4) .biz - Business - Used for all types of entities, and a relief for .com

5) .gov - Government - For U.S governmental entities' use

6) .info - Information - Open for everybody to use

7) .mil - Military - Used specifically for the U.S military

8) .museum - Museum - Must be verified as a museum

9) .net - Network

10) .name - Name

Chapter 9 Reading Questions, 3/21/11

1. Key terms:

Packet-switching: A standard technique used to send information over the internet.A message is broken into packets that travel independently from network to network towards their common destination, where they are united.
open standards: not owned by any company
IP address: a string of 4 numbers separated by periods or dots that serves as an address for computers on the internet.
Static IP address: an address that is permanent
Dynamic IP address: address used for computers that are temporarily connected to the net, such as with dial up connection.
Next Generation Internet: refers to Internet Protocol Version 6. It solves the problem of address shortages and other improvements
multicasting: is a more efficient way for the same information to be transmitted to multiple Internet connected devices
DNS - Domain name system: A system that translates a computers numerical address into an easier to remember string of names separated by dots
domains:class of internet addresses indicated by suffixes such as .com, .org. gov.

2.Why is it hard to determine how big the Internet is?
There are many reasons why it is hard to determine how big the internet is. One, It is growing to fast
two, it is decentralized, and three It doesn't have hard boundaries.

3. Why are TCP/IP protocols so important to the functioning of the internet? What does it do?
It allows cross network communication for almost any type of computer or network by functioning as a language.

4. How does the type of Internet connection influence the things you can do on the Internet?
Internet connection and how you use it is all about speed. If you are frustrated with its slowness, then you will not use it for a very long time, as opposed to someone with fast internet who can do what he wants in no time at all.

Discussion Question: 3-16-11

Suppose you have an important message to send to a friend in another city, and you can use the telephone, email, real-time teleconference, fax, or overnight mail service. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each. See if you can think of a situation for each of the five options in which that particular option is the most appropriate choice.

All 5 of these systems used to send messages have their advantages and disadvantages. A telephone would be used when you need to tell somebody a list of things that would take too much time typing from an email. An email would be used when you want to quickly tell somebody something. A time teleconference would be used when the things you want to tell are very important, so you would want to see them. Fax is, like email, used for quick messaging and overnight mail service is used to send physical items. Disadvantages are mainly consisted of time issues, and portability.

Reading Questions Page 224-232 Part 2

1. Define Key terms
database: a collection of info stored in an organized form in a computer
table: a collection of related information
record: information related to one person, product, or event
field: A discrete chunk of info in a record
field type: the type of information a field can hold
numeric field: field that only contains numbers
date field: field that only contains date values
query: information request
select: Looking for all records that match a set of criteria
import data: to receive data in the form of text files created with word processors, spreadsheets, or other database.
query language: language used for query which is more precise than English

6) What are the advantages of personal information management softwares over paper notebook organizers? What are the disadvantages?

The advantages are that it is super fast and portable, as well as organized. There are also bonus benefits such as calendars. A disadvantage is that files can be lost due to viruses, but the advantages heavily outweigh the disadvantages.

8) How can a database be designed to reduce the likelihood of data entry errors?

Data cleansing eliminates any error that the data might have

11) Why are computers important in discussions of invasion of privacy?

Data mining techniques can be used to extract information about anyone without their knowledge/permission.

Discussion Question, 3-9-11

What have you done this week that directly or indirectly involved a database? How would your week have been different in a world without databases?

This week my involvement with databases have been mostly indirect, for in the use of them I had not explicitly recognize them as databases. This was particularly due to the fact that the databases I used during the week are part of my daily life routine. Without databases it would be extremely difficult, nearly impossible, for me to get through my day. Specifically, with my use of Google and Windows XP. Google is one of the biggest, most known databases that people use daily and I used Windows XP for managing my files and folders.

Reading Questions Page 224-232

2. What is the difference between a file manager and a database-manager system? How are they similar?

The similarity between the two is that they both manage files. The difference between the two is that a file manager allows for one user to work with only one file at a time, while a DBMS can manipulate data in a large collection of file cross referencing between files as needed. DBMS is used for complex jobs; file manager for simple tasks.

3. Describe a simple database.

A simple database is composed with and consists of tables that records data stored in specific types of fields.

4. What is a query? Give examples of the kinds of questions that might be answered with a query.

A query is an information request in database terminology. It searches specific records- for example, the average salary of a professional football player.

7. What does it mean to sort a data file?

Sorting a data file means arranging it in a specific way- this way can be done numerically or alphabetically.