Week 12: Clear

This is a chart from 2006 of where people spent their time online, it's interesting how things have changed over the last five years. The photo is provided by davemc500hats. Here is the link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/500hats/369973827/lightbox/

  This week the concept that was made clear to me was how people spend  their time on the Internet. One apparent misconception I had before seeing the info graphic, was that the majority of Internet users spend their time viewing content online, for example, YouTube clips.  I had previously believed that people spent most of their time on social networking site, especially with the rise in popularity of Twitter and Face book. I was also surprised to learn that the country that uses social networking the most is Brazil. The United States has the highest Internet population in the world, while also having the most bloggers in the world.
   Understand how people spend their time on the Internet is vital in the business environment. Having knowledge that the majority of Internet users spend their time viewing online content, your business can create videos showcasing the strengths of your company. Instead of spending unnecessarily on advertising on website, you can create your own videos pretty inexpensively to promote your business. You can also create an App for mobile phones that can give consumers more assess to your company where ever they go.
  I found an article that claims that  it is good for teenagers to spend time online. According to a study, spending time online is important for young people so they can learn the appropriate social and technical skills for the digital age. Also contained in the article is advice on staying safe online, for example, if your doing a status update on Face book then don't put your exact location. Here is a link to the article: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/jan/28/social-networking-benefits-validated/

Week 11: Clear

This graphic shows the difference between data and information. Photo provided by Jose C. Silva. Here is the link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/josecamoessilva/5836057335/lightbox/

     This week the concept that was made clear to me was that data is not the same as information. Data is just raw facts and figures. While, information uses data to answer questions and support decisions that are made. We also learned the difference between different types of databases, structured and unstructured. Structured data is well organized and easy to work with, a database is an example of structured data. Unstructured data is more difficult to work with, video is an example of unstructured data.
     Knowing the difference between types of data and knowing the different between data and information is essential in the business environment. By knowing how to use data to your advantage you will be able to deliver better information and thereby showcasing your expertise in the business environment. Once you are able to understand the difference you can then take the next step and decide what type of data your company needs. If you decide to use structured data then you need to decide what kind of database software you need.
     I found an article that does a good job of explaining the differences between data and information. This article does find one similarity between data and information: both are types of knowledge or are used to obtain knowledge. This article provides a good example of the difference a list of the seven wonders of the world would be data, but a book providing details of each wonder would be considered knowledge. Here is the link to the article: http://www.differencebetween.net/language/difference-between-data-and-information/

Database project

   One of the things I learned in the project was how to construct a professional and sophisticated looking database. The first thing I learned was creating a form that displayed the information about the current members of my gym. As a sports journalist this can be helpful if I wanted a database that determines the statistics for current Orlando Magic players, I would want to make sure that information contained only contains information on those current player who were signed before a certain date. The report layout is really useful for a boss or potential client in that it gives them the information that is of interest to them in a clear and concise format without having them look at a glorified spreadsheet which can be hard to read.
    One of the things that could have been an interesting addition to the database is a form that determines who left before October 1, 2010. I also think that report could have been formulated to determine of the members who left how many were had Family membership and how many had an Individual membership. Even though the directions did not specify this, I did decide to include a drop-down box for both gender and membership type so that the database would look more professional and also easier to use. It also eliminates any chance of misspelling a word and having the records in the database be off.

Week 10:Clear

Here is a chart on some different types of database software in the business environment. Photo courtesy of beatak.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/beatak/463648364/

    This weeks concept was focuses on teaching different aspects of database software. For my skill track I was using File Maker Pro, instead of Microsoft Access. After watching the videos and playing with some of the tools I find File Maker to be relatively easy to use. One of the best things is the validation tool, which allows you to put specific rules on a table, such as mandating that only two states like Florida and Georgia are eligible. File Maker also makes it import outside data into the program and it also is easy to manipulate the data.
      Having skills with database software is extremely important in the business environment. Database software allows you to organize information exactly the way you want it. One of the cool things you can do is when creating a form you can create a drop-down list of options, making the database look more professional. This can be incredibly helpful if you are tasked with determining FCAT scores across the state by grade year. Using reports allows you to show data in a form that is visually appealing and straight forward. You can even separate each separate part of the report on separate pages so you can make sure that the report cannot be misinterpreted.
     I found an article that helps some of the different database software programs out there. Both File Maker and Access contain the Virtual Storage Access Method, which helps accelerate access, organize, and configure data. It also contains four different types of data sets: key sequence, entry sequence, relative record, and linear. File Maker and Access are both examples of a relational database, meaning that data is broken down into different charts and columns for organizational purposes. Here is the link to the article: http://computersight.com/software/databases-and-business/

Week 9: Clear

This chart shows that Moore's Law can be applied to more than just computers. In this chart, Moore's Law is used to see cost per Genome. This photo is provided by dullhunk. Here is link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dullhunk/5473470392/

      This week the concept that was made clear to me was Moore's Law. Moore's Law stipulates that chip performance per dollar doubles every eighteen months. Meaning under Moore's Law next generation chips should be twice as fast, but cost the same as eighteen month ago. This is based on price elasticity which claims that the rate at which a product or service fluctuates when the price changes. A drop in price will result in a higher demand for a product.
      Understanding Moore's Law is important in the business environment, because it forces manager to be prepared for that next step of technology and to grab the new technology when it comes out. Also, by understanding the five waves of computing and knowing that each wave of computing goes through a ten year cycle, you can better anticipate when the next wave of technology innovation will take place. Allowing you as a manager, the opportunity to avoid staying behind the time and to move forward with your company before your competition get a handle on the ever changing wave of computing. 
      I found an article that breaks down Moore's Law in great detail. The article is pretty long, but it is divided into sections so it is easier to read about what you are interested in regarding Moore's Law. The three sections are the origins of Moore's Law, the effects of Moore's Law, and the future of Moore's Law. The most interesting section for me was the future of Moore's Law section which basically maintains that major constraints to technology would have to happen for Moore's Law to hold out. Here is the link to the article: http://arstechnica.com/hardware/news/2008/09/moore.ars/1

Excel Project

The excel project forced us to analyze and manipulate data in a way that can be useful in the business environment. The set of data that we were given was extremely useful, because it is the kind of data that could be as a sports journalist, which is my chosen profession. By using the simple max heart rate formula, I can see if the athlete's death was due to him over exerting himself on the field.
   The most fascinating function of excel is the logical test function, which helped me recognize whether the subject's highest heart rate was able to meet or exceed the target heart rate. Before this project, I had never heard of that particular function and it was very complex in comparison to the rest of the tasks that we were assigned. However, once I set the parameters for the logical test, it was immensely satisfying to simply look for "yes" or "no" as opposed to looking at numbers on the spreadsheet and possibly getting it wrong. I also like once you input a formula in a cell that you can drag the formula down through the rest of the rows as opposed to having to input the formula manually into every cell.
     The pivot tables were interesting to play with, in particular the Average Increase pivot table. Due to the fact that we had to group the ages, it was hard to find at first, but once found it made the data much easier to understand for the owner of the fitness center. This project was much more detailed oriented compared to the presentation project, in that you really had to follow the direction or your data would end up being skewed significantly. It was amazing seeing the when the Percent Increase column changed from a decimal to a percentage what a difference in made in the data.

Google +

I know exactly two people who are using Google plus. It is definitely a functional site especially with the introduction of the hangouts option, which  is basically Skype, but for multiple computers. I still prefer Facebook to Google plus, because the thought of having to create new circles/friends is a little hard especially if you have over a thousand friends. I also disagree with the poll, I find Facebook to be more user friendly. Also Facebook could easily create there own virtual hangout, there is not enough of a difference between the two social media sites for me to switch permanently to Google plus.