Web Application 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0

Web 1.0 , 2.0 and 3.0



Web 1.0 – That Geocities & Hotmail era was all about read-only content and static HTML websites. People preferred navigating the web through link directories of Yahoo! and dmoz.

Web 2.0 – This is about user-generated content and the read-write web. People are consuming as well as contributing information through blogs or sites like Flickr, YouTube, Digg, etc. The line dividing a consumer and content publisher is increasingly getting blurred in the Web 2.0 era.


Web 3.0 – This will be about semantic web (or the meaning of data), personalization (e.g. iGoogle), intelligent search and behavioral advertising among other things. 

What is Internet and WWW?

What is Internet?

The Internet is a massive network of networks, a networking infrastructure. It connects millions of computers together globally, forming a network in which any computer can communicate with any other computer as long as they are both connected to the Internet. Information that travels over the Internet does so via a variety of languages known as protocol.

The internet in simple terms is a network of the interlinked computer networking worldwide, which is accessible to the general public. These interconnected computers work by transmitting data through a special type of packet switching which is known as the IP or the internet protocol.

Internet is such a huge network of several different interlinked networks relating to the business, government, academic, and even smaller domestic networks, therefore internet is known as the network of all the other networks. These networks enable the internet to be used for various important functions which include the several means of communications like the file transfer, the online chat and even the sharing of the documents and web sites on the WWW, or the World Wide Web. 

What is WWW?

The World Wide Web, or simply Web, is a way of accessing information over the medium of the Internet. It is an information-sharing model that is built on top of the Internet. The Web uses the HTTP protocol, only one of the languages spoken over the Internet, to transmit data. Web services, which use HTTP to allow applications to communicate in order to exchange business logic, use the the Web to share information.

What is Database management and DBMS?

Database Management entails managing the speed and efficiency with which a database supplies answers to end user queries. Database Management tools help database administrators maintain smooth, rapid, uninterrupted access to shared databases. Database management tools can help database administrators keep vital business data protected and available to end users and applications.




 Database management involves the monitoring, administration, and maintenance of the databases and database groups in your enterprise. Enterprise Manager is the premier tool for managing your database environment.

With Enterprise Manager, you receive:

• A complete set of integrated features for managing Oracle Databases.
  
  
• Unparalleled scalability that lets you manage a single database or thousands of instances.
  
  
• An intuitive management product that leads the industry in ease of deployment and use.
  
  
  

  What is DBMS ?

  
   Stands for "Database Management System." In short, a DBMS is a database program. Technically speaking, it is a software system that uses a standard method of cataloging, retrieving, and running queries on data. The DBMS manages incoming data, organizes it, and provides ways for the data to be modified or extracted by users or other programs.
  
  
  Some DBMS examples include MySQL, PostgreSQL, Microsoft Access, SQL Server, FileMaker, Oracle, RDBMS, dBASE, Clipper, and FoxPro. Since there are so many database management systems available, it is important for there to be a way for them to communicate with each other. For this reason, most database software comes with an Open Database Connectivity (ODBC) driver that allows the database to integrate with other databases. For example, common SQL statements such as SELECT and INSERT are translated from a program's proprietary syntax into a syntax other databases can understand.

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Information System Development Methodolgies

Once you have decided on an Information system to use in an organization, to install it, and to be ready to use it, you need the help of an IS Development Methodology. This is simply a step by step guide on what steps need to be taken when installing an IS, how to take those steps and why we need top take those steps. IS development Methodology is a collection of procedures, tools and documentation aids that will help the system developers implement a new information system.

 

The reason why we need to use IS development Methodology is because it makes it easier for non-experts to follow the process and it also makes the implementation more manageable.
There is a great number of methodologies in IS development. But as discussed in our class, I will only discuss five of the most common ISD methodologies.

1. Gane and Sarsons (STRADIS) ISDM
Christ Gane and Trish Sarson introduced this in the late 1970s. This methodology involves designing a system top-down by successive refinement. First, an overall system data flow is created. Then, detailed data flows are created. Next, the details of the data structures and the process logic is determined. In this methodology, the main focus is to explain the processes of the system. And how the processes transform the data.

2. Information Engineering (IE)
his methodology takes an architectural approach to planning, analyzing, designing and implementing applications within an enterprise.

3. Jackson System Development
This methodology explains more of the features of the system to be built. It also focuses on the software life cycle of the system. JSD is a technical method which means that it gives the developer assistance in thinking about the structure of software development problem and its solution, what functions and processes the system must perform, what data it must remember, the events that trigger the running of the processes, and so on.

4. Prototyping/Iterative approach
This methodology involves pre-planning or prototyping the whole system to be built before implementing the actual process. This prototype includes the demonstration of a planned software system, its interface and input/output functionality.

5. Structured approach (SDLC)
It was agreed in class that this was the most reliable ISDM of all because of its long usage and wide popularity. This methodology is nick name as ‘waterfall’. This methodology gives a step by step approach to what needs to be done to complete the implementation of IS.This methodology can be defined as the process (as a whole) of developing system or software to meet certain requirements.

 

During this week, each group was supposed to propose an IS and an ISDM to implement the IS for AIU for student registration, hostel registration and preparation of exam slips. Our group proposed TPS for the system and SDLC for the ISDM. We proposed TPS as it was the only IS that satisfied the requirements asked for and we proposed the SDLC as it was the clearest and the most known methodology among all…… 

Challanges and Opportunities of Information System

Now that, even if we boast of how much IS has made life easier for us in dealing with information, it is no easy task to maintain a huge system as an IS. Now that almost all organizations rely on IS, they should know what are the challenges that might come their way when dealing with IS. So here are some challenges and opportunities for a firm of using Information systems.


Challenges of IS

• Cost: Maintaining an Information system could be costly and you need separate specialized staff to handle it.

• Information Overload: This is a big challenge to IS because having to manage large chunks of information in an orderly way to make it easier to retrieve data quickly can be a complex task.

• Employee mistrust: When dealing with very important and secretive information, it’s always hard to appoint trustworthy employees (who will not leak out any kind of information) to have access to the system.

• Difficult to build: It is actually difficult to organize and understand a complex information system. It might look confusing at first for those who are supposed to use it.

• Security: It’s nearly impossible to guarantee the security of all the important information entered in the system. A simple crash down in the system will mean a big loss to the company.

Opportunities of IS

• Enhanced global competitiveness: when a company starts using IS, it gets far ahead to compete globally. IS increase competition among companies worldwide.

• Supports corporate strategy: IS makes it easier for higher authorities in a company to make plans to achieve major goals in groups.

• Improve the quality of goods and services: IS can be used to identify the customer demands as guide to improving the quality of goods or services and can also simplify the product and the production process.

• Capture market opportunities: IS can be used to keep an update of how the market revolves so that it can detect and predict good opportunities for the company for the situation it is in.

• Enhance worker productivity: IS makes sure that there’s no time wasted in looking for information. By being able to locate and manage information easily, employees in an organization find more time to do more important tasks for the organization.

So here are some challenges and opportunities for an organization when it comes to handling IS. As the opportunities of the IS exceed the challenges, we can say that IS is something that’s definitely good for an organization that will help the organization to move forward much faster.

Types of Information Systems

So here are the four types of IS explained in detail.

1. Transaction Process Management (TPS) : TPS is a system that collects, stores, modifies and retrieves the transactions of an organization. It can speed up the performance of an organization. Many organizations these days heavily rely on TPS that a simple breakdown in the system will stop the business from running. Normal workers in the lower level of the organization normally operate the TPS. A very good example of the TPS is the cashier of a super market where all the simple transactions are recorded and processed.

2. Management Information System (MIS) : This system provides information about sales, inventories, and other data that will help the business to be run in an efficient and effective way. An MIS can support a business in making long term plans by providing reports based on performance analysis with feedback on all areas of the business. Apart from showing how things are going, MIS will also show why and where the performance is failing to meet the plan.

3. Decision Support System (DSS) : This system helps the organization in decision making. It makes predictions on future performance like whether or not the business will be able to achieve its goals or how much input is needed to achieve the desired results. DSS can help the business in speeding up the problem-solving process and reveal new approaches to thinking about problems and increasing performance which is exactly what businesses are looking for these days to keep ahead of competitions.

4. Executive Support System (EIS) : This is kind of a specialized form of DSS but for Executives. It supports the senior executives in making decisions by providing easy access to internal and external information relevant to meeting the strategic goals of the organization.

So these are the four types of information systems that are widely used in all levels of organizations. There will come a time when no organization will exist without the help of information systems. 

Information System

During this week, we had an overview of information systems. This is a system which helps people (normally businesses) to handle large chunks of information in a more effective, reliable way using information technology. It makes it easier to manage large amounts of information, handle complex calculations and control and monitor many simultaneous processes. Information Systems are used all around the world and there’s no company that can survive without the help of information systems.



According to Silver et-al,

“Information systems are implemented within an organization for the purpose of improving the effectiveness and efficiency of that organization. Capabilities of the information system and characteristics of the organization, its work systems, its people, and its development and implementation methodologies together determine the extent to which that purpose is achieved.”

So there are two kinds of information systems. One is the manual way which is completely outdated. No one uses it anymore so there’s obviously no point of explaining it. The second and the most popular kind of IS is the computer-based information system. This is a network of five components that are working hand in hand to satisfy a common purpose.
Here are the five basic components of a computer-based information system

1. Hardware – This refers to the computer itself. The CPU and all its support systems like input/output devices, storage devices and communication devices
2. Software – This term refers to the computer programs and the manuals that support them
3. Data – This is the basic input. The facts that the programs uses to produce the useful information.
4. Procedures – These are the policies that govern the operations of a computer system. It’s something like a manual/a supervisor for the people who are involved in running the system. In simpler terms, "Procedures are to people what software is to hardware".
5. People – Obviously, no information system can run on its own without people to operate it. This is the the most important component of an IS which mostly determines the success or failure of the information system.

A widely used example of IS is the Enterprise system which is probably used in all complex organizations. This is a package that supports handling business processes, information flows, reporting and data analytics. The subsystems under Enterprise system include, Enterprise resource planning system, Enterprise planning system, customer relationship management system and data warehousing.
There are many of these kinds of information systems which are widely used all around the world. And Information systems seems to be a demanding topic in the business world today. As the bulk of information keep adding up in every business organization, people tend to find refugee in the help of IS. 

The Differences between IT and ICT

Although they sound the same, IT and ICT have different meanings. Information technology (IT) refers to an entire industry that uses computers, networking, software and other equipment to manage information. Information and Communication technology (ICT) is applied to the academic and education side and used in places of learning, such as school, colleges and universities.

Information Technology

IT is an element of Information systems. IT is considered to be an essential in every organization. An IT department of a company is responsible of storing, processing, retrieving and protecting digital information of the company. Unlike ICT, the term IT is mostly used in industries. The influence of IT in a workplace has become so high that without IT skills, you can't even dream of being employed in any firm anywhere in the world. So what exactly is the job of an IT professional? IT professionals range of tasks vary from very simple ones like installing software to more complex ones like designing and building networks for firms and managing databases.

• Information Technology Architecture: This is a high level architecture, map or plan for the information assets in an organization. Just like an organizational chart which shows the levels and departments of employees, an IT architecture shows a map of the IT system used in a firm.

• Information Technology Infrastructure : This includes all the hardware devices and software that are used to interconnect the computer and users. The IT architecture of each firm may differ from each other. www.itlaw.wikia.com defines IT infrastructure as; "seamless fabric of interconnected computing and storage systems, mobile devices, software, wired and wireless networks, and related technologies."

Information and Communication Technology
The term ICT is mainly applied to the academic and education side and normally used in schools, colleges and universities. This mainly refers to introducing digital technologies such as computers, television or email to help individuals or organizations to use digital technologies in their work. ICT could be one subject in which the course materials or the syllabus keeps changing every year as the world of technology keeps changing and updating very fast. In simpler terms, ICT can be seen as the integration of information technology with communication technology.

The more technology keeps changing, the more we'll have to keep learning about The history of computers in ICT class. And the contents right now are too broad already. Thanks goodness I was not born years after from now............

Problems of Information Management and Possible Soloutions

There's a great inflow of information in our daily lives. If all these information are not managed or organized in a specific system, we'll have to face a lot of problems. In our ICT class during week two, the students were split into groups and each group made presentations on problems of information management and possible solutions for all those problems. I was quite shocked to see that there was a separate field for information management and some companies even separated them as information management departments. According to the presentations of my classmates, I've come up with a summary of problems related to information management and possible solutions.

So here are two common problems that arise when dealing with information management. (these two issues were my favorite during the class presentations)

• Information overload : This is when you have too much information that's simply impossible to digest. Our heads are being filled up with information from newspapers, television, blogs, websites and so on. Taking in information has become a habit for many of us. Whether the information is really useful or not doesn't matter to us anymore. We just take all the junk in as a habit and wonder why there isn't enough time left for other important work. So here are the possible solutions for information overload.

-Don't subscribe to any blog or website unless it is completely necessary.

-Don't rely on more than one source for the same kind of information.

-Have separate folders for the information you have to go through according to   priorities.

-Use filters to get rid of unnecessary information.

• Poor Information Security : There are certain information in companies that are highly important. If these information are lost or stolen, this will mean a huge loss for the company. So securing these highly important information of firms is a major responsibility. Here are some ways to keep very important, secret information in a highly secured way.

-Make sure that all the employees working in an around the firm are honest    and reliable.

-Keep an eye on outsiders who frequently visit the firm

-Limit access to sensitive information about employees only to those who are   supposed to know.

-Use encrypted software to protect customers financial information from theft  during transactions.

We spend a lot of our limited time dealing with information whether they are useful or not. Just like everything else, if we do not take control of the overflow of information and manage them in a meaningful way to save time, information even have the power to ruin our lives. So it's always better to manage information before it manages us.

The differences between Data and Information

 I had no idea that there was a big difference between data and information. Very often, I would get these two words mixed up. But now I see that there is a huge contrast in the meanings of these two words that many people probably don't know or simply ignore. If you look at the picture above, you can have a simple idea of the definitions of data and information (please ignore the two plates at the bottom if it's not related.) As you can see, data is simply the primary ingredients which have no depth or taste. And once the data / the primary ingredients are processed in a meaningful way, then you get the information, the beautiful cake that looks delicious and complete. And I'm not going to explain the next two plates as they are not related to the title (still you can have an idea).

So if you want a clearer description of the difference between data and information, then I'll explain each much further.

Data

Data are the facts and statistics collected together for reference or analysis. Data include numbers, characters, symbols, images etc., which can be processed by a computer. These should be interpreted by a human or a machine to derive the meaning. Data that's not interpreted will make no sense to a stranger. Data is something that represents the information. Data are the bits and pieces of information. If you simply look at data, it won't make sense at all unless you look at the whole information.

Information

Information is the delicious cake which is more complete than the data. To define information in a very formal way, it is knowledge derived from study, experience (by the senses), or instruction. When we give information, we are communicating intelligence (not just mere symbols or words that don't make sense). Even though many people think it's good to be updated with information, it has become a dangerous habit. Nowadays, information overload is considered to be a major problem among all age groups. Our heads are being stuffed up with information whether we like it or not.

So that's all what I know about the difference between data and information. Even though we use these two words just to mean one thing most of the time, there is a big difference in the actual meaning. Just like the difference between a dolphin and a cow.