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Role of Computer Staff
Computer operations personnel look after the hardware and the systems software that is being used, including the operating systems. Some have specialist programming skills.
The computer operators oversee the smooth running of their system, running batch jobs, loading tapes, correct paper into the printers, or overriding priorities. They carry out jobs with the aid of a job sheet which shows things like the program, the tapes or disks, the type of paper, and so on. These functions are being taken over by the computer’s operating systems, and the computer operator is becoming more concerned with monitoring and error correction.
Question 12 A computer programmer goes mad when somebody describes his job as a computer operator. Explain the difference to that “somebody” so that they do not make that mistake again. ANSWER
A network manager oversees the network, monitoring its performance, security, error detection, and so on. Networks are becoming more popular. They can be ring networks, which are several interconnected machines, each of which can be a stand-alone machine. There are also star networks where there is a central computer linked to many terminals. The terminals often cannot act as stand-alone machines, although there is no reason why a stand-alone machine cannot be plugged into a star network. Network managers are likely to be in some demand for some time to come.
Question 13 Write down two things that the network manager is responsible, explaining why these are important. ANSWER
Operations support staff are experienced operators who have gained considerable expertise and knowledge of operations and job control languages. The sorts of services they provide include:
Writing job control programs for batch systems.
Scheduling tasks to be run on the computer
Using utilities to manage disk space, delete, create, rename files, and manage disk and tape storage.
Re-running jobs that have been messed up by hardware failure. They must make sure that the job is restarted from the right point, using data that is consistent with what was processed before.
Question 14 Write down and explain two things that a computer operator should be able to do when seeking promotion to operations support. ANSWER
Question
15
Systems programmers work and maintain the operating systems of the computer, working with assemblers and high level languages that can access hardware address locations. Using languages such as C or visual basic they install new versions of the control programs to increase the efficiency. They also correct errors and plan libraries that can be used by applications programmers. The systems programmer is dealing with users who are professional data processing staff, analysts, programmers, and operations support staff.
Data preparation and data entry staff work on the data that is entered into a system. On large installations they load data onto disk or tape through a keyboard and VDU so that it can be batch-processed. They need to be able to type fast and accurately. The role has declined somewhat with on-line processing, especially as the validation programs that check for things like letter “O” instead of number “0” or 31st April, have become more sophisticated. There are still many convincing reasons for processing in batches.
Many users of on-line systems are connected to a CPU via long distance communications networks. The CPU services requests according to established procedures. However if the volume of work gets too much, the performance to the users becomes seriously degraded and the CPU efficiency falls markedly.
To counteract this, data inputs are divided into on-line that need to be dealt with immediately, and batches that can wait. The batches can be processed when there is little on-line activity.
Question 16 Complete the following table to describe the roles of the following ICT staff:
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Systems Programmer |
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The Automatic Office
Computers have taken over many of the traditional manual office activities, replacing the filing cabinets and typewriters that used to fill offices. Office work is about receiving, processing, analysing, storing, and exporting information. All of this can be done by computer using tailor made or off-the-peg software. There are PC’s in even the smallest office, and at home. Office applications include:
Word-processing of text
Databases for information storage, sorting, and retrieval
Spreadsheets for number crunching and display.
Communications with other computers and facsimile machines.
Presentations for meetings and sales.
All these applications are available in integrated suites, packages that contain any or all in any combination.
This is the most commonly used general-purpose software; it has replaced the typewriter, and is found on most PC’s. Text can be modified in many ways after typing in with the keyboard. It can be saved and retrieved at a later date. Fonts can be changed and graphics added in many packages. Word processors in the office are used for:
Standard letters
Memoranda
Reports
Newsletters
Curricula vitae
Many people find a word processor valuable. Its output can be printed onto paper, OHP film, pre-printed forms, etc.
Most word processors are nowadays WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get), so the screen tells you exactly how the hard copy (piece of paper to you) will look like. Older WP packages might display the document as plain text, with a preview facility to show the user the end-product. The features included on modern WP packages might include:
Load and save which translates non-standard document files to be translated into the current WP package. The WP can save files in non-standard formats, or formats for other WP packages. This is called importing and exporting.
Edit functions such as copy, move, cut, paste which allow for rearranging, duplicating or even deleting text once typed in.
Format tools that alter the appearance and size of the text, and the page layout.
Utilities such as spell checkers, dictionaries and thesauri.
Programmers using high level languages use cut down WP packages called text editors that have only the basic functions that allow the text to be saved in ASCII format. Normal word processors are somewhat extravagant for this task.
We have seen how a database is a package that provides lots of links between different items of information, and structures the information so that other packages can access it. It can be done manually using filing cabinets, but regular accessing of the data becomes extraordinarily tedious. A database can access information really quickly. Examples include:
Employee records
Doctor’s reception, with details of medical history, etc.
Hotel reservations
Many companies use a computerised database, including the police, hospitals, libraries, and so on. However there is data that is confidential, so it is vital that there is security. Therefore there is a design facility of authorised personnel to change and access all parts of the database. The user interface, used by the staff in the office is restricted, only being able to access the parts of the database relevant to the function of the staff that work there.
Where there is lots of number crunching to do, spreadsheets are very useful. They consist of large tables into which the data is entered in positions in the table called cells, each of which has alphanumeric coordinates, such as D5 (column D, row 5). Cells can contain:
Text such as column headings
Numerical values such as percentages scored in an exam.
Formula which is a calculation, such as total, or average.
Spreadsheets can be complicated or simple, and there are functions to help the user in their work. These require the user to place the values into the function, or even the locations of the values. The function will generate the answer and place it in a desired location. The functions can be:
Mathematical, such as square roots of a number, trigonometrical functions, etc.
Statistical, such as averages, deviations, and so on.
Logical, analysing if conditions are true or false
Dates, gaining information from the computer’s clock.
Data can be manipulated and presented as charts of different types, such as pie charts, line graphs, or histograms.
Question
17
There is no reason why the applications we have seen above cannot use separate programs, as long as each can recognise the format of the others. However, it is much more common for an integrated package to be used which has several different applications. This allows for information in one application to be merged with data in another. An example might be a mail shot to a company’s customers advertising a new product. A standard letter would be produced with the various fields in the address area arranged in a form that was compatible with the database. There would be fields left blank in the letter as well, such as the “Dear ….”
Such a letter is called a template and there are programs in the package that enable a template to be made up. Special characters are used to show the start and end of the fields, and the names within the fields will replace the field names when the letter is printed. This is called mail merging and enables hundreds of letters to be printed, each looking as if it were individually typed for the recipient.
Electronic Communication
Hard copies on paper are not always needed. A common way of communication is via electronic mail (e-mail) in which a document can be sent to another computer. It can be in the same network, with each user having their own mailbox, which is a special area designed to receive such documents. Messages remain there until the recipient chooses to access them. A local area network (LAN) is where the computers are networked in a single building or group of buildings, e.g. a university, connected by fibre optics or wire cables. Wide area networks (WAN) are where the computers are a long way apart, and have dedicated digital telephone lines or satellite links. A company with several different offices in several towns may have one of these, or the Open University.
E-mail can be sent via the ordinary telephone system to single users. The links are called gateways. Computers can also use a fax machine as a printer. Software allows the computer to access any fax machine via a fax modem, which can also store information about incoming faxes from conventional machines and store it for the recipient’s convenience.
The computer has revolutionised the workings of the modern office and reduced substantially the amount of paper used, although the paperless office, totally feasible in theory, remains a pipe dream in practice.
Question 18 Discuss whether the paperless office has arrived. ANSWER
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