Week 14: Clear

Welcome back! This week I want to talk to you about Enterprise Storage and the ways large corporations with countless terabytes (possibly even petabytes) of information record, store, maintain, and organize their data.

To start off, most large business use something called a Hierarchical Storage Management (HSM) system that takes all of their data, stores it, maintains it and organizes it for them. It does this in a number of ways. It can take old files that aren’t used and put them into less expensive storage, freeing up the more expensive storage (which is usually faster) for information that is more readily needed for the day-to-day business transactions, it can backup important data so that it won’t be lost in the event of a crash, and it can, in the long-run, SAVE YOUR BUSINESS MONEY when used correctly and efficiently to reduce the costs involved with the loss of information.

Also, to add to this vast amount of data businesses can use Storage Area Networks (SANs) to share storage. These SANs are dedicated high-speed networks, detached from general network bandwidth, used to move information between the users and the storage resource. Information that was previously shared across conventional SCSI (Small Computer System Interface) connections, can now be shared across high-speed fiber channels instantaneously! While SANs are most likely not going to replace HSMs they will absolutely aid in the way your HSM works; and how proficiently it works at that. SANs can lower total storage management costs, provide greater data security and create a faster access to higher priority data.

In general it doesn’t matter how you look at it, you wouldn’t want to be in charge of running a large corporation’s data without first learning the basics of how HSM/SANs work and their direct correlation to the running of a successful business.

Secure Email Project

NSA Whistleblower Indicted for Leaking Classified Information to Reporter

http://axisoflogic.com/artman/publish/Article_59399.shtml

The article above is a great demonstration of the power secure email has and why someone would need to encrypted emails. However, that doesn’t mean you should use it to send things not deemed acceptable. Thomas A. Drake, a National Security Agency (NSA) met with in-person and emailed hundreds of encrypted emails to an unnamed newspaper reporter about “the inner workings of the super-secret spy agency. Drake set up a free email account and then paid for a premium Hushmail account that allowed users to exchange secure emails without disclosing the sender or recipient’s identity.” He is currently being charged with 10 felonies!!!

Now, after learning how to send encrypted emails and how well they work I can see why he thought he might be able to get away with what he was doing; but that doesn’t make it right! I’m sure Mr. Drake was very well trained on the art of stealthy emails, being that he was an NSA agent, so maybe now he’ll have plenty of time to re-think ways of making his emails more secure while he sits in prison.

Database Project

First I want to start off by saying; this was a very difficult project and I ran into many problems throughout. On the other hand, I did learn A LOT about Access and see how it can be helpful in a business world. The options you have are pretty much endless and it gives you so many options for organizing, analyzing, and reviewing. Another thing I learned is that you could use this software for more than just business. It would also work for workout routines, calorie counting, and even establishing an agenda for school.

My ABSOLUTE biggest problem with using Access was the no “undo” feature. I created over five different databases in the beginning because I kept messing small things up and could not fix them. I finally started using “copy XYZ” and editing it that way so I could make a mistake and still be alright. That is the one thing I would change about the databases functionality. It may be something that after some time using the software you could adjust to it, but right off the bat it gave me problems non-stop.

Week 12: Clear

For this week’s blog I will be discussing the System Development Cycle (SDC) and the effect it can have on you as a business person. To begin, the system development cycle consists of five individual stages: (1.)Planning, (2.)Analysis, (3.)Design, (4.)Implementation, (5.)Operation, Support and Security.

In the Planning Stage of the SDC the whole object is to prioritize, organize, and establish what projects you should or should not take. You need to look at the problem from a third perspective and define what if your business needs to undertake it or not. Next is where the analysis phase comes into play. This is where you decide if the cost of taking on the project is going to be worth it through doing a preliminary analysis. If it doesn’t seem feasible or the project requires more inputs than you’ll receive in outputs, you’d abandon the project. However, if it does seem feasible you would move onto the design stage. This is the stage where you figure out how to implement the features and make your final reviews; although it takes a lot of time to do, it is well worth it. Following this is your actual implementation stage. This is where the action takes place. The four major activities in this stage are: Develop programs and documentation, install and test, train, and convert. Now once the ball has started rolling you run into the last stage; operation, support and security. This is where you maintain the project, support your employees through the change and monitor performance. And there you go, an overview of how System Development Cycles work in the business world.

Week 11: Clear

Well howdy, welcome back to my blog. Today I would like to do an overview of databases and their general functions/purposes to you as a business person.

Primarily there are two types of databases that you should be aware of. The first one is the actual database itself; this organizes information and allows you to manipulate it a variety of ways to better help you analyze what is in front of you. The second type of database is a Database Management System (DBMS); this is not necessarily a database, so to speak, but is a way of controlling the databases you have already created.

A database can be used to analyze data in a countless number of ways, whether that be comparing you to the competition, organizing the purchasing patterns of your customers, determining the market segment to sell your product to, or keeping a record of your company’s money allocations, it works off the same idea. Take a bulk of “useless” information and put it into a legible, user friendly, useful analytical form. Moreover, a database can be just as simple as an email inbox or a pharmacy’s inventory.

Now, onto the second type of database; the Database Management System. This is essentially a requirement when working with databases for large corporations or industry giants. The DBMS is used to control and maintain the databases you’ve previously developed. This software helps you to integrate and collect data that would otherwise be independent of each other. For example, imagine if all hospitals were to use one single database. All the information from each patient, their sickness, recovery methods and results from treatment could be accessed with the click of a button, giving doctors a comprehensive view of what techniques work best, what medicines may have killed someone, or how long each person took to recovery from “X” accident.

Without the use of databases and DBMS’s you wouldn’t even be able to use a search engine. Not only do databases help organize information but they are an indispensible utility to all businesspeople, doctors, teachers and the like.

Excel Project

Throughout completing the Excel project I used a few previously known concepts, however, I also learned some new important features Excel has to offer.

First off, when I started this project I had no idea the range of formulas was so vast; it really made calculations a daunting task at first. The more I looked at them and "tinkered" with them the more comfortable I got. The "if" formula, for example, was my favorite. You can saw, if X happens, then make "NO" appear, but if Y happens, make "YES" appear. It's a great feature for having your numbers turned into a form thats easier to read and analyze.

Moreover, there are also pivot table features that I didn't even know existed! Pivot tables are a great way to set up a very sophisticated, easy to use table that analyzes the data from your Excel worksheet. As you can see in the cut-out picture above it allows you to either type in your data or choose from a drop down menu.

The following project was no where near as simple a I thought it would be, but it turned out to be a great learning experience. Not only did I learn some of the more embedded features Excel had to offer, I also gained a better understanding of how Excel works and why it is so important for business owners.

Week 9: Clear

For this week’s blog I will be focusing on Excel and its many uses in the business world. Version 1 of Excel was originally released for a Macintosh in 1985, followed by a windows version in 1987. Excel is a spreadsheet application that can function in many ways, such as, a simple day-to-day planner or meticulous in depth business analysis tool with graphs, tables, and complex formulas. Before the introduction of this application, accountants, bankers, investors, and any other person, from students to corporate lords, had to write all of their numerical data on paper. Imagine if there were a calculation error or a missed entry in a multi-thousand cell excel sheet; you would have to flip page-by-page laboriously searching for the error. However, since the introduction of Microsoft Excel, you can now search an entire document instantaneously just by hitting CTRL+F (find), your calculations will be perfectly computed, and your graphs and charts (once hand written and inaccurate) will now be colorful and free of errors. Excel not only changed the way business was done, it revolutionized it by making data more accurate, easily sharable/accessible and did so in a user friendly, aesthetically pleasing format.

One of my teachers, Eric Olson, said: “To me, Excel is the Swiss Army knife of the software world. I cannot imagine having a computer without it!” I couldn’t agree more with this statement; so I decided to make a fun image below to visually illustrate the capabilities that have been jammed inside the Excel application.