Tutorial 4: Cloud Computing

As we learned in one of the last lectures about virtualization, which is the abstraction of computer resources, this tutorial blog is about Cloud Computing, which is an emerging IT concept related to virtualization. 

But what is Cloud Computing about? Cloud Computing is a general term for anything that involves delivering hosted services over the Internet. It is a new supplement, consumption and delivery model for IT services based on the Internet, where Cloud Computing service provider provide IT solutions to enterprises. The user (enterprise) effectively rents time on virtual machines to run their own applications. The user does not own any computing resources and may not uses any service provider applications. It is similar to a situation whether to buy a car vs. to use a taxi.

Cloud Computing technology typically involves virtualized resources. While virtualization is about the technology used, Cloud Computing is a business model that emerged out of virtualization technology. Most Cloud Computing solutions use nowadays virtualization to optimize resource efficiency, flexibility. and scalability. Nevertheless a cloud solution can also be implemented without virtualization, but then it will not be as efficient as using virtualized resources.

Here is a small video, explaining Cloud Computing quite good:

As we know, virtualization brings a lot of benefits, like using better your capacities (e.g. server), reducing energy costs and reducing storage costs of physical machines. So, what are the advantages for enterprises  of using Cloud Computing? And what are the disadvantages? Especially for small or medium sized companies, Cloud Computing can provide a competitive advantage. By “outsourcing” your IT needs to a cloud, enterprises can save a lot of money on their capital investments for IT. Since nterprises use kind  of  a monthly service, flexibility with clouds is high, because you can discontinue like you do with a newspaper Cloud computing is a highly automated process and no resources must be spend on IT personnel. Also, enterprises do not have to care about software or hardware updates or data security issues. Companies can focus more its core business! On the other side, high dependence on the cloud vendors and security issues, based on the vendors’ practices, might trouble firms. Also compatibility issues can arise.

As a conclusion, virtualization is a so powerful technology that even new IT business models emerge out that technology. Cloud computing presents a persuasive opportunity for consumers of information technology and producers of information services. And it is so easy to try!

References:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud_computing

http://www.ebizq.net/blogs/ebizq_forum/2010/01/how-different-is-cloud-computing-from-virtualization-and-how-similar-are-they.php

http://www.vmware.com/virtualization/

http://www.infoworld.com/d/cloud-computing/what-cloud-computing-really-means-031

Video & Pictures:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ae_DKNwK_ms&feature=related

http://www.eci.com/blog/images/06-17-10_cloud-computing_image.jpg

Secure Email Project

To get this project started, I first had to download and install Mozilla Thunderbird, which is an email client integrated in the Mozilla Suite.  I am already a user of Microsoft’s Outlook 2010, the email client combined in Microsoft Office Suite. Comparing both email clients I really have to admit that Thunderbird 3.1 is much easier to configure and also more clearer in structure than Outlook 2010. Nevertheless Outlook has much more features, e.g. a calendar.

But what are the advantages of using an email client? What I especially like about email clients is the possibility to integrate all your different email domains within one program by creating numerous accounts. Another feature, I never used so far, is that of securing emails, either by digitally signing or by encrypting emails. Unencrypted emails are like postcards that can be read by everyone who intercept it. Since privacy is getting more and more important nowadays, email encryption is of crucial matter. In the next paragraph, I will not elaborate on how to digitally sign or encrypt an email, but instead I will focus on the consequences and implications of using encryption in an enterprise.

In his paper “The strategic importance of email encryption”, the author explained risks associated with email traffic and presents ways to solve those risks. He states that encryption is increasingly recognized as the business standard for enterprise data protection, since it is the only way to protect the data itself. In today’s society, emails are a crucial business tool. Since many emails contain critical and sensitive data, data security is more and more to the fore. Not only customer specific data (e.g. bank account details), but in times of globalization and outsourcing, even firm-specific data is at risk. The author speaks not only about reputational risk, but also about regulatory pressures, operating risk associated with data breaches and costs that might arise if you fail in securing your data. The author provides suggestions about how to implement email encryption procedures. Furthermore, the author highlights additional points that are of interest, like the vendor relationship. The author concludes that IT security like email encryption is no longer just of operational importance, but of strategic. Hence, executive management is responsible for implementing security policies and procedures, and setting priorities.

Sources:

http://download.pgp.com/pdfs/Bloor-Research_Email-Encryption-Brief_071100_F.pdf

http://image.wareseeker.com/software/wii/hot/details_4d49e31b2b-mozilla-thunderbird.jpeg

How to create your own Avatar (Mangatar)

Go to the following website, http://www.faceyourmanga.com/ and start creating your Mangatar by firstly choosing your gender. The next step is about having different option of how to style your avatar. You can choose between a plenty of categories, e.g. face, eyes, ears, clothes etc. Within those categories you have again many options available. For instance in the face category you could choose between beards, sideburns, features, lines etc. Finally after you have done all your adjustments, you have to click finish and enter your email address. The Mangatar will be send to your email account within 30 minutes.

It really makes fun to play around with all the styling options, trying to make the avatar looking  as similar to you as possible. One drawback of using this website was the slow web processing. Each time you choose a new category it took some seconds after you could see the options available.

Finally, thats me:

Tutorial 3: Web 2.0 Technologies

People use the Web for different purposes; among others, getting connected by online communities and sharing information is one of them. According to the lecture, the term Web 2.0 is used to describe any technology that allows web users to create and share information, as well as, to collaborate easily with each other. There are a lot of different technologies offered by Web 2.0. The following paragraphs will introduce you to the most important types of Web 2.0 technologies: Blogs, Forums, Social networks and Wikis.

A Blog is a journal that is often authored by one person and sometimes teams. The blogger is in control of the discussion, but the audience can leave comments or questions. Mostly the blogger publishes thoughts about what he/she has experienced or learned. Usually, such blog posts are relatively short, but have enough information in it to engage the audience. There is a special form of blogging, called Micro blogging, like Twitter, where the posts are much smaller and differ in their content.

A Forum is different from a blog in that way that everyone is at an equal level, i.e. there is not only one author/author-team, but each participant can add some content or even a new topic. Usually forums are organized by topics. A special form of a forum is the Discussion forum, one like the ISM course page provides, where students can ask other students for help. It is not possible to change the edited posts of one student, but you can reply to each post, if you, for instance, know the answer to another student’s question. 

A Wiki is a web page that can be edited by many people (e.g. Wikipedia). Characteristic for each wiki is the attitude that it is open and based on collaboration. Most Wikis use special software, but you can also go to webpages like, www.wikispaces.com, and create a basic plan wiki, for free. In general, if you see a wiki post, which is to your option wrong or can be improved, you can edit it. Most times, editing rights are limited with regard to edit, change or remove material. 

A Social Network allows its members to organize around a person’s relationships or interests, rather than just focused on topics (e.g. Facebook). People in a social network are connected by a common interest and share personal information with the people they already know or those they want to meet.  

Sharing of information and collaborating by using Web 2.0 technology is nowadays so important that not only private users, but also businesses and other organizations make use of it. Therefore the term, Enterprise 2.0, emerged, which allow organizations, by using Web 2.0 technology to streamline business procedures and  to get better connected to any kind of stakeholders within that organization. Consequently, organizations can take advantage of deploying knowledge at all levels in an organization through collaboration and participation.

Sources:

Literature:

http://www.web-strategist.com/blog/2008/01/28/understanding-the-difference-between-forums-blogs-and-social-networks/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_2.0

http://ethosconsultancynz.ning.com/profiles/blogs/what-is-the-difference-between

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enterprise_2.0

Videos:

Block: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NN2I1pWXjXI

Wiki: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dnL00TdmLY

Forum: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7wFrITZ0FA

Social Network: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6a_KF7TYKVc

Images:

http://www.onlineuniversities-weblog.com/50226711/istock_5662949.jpg

http://jamiepappas.typepad.com/.a/6a01053593a874970c012875a27421970c-pi

Database Project

Since I never worked with any database software so far, this project was of great value for me. The power behind a relational database is of crucial interest for any business. I really enjoyed making my first experience with Microsoft Access.

The most difficult part of the project was to get the external data in the appropriate format without any import errors. It took me quite some time to import the “members” text file in the right format. Although I made the right adjustments, Microsoft Access had problems with importing the dates right. That’s why I changed the data types of the dates (birthday and joined date) into text data types. After everything was imported right, I used the design view to readjust the date fields in the date/time data type. I also adjusted some other fields and formatted it appropriately according to the given task. 

Switching between the design and the datasheet view is very crucial to create and maintain a good database. Personally I think that knowing how to apply the different views as a tool is one of the most important  things I learnt while doing the project. Also very important, when working with databases is the query function. Once you have a data table , query allows you to filter your data, depending of what you are searching. You have to create such queries and select what data source to use and what elements of that data source are relevant for your search. In the design view you can choose the relevant criteria. For instance, if you are looking just for a specific group in your datasheet, say just individual customer, you can let the query perform this task by going to the "Membership Type" field and in the criteria row you write “individual”. That is it. Now you can run the query, by clicking the red exclamation mark in the ribbon. Now you have only individual customer as output.

To make the data visually more attractive, Microsoft Access provides you with some nice tools, like creating a form or a report. In the ribbon, under the create tab, you can choose what to create. In principal , creatng a form or report is like creating a query, but kind of easier. For a form or report you have to select the data source (could be a table or a query) and the elements you want to include. Finally you can adjust fields and design it. While the form (new member form) is per individual, the report (recently departed members) is more like a summary, for instance for the executives. Both tools make the data more clearer.

How to improve the functionality within our member database? One way, I was thinking of ,is to improve the security of the database. Since there is customer specific data present, you have to be very sensitive to such data. That’s why I suggest securing any database like this with a password to keep customer data confident. Another issue of functionality is to create relationships between different databases. For instance, if you have a second database with all the bank details of your customers, you can connect both databases. If a customer’s contract expires, you need to stop debiting the customer’s account with the membership fees. With a relational database you can automate and simplify this process. Again, the issue of security becomes here even more important.

Sources (Image):

http://www.db-pros.com/Images/ms_access_logo.jpg

Tutorial 2: Presentation Skills

Introduction:

Nowadays, conducting presentations has become of elemental importance in almost every job. It is getting so common that you already have to do presentations as part of a job interview.  Thus, you have to convince the interviewer to get your dream job, but how? Skills in creating and designing a presentation are definetely crucial (e.g. use programs like Microsoft Power Point or Apple Key Note), but there is more to consider, namely your presentation skills, your presentation style. This tutorial will give you some insights “how to make an effective presentation”.

The Golden Rules for a “WOW” presentation

 I divided the golden rules into several rubrics to make the difference more clearer:

Content:

• Do your Homework: You need to know what you are talking about. Make some research and add additional information.
• Have an Agenda: Make the audience clear what you will talk about and what the audience can expect from you.
• Have a catchy Conclusion: Summarize in own words and be enthusiastic as you were at the beginning.
• Give room for questions: Make at the beginning of your presentation clear that there will be room for addressing questions. You can do it in between or just at the end of your presentation. It is your decision!

Design and Layout:

• Use Images where you can: Be careful with small, pixelated images! Those pictures can have an opposing effect
• Keep the Word Count low per slide: Use bullet point or key words instead of whole sentences
• Be Careful with Animations: Too many animations can make your presentation look unprofessional. Use animations only for grabbing special attention in particular situations
• Have a Consistent Layout: e.g. check for different font sizes, font styles etc.
• Avoid Clutter: let some white space open!
• Make the Text Big Enough: Ensure readability!
• Be Careful with Colorful Backgrounds. Depending on the light influence in the presentation room  the audience can not read the slides
• Use Graphs or Smart Arts to explain concepts
• Use Videos or Audios: Be careful! It should not be too long, otherwise the audience will lose attention.

Present it your Way:

• Practice: Simulate at least once your presentation at home and imagine a virtual audience. Thereby you get a feeling of the presentation flow. Practice transition from slide to slide to make the presentation liquid.
• Give the Audience enough Time to Read your Slides or Watch the Pictures: It is clear that you know the slides by heart, but the audience first to read everything.
• Smile to your Audience: You have to radiate confidence and the impression you are feeling well
• Have Eye-Contact with the Audience: Do not be shy! Eye-contact is the number 1 business rule. Demonstrate confidence!
• Be Sure to have Inflection in your Voice: It is very important to change the voice level during the presentation and not become monotonous in presenting.  “Play with your voice” to keep the audience’s attention and direct them by e.g. raising your voice to the most important points of your presentation
• Use Gesticulation and Mimic: Be as active as possible to get the attention you deserve. You should even walk around a little bit, for instance move from the right to the left side of the screen, but not to often. I recommend move 2-3 times if have an presentation of around 20 min.
• Walk Back to your Seat with a Smile: Even it was not perfect, you should show that you are satisfied with the result. Always express confidennce
• If possible: Use a Clicker, so you do not have to stand near the computer.
• Provide an Handout!

Conclusion:

Although there are some rules each presenter should give attention to, you have a lot of freedom to make your presentation unique. You should always have a good feeling with your presentation and you always should personalize your presentation. There are so many ways to differentiate your presentation from other presentations, e.g. layout, structure, presentation style.

If you really want to impress other people, e.g. your interviewer, you can make use of a new presentation paradigm that is emerging: It is called “zooming presentation”. Programs like Prezi, AHEAD or even Plugins like Plex for Microsoft Power Point are are online available. These zooming presentations are different from the tradition ones, since they are based on one infinite canvas on which all content is presented. It is like a big map you can use. You can create complex visual messages and use a nonlinear structure. Finally, check out this link to see what exactly the zooming presentation technology is about. It is very interesting.

References:

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presentation
• http://www.wikihow.com/Do-a-Presentation-in-Class
• https://elearning2.courses.ufl.edu/portal/site/9154eb6d-fdb4-4011-82c5-5b3ae4534d11/page/58a06e8d-d9f6-405b-b2b3-5847693c53c3
• http://prezi.com/
• http://jpowellgroup.com/wp-content/images/presentation-skills-coaching.jpg
• http://blogs.msdn.com/blogfiles/willy-peter_schaub/windowslivewriter/presentationskillsalachuckpart1_8f84/clipart_of_29692_smjpg_2.jpg
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