NET Framework”

COBOL for Microsoft NET Framework Introduction You've probably heard some of the buzz surrounding the Microsoft .NET Framework. With that buzz have come announcements from a wide variety of language vendors indicating support for the new initiative. The questions arise: "Why is Microsoft interested in having so many languages target the new environment? Why bother with a language as old as COBOL?" The answer lies in recognizing that most businesses do not have the luxury of rewriting their large code base every time they want to extend the use of their existing applications. By supporting the new Microsoft .NET Framework, Fujitsu Software is endorsing Microsoft's philosophy that programmers want and need to be able to use the programming language best suited to their application. With an estimated 70 percent of production business applications written in COBOL, the answer to enhancing those applications lies not in throwing out the COBOL, but in finding better ways to make it do new things.

With that support, Fujitsu Software enhances the productivity of organizations that use COBOL. Not only will COBOL programmers have access to a wide variety of new technologies, including .NET class libraries and ASP+, they will be able to work seamlessly with developers of code in other languages, such as C++ and Visual Basic. Instead of having a development organization with a schism between COBOL programmers and other programmers, the new environment allows programmers to bridge the barriers using common interfaces and programming tools.

“Active Server Pages”

History

Based on the dbWeb and iBasic tools, created by Aspect Software Engineering, ASP was one of the first web application development environments that integrated web application execution directly into the web server, 9 months after the release of NeXT's (now Apple) WebObjects. This was done in order to achieve high performance compared to calling external executable programs or CGI scripts which were the most popular method for writing web applications at the time. Today there are additional platforms for web application development that are more common on other operating systems. Both JavaServer Pages and PHP are more commonly found on web servers running non-Microsoft operating systems, with PHP currently being the more common of the two. Also of note is Cold Fusion, a popular Adobe Systems platform running on several operating systems (including Microsoft servers).

Prior to Microsoft's release of ASP for IIS 3, programmers relied on IDC and HTX files combined with ODBC drivers to display and manipulate dynamic data and pages running on IIS. The basics of these file formats and structures were used, at least in part, in the implementation of the early versions of ASP.

Halcyon InstantASP (iASP) and Chili! Soft ASP is third-party products that run ASP on platforms other than the Microsoft Windows operating systems. Neither alternative to real ASP fully emulates every feature, and may require additional components with which traditional ASP has no issues, such as database connectivity. MS access database support is a particular issue on non-Windows systems.

iASP is able to use the VBScript and JScript languages unlike Chili! Soft ASP which uses JScript. Microsoft's ASP can use both and has the potential to have other languages make use of the scripting engine. iASP was written in Java, and as such will run any almost any operating system. iASP appears be no longer available or at least hard to find.

Examples of other languages available are Perl and TCL, although they are not as widely known or used for ASP scripting. There is an Apache Web server mod that runs an ASP-like Perl script language.^[1]

Chili! Soft was purchased by Sun Microsystems and later renamed "Sun ONE Active Server Pages", then later renamed to "Sun Java System Active Server Pages". Chilisoft ASP was written in C/C++ and is tied rather tightly to specific web server versions. According to Sun "Sun Java System Active Server Pages has entered its End Of Life.^[2]

“Access”

History

Access 1.1 manual cover

Access version 1.0 was released in November 1992, quickly followed in May 1993 by an Access 1.1 release to improve compatibility with other Microsoft products and include the Access Basic programming language.

Microsoft specified the minimum hardware requirements for Access v2.0: Microsoft Windows v3.0 with 4 MB of RAM required, 6 MB RAM recommended; 8 MB of available hard disk space required, 14 MB hard disk space recommended. The product was shipped on seven 1.44 MB diskettes. The manual shows a 1993 copyright date.

Originally, the software worked well with relatively small databases but testing showed some circumstances caused data corruption. For example, file sizes over 10 MB were problematic (note that most hard disks were smaller than 500 MB at the time this was in wide use), and the Getting Started manual warns about a number of circumstances where obsolete device drivers or incorrect configurations can cause data loss. With the phasing out of Windows 95, 98 and ME, improved network reliability, and Microsoft having released 8 service packs for the Jet Database Engine, the reliability of Access databases has been vastly improved in both size and number of users.

With Office 95, Microsoft Access 95 became part of the Microsoft Office Professional Suite joining Microsoft Excel, Word, and PowerPoint and transitioning from Access Basic to Visual Basic for Applications (VBA). Since then, there have been releases of Microsoft Access with each release of Office. This includes Access 97 (version 8.0), Access 2000 (version 9.0), Access 2002 (version 10.0), Access 2003 (version 11.0), and Access 2007 (version 12.0).

The native Access database format (the Jet MDB Database) has also evolved over the years. Formats include Access 1.0, 1.1, 2.0, 95, 97, 2000, and 2002-2007. The most significant transition was from the Access 97 to the Access 2000 format which was not backward compatible, and Access 2000 required the new format. Since Access 2000, all newer versions of Access support the Access 2000 format. New features were added to the Access 2002 format which can be used by Access 2002, 2003, and 2007.

In Access 2007, a new database format was introduced: ACCDB. The ACCDB supports complex data types such as multivalue and attachment fields. These new field types are essentially record sets in fields and allow the storage of multiple values in one field.

Prior to the introduction of Access, the desktop database market was dominated by Borland with their Paradox and dBase programs, and FoxPro. Microsoft Access was the first mass market database program for Windows. With the purchase of FoxPro and incorporating its Rushmore query optimization routines into Access, Microsoft Access quickly became the dominant database for Windows effectively eliminating the competition which failed to transition from the MS-DOS world[1].

Access's initial codename was Cirrus; the forms engine was called Ruby. This was before Visual Basic - Bill Gates saw the prototypes and decided that the BASIC language component should be co-developed as a separate expandable application, a project called Thunder. The two projects were developed separately as the underlying forms engines were incompatible with each other; however, these were merged together again after VBA.

Access was also the name of a communications program from Microsoft, meant to compete with ProComm and other programs. This proved a failure and was dropped.^[1] Years later, Microsoft reused the name for its database software.

Access Privileges

The primary mission of the NSU Broken Arrow Library is to fulfill the research needs of the students, faculty, and staff of Northeastern State University and affiliated Oklahoma educational institutions. The secondary mission of the NSU Broken Arrow Library is to provide research support  for members of the local community. As such, the NSU Broken Arrow library facility is open and accessible to not only members of the NSU Community, but also members of the local community who are undertaking serious research. Minors (under age 18) who wish to use the library must be accompanied and directly supervised by a responsible adult unless prior arrangements have been made. All library patrons using the library agree to the following rules and restrictions. Failure to follow library rules and restrictions may result in immediate suspension of library access privileges.
 

“Active hyperlink”

Active hyperlink

A hyperlink is considered to be an active hyperlink from the time a user presses and releases the mouse button when clicking on the hyperlink. When designing a Web page, you can choose a font color to represent active hyperlinks.

“Administrator (as an IT resource)”

What is User Management Resource Administrator

Welcome to User Management Resource Administrator (UMRA). User Management Resource Administrator (UMRA) is a comprehensive User Account Management solution that can help you to control and manage Active Directory. While extremely powerful and flexible, Active Directory can be a complex environment to manage. UMRA is an enterprise solution focused on Active Directory user account management and it provides a central point of control to manage, control and report on Active Directory user accounts. Besides Active Directory, UMRA also manages all user account resources like home- and profile directories, Exchange mailboxes, Terminal Services settings, group memberships and NTFS permissions.

UMRA supports a wide variety of functions and a number of different interfaces. Features include the creation, deletion and configuration of user accounts, mailboxes, (home) directories, groups, group memberships, permission settings and many more.

“Authentication”

Authentication is the process of determining whether someone or something is, in fact, who or what it is declared to be. In private and public computer networks (including the Internet), authentication is commonly done through the use of logon passwords. Knowledge of the password is assumed to guarantee that the user is authentic. Each user registers initially (or is registered by someone else), using an assigned or self-declared password. On each subsequent use, the user must know and use the previously declared password. The weakness in this system for transactions that are significant (such as the exchange of money) is that passwords can often be stolen, accidentally revealed, or forgotten.

For this reason, Internet business and many other transactions require a more stringent authentication process. The use of digital certificates issued and verified by a Certificate Authority (CA) as part of a public key infrastructure is considered likely to become the standard way to perform authentication on the Internet.

Logically, authentication precedes authorization (although they may often seem to be combined).

“Database administrator (DBA)”

A database administrator (DBA) is a person who is responsible for the environmental aspects of a database. The role of a database administrator has changed according to the technology of database management systems (DBMSs) as well as the needs of the owners of the databases. For example, although logical and physical database design are traditionally the duties of a database analyst or database designer, a DBA may be tasked to perform those duties.

 Duties

The duties of a database administrator vary and depend on the job description, corporate and Information Technology (IT) policies and the technical features and capabilities of the DBMS being administered. They nearly always include disaster recovery (backups and testing of backups), performance analysis and tuning, data dictionary maintenance, and some database design.

Some of the roles of the DBA may include

• Installation of new software — It is primarily the job of the DBA to install new versions of DBMS software, application software, and other software related to DBMS administration. It is important that the DBA or other IS staff members test this new software before it is moved into a production environment.

• Configuration of hardware and software with the system administrator — In many cases the system software can only be accessed by the system administrator. In this case, the DBA must work closely with the system administrator to perform software installations, and to configure hardware and software so that it functions optimally with the DBMS.

• Security administration — One of the main duties of the DBA is to monitor and administer DBMS security. This involves adding and removing users, administering quotas, auditing, and checking for security problems.

• Data analysis — The DBA will frequently be called on to analyze the data stored in the database and to make recommendations relating to performance and efficiency of that data storage. This might relate to the more effective use of indexes, enabling "Parallel Query" execution, or other DBMS specific features.

• Database design (preliminary) — The DBA is often involved at the preliminary database-design stages. Through the involvement of the DBA, many problems that might occur can be eliminated. The DBA knows the DBMS and system, can point out potential problems, and can help the development team with special performance considerations.

• Data modeling and optimization — By modeling the data, it is possible to optimize the system layouts to take the most advantage of the I/O subsystem.

• Responsible for the administration of existing enterprise databases and the analysis, design, and creation of new databases.
  • Data modeling, database optimization, understanding and implementation of schemas, and the ability to interpret and write complex SQL queries
  • Proactively monitor systems for optimum performance and capacity constraints
  • Establish standards and best practices for SQL
  • Interact with and coach developers in Structured Query Language (SQL) scripting

“Electronic commerce”

Electronic commerce, commonly known as e-commerce or eCommerce, consists of the buying and selling of products or services over electronic systems such as the Internet and other computer networks. The amount of trade conducted electronically has grown extraordinarily with wide-spread Internet usage. A wide variety of commerce is conducted in this way, spurring and drawing on innovations in electronic funds transfer, supply chain management, Internet marketing, online transaction processing, electronic data interchange (EDI), inventory management systems, and automated data collection systems. Modern electronic commerce typically uses the World Wide Web at least at some point in the transaction's lifecycle, although it can encompass a wider range of technologies such as e-mail as well.

A large percentage of electronic commerce is conducted entirely electronically for virtual items such as access to premium content on a website, but most electronic commerce involves the transportation of physical items in some way. Online retailers are sometimes known as e-tailers and online retail is sometimes known as e-tail. Almost all big retailers have electronic commerce presence on the World Wide Web.

Electronic commerce that is conducted between businesses is referred to as business-to-business or B2B. B2B can be open to all interested parties (e.g. commodity exchange) or limited to specific, pre-qualified participants (private electronic market). Electronic commerce that is conducted between businesses and consumers, on the other hand, is referred to as business-to-consumer or B2C. This is the type of electronic commerce conducted by companies such as Amazon.com.

Electronic commerce is generally considered to be the sales aspect of e-business. It also consists of the exchange of data to facilitate the financing and payment aspects of the business transactions.

“Electronic Government (e-government)”

E-Government in the Philippines:

Benchmarking Against Global Best Practices

What is e-Government?

E-Government refers to the use by government agencies of information and

Communication technologies (ICT) that have the ability to transform relations

with citizens, businesses, government employees, and other arms of government

in the delivery of services. For the World Bank, it is the use of ICT to improve the

efficiency, effectiveness, transparency, and accountability of government.4

E-Government is the use of electronic media in the facilitation of government

processes. It covers a wide range of applications making use of multi-media

broadcasting, radio networks, computer networks, mobile phone communication

technologies and other similar electronic devices.

Internal information systems of Government agencies, information kiosks,

automated telephone information services, SMS services and other systems all

comprise e-Government services. All these are applications of Information and

Communications Technologies (ICT) to improve the services of the Government

towards its primary clients: the citizens.

“Encryption”

Encryption is the conversion of data into a form, called a cipher text that cannot be easily understood by unauthorized people. Decryption is the process of converting encrypted data back into its original form, so it can be understood.

The use of encryption/decryption is as old as the art of communication. In wartime, a cipher, often incorrectly called a code, can be employed to keep the enemy from obtaining the contents of transmissions. (Technically, a code is a means of representing a signal without the intent of keeping it secret; examples are Morse code and ASCII.) Simple ciphers include the substitution of letters for numbers, the rotation of letters in the alphabet, and the "scrambling" of voice signals by inverting the sideband frequencies. More complex ciphers work according to sophisticated computer algorithms that rearrange the data bits in digital signals.

In order to easily recover the contents of an encrypted signal, the correct decryption key is required. The key is an algorithm that undoes the work of the encryption algorithm. Alternatively, a computer can be used in an attempt to break the cipher. The more complex the encryption algorithm, the more difficult it becomes to eavesdrop on the communications without access to the key.

Encryption/decryption is especially important in wireless communications. This is because wireless circuits are easier to tap than their hard-wired counterparts. Nevertheless, encryption/decryption is a good idea when carrying out any kind of sensitive transaction, such as a credit-card purchase online, or the discussion of a company secret between different departments in the organization. The stronger the cipher -- that is, the harder it is for unauthorized people to break it -- the better, in general. However, as the strength of encryption/decryption increases, so does the cost.

“Information technology (IT)”

Information technology (IT), as defined by the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA), is "the study, design, development, implementation, support or management of computer-based information systems, particularly software applications and computer hardware."^[1] IT deals with the use of electronic computers and computer software to convert, store, protect, process, transmit, and securely retrieve information.

Today, the term information technology has ballooned to encompass many aspects of computing and technology, and the term has become very recognizable. The information technology umbrella can be quite large, covering many fields. IT professionals perform a variety of duties that range from installing applications to designing complex computer networks and information databases. A few of the duties that IT professionals perform may include data management, networking, engineering computer hardware, database and software design, as well as the management and administration of entire systems.

When computer and communications technologies are combined, the result is information technology, or "InfoTech". Information Technology (IT) is a general term that describes any technology that helps to produce, manipulate, store, communicate, and/or disseminate information. Presumably, when speaking of Information Technology (IT) as a whole, it is noted that the use of computers and information are associated.

The term Information Technology (IT) is sometimes said to have been coined by Jim Dom sic of Michigan in November 1981Dom sic, who worked as a computer manager for an automotive related industry, is supposed to have created the term to modernize the outdated phrase "data processing". The Oxford English Dictionary, however, in defining information technology as "the branch of technology concerned with the dissemination, processing, and storage of information, esp. by means of computers" provides an illustrative quote from the year 1958 (Leavitt & Whisler in Harvard Business Rev. XXXVI. 41/1 "The new technology does not yet have a single established name. We shall call it information technology.") That predates the so-far unsubstantiated Dom sic coinage.

In recent years ABET and the ACM have collaborated to form accreditation and curriculum standards for degrees in Information Technology as a distinct field of study separate from both Computer Science and Information Systems.

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